Subject: DC Update, News from Washington From: Sarah Walter

Subject:

From:

Date:

DC Update, News from Washington

Sarah Walter and Mary Malaspina, Michigan State University’s (MSU’s)

Washington Office

October 20, 2014

* Note: Past copies of the DC Update can be found on the Federal RelaKons secKon of the webpage for MSU’s Office of the Vice President for Governmental Affairs .

* NEWS SUMMARY

* NEWS ARTICLES OF INTEREST

NEWS SUMMARY

The Treasury Department announced on October 15 that the federal deficit has shrunk to its lowest levels in dollar terms since 2008. From Fiscal Year 2013 (FY13) to FY14 alone, the deficit fell 29 percent from $680 billion to $483 billion.

The White House has named Ron Klain, chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden from 2009 to

2011, and currently president of Case Holdings (former AOL chairman Steve Case's holding company) and general counsel of investment firm RevoluKon, as the AdministraKon's Ebola response coordinator.

Members of Congress are campaigning in their home states. They will return to Washington aber ElecKon Day.

President Obama has nominated the following individuals to posiKons in his AdministraKon:

• Michelle Lee , Deputy Under Secretary and Deputy Director of the U.S. Patent and

•

Trademark Office (USPTO), to be the Under Secretary for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO;

Dava Newman , Professor of AeronauKcs and AstronauKcs and Engineering Systems at

•

• the Massachusefs InsKtute of Technology, to be the Deputy Administrator, NaKonal

AeronauKcs and Space AdministraKon;

Deborah Phillips , Professor of Psychology and Affiliated Faculty of Georgetown

University’s Public Policy InsKtute and Co-‐Director of Georgetown’s Center for Research on

Children in the United States, to be a member of the Board of Directors of the NaKonal

Board for EducaKon Sciences;

Nancy Rodriguez , professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal JusKce at Arizona

•

State University, to be Director of the NaKonal InsKtute of JusKce at the Department of

JusKce; and

Judith Singer , the James Bryant Conant Professor of EducaKon and Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Development and Diversity at Harvard University, to be a member of the Board of Directors of the NaKonal Board for EducaKon Sciences.

NEWS ARTICLES OF INTEREST

Table of Contents

AGRICULTURE

•

HOUSE CARDINAL COULD FIND NEW OPPORTUNITY

• GAO REPORT CRITICAL OF AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT'S CLIMATE EFFORTS

BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES

•

A PAUSE IN FUNDING CERTAIN TYPES OF GAIN-‐OF-‐FUNCTION RESEARCH

•

•

NIH AND PCORI PARTNER TO SUPPORT BLOOD PRESSURE CONTROL STUDIES

DEFINING THE DUAL ROLE OF GRADUATE STUDENTS AND POSTDOCS SUPPORTED BY

•

RESEARCH GRANTS

INTERAGENCY AUTISM COORDINATING COMMITTEE CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

NSF INVITES PROPOSALS FOR EBOLA-‐RELATED FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH

•

•

•

•

WORKSHOP TO INFORM PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICES FOR EBOLA

REPUBLICANS, DEMOCRATS TRADE PUNCHES OVER CDC, NIH EBOLA FUNDING

EBOLA VACCINE WOULD LIKELY HAVE BEEN FOUND BY NOW IF NOT FOR BUDGET CUTS:

NIH DIRECTOR

EBOLA FUNDING LIKELY TO TOP LAME-‐DUCK AGENDA

•

•

•

PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD FOR HEALTHY PEOPLE 2020 OPEN THROUGH NOVEMBER 7

VETERANS AFFAIRS SECRETARY WOOING MEDICAL STUDENTS

• AFTER ELECTION 2014: BIOMEDICAL FUNDING

FEDERAL BUDGET STATUS

MCCONNELL SEEKS CLEAN SLATE FOR REPUBLICAN MAJORITY IN SENATE

•

• OMB CHIEF: NEXT BUDGET REQUEST WILL INCLUDE SEQUESTER RELIEF

HIGHER EDUCATION POLICY

•

FINAL CHANGES TO CLERY ACT

• INSIDERS SEE ALEXANDER'S INFLUENCE

A NEW KIND OF RATING SYSTEM

•

•

•

FELLOWS PROGRAM WILL MARK 50TH ANNIVERSARY; APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN FOR

2015-‐16 CLASS

COLLEGE BRINGS OPPORTUNITY, BUT PAYING FOR IT OFFERS CHALLENGES, FED CHAIR

•

SAYS

INNOVATION

TODAY: SCOTUS TAKES UP PATENT APPEALS

ASSOCIATIONS COMMENT ON REVISIONS TO USPTO GUIDANCE ON PATENTING

•

•

•

NATURAL PRODUCTS

AAU PRESIDENT'S OP-‐ED LINKS SMARTPHONE TO FEDERALLY FUNDED UNIVERSITY

RESEARCH

INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVES

ANNOUNCING USAID’S OPEN DATA POLICY

•

•

USAID SEEKING INNOVATIVE IDEAS TO PROTECT WORKERS COMBATING EBOLA

NEH: STAYING CLOSE TO HOME

•

U.S.-‐CHINA YOUNG SCIENTIST FORUM

INTERNET POLICY

• EDU GROUPS WON'T BACK DOWN ON E-‐RATE

PUBLISHERS WIN REVERSAL OF COURT RULING THAT FAVORED ‘E-‐RESERVES’ AT

•

GEORGIA STATE U.

PHYSICAL SCIENCES & ENGINEERING

•

•

NATIONAL ROBOTICS INITIATIVE (NRI)

SUSTAINING CISE RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE

•

•

ENERGY DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES $10 MILLION FOR INNOVATIVE, ENERGY-‐SAVING

LIGHTING R&D TECHNOLOGIES

ENERGY DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES UP TO $14 MILLION FOR APPLYING LANDSCAPE

•

DESIGN TO CELLULOSIC BIOENERGY

U.S. FUSION PLAN DRAWS BLISTERING CRITIQUE

NEW NASA AUTHORIZATION BILL STILL IN WORK, HOUSE COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

•

•

ORION PLANS

WHITE HOUSE ANNOUNCES NEW CLIMATE INITIATIVE

PENTAGON RELEASES CLIMATE CHANGE STRATEGY

•

RESEARCH POLICY

•

•

AAU AND COGR COMMENT ON PROPOSED RULES ON CHEMICAL FACILITY ANTI-‐

TERRORISM STANDARDS

MAJOR RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION PROGRAM (MRI)

•

•

•

•

WOLF’S RETIREMENT COULD SET OFF APPROPRIATIONS SCRAMBLE

DISPATCHES FROM A DRONE CONFERENCE -‐ COMING 'SOON' TO A FEDERAL REGISTER

NEAR YOU

INSURERS, FILMMAKERS, FOOTBALL TEAMS ALL WANT THEIR OWN DRONES

SOCIAL SCIENCES

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY

• SRCD POLICY FELLOWSHIPS FOR 2015-‐2016

NSF-‐BACKED SCIENTISTS RAISE ALARM OVER DEEPENING CONGRESSIONAL INQUIRY

•

•

•

•

•

THE GOP INTENSIFIES ITS ATTACKS ON THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

NSF: RAPID PROPOSALS SOUGHT TO ADDRESS EBOLA CRISIS

DOD: 2015 MINERVA DEADLINE EXTENDED

NATIONAL ACADEMIES SBS POLICY ROUNDTABLE SEMINAR, "STIMULATING EFFECTIVE

INNOVATION IN GOVERNMENT" -‐-‐ OCTOBER 30

STUDENT AID

•

•

NEW FODDER FOR 90/10 DEBATE

WHAT REAUTHORIZING THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT MEANS FOR STUDENTS

• PRIVATE STUDENT LOAN FLEXIBILITY

Summaries of News ArHcles of Interest

(Please click on the Title to link to the enBre arBcle.)

