How will S & T policy fare in new administration ?

Rep. George Brown (D-CA), chair of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, who narrowly won a race many expected him to lose, most likely will continue to chair the science committee. For many years he has been considered one of the most knowledgeable members of the House on science policy. His calls for priority setting, increased accountability and demonstrated social benefit from research investments have alarmed some members of the basic research community. However, the community considers him a strong congressional supporter of science and his warnings an attempt to improve science policy. Brown also has led, with mixed success, the fight against “pork” in science appropriations. Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA), chair of the House Science, Space and Technology Subcommittee on Science also was re-elected. He has proven to be an effective and well-informed chair, but given the turnover in the House and his rising political star, he may not remain active in R&D policy. Boucher also served on the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Finance, where he expressed a great deal of interest in stimulating the creation of a broadband, digital national information infrastructure. This interest has been reflected in his ongoing scrutiny of the National Science Foundation’s management of the National Research and Education Network (NREN). Actions taken this year by Boucher’s subcommittee will be particularly critical for the computing research community. The subcommittee will consider NSF’s reauthorization, a process that will help define the agency’s mission and organization for the next several years. The subcommittee will continue its oversight of the High-Performance Computing and Communications Act and conduct hearings on the future of US R&D policy, as a follow up to the full committee’s Task Force Report on the Health of the US Research Enterprise released last year [November CRN, Page 1]. The House science committee often has a heavy turnover in members because it is not viewed as a “major” committee. This year, with all the attention on high-technology, the committee possibly will attract more members. But it will never have the attraction or political power of the Energy and Commerce Committee, the Ways and Means Committee or the Appropriations Committee, which also will have openings. Unless they have specific interests and expertise in science and technology, members with seniority and influence tend to gravitate toward those major committees, particularly if they have an opportunity to chair a subcommittee. Rep. Bob Traxler (D-MI), chair of House Appropriations VA, HUD and Independent Agencies Subcommittee, retired this year and Rep. Bill Green (RNY), the ranking minority member of that subcommittee, lost his seat. Although that subcommittee made large cuts in NSF’s budget request, Traxler and Green were considered to be understanding friends of research. Rep. Louis Stokes (D-OH) is next in seniority for chair of that subcommittee. His attitude toward science and technology is not well-known.