Legislative Neglect

Even for an election year, the gridlock of the 111th Congress in 2010 was severe. Despite some opportunities to boost science and technology, the House of Representatives and especially the Senate opted for politics over progress and passed almost nothing that moves science forward.

A particular disappointment was the failure to reauthorize the America Competes Act. This 2007 law created a strong incentive to raise spending on physical science research by authorizing significant increases to the budgets of the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy’s Office of Science, and the National Institute of Standards & Technology. As with many bills over the past two years, a new version of America Competes was passed by the House, but the Senate never took a vote. Although it was just an authorization bill that carried no power to increase spending, the bill would have put pressure on Congress to increase research funds.

Energy legislation was another area where much argument happened but little agreement resulted. Senate efforts at the beginning of the year to pass broad laws supporting renewable-energy programs and limiting carbon dioxide emissions, as the House passed in 2009, got nowhere.

At C&EN press time, a few energy tax provisions remain alive, however, and might be included in the last-minute tax law being debated in the lame-duck congressional session. Among them are extension of the tax credits for renewable-energy projects and some tax credits for fuel ethanol. Other tax provisions with a chance of passing would reinstate expiring tax credits for liquid fuels made from biomass, including biodiesel fuel. Also under late consideration was a resolution to shift funds from DOE’s renewable-energy programs to the department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy.

Opposition to all of these measures, mostly from Republicans, was because of their perceived cost. The bottom line also hampered Congress’ ability to pass the fiscal 2011 budget. In fact, this year Congress did not manage to pass even one of the 12 appropriations bills that make up the federal budget. By keeping the government functioning through a series of continuing resolutions, which keeps agencies funded at the same level as in 2010, Congress seems determined to not pass a budget at all this year. Instead, the legislative branch appears to be satisfied to wait for the next Congress in January, when the Republicans will control the House and have more sway in the Senate.

Other legislation affecting the chemical enterprise didn’t fare any better this year. An attempt to modernize the Toxic Substances Control Act has some industry and activist support, but it faced tough going in Congress. Hearings began in 2009 on reforming the 1976 law, and a bill was introduced in the House this year that, among other things, would require chemical manufacturers or importers to supply EPA with a minimum set of toxicity data on new chemicals and require more disclosure of product ingredients. Opponents of the bill claimed such requirements would stifle innovation and cost jobs. The measure was never even introduced in the Senate.

Chemical plant security was also subject to Congress’ benign neglect. Bills introduced to require companies to increase their security against terrorism at facilities that make or use dangerous chemicals never came close to passing. Such measures often carried an inherently safer technology mandate. The current Department of Homeland Security regulations, called Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards, or CFATS, will be extended for another year, probably by including them as an amendment to whatever budget measure gets passed.

Patent reform legislation has been fighting an uphill battle in Congress for years, and 2010 was no exception. Despite some hopeful action in 2009, bills that would have increased funding for the Patent & Trademark Office and modernized its operations died this year when they couldn’t get enough support for votes on the House or Senate floors.

One effort that almost passed was an attempt to stop brand-name pharmaceutical companies from settling patent disputes with generic drug manufacturers by paying the generics producers to delay the launch of competing drugs. This controversial “pay for delay” tactic was included in the 2010 Supplemental Appropriations Act, but it was stripped out at the last minute and moved to the Senate financial appropriations bill, which—like all the other appropriation bills—will not be voted on.

One bill that both chambers will likely pass in this year’s lame-duck session is the Food Safety Modernization Act, which greatly expands the enforcement powers of the Food & Drug Administration. Despite a glitch in the Senate version over new fees to pay for the testing and inspections that delayed its passage, the bill likely will be included in this year’s final budget legislation.

Finally, there is one less Ph.D. scientist in the House as Rep. Vernon J. Ehlers (R-Mich.) retired after 17 years in Congress. With a doctorate in physics, Ehlers was a strong supporter of research and science and math education. He was one of the rare Republicans who accepted the science of climate change and advocated doing something about it. For these and other efforts, he received the American Chemical Society Award for Public Service in 2000.