AGRICULTURE

HOUSE CARDINAL COULD FIND NEW OPPORTUNITY

By Philip Brasher, CQ.com

, October 14, 2014

The chairman of the House Agriculture AppropriaKons subcommifee, Robert B. Aderholt, R-‐

Ala., could find himself with an opportunity to shib chairmanships. The reKrement of Frank R.

Wolf would open up the plum chairmanship of House Commerce-‐JusKce-‐Science

AppropriaKons, reports CQ Roll Call’s Tamar Hallerman. The posiKon could be Aderholt’s for the taking. Rodney Frelinghuysen of New Jersey, the most senior Republican on the full commifee aber Chairman Harold Rogers, R-‐Ky., is widely expected to stay on as chairman of the powerful

Defense appropriaKons subcommifee. Aderholt is next in line in terms of seniority. Aderholt has made naKonal headlines with his bafle against the school nutriKon standards championed by first lady Michelle Obama, but he also has hinted that he could be open to switching subcommifees. He also has resisted the Obama administraKon’s proposals to allow more overseas purchasing of U.S. food aid. “It’s crossed my mind but I’ve not really talked to (Rogers) about it and haven’t really put a lot of thought into it just because we’re sKll a lifle ways off.

But I’m open to maybe changing, but at the same Kme I enjoy being on Ag,” Aderholt said in mid-‐September. The Agriculture panel controls funding for the Department of Agriculture

(USDA), the Food and Drug AdministraKon and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

It’s unclear who might succeed Aderholt at the Agriculture subcommifee.

* This is the complete news arKcle.

GAO REPORT CRITICAL OF AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT'S CLIMATE EFFORTS

By Georgina GusKn, CQ.com

, October 16, 2014

Farmers are unlikely to make climate-‐friendly choices on their farms unless the Agriculture

Department demonstrates the costs and benefits of those choices, a Government

Accountability Office (GAO) report released Thursday found. The report says that, while the agency has set strategic climate goals and aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon, it’s “not using its performance planning and reporKng process to provide informaKon on how it intends to accomplish this goal or to assess the status of its efforts in this area.” The White House in May released its Third NaBonal Climate Assessment , which stressed the impact that climate change and extreme weather paferns are already having on farming, with implicaKons for food security and crop yields. The GAO report found that the USDA’s goals, as outlined by strategic plans covering 2010 to 2015, and 2014 to 2018, generally align with those of the administraKon. But, according to a 1993 law, an agency’s plans are required to lay out how it will meet its goals, and conduct performance reviews to establish whether they’ve been met. “USDA has a wide-‐ranging set of climate efforts under way, but the performance measures that are part of its strategic plan do not capture the breadth of its efforts,” the report said. “Without measures to track progress on more of its climate efforts, USDA will not be able to fully assess its progress in meeKng its climate change strategic goal and provide informaKon to Congress and the public on its progress.” The report Kcks off some of the agency’s recent efforts at addressing climate change, which include sewng up seven regional climate data hubs,

a plan that was unveiled in February. GAO says the agency spent about $82 million on climate change research in 2013.


BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES

A PAUSE IN FUNDING CERTAIN TYPES OF GAIN-‐OF-‐FUNCTION RESEARCH

By Sally Rockey and Amy Paferson, Rock Talk , October 17, 2014

The White House announced today that U.S. government agencies will insKtute a pause in the funding of new “gain-‐of-‐funcKon” research on influenza, SARS, and MERS viruses that could increase the pathogenicity or transmissibility to mammals (also see NaKonal InsKtutes of Health

(NIH) GUIDE NOTICE NOTE-‐OC-‐15-‐011). During this funding pause, the government will carry out a deliberaKve process to assess the risks and benefits of such studies and will develop a new

Federal policy regarding the funding of this research. For those of you who may not be familiar with this topic, gain-‐of-‐funcKon research refers to any modificaKon of a biological agent — like viruses or bacteria — that gives it new or enhanced acKvity, such as the ability to infect a host.

NIH AND PCORI PARTNER TO SUPPORT BLOOD PRESSURE CONTROL STUDIES

PaKent-‐Centered Outcomes Research InsKtute (PCORI) October Newslefer, October 14, 2014

As part of a partnership with PCORI, the NIH has issued a NoKce of Intent to publish a Funding

Opportunity Announcement next month to support up to two paKent-‐centered clinical comparaKve effecKveness studies of ways to reduce dispariKes associated with inadequate blood pressure control. We've commifed up to $25 million to fund the studies, which will be overseen by the NaKonal Heart, Lung, and Blood InsKtute and NaKonal InsKtute of Neurological

Disorders and Stroke.


DEFINING THE DUAL ROLE OF GRADUATE STUDENTS AND POSTDOCS SUPPORTED BY

RESEARCH GRANTS

By Sally Rockey, Rock Talk , October 10, 2014

Back in 2012, I blogged about what kinds of acKviKes are allowable as part of the official duKes of postdoctoral fellows supported by NIH research grants. At the Kme, NIH received a number of inquiries asking us if certain acKviKes such as parKcipaKng in seminars, afending meeKngs, or engaging in other acKviKes designed to expand their scienKfic experience and knowledge or directly prepare postdocs for future employment could be charged to NIH grants. The confusion seemed to arise in part from the fact that postdocs on research grants are oben considered employees of their insKtuKon, and White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

federal-‐wide cost principles were somewhat ambiguous about the role of students and postdocs on research grants.

INTERAGENCY AUTISM COORDINATING COMMITTEE CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

Federal Register , October 20, 2014

The Office of the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is seeking nominaKons of individuals to serve as non-‐federal public members on the Interagency AuKsm

CoordinaKng Commifee…NominaKons are due Friday, November 14, 2014.

NSF INVITES PROPOSALS FOR EBOLA-‐RELATED FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH

NaKonal Science FoundaKon (NSF) Press Release, October 17, 2014

The NSF has issued a lefer to the scienKfic community inviKng proposals for rapid response grants for invesKgaKons related to Ebola. NSF seeks proposals for basic research to enhance understanding of Ebola and its spread; to design devices, materials and processes to detect and protect against the virus; and to improve educaKon and communicaKon about prevenKve measures.

WORKSHOP TO INFORM PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICES FOR EBOLA

NaKonal Academies News Release, October 15, 2014

As a result of the emergence of Ebola, the InsKtute of Medicine and NaKonal Research Council will host a public workshop on November 3 to discuss biomedical and public health research needed to best safeguard the U.S. public. The workshop will provide a venue to explore immediate science needs to provide the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, public health officials, health care providers, and the general public with the most up-‐to-‐date and accurate informaKon about the virus.

