Biophysical Netsletter - May 2014

10

BIOPHYSICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER

2014

MAY

Public Affairs

During the event, the SETworking group honoredCongresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)with theGeorgeE. Brown, Jr. Award for leadership in science, technology, andmathemat- ics onCapitolHill. Johnson, the rankingmember of theHouse Science, Space, andTechnology Committee, is an active supporter of STEM edu- cation, women in science, and federal scientific research funding. BPSSignsPositionStatements onFY2015ResearchFunding After PresidentObama releasedhis budget request for FY2015 in earlyMarch, theBiophysical Soci- ety joined other scientific organizations in letting Congress and theAdministrationknowwhat lev- els of funding are necessary to continue tomake progress in research andmaintain a competitive advantage over other nations. The Society has joinedother organizations in signing letters sent toCongress asking them to appropriate aminimumof $32billion for the National Institutes ofHealth, $7.5billion for the National Science Foundation, and$5.2billion forDepartment of EnergyOffice of Science inFY 2015. These request numbersweremade taking into consideration the financial constraintsCon- gress has placedon itself inorder to shrink the deficit aswell as the President’s request for these agencies. For theNIH request, sent by theAdHocGroup forMedical Research, the letter stated: "TheConsolidatedAppropriations Act of 2014 included awelcome andmuchneeded increase for theNational Institutes ofHealth (NIH). However, this increase didnot give back all of the funds cut by sequestration inFY2013nor did it restore the purchasing power lost over the past decade.We hope FY2014 represents a first step toward restoring our nation’s preeminence in medical research. TheAdHocGroup forMedical

BPSVisits Capitol Hill OnMarch25 and26, Biophysical Society member Vasanthi Jayaraman , theUniversity of TexasHealthScienceCenter atHoustonMedical School, joined325other scientists, engineers, and business leadersmaking visits onCapitolHill as part of the 18 th Science-Engineering-Technology Congressional VisitsDay (CVD). This annual event is sponsoredby the Science-Engineering- TechnologyWorkGroup (SET), of which the Biophysical Society is amember. The purpose of the visitswas to educateCongress about the important role federal research funding plays in innovation and competiveness; explain the harm sequestration cuts have had to researchprograms; and express support for sustained andpredictable federal funding for research. Jayaraman alsohad the opportunity to learn about the federal budget for science agencies and the appropriations process from speakers that includ- ed representatives from

theWhiteHouse, Capitol Hill, and theAmericanAs- sociation for theAdvance- ment of Science. Overall, the visiting scien- tists held1250Congres- sionalmeetings and visited the offices ofmembers of Congress from45different states. Jayaraman, along withBPS staffmembers EllenWeiss and Ellen Mackall , metwith staff in the offices of Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), andCon- gressman JohnCulberson (R-TX).

CongresswomanEddieBernice Johnson (D-TX) speaks to theCongressional Visitsparticipants after receiving the2014GeorgeE. Brown, Jr. Award for Science-Engineering-Technology Leadership.