[CIG-ALL] comment now on proposed major funding cut to NSF geoscience

[Vera Schulte-Pelkum]

Please post if deemed appropriate for CIG:

This week (May 18-21), a funding bill proposed by the House Science, Space
and Technology committee (H.R. 1806, "America COMPETES Reauthorization Act
of 2015") will go to the House floor. The bill proposes an 8% cut to the
NSF GEO directorate as well as major cuts to DOE research funding and NSF
graduate fellowships. Since GEO was already down to 2008 funding levels in
2014, you can imagine what this will do to earth science research. Now is
your last chance to comment on this bill.

A good summary is provided by Science mag at this link:
http://news.sciencemag.org/funding/2015/04/contentious-markup-expected-today-house-science-panel-takes-competes-bill
.
The bill increases funding for STEM fields excepting geosciences and DOE
renewables/efficiency research. Singling out GEO appears to be climate
motivated (the Science and Technology committee chairman rejects climate
science), but also reflects "the committee’s ideological stance that (...)
social and behavioral sciences, geosciences, and international activities
at NSF (...) play small roles in fostering innovation, bolstering the U.S.
economy, and defending the nation against attack" (
http://news.sciencemag.org/funding/2015/04/smith-makes-small-concession-markup-competes-bill).
It it our task to convince them otherwise.

What you can do:

- Use AGU's online comment page at
http://actioncenter.agu.org/app/write-a-letter?2&engagementId=94856 to send
a message to your representative. AGU provides format guidelines as well as
talking points. The comments to uyour representative should be state
specific (e.g. impact of the funding cuts to your state). Talking points
not explicitly expanded on by AGU are the importance of geosciences in
monitoring of other nations' clandestine nuclear tests, geoscience's
training of the next generation of workers in the energy industry, and the
ongoing brain drain in geosciences to countries with better funding. Save
the text you entered on the AGU comment page for the next step.

- Edit out the state-specific points in your AGU letter and send the
non-state-specific version to the majority lead staffer Cliff Shannon at
sstgop.correspondence at mail.house.gov. Also send it to the house minority
lead staffer care of carolyn.corcoran at mail.house.gov. Majority as well as
minority members can still offer amendments on the floor.

- Call the majority at 202-225-6371 and the minority at 202-225-6375, and
fax your letter to the minority at 202-225-3895. A former staffer for the
SST committee assures me that emails and calls do get attention.

Again, the bill is going to the floor this week, so you should get your
comments in immediately. The Senate version is expected to be similar, so
this is a very good time to try to head off the geoscience-specific cuts if
still possible.
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