House Committee Approves Science Bill

The House Science & Technology Committee has cleared a bill to increase support for research grants to young scientists and to support graduate fellowships. The bill, Sowing the Seeds Through Science & Engineering Research Act (H.R. 363), would require NSF to invest 3.5% of its budget through 2012 in grant programs for young scientists and the Department of Energy to spend $25 million per year over the same period for similar grants. The bill would also provide graduate research assistantships in areas of national need and establish a national coordination office to prioritize university and national research infrastructure needs. "It is through measures like this one that we guarantee a science infrastructure to support a continuing high standard of living in our nation in the decades ahead," said committee Chairman Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.). The bill now awaits a vote by the full House.