REPUBLICANS, DEMOCRATS TRADE PUNCHES OVER CDC, NIH EBOLA FUNDING

By Emma Dumain, CQ.com

, October 16, 2014

The House majority whip lashed out at Democrats Thursday for trying to blame Republicans for sancKoning cuts to medical research that might have helped curb the spread of Ebola in the

United States. “It’s a ludicrous afack,” Rep. Steve Scalise, R-‐La., told a small group of reporters following an Energy and Commerce subcommifee hearing on the Obama administraKon’s handling of the Ebola crisis. “You had a hearing today with a number of officials…and not one person asked for an addiKonal dime of money,” Scalise went on. “[Centers for Disease Control and PrevenKon (CDC) Director Thomas] Frieden himself has actually made public comments that he has the resources they need.” Earlier this week, Democrats on the Labor, Health and

Human Services and EducaKon AppropriaKons Subcommifee reiterated their request for

Chairman Jack Kingston, R-‐Ga., to call a hearing on what new money the CDC and NIH might

need to confront the mafer at hand. Their lefer emphasized that such hearings, even during the recess, were appropriate given the subcommifee’s jurisdicKon, and that the funding for combawng Ebola contained in the current conKnuing resoluKon might need to be re-‐upped when the stopgap spending bill expires on December 11. But Democrats couldn’t resist throwing salt in the wound: They reminded Republicans that the GOP leb town for the 7-‐week recess, “the earliest we have recessed in over 50 years,” and detailed the scope of CDC and NIH spending cuts under the GOP majority. On Thursday abernoon, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi,

D-‐Calif., joined in. “As Francis Collins, head of the NIH, said last week: ‘NIH has been working on

Ebola vaccines since 2001,”’ Pelosi said in a statement. “If we had not gone through our 10-‐year slide in research support, we probably would have had a vaccine in Kme for this that would’ve gone through clinical trials and would have been ready.” The Democrats’ line of afack hasn’t gofen much tracKon in the press. On Wednesday, the Washington Post’s “Fact Checker” blog, under the headline “The absurd claim that only Republicans are to blame for cuts to Ebola research,” gave four “Pinocchios” to the talking point. Back on Capitol Hill, Scalise said that while consKtuents in his district and other districts across the country are concerned about the

Ebola virus conKnuing to spread, “this is not a poliKcal issue.” He cauKoned against DemocraKc campaign ads that might try and make it poliKcal ahead of the midterm elecKons. In late

August, before Ebola had reached U.S. soil, DemocraKc Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas ran a spot against his challenger, Republican Rep. Tom Cofon, hammering him for his vote against a 2013 pandemic protecKon reauthorizaKon. “Tom Cofon voted against preparing America for pandemics like Ebola,” the ad’s narrator intoned. “Anyone trying to poliKcize this ought to be ashamed of themselves,” Scalise said. “And if they’re running ads trying to say something contrary to what even officials in the Obama administraKon have said now, they ought to back away from it quickly and apologize for it.” But Scalise wasn’t shy himself in poliKcizing the issue, insofar as he could take a jab at Obama. “Let’s see if the president is willing to work with us to do one now,” Scalise said on whether Congress should take a vote on a travel ban to contain the virus. “He loves to brag about how he can do things with a pen and a phone…He can approve the travel ban. Today. And we’ve called on him to do that.”


EBOLA VACCINE WOULD LIKELY HAVE BEEN FOUND BY NOW IF NOT FOR BUDGET CUTS: NIH

DIRECTOR

By Sam Stein, Huffington Post , October 12, 2014

As the federal government franKcally works to combat the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, and as it responds to a second diagnosis of the disease at home, one of the country's top health officials says a vaccine likely would have already been discovered were it not for budget cuts.

Dr. Francis Collins, the head of the NIH, said that a decade of stagnant spending has "slowed down" research on all items, including vaccinaKons for infecKous diseases. As a result, he said, the internaKonal community has been leb playing catch-‐up on a potenKally avoidable humanitarian catastrophe.

EBOLA FUNDING LIKELY TO TOP LAME-‐DUCK AGENDA

By Tamar Hallerman, CQ.com

, October 20, 2014

Ebola funding is shaping up to be a top issue for the lame duck, with the White House planning to request addiKonal funding as early as this week and the Senate AppropriaKons Commifee scheduling a recess hearing two days aber the elecKons. The Obama administraKon and

Congressional Democrats are angling to make the outbreak a defining issue for the final weeks of the 113th Congress, which could put Republicans on the spot about whether to break rigid spending caps in order to provide addiKonal dollars to fight a crisis they acknowledge is worsening. That sense of urgency was evident Monday, when Senate AppropriaKons

Chairwoman Barbara A. Mikulski, D-‐Md., announced a commifee hearing — the panel’s second in as many months — on the government’s response to the Ebola crisis on November 6, two days aber the midterm elecKons. That announcement came amid news that the White House is preparing to submit to Congress a request for addiKonal funding to fight the virus, which to date has claimed more than 4,500 lives in West Africa, according to the World Health

OrganizaKon. A DemocraKc aide said Senate AppropriaKons was told to expect a request from the administraKon as soon as this week. The staffer did not have any details on the proposal’s scope or whether it would be designated as emergency funding, which would mean that it does not have to be offset. A House GOP appropriaKons aide said the commifee had not yet received word of a supplemental request. The Office of Management and Budget on Monday pointed to remarks from White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest, who said Friday that the administraKon has “not made any decisions about whether addiKonal resources are necessary.”

Lawmakers have yet to address whether to provide addiKonal funding to most frontline agencies, including the U.S. Agency for InternaKonal Development, the NIH and the CDC, with a fresh injecKon of cash. Customs and Border ProtecKon, which is in charge of screening inbound travelers from Africa for Ebola symptoms, could also factor into a request. Jack Kingston, R-‐Ga, a senior House appropriator, predicted that Ebola vaccine development would be a potenKal target for addiKonal funding, since there are currently no proven medicaKons available for fighKng the virus. Congress last month included an addiKonal $88 million in the current conKnuing resoluKon (PL 113-‐164) to aid on-‐the-‐ground response efforts and help speed the development and manufacturing of Ebola drugs and vaccine candidates. The four congressional defense commifees also allowed $750 million in fiscal 2014 war funding to be reprogrammed earlier this month to help the Pentagon address the crisis in West Africa. However, that funding was restricted to Defense Department efforts. Omnibus Impact : A potenKal supplemental request for addiKonal Ebola funding could complicate top appropriators’ plans to negoKate a fiscal 2015 wrap-‐up omnibus in the lame duck, parKcularly if the administraKon calls for an emergency spending designaKon. Such an approach would shib some pressure off the administraKon, which has been criKcized for its handling of the crisis so far. It would also put

Republicans in a Kght spot, since they would have to decide whether to push for offsets or break discreKonary spending caps set under the December budget deal (PL 113-‐67) that many in their ranks support. GOP lawmakers in recent weeks have focused on imposing a travel ban on the three West African countries where the virus has been most concentrated, which would not be as costly to implement as other plans being floated by Democrats. Democrats, meanwhile, have highlighted the impact of sequestraKon and budget cuts on the NIH and CDC in parKcular, and have largely blamed Republicans for those cuts. “I believe the tradiKonal lines have been drawn,” Kingston, the reKring chairman of the House Labor-‐HHS-‐EducaKon

AppropriaKons Subcommifee, said in a Friday interview. “Republicans say, ‘We need a travel

ban.’ Some are saying, ‘Fire the head of the CDC.’ And Democrats are saying, ‘No, if not for sequestraKon and budget cuts, this never would have happened.’ Those are almost predictable, but sKll counterproducKve discussions.” The current CR expires on December 11, leaving a limited window of Kme to negoKate such a sprawling omnibus. However, the Kght Kmeline would also inject a fresh sense of urgency for Congress to address the crisis, even if lawmakers choose to pursue another stopgap spending measure.


PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD FOR HEALTHY PEOPLE 2020 OPEN THROUGH NOVEMBER 7

COSSA Washington Update , October 20, 2014

The HHS is soliciKng wrifen comments regarding new objecKves proposed to be added to

Healthy People 2020. The previous public comment period occurred in fall 2013. The proposed new objecKves to be included in one of the 42 exisKng Healthy People 2020 topic areas are:

•

ArthriKs, Osteoporosis, and Chronic Back CondiKons

• Early and Middle Childhood

Heart Disease and Stroke

•

•

•

Maternal, Infant, and Child Health

Tobacco Use

Healthy People 2020 also seeks suggesKons of addiKonal objecKves for consideraKon that address criKcal public health issues within the exisKng 42 topic areas of Healthy People 2020.

To parKcipate in the public comment period, visit HealthyPeople.gov

. Comments will be accepted through 5:00 p.m. ET on November 7, 2014.


VETERANS AFFAIRS SECRETARY WOOING MEDICAL STUDENTS

By Wilson Ring, Associated Press , October 13, 2014

The new secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) made an impassioned recruitment pitch to medical school and nursing students at the University of Vermont on

Monday, urging them to consider careers in the VA. It was the latest in a series of recruiKng stops VA Secretary Robert McDonald has made since he took over at the end of July with a mission to overhaul an agency beleaguered by long waits for health care for the naKon’s veterans and by workers falsifying records to cover up delays.

AFTER ELECTION 2014: BIOMEDICAL FUNDING

By Jeffrey Mervis, ScienceInsider , October 20, 2014

Biomedical lobbyists are hoping that Congress will soon give the NaKonal InsKtutes of Health

(NIH) a big budget increase, despite Kght caps that lawmakers have placed on overall federal

spending. But even if that campaign succeeds—and the odds are very long—victory could come with some undesirable side effects.

FEDERAL BUDGET STATUS

MCCONNELL SEEKS CLEAN SLATE FOR REPUBLICAN MAJORITY IN SENATE

By Alexander Bolton, The Hill , October 20, 2014

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) wants to get all must-‐pass legislaKon completed in the lame-‐duck session, so Senate Republicans would have a clean slate at the start of 2015, if they control the upper chamber. Senate GOP aides say that’s the message from the leader, who could face opposiKon from conservaKve lawmakers who want to block any nonemergency measures in the window between ElecKon Day and the start of the new

Congress in January. “We keep hearing from the leadership we’re going to clear the decks in the lame duck,” said a senior GOP aide.

OMB CHIEF: NEXT BUDGET REQUEST WILL INCLUDE SEQUESTER RELIEF

By Paul Krawzak, CQ.com

, October 15, 2014

President Barack Obama will propose sequester relief in his fiscal 2016 budget next year, with an emphasis on increasing non-‐defense discreKonary spending, a senior administraKon said

Wednesday. During a briefing on the fiscal 2014 deficit, Shaun Donovan, director of the White

House OMB, also said the 2010 health care law deserves some credit for the slowing growth of health care costs, and he blamed Republicans for standing in the way of the president’s proposals. In fiscal 2016 and beyond, Donovan said, “it’s absolutely criKcal on the non-‐defense side that we conKnue to make progress against sequestraKon, to relieve sequestraKon, to invest, whether it’s in infrastructure, in research and development, early childhood educaKon, training.” Donovan praised the December 2013 budget deal (PL 113-‐67) reached by Senate

Budget Chairwoman Pafy Murray, D-‐Wash., and her House counterpart, Paul D. Ryan, R-‐Wis., which raised the sequester caps on discreKonary defense and non-‐defense spending in fiscal

2014 and 2015. Going further than the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has gone, Donovan asserted the health care overhaul “is contribuKng to that slower growth” in health care costs that the CBO has documented. CBO officials have said the health care law might be a factor in the trend, which began before the law was enacted, but they do not have enough evidence to be sure. Declining to comment more specifically on what would be included in Obama’s budget proposal, Donovan said “the president’s been clear, however, that we need to build on the progress that Murray-‐Ryan made and that relieving sequester in 2016 and beyond is criKcal to economic growth and lower long-‐run deficits.” He said many of the proposals offered by

Obama in the past, including an immigraKon overhaul, “are things that Republicans stood in the way of.” “We’re going to stay disciplined and keep focused on these issues,” he said.


HIGHER EDUCATION POLICY

FINAL CHANGES TO CLERY ACT

By Jake New, Inside Higher Ed , October 20, 2014

The U.S. Department of EducaKon published the final rules to carry out changes to the Clery Act today, requiring colleges and universiKes to collect and disclose crime staKsKcs about the number of reported crimes that were invesKgated and determined to be unfounded.

Previously, those incidents were not required to be reported, so the rule requires the disclosure of staKsKcs from the past three calendar years as well as those going forward.

INSIDERS SEE ALEXANDER'S INFLUENCE

By Caitlin Emma, PoliBco’s Morning EducaBon , October 15, 2014

Nearly seven out of 10 educaKon insiders think Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander will be the most influenKal senator on educaKon in the next two years. That's according to a monthly survey released by Whiteboard Advisors. If Republicans take control of the Senate, almost three quarters of those surveyed think that implementaKon of a new college raKngs plan will be less of a priority. But if the Senate turns, insiders think Republicans will focus on data privacy iniKaKves and a gainful employment regulaKon. They also think the educaKon research bill is the only piece of legislaKon with a chance of passing during the lame duck session.


A NEW KIND OF RATING SYSTEM

By Paul LeBlanc, Inside Higher Ed , October 17, 2014

Many of my fellow college presidents remain worried about the Obama AdministraKon’s proposed (and sKll being developed) raKng system for higher educaKon. While EducaKon

Department officials have been responsive and though}ul about our concerns, many among us fundamentally do not trust government to get this right. Or anyone, for that mafer.

FELLOWS PROGRAM WILL MARK 50TH ANNIVERSARY; APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN FOR

2015-‐16 CLASS

American Council on EducaKon (ACE) News Release, October 10, 2014

Senior leaders in higher educaKon who are looking for a flexible, rewarding and transformaKve professional development experience can now apply to join the 2015-‐16 class of the ACE

Fellows Program. The premier program, which has served nearly 2,000 vice presidents, deans, department chairs and faculty leaders, will mark its 50th anniversary in 2015.

COLLEGE BRINGS OPPORTUNITY, BUT PAYING FOR IT OFFERS CHALLENGES, FED CHAIR SAYS

By Beckie Supiano, The Chronicle of Higher EducaBon, October 17, 2014

Higher educaKon is one of the “cornerstones” of economic opportunity, Janet L. Yellen, chair of the Federal Reserve Board, said on Friday in an unusual and closely watched speech about growing inequality. But her remarks, given at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, did not cast higher educaKon’s role in an enKrely favorable light. The earnings premium of a college degree has grown, Yellen said in her prepared remarks, and the “net returns for a degree are high enough that college sKll offers a considerable economic opportunity to most people.” But college prices have risen much faster than family incomes, she added.

