US grant rule could hand China edge: Lawmakers

Washington, July 11 (IANS) A group of 44 California lawmakers has urged the White House budget office to withdraw a proposed federal grant rule, warning that political control over research funding could weaken American science and hand China a competitive advantage.

Senators Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren and 41 other members of the state’s congressional delegation raised the alarm in a letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought.

“The proposed rule is a form of national self-destruction,” the lawmakers wrote. “Funding reductions will seriously weaken the United States’ ability to compete with other countries, especially as China is already laying out ambitious plans to become a leader in science – particularly in space science – by 2050.”

The lawmakers said China had invested in missions to explore Neptune and return samples from Mars. They argued that the OMB proposal would give non-experts the power to direct NASA’s future.

“We cannot compete with China on the world stage if we do not channel our resources into credible and technically sound scientific endeavors,” they said.

The proposed “Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance” would apply across the federal government to agencies reviewing grants and other financial assistance proposals.

The lawmakers said it would allow political appointees to control all aspects of grant reviews and undermine transparency, objective evaluation and independent scientific judgement.

“The rule is unprecedented, expansive, and applies across the federal government to every agency that reviews grants and other financial assistance proposals,” they wrote. “It would allow political appointees to control all aspects of the grant review process, setting the stage for politically motivated decision-making that places the whims of the President over the well-being of the American people.”

The lawmakers said the regulation could slow research into cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, infectious diseases and other serious conditions. It could also delay new treatments, environmental protection strategies and technologies for space exploration.

They warned that uncertainty over federal funding was already forcing researchers to reconsider whether to continue their work in the United States. China, they said, was offering millions of dollars to leading American planetary scientists, engineers and doctoral candidates.

The rule would also introduce new eligibility requirements, including mandatory participation in the Department of Homeland Security’s E-Verify programme. The lawmakers said this could create barriers for universities, international researchers, farmers, small businesses and construction companies.

“The effects of this rulemaking could reverberate for generations,” the lawmakers wrote. “With such funding uncertainty and unpredictability, California and the rest of the country will backslide behind other nations in the areas of health, innovation, research, and scientific development.”

For more than 75 years, federal agencies including NASA, the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health have used merit-based reviews to award research grants. The lawmakers said that system had supported advances in medicine, national security and technology.

–IANS

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