A staple since COSSA’s earliest days, the biweekly COSSA Washington Update newsletter provides members and the public with comprehensive coverage of policy developments impacting social and behavioral science research.
Analysis of the Final FY 2026 LHHS Appropriations Bills for Federal Science Agencies
Following a brief partial government shutdown, the House of Representatives passed the latest fiscal year (FY) 2026 funding package containing the final budgets for dozens of federal agencies and departments. The package, which comes on the heels of enactment of an earlier omnibus in January (see COSSA’s coverage), includes the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS) appropriations bill, funding the National Institutes of Health, Department of Education, and other agencies, and four other appropriations bills: the Department of Defense appropriations bill, Financial Services appropriations bill, National Security and Department of State appropriations bill, and the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development…
Social Science Advocacy Day: Prices Increase After Friday!
COSSA’s annual Social Science Advocacy Day is BACK and will take place March 23-24, 2026 in Washington, DC! This annual event brings together social and behavioral science researchers, faculty, students, association professionals, and other advocates from across the country. Together, we’ll meet with elected officials in Congress to discuss the value of our sciences and the importance of federal funding. Register now to take advantage of early bird pricing and don’t forget to check out our sponsorship opportunities (some including free regsitrations). Early Bird Prices expire this Friday, February 13.
Submit your own Button Slogan!
We love when our advocates show their support for social science research by wearing one of COSSA’s coveted buttons. We’re looking for our next great button slogan! Got any ideas? Submit your suggestions and let us know what you’d like to see on our beloved buttons.
Congress Looks Forward to FY 2027 and Eyes Potential Second Reconciliation Package
As previously reported, Congress has neared completion of its appropriations process of fiscal year (FY) 2026, aside from the unfinished Homeland Security appropriations bill which remains under a temporary continuing resolution (CR), following the final passage of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) and Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) appropriations bills. The final bills for FY 2026 largely rejected the President’s proposal for cuts to several key scientific agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Education, and more. On January 7, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) formally invited President…
NIH Director Bhattacharya Testifies Before Congress on Modernizing the Agency
On February 3, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jayanta Bhattacharya appeared before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee to discuss Modernizing the National Institutes of Health: Faster Discoveries, More Cures . During the hearing, Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chairman of the Committee, expressed a bipartisan concern over the unprecedented NIH grant award cancellations in the last year, a lack of public trust in the NIH and science institutions, as well as national and personal health security risks. This hearing comes nearly two years since Cassidy’s release of a white paper on recommendations to improve the NIH in 2024 (see previous…
President Trump Executive Actions
Trump Administration Actions (all actions available here): Find COSSA’s full list of Trump’s Executive Actions and more information here or on the Social Science Space Tracker.
Stuart Levenbach Quietly Assumes Role as U.S. Chief Statistician
According to the White House Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Interagency Council on Statistical Policy, Stuart Levenbach has been appointed to serve as Chair of the Council, a position that is, by law, held by the U.S. Chief Statistician. OMB quietly updated its website to reflect his new role, replacing Mark Calabria, who assumed the role of Chief Statistician after the departure of Karin Orvis at the start of the Trump Administration’s second term in 2025. Notably, the position does not require Senate confirmation. Previously, Levenbach had been nominated by the Trump Administration to serve as the head of the Consumer…
NIH Reclassifies Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans (BESH) will no longer be classified as clinical trials under the NIH Clinical Trial Definition. The change applies to applications submitted on or after May 25, 2026. NIH originally expanded its clinical trial definition in 2014 to include BESH as part of an effort to improve transparency and results reporting. The revised definition meant that social and behavioral science research funded by NIH that involved human subjects would need to abide by the same reporting rules as studies more traditionally viewed as clinical trials. The move was controversial at the time…
OPM Final Rule Expands Excepted Service, Raises Workforce Concerns
The White House Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has finalized a sweeping rule that expands the use of the excepted service by creating “Schedule Policy/Career,” a new category covering career employees in policy-influencing roles (see previous coverage). While OPM frames the change as a way to improve accountability and responsiveness, critics warn it weakens long-standing civil service protections. Under the rule, career employees (e.g., nonpolitical appointees) whose roles are of a “confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character” may be reclassified into Schedule Policy/Career. They will retain competitive status but lose key procedural protections, including appeal rights for adverse actions and performance-based removals. OPM…
Register Now: Headlines Webinar this Thursday
On January 29, join COSSA for the first Headlines webinar of the year. The COSSA Staff will cover recent key policy updates and what the future holds for advocacy in 2026. Register now and join the conversation. Headlines is a webinar series available to COSSA member organizations. Watch for additional webinar announcements, and previous webinar recordings, on the COSSA website.
Social Science Advocacy Day: Prices Increases NEXT WEEK!
COSSA’s annual Social Science Advocacy Day is BACK and will take place March 23-24, 2026 in Washington, DC! This annual event brings together social and behavioral science researchers, faculty, students, association professionals, and other advocates from across the country. Together, we’ll meet with elected officials in Congress to discuss the value of our sciences and the importance of federal funding. Register now to take advantage of early bird pricing and don’t forget to check out our sponsorship opportunities (some including free regsitrations). Early Bird Prices expire this Friday, January 30.
House Narrowly Passes Latest Appropriations Package for Science Agencies
As previously reported, the House and Senate passed a three-bill package earlier this month that included fiscal year (FY) 2026 funding for federal science agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF), Census Bureau, Bureau of Economic Analysis, National Institute of Justice (NIJ), and Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). COSSA’s in-depth analysis of the CJS bill can be found here. Late last week, the House passed a separate four-bill package that contains the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) appropriations bill—which provides funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Institute of Education Sciences…
Kratsios Defends Federal AI Standards in House Science Committee Hearing
On January 14, Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Director Michael Kratsios defended the Trump Administration’s federal standards on artificial intelligence (AI) in front of the House Science, Space, and Technology (SST) Committee. As previously reported, the Trump Administration unveiled Winning the Race: America’s AI Action Plan last year, which outlines future federal policy actions designed to ensure the U.S. is a leader in global AI development across scientific, practical, and creative uses. Notably, Congressional members raised concerns about the Administration’s restriction of state’s ability to pass laws on AI development and usage, which was passed as a provision in the Big, Beautiful Bill…
NIH Requests Public Input on New Human Data Protection Policies
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking public comment on a proposed update to its human research data policies, including a new NIH Controlled-Access Data Policy and revisions to the NIH Genomic Data Sharing (GDS) Policy. According to the request for information (RFI), the goal is to strengthen privacy and security protections, clarify requirements, and reduce duplicative burdens across NIH programs. The proposed Controlled-Access Data Policy would define which human participant data must be shared through controlled-access systems, including personal identifiers, genomic and other “omics” data, health and financial information, facial imaging, and individual-level clinical trial data. It would also establish consistent security and…
Monica Bertagnolli Elected President of the National Academy of Medicine
The National Academy of Medicine (NAM) announced that Monica Bertagnolli, former director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has been elected as the Academy’s next president. Bertagnolli’s six-year term will begin on July 1, 2026. She was elected as a member of the NAM in 2021 and will be the first woman to serve as president of the NAM since its establishment as the Institute of Medicine in 1970. Previously, Bertagnolli served as director of the National Cancer Institute before becoming director of the NIH and earlier held academic and clinical leadership roles at Harvard Medical School/Brigham and Women’s Hospital and…
Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar Named New Director of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS)
On January 15, Stanford University’s Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) announced Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar as their new Director. Cuéllar served as a Chair of the Board of Directors from 2