February 3, 2021
The Science & Technology Action Committee is a nonpartisan coalition of non-profit, academic, foundation, and corporate leaders working to dramatically strengthen the U.S. science and technology infrastructure. The Committee released a three-step action plan to accomplish this goal. FABBS has endorsed it.
The three bold actions to advance science and technology in the United States include:
- S&T Leadership – Elevate the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to a Cabinet position, integrating science to establish sound policies and strategies across the federal government. The Biden administration has already acted on this recommendation. (See previous article – “President Biden Announced Key Picks for OSTP and PCAST“)
- S&T Coordination and collaboration around urgent and emerging threats – Over twenty departments and agencies currently comprise the federal R&D infrastructure. While each of the entities fills a unique role, the system does not foster coordinated and collaborative activities. The plan calls for the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) to serve a coordinating function, bringing together powerful transdisciplinary combinations of expertise, personnel and facilities.
- S&T Investment – Over the next five years, the federal expenditures for R&D and STEM education should double relative to GDP, from the current level of 0.7 percent to 1.4 percent. As a point of reference, in 1964, the US invested 1.9 percent of the GDP.