INNOVATION

TODAY: SCOTUS TAKES UP PATENT APPEALS

By Erin Mershon, PoliBco’s Morning Tech , October 15, 2014

Supreme Court jusKces are set to weigh a wonky quesKon about patent claim construcKon this morning -‐ and tech companies like Google, Facebook and Intel will be watching closely to see whether the court takes away one of the patent system's few protecKons against so-‐called trolls. The issue at hand: whether the specialized court that hears patent appeals can weigh the original merits of some cases -‐ rather than remaining focused on weighing the lower court's ruling, the way other appeals courts must do. Tech giants, including Twifer, HP, Dell, Yahoo and eBay said earlier this year that the court's current powers are an important weapon against trolls. Tech's had a lucky streak at the court lately when it comes to patent cases -‐ but this one may be an uphill bafle. The Supreme Court has been quick to rein in the specialized patent

court -‐-‐ which doesn't bode well for tech in this case.


ASSOCIATIONS COMMENT ON REVISIONS TO USPTO GUIDANCE ON PATENTING NATURAL

PRODUCTS

AssociaBon of American UniversiBes (AAU) Weekly Wrap-‐up , October 17, 2014

A group of six higher educaKon associaKons, including AAU, submifed comments to the USPTO on October 16 regarding the agency's proposed revisions to its March Guidance on patenKng natural phenomena and products. In the new document, which supplements comments they submifed to USPTO on this issue in July, the associaKons express concern that USPTO officials have suggested at recent public events that the March Guidance might be further revised before the final version is published. Given the "profound impact" that any revised guidance would have on the life sciences community, the associaKons write, the agency should issue any newly revised guidance in drab form for public comment so that the patent community and the public can offer their views on any substanKve proposed changes. On the substance of the

guidance document, the associaKons reiterate their strong concern that the USPTO's overly broad language will impede universiKes from securing patent protecKon, hindering their ability to translate important discoveries into new, useful products. The iniKal comments on the

March Guidance were submifed on July 28 by AAU, the AssociaKon of Public and Land-‐grant

UniversiKes, the AssociaKon of University Technology Managers, and the Council on

Governmental RelaKons (COGR). The four were joined in submiwng the October 15 comments by the American Council on EducaKon and the AssociaKon of American Medical Colleges.


AAU PRESIDENT'S OP-‐ED LINKS SMARTPHONE TO FEDERALLY FUNDED UNIVERSITY RESEARCH

AAU Weekly Wrap-‐up , October 17, 2014

In an op-‐ed published on the U.S. News and World Report website on October 16, AAU

President Hunter Rawlings traces many of the technical features of today's smartphones back to their roots in federally funded university research. Dr. Rawlings notes that without the university research behind the smartphone, phones would be bulkier with bigger baferies, locaKon-‐based services would not exist, and without chips or memory, phones would be empty aluminum shells. "All of these components got their starts at research universiKes," he wrote.

The op-‐ed complements the new AAU graphic , "Your Smartphone: Powered by University

Research."


INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVES

ANNOUNCING USAID’S OPEN DATA POLICY

By Angelique Crumbly and Brandon Pustejovsky, USAID Impact Blog, October 15, 2014

I am pleased today to announce the release of USAID’s policy on Development Data, known as

Automated DirecKves System 579 (ADS 579). In an era of unprecedented openness in government, ADS 579 is USAID’s first ever open data policy, providing a framework for systemaKcally collecKng Agency-‐funded data in a central repository, structuring the data to ensure usability and making the data public, while ensuring rigorous protecKons for privacy and security.

USAID SEEKING INNOVATIVE IDEAS TO PROTECT WORKERS COMBATING EBOLA

ACE News Release, October 10, 2014

USAID has issued a challenge to innovators around the world, from scienKsts to students, to help generate ideas focused on improving the tools used by frontline healthcare workers fighKng Ebola in West Africa, with an iniKal focus on soluKons to enhance their personal

protecKve equipment. FighBng Ebola: A Grand Challenge for Development will give the global community the opportunity to share pioneering ideas that deliver pracKcal and cost-‐effecKve innovaKons to stem the spread of the disease.

NEH: STAYING CLOSE TO HOME

By Kaitlin Mulhere, Inside Higher Ed , October 20, 2014

The NaKonal Endowment for the HumaniKes (NEH) will no longer offer summer seminars or insKtutes outside of the U.S. and its territories, according to a lefer sent last month to past program directors by William Rice Craig, director of the agency's division of educaKon programs. Craig said the decision reflects "budgetary realiKes" and an effort to support programs that reach the greatest number of teachers. The announcement of the change comes just a few months aber Senator Jefferson Sessions, R-‐Ala., quesKoned the worth of the programs and described them as free vacaKons.

U.S.-‐CHINA YOUNG SCIENTIST FORUM

U.S. State Department News Release, October 17, 2104

On October 15, 10 science professionals focusing on disaster management from Chinese research and policy insKtuKons met with 10 American counterparts at the U.S. Department of

State in Washington for the Seventh U.S.-‐China Young ScienKst Forum.

INTERNET POLICY

EDU GROUPS WON'T BACK DOWN ON E-‐RATE

By Caitlin Emma, PoliBco’s Morning EducaBon , October 17, 2014

Nearly 800 state and local educaKon groups are imploring the Federal CommunicaKons

Commission to permanently increase funding for the E-‐Rate program. The groups submifed a lefer -‐ along with 19 pages of signatures -‐ to the [Federal CommunicaKon Commission] FCC early this morning. Many of them have been calling for a permanent increase to the program's

$2.4 billion funding gap since President Barack Obama first announced his ConnectED proposal in June 2013. But the FCC passed a plan earlier this summer to revamp the program and a permanent funding boost wasn't part of it, much to their disappointment. Instead, Chairman

Tom Wheeler has been asking groups about how to ensure long-‐term financial sustainability.

The groups write that without a permanent increase in funding, there's no way to ensure

sustainability, access to 21st century learning and equal access to broadband connecKvity.


PUBLISHERS WIN REVERSAL OF COURT RULING THAT FAVORED ‘E-‐RESERVES’ AT GEORGIA

STATE U.

By Jennifer Howard, The Chronicle of Higher EducaBon , October 18, 2014

How much copyrighted material can professors make available to students in online course reserves before they exceed the boundaries of educaKonal fair use? That’s the essenKal quesKon at the heart of a long-‐running copyright-‐infringement lawsuit that has pifed three

academic publishers against Georgia State University.

PHYSICAL SCIENCES & ENGINEERING

NATIONAL ROBOTICS INITIATIVE (NRI)

NSF Program SolicitaKon, November 17, 2014

The goal of the NRI is to accelerate the development and use of robots in the United States that work beside or cooperaKvely with people. InnovaKve roboKcs research and applicaKons emphasizing the realizaKon of such co-‐robots working in symbioKc relaKonships with human partners is supported by mulKple agencies of the federal government including the NSF, the

NaKonal AeronauKcs and AdministraKon (NASA), the NIH, the USDA, and the U.S. Department of Defense. The purpose of this program is the development of this next generaKon of roboKcs, to advance the capability and usability of such systems and arKfacts, and to encourage exisKng and new communiKes to focus on innovaKve applicaKon areas. It will address the enKre life cycle from fundamental research and development to manufacturing and deployment.

