Biophysical Society Bulletin | March 2021

Public Affairs

Presidential Order on Scientific Integrity On January 27, President Joe Biden issued a Memorandum Restoring Trust in Government Through Scientific Integrity and Evidence-Based Policymaking. Biden seeks to establish an administration-wide standard establishing that scientific and technological information, data, and evidence are central to the development and iterative improvement of sound policies, and to the delivery of equitable programs, across every area of government. The Memorandum builds on initiatives established under the Obama administration to: • Direct that the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Director shall ensure the highest level of integrity in all as- pects of executive branch involvement with scientific and technological processes; • Create a Task Force on Scientific Integrity to conduct a thorough review of the effectiveness of agency scientific integrity policies developed since the issuance of the Presidential Memorandum of March 9, 2009; • Establish agency scientific integrity policies to ensure all agency activities associated with scientific and technological pro- cesses are conducted in accordance with the six principles set forth in the Presidential Memorandum of March 9, 2009, and the four foundations of scientific integrity in government set forth in the Director’s Memorandum of December 17, 2010; • Publication of Scientific Integrity Policies and Ongoing Biennial Reporting via the OSTP website and social media, and • Integrate evidence-based policymaking into all agency plans for forming evidence-based policies and evidence-building plans.

Biden Opens Presidency with Science-Focused Executive Orders As part of his first official actions following the inauguration, President Biden signed 30 executive actions in January, many of which concern the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and other science-related matters: • Halt the US withdrawal from the World Health Organiza- tion and appoint Anthony Fauci as head of the US delega- tion to the organization. • Restore the National Security Council Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense to focus on do- mestic and global biological threats. • Initiate the reentry of the United States into the Paris climate agreement.

• Direct all executive departments and agencies to immedi- ately review and take appropriate action to address fed- eral regulations and other executive actions unsupported by the best available science. • Implement COVID-19 response strategy aimed at ac- celerating vaccine delivery, improving testing and data collection, and promoting mask-wearing. • Reverse executive orders concerning federal regulation, including the 2019 order directing all federal agencies to eliminate “at least one-third” of their external advisory committees. • Reverse immigration restrictions, including ending the ban on entry to the United States from specified coun- tries, which significantly affected scientists.

March 2021

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