{"id":17073,"date":"2020-09-14T13:17:25","date_gmt":"2020-09-14T17:17:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/?p=17073"},"modified":"2020-09-14T13:17:25","modified_gmt":"2020-09-14T17:17:25","slug":"policy-news-september-14-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/2020\/09\/14\/policy-news-september-14-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Policy News: September 14, 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

In This Issue:<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Action Alert: Scientific Societies, House Science Committee Push for Research Relief<\/strong><\/a>
\nThe RISE Act would authorize $26 billion in emergency relief for federal science agencies.<\/p>\n

Upcoming ESA Webinars<\/strong><\/a>
\nESA will host a webinar with Engineers and Scientists Acting Locally Sept. 30.<\/p>\n

Congress<\/strong><\/a>
\nSen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) calls for $55 billion for a new Civilian Conservation Corps.<\/p>\n

Executive Branch<\/strong><\/a>
\nThe U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposes new critical habitat rule.<\/p>\n

States<\/strong><\/a>
\nState Attorneys General challenge the Trump administration\u2019s plan to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.<\/p>\n

International<\/strong><\/a>
\nClimate Science Legal Defense Fund releases a guide to political activities for federally employed scientists.<\/p>\n

Register to Vote and Request an Absentee Ballot<\/strong><\/a>
\nThe general election is happening in November. Visit Vote.org for information about requesting an absentee ballot.<\/p>\n

ESA In the News<\/strong><\/a>
\nView an up-to-date list of ESA\u2019s media coverage.<\/p>\n

Opportunities to Get Involved<\/strong><\/a>
\nFederal Register opportunities.<\/p>\n

Action Alert: Scienctifc Societies, House Science Committee Push for Research Relief<\/strong><\/h2>\n

<\/a>
\nThe House Science Committee held a\u00a0hearing<\/a>\u00a0Sept. 9 about the impacts of COVID-19 on the university research enterprise. Witnesses from the University of Illinois System, Purdue University, Oakland University in Michigan and Carnegie Mellon University urged Congress to pass the RISE Act (H.R. 7308<\/a>,\u00a0S. 4286<\/a>) and the Supporting Early-Career Researchers Act (H.R. 8044<\/a>).<\/p>\n

This Wednesday, Sept. 16, the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee will hold a\u00a0hearing<\/a>\u00a0to consider advancing the RISE Act to the full Senate, among other legislation and nominations.\u00a0If you have not yet reached out to your members of Congress \u2013 it is not too late to do so!\u00a0See our Action Alert on the\u00a0ESA website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

According to the nonpartisan\u00a0Congressional Research Service (CRS),\u00a0<\/a>the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on the federal enterprise are far-reaching, resulting in lab and user facility closures, canceled conferences, equipment delays, and increased costs for ongoing R&D. The RISE Act authorizes $26 billion in emergency relief for federal science agencies, including the National Science Foundation, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Energy, to award to universities and other research organizations to continue working on federally funded research projects.<\/p>\n

The Supporting Early Career Researchers Act authorizes $250 million to the National Science Foundation to award two-year postdoctoral fellowships to help keep researchers whose employment opportunities have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in the STEM pipeline.<\/p>\n

Members of Congress from both parties, including Science Committee Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Ranking Member Frank Lucas (R-OK) support both bills.<\/p>\n

ESA joined 22 other professional societies in urging Congress to pass the RISE Act and urging members to contact their representatives about the RISE Act.<\/p>\n

Upcoming ESA Webinars<\/strong><\/h2>\n

<\/a>
\nLocal engagement opportunities for scientists\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sept 30, 2:00pm eastern time<\/em>
\nRegister here:\u00a0https:\/\/esa.zoom.us\/meeting\/register\/tJEufuqorDouHNNcEpqcDaM8OhxbX1W8nPsb<\/a><\/p>\n

While federal policy and politics tends to dominate the national headlines, the importance of policy-making and implementation at the state and local government level often gets overlooked. Recent events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and discussions of racial justice and police reform, have highlighted the critical role of city, county and state governments. In this webinar, Engineers and Scientists Acting Locally (ESAL) scientists will discuss the ways in which ecologists can engage with local government and use their expertise and inquiry driven, evidence-based approaches to inform policy decisions. ESAL will highlight examples of scientists who have made substantive contributions to their communities, often without a major career shift. The presenters will also draw on their own experiences working in local government to share in-depth case studies. This workshop is intended for scientists at all stages of their careers, including students. ESAL and ESA hope that attendees will leave inspired with new ideas for how they can get more involved in their own communities.<\/p>\n

Congress<\/strong><\/h2>\n

<\/a>
\nLegislative Updates:<\/strong><\/p>\n