SUSTAINING CISE RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE

NSF Dear Colleague Lefer, October 17, 2014

Through its CISE Research Infrastructure (CRI) program (NSF 14-‐593 -‐ hfp://www.nsf.gov/ publicaKons/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf14593), the NSF Directorate for Computer and

InformaKon Science and Engineering (CISE) supports world-‐class research infrastructure enabling focused research agendas in computer and informaKon science and engineering. The

CRI program funds both the creaKon of new infrastructure as well as the enhancement of exisKng infrastructure. CISE recognizes the importance of stable community infrastructure for its researchers. With this Dear Colleague Lefer, CISE notes parKcular interest in proposals that aim to sustain exisKng community research infrastructures that have provided, and conKnue to

be of, significant value to the CISE research community .

ENERGY DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES $10 MILLION FOR INNOVATIVE, ENERGY-‐SAVING

LIGHTING R&D TECHNOLOGIES

Energy.gov

, October 17, 2014

As part of the Obama AdministraKon’s effort to cut energy waste and double energy producKvity by 2030, the Energy Department today announced $10 million to support research,

development and manufacturing of solid-‐state lighKng technologies across the country. This funding will accelerate the development of high-‐quality light-‐emiwng diode and organic light-‐ emiwng diode products with the potenKal to reduce lighKng energy use for American families and businesses by one half and enhance U.S. global compeKKveness.

ENERGY DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES UP TO $14 MILLION FOR APPLYING LANDSCAPE DESIGN

TO CELLULOSIC BIOENERGY

Energy.gov

, October 20, 2014

The Energy Department today announced up to $14 million to support landscape design approaches that maintain or enhance the environmental and socio-‐economic sustainability of cellulosic bioenergy through the improvement of feedstock producKon, logisKcs systems, and technology development. This supports the Department’s efforts to promote the commercializaKon of environmentally sustainable advanced bioenergy that reduces petroleum consumpKon and carbon emissions, as well as enhances naKonal security.

U.S. FUSION PLAN DRAWS BLISTERING CRITIQUE

By Daniel Clery, ScienceInsider , October 15, 2014

Many U.S. fusion scienKsts are blasKng a report that seeks to map out a 10-‐year strategic plan for their field, calling it “flawed,” “unsaKsfactory,” and the product of a rushed process rife with potenKal conflicts of interest. One result: Last week, most members of a 23-‐person government advisory panel had to recuse themselves from voKng on the report as a result of potenKal conflicts.

NEW NASA AUTHORIZATION BILL STILL IN WORK, HOUSE COMMITTEE QUESTIONS ORION

PLANS

By Marcia Smith, SpacePolicyOnline.com

, October 14, 2014

House Science, Space and Technology Commifee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-‐TX) said in a lefer to NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden that his commifee conKnues to work with the Senate "to develop a NASA AuthorizaKon bill this year." In that regard, he has a number of quesKons about whether NASA is complying with exisKng law to ensure Orion will be able to ferry crews to and from the InternaKonal Space StaKon.

WHITE HOUSE ANNOUNCES NEW CLIMATE INITIATIVE

American AssociaBon for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Policy Alert , October 16, 2014

Last week, the AdministraKon announced a new climate resilience iniKaKve , which includes five

ExecuKve Orders and 16 public-‐private partnerships that will focus on natural resource protecKon and investment in green infrastructure. The four major prioriKes include fostering climate resilient lands and waters; managing U.S. carbon sinks; enhancing community

preparedness; and modernizing federal programs, investments, and service delivery to improve resilience and carbon sequestraKon.


PENTAGON RELEASES CLIMATE CHANGE STRATEGY

AAAS Policy Alert , October 16, 2014

On October 13, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel addressed the Conference of Defense

Ministers of the Americas staKng that the Pentagon would be incorporaKng climate change research and assessments into its defense strategy, calling climate change a "threat mulKplier."

As part of this effort, the Department of Defense r eleased a twenty-‐page "Climate Change

AdaptaKon Roadmap," which outlines the military's strategy for addressing a range of goals. For example, the report notes that "As climate change affects the availability of food and water, human migraKon, and compeKKon for natural resources, the Department's unique capability to provide logisKcal, material, and security assistance on a massive scale or in rapid fashion may be called upon with increasing frequency." In addiKon, it notes that such condiKons "could undermine already fragile governments that are unable to respond effecKvely" and open opportuniKes for extremist ideologies.


RESEARCH POLICY

AAU AND COGR COMMENT ON PROPOSED RULES ON CHEMICAL FACILITY ANTI-‐TERRORISM

STANDARDS

AAU Weekly Wrap-‐up , October 17, 2014

AAU and the COGR have submifed comments to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in response to an advanced noKce of proposed rulemaking on the agency's Chemical Facility

AnK-‐Terrorism Standards (CFATS). The associaKons' comments primarily reiterate their view that research and teaching laboratories at nonprofit research organizaKons should be exempt from the CFATS because the standards are designed to regulate the security of high-‐risk chemical faciliKes, not universiKes. COGR and AAU note that, unlike at industrial chemical faciliKes, chemicals at universiKes are of limited quanKKes and dispersed among various laboratories, buildings, and campuses. For that reason, they note, "the risk and possibility that these chemicals could be stolen in the masses required to produce a naKonal security threat are low."


MAJOR RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION PROGRAM (MRI)

NSF Program SolicitaKon, October 20, 2014

The MRI serves to increase access to shared scienKfic and engineering instruments for research and research training in our NaKon's insKtuKons of higher educaKon, not-‐for-‐profit museums, science centers and scienKfic/engineering research organizaKons. The program provides organizaKons with opportuniKes to acquire major instrumentaKon that supports the research and research training goals of the organizaKon and that may be used by other researchers regionally or naKonally.

WOLF’S RETIREMENT COULD SET OFF APPROPRIATIONS SCRAMBLE

CQ.com

, October 14, 2014

The reKrement of Frank R. Wolf could spark a race among senior GOP appropriators for the plum posiKon heading up the House AppropriaKons subcommifee that funds law enforcement,

NASA and science programs. There is currently no guaranteed GOP heir apparent for the

Commerce-‐JusKce-‐Science Subcommifee (C-‐J-‐S) gavel held by the Virginia Republican for 10 of the last 14 years, but Robert B. Aderholt of Alabama and John Culberson of Texas appear to be the two leading candidates, CQ Roll Call’s Tamar Hallerman reports. House AppropriaKons

Chairman Harold Rogers, R-‐Ky., will not make his subcommifee recommendaKons to the House

Republican Steering Commifee unKl December or January. GOP appropriators generally — but don’t always — follow full-‐commifee seniority in making such leadership determinaKons.

Aderholt, who currently leads the Agriculture subcommifee, would have seniority over

Culberson, who holds the Military ConstrucKon-‐VA gavel. Aderholt already sits on the C-‐J-‐S subcommifee as vice chairman. In that role, he has pushed for expanding gun rights, as well as prioriKzing funding for manufacturing, NASA and the Ares rocket — an important point for his consKtuents who work at the Marshall Space Flight Center, which is just outside of his district and which makes parts for the rocket. Culberson, meanwhile, is an amateur astronomer in his spare Kme and he’s not shy about how he treasures NASA. The agency’s Johnson Space Center is near his Houston district, as are several federal research faciliKes.


