America Competes Reauthorization Act of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Chair, in 2007, following reports that the United States could lose its competitive edge in the global economy, Congress came together on a bipartisan basis to boost federal research, spur American innovation, and maintain our strength in scientific and technological discovery. We reauthorized that bill, again on a bipartisan basis, in 2010.

Unfortunately, today we have a bill on the floor that abandons those bipartisan efforts, shortchanges critical research, and unacceptably interferes in decision-making at our scientific institutions. It makes particularly egregious cuts to climate change research and efforts to develop new energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies for a cleaner energy future. Climate change is real and we are already seeing its impacts across the country. But it also provides economic opportunity, if we invest in R&D to develop new renewable sources and efficiency technologies. This bill would jeopardize American innovation in this critical area.

Today's bill also meddles in decision-making at our federal research institutions, decreasing funding at certain directorates at the National Science Foundation and imposing new requirements in the grant-making process. Our science agencies have a robust review process in place to fund the most critical research. Politics should have no part in that process.

Unlike earlier America COMPETES bills that were built on broad consensus, HR 1806 is opposed by the vast majority of our nation's scientific community. I urge my colleagues to listen to these scientists and bring forward a bill that invests in American innovation and supports the cutting-edge research necessary to maintain our leadership in the world.

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