DISPATCHES FROM A DRONE CONFERENCE -‐ COMING 'SOON' TO A FEDERAL REGISTER NEAR

YOU

By Erin Mershon, PoliBco’s Morning Technology , October 17, 2014

Top officials from the [Department of TransportaKon] DOT and the Federal AviaKon

AdministraKon (FAA) helped wrap up an all-‐day drone conference Thursday with a panel on the regulatory side of unmanned aircrab. DOT general counsel Kathryn Thomson wouldn't Kp her hand on the detail or date of the administraKon's drone rule. She did say, however, that it hasn't yet been sent to OMB for review but that "we hope that it will be soon." "I will tell you

it's up to the secretary, how about that?" she coyly replied when asked about the Kmeline at a

Pillsbury event. "It will take Kme and we're anxious to get the proposed rule out the door," she said later. Gerald Dillingham, director of civil aviaKon issues at the GAO, said that the upcoming open comment and potenKal for an extended review period means the rule might not be finalized unKl as late as 2017. Safe or not? RegulaKons aside, drones -‐-‐ a newer technology for the American consumer-‐at-‐large -‐ just aren't as safe as passenger and cargo planes, said John

Hickey, the FAA's deputy associate administrator for aviaKon safety. " The one thing that's not really being talked about in here is the actual technological safety of these vehicles," he said.

"They're not very good, and there's an absence of conversaKon about that." Hickey said that

"vehicles that operate in the naKonal airspace system today, they have very high levels of safety," and used some junior-‐high math (negaKve exponents, anyone?) simplified as "10 to the minus whatever" to lay out how seldom accidents occur. Commercial aviaKon is typically "10 to the minus 9," Hickey said -‐ which calculates to 0.000000001 safety incidents for each flight.

General aviaKon is about "10 to the minus 5," Hickey said. But for drones, that number is much larger: "We're seeing 10to the minus 2 on these vehicles." That's one incident for every 100 flights.


INSURERS, FILMMAKERS, FOOTBALL TEAMS ALL WANT THEIR OWN DRONES

By Rob Margefa, CQ.com

, October 15, 2014

Picture this: a major hurricane or earthquake strikes a U.S. city, resulKng in millions of dollars in damage. Before insurance companies can sefle claims for ruined cars and houses, they need damage assessments to calculate their payouts, but sending adjusters into a potenKally dangerous post-‐catastrophe zone could take weeks. How to speed that process up, for the company and the property owners? Send in the drones. The coming years likely will include the use of drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles, for commercial uses that few people expected.

While lawmakers and policy wonks have for years focused on some of the more obvious sectors of the economy that want to get their hands on unmanned aircrab, other industries also are itching to experiment with drones. "I think what we're seeing is that the imaginaKon is the boundary of what we'll see in the future with drones," said Rachel Stohl, a senior associate with the SKmson Center whose focus includes the growth of the drone market. The industry interest has meant that the manufacturers of drones aren't the only ones pushing FAA to lib its Kght hold over who can operate them in U.S. airspace. For years, the agency handed out drone operaKng permits on a case-‐by-‐case basis, mostly to law enforcement agencies and research groups. It's illegal to use drones commercially without an FAA permit and right now there are almost none for commercial operators. Personal drone use generally is allowed on an individual's own property or on the property of someone else who extends permission, but those rules vary from state to state. Drones are not allowed in U.S. airspace, which means they must be kept below a certain alKtude and out of certain areas. But in 2012, Congress gave the

FAA three years (PL 112-‐95) to come up with a plan to safely integrate commercial drones into the naKonal airspace system. The FAA thus far has staked out tesKng sites to evaluate drone safety, and last month it authorized six filmmaking companies to use unmanned aircrab. The plan is due by September 2015, although the TransportaKon Department's inspector general

says the FAA is significantly behind and may miss the deadline. One of the challenges for the

FAA's drone permiwng plans is that unlike manned aircrab, which come in standard classes and are usually used for a common set of jobs, drones can come in almost any size and the agency is just starKng to see the beginning of their potenKal applicaKons. "They are having a really hard

Kme understanding the technology," said Mary Louise Cummings, a materials science professor at Duke University. SKll, the line of industries trying to pressure the FAA to get more permissive on drones is only growing. More Efficient, Cheaper : There's a reason that companies are proposing unconvenKonal new uses for drones, according to experts. Drones come in all sizes, and many are smaller than manned aircrab, cheaper to purchase and operate and can be used in situaKons that might normally be off-‐limits because of potenKal dangers to pilots. Stohl said they're ideal for situaKons involving difficult topography or hazardous ground condiKons.

Unmanned aircrab increasingly see use in search-‐and-‐rescue situaKons and could be integrated into firefighKng operaKons, she said. The USAA occasionally uses aerial photography aber disasters, but drones wouldn't replace or enhance work the work of piloted aircrab, according to Kathleen Swain, a staff underwriter at the company and FAA-‐rated commercial pilot and flight instructor. The unmanned vehicles would be swapping in for people who would ordinarily have to do the work on foot -‐ something that was impossible, or at least cost-‐prohibiKve, to do by air unKl now. "The delays we face are gewng to the site aber a catastrophe," Swain said.

"Obviously, because of the damage, it's hard to get boots on the ground. This is more economical, it's more efficient, it's cheaper." This isn't a new effort from the insurance carrier; its been working on a tesKng proposal for the FAA since 2010. And it's not alone. "We've been talking about all these possible applicaKons for years," Cummings said. OrganizaKons represenKng agriculture, entertainment, surveying, wildlife conservaKon, the mining industry and the safety of infrastructure such as bridges and tunnels have long seen the potenKal of being able to get high-‐quality aerial imaging for relaKvely lifle money, she said. "Anywhere where you think you need to see something from high up, it’s going to be not only cheaper but safer," Cummings said. The AssociaKon for Unmanned Vehicle Systems InternaKonal, a lobbying group, has compiled a list of industries that are already trying the technology out, or considering doing so. That includes scenes shot for the movie "The Wolf of Wall Street," using drones, Conoco and Shell looking to use unmanned aircrab to search for oil off Alaska's shores, the PGA seeking permits to use drones to film some golf events and the Washington NaKonals baseball team taking spring training publicity photos with a small helicopter-‐style aircrab (the

FAA later quashed that, as the team lacked a permit). Clemson University uses a drone to take overhead video of its football pracKces and marching band formaKons. Fresno State's football program has a drone hang behind its quarterback during drills. "The vantage point you get being just behind the quarterback, but sKll raised, I think is really helping our guys have bigger vision down the field," coach Tim DeRuyter said in a press release. "We've had cameras right behind the quarterback, but it does limit the vision. So having that drone up about 10 feet above their heads, it gives them a unique perspecKve. An April lefer from the AUVSI urging the

FAA to work quickly on its upcoming rule for commercial use of small drones included co-‐signers from agricultural trade groups, including the NaKonal AssociaKon of Wheat Growers and the

NaKonal Barley Growers AssociaKon, which have expressed a keen interest in the potenKal for using drones to monitor crops, soil and water levels. But just because a drone applicaKon might seem unusual in the United States doesn't mean it's considered so worldwide, Cummings said.

The NaKonal AssociaKon of Realtors has wrifen to the FAA, pushing for the agency to move quickly on its commercial drone rule so its members could use the aircrab to capture images for

lisKngs. Cummings said real estate agents in England have already started using drones. Drone developers have for years complained that the FAA's restricKve policies have hurt their ability to innovate. Cummings said that more permissive regulaKons overseas have not only allowed the makers of the aircrab more freedom to experiment, they've allowed users to try them out in more applicaKons. "There's plenty of innovaKon," she said. "It's just been overseas. We're losing here."


SOCIAL SCIENCES

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY

NSF Program SolicitaKon, October 20, 2014

The Science, Technology, and Society (STS) program supports research that uses historical, philosophical, and social scienKfic methods to invesKgate the intellectual, material, and social facets of the scienKfic, technological, engineering and mathemaKcal (STEM) disciplines. It encompasses a broad spectrum of STS topics including interdisciplinary studies of ethics, equity, governance, and policy issues that are closely related to STEM disciplines, including medical science. The program’s review process is approximately six months. It includes appraisal of proposals by ad hoc reviewers selected for their experKse and by an advisory panel that meets twice a year. The deadlines for the submission of proposals are February 2nd for proposals to be funded as early as July, and August 3rd for proposals to be funded in or aber January. There is one excepKon: Doctoral DissertaKon Improvement Grant proposals will have only one deadline per year, August 3rd.

SRCD POLICY FELLOWSHIPS FOR 2015-‐2016

Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) Policy & Media , October 16, 2014

The SRCD is seeking applicants for SRCD Policy Fellowships for 2015-‐2016. There are two types of fellowships: Congressional and ExecuKve Branch. Both types of fellowships provide researchers with exciKng opportuniKes to come to Washington, D.C. and use their research skills in child development to inform public policy. Fellows work as resident scholars within congressional or federal agency offices. Fellowships are full-‐Kme immersion experiences and run from September 1st, 2015 through August 31st, 2016. The SRCD Office for Policy and

CommunicaKons in Washington, D.C. facilitates the fellowship experience and is available as a resource throughout the year. [ApplicaKon Deadline is December 15, 2014.]

NSF-‐BACKED SCIENTISTS RAISE ALARM OVER DEEPENING CONGRESSIONAL INQUIRY

By Paul Basken, The Chronicle of Higher EducaBon , October 16, 2014

Two years into the latest round of afacks by Congressional Republicans on federally sponsored

research, an escalaKng effort by the House science commifee to find fault with the NSF is taking a growing toll on researchers. NSF grants to some 50 professors across the country are now being invesKgated by the Republican-‐controlled commifee. More than a dozen of the researchers, in comments to The Chronicle , said they had lifle idea what the poliKcians were seeking, but warned of a dangerous precedent in what they described as a witch hunt.

THE GOP INTENSIFIES ITS ATTACKS ON THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

By Mark Strauss, io9 , October 13, 2014

Rep. Lamar Smith (R-‐TX), the Chairman of the House Science Commifee on Science, Space and

Technology has repeatedly denounced the NSF for squandering taxpayer money on frivolous research. Now he's gone a step further, demanding personal poliKcal scruKny of peer-‐reviewed research grants.

NSF: RAPID PROPOSALS SOUGHT TO ADDRESS EBOLA CRISIS


The NSF has issued a Dear Colleague Lefer requesKng research proposals "to conduct non-‐ medical, non-‐clinical care research that can be used immediately to befer understand how to model and understand the spread of Ebola, educate about prophylacKc behaviors, and encourage the development of products, processes, and learning that can address this global challenge." NSF's Rapid Response Research (RAPID) funding mechanism will be used to fund the proposals.


DOD: 2015 MINERVA DEADLINE EXTENDED


As previously reported, the Office of the Secretary of Defense within the U.S. Department of

Defense (DOD) has issued the Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for the 2015 Minerva

Research IniKaKve, DOD's signature social science research program. DOD recently extended the deadline for the 2015 compeKKon. White papers are now due November 10 and full proposals are due February 10. See the BAA for full details.


NATIONAL ACADEMIES SBS POLICY ROUNDTABLE SEMINAR, "STIMULATING EFFECTIVE

INNOVATION IN GOVERNMENT" -‐-‐ OCTOBER 30


The NaKonal Academies Policy Roundtable of the Behavioral and Social Sciences will conduct at

its next meeKng a seminar and discussion on sKmulaKng effecKve innovaKon in government.

The seminar will be held from 1:30 to 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 30, 2014, in Room 120 of the NaKonal Academy of Sciences building at 21st and ConsKtuKon Avenue, N.W. The Policy

Roundtable is chaired by David Ellwood, Dean of the Harvard Kennedy School. Presenters will include Scof Cody, Vice President, MathemaKca Policy Research; Robert Gordon, The Brookings

InsKtuKon; Evelyn M. Kappeler, Director, Office of Adolescent Health; Robert Slavin, Chairman of the Board, Success for All FoundaKon; Howard Rolston, Abt Associates; and Mark F. Testa,

School of Social Work, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. PresentaKons will focus on how innovaKons are sKmulated, how we can learn whether they produce posiKve impacts, and how to use the lessons of innovaKons to manage, reshape, and expand programs. Among the programs to be discussed are InvesKng in InnovaKon and Race to the Top in the Department of

EducaKon, Public Assistance and Child Welfare waivers and the Teen Pregnancy PrevenKon

Program in the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Supplemental NutriKon

Assistance Program in the Department of Agriculture. The seminar is open to the public, but registraKon is required. More informaKon on the Policy Roundtable is available here or from

Miron Straf at mstraf@nas.edu.


STUDENT AID

NEW FODDER FOR 90/10 DEBATE

By Michael Stra}ord, Inside Higher Ed , October 13, 2014

Twenty-‐seven for-‐profit colleges last year exceeded the cap on the share of their revenue that can come from federal student loans and grants, according to annual data released Friday by the U.S. Department of EducaKon. The colleges violated the federal threshold known as the

“90/10 rule,” which prohibits for-‐profit colleges from deriving more than 90 percent of their operaKng revenue from federal student aid money…One key issue is how the rule should account for the federal funds that for-‐profit colleges receive from veterans’ educaKonal benefits and tuiKon assistance for acKve-‐duty service-‐members.

WHAT REAUTHORIZING THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT MEANS FOR STUDENTS

By NerdScholar, USA Today , October 12, 2014

For the first Kme since the Higher EducaKon Act was introduced nearly 50 years ago, U.S. student loan debt has surpassed $1 trillion. Many students, parents and financial aid experts are worried about a looming student loan crisis…In response, U.S. lawmakers have drabed legislaKon aimed at reducing student debt, providing educaKonal resources and increasing transparency.

PRIVATE STUDENT LOAN FLEXIBILITY

By Michael Stra}ord, Inside Higher Ed , October 16, 2014

Private student lenders are not doing enough to help struggling borrowers avoid default, according to a report released Thursday by the Consumer Financial ProtecKon Bureau. That finding is part of the consumer bureau’s annual analysis of the complaints it received from the public about private student loans. The bureau reported a 38 percent increase in such

complaints over the past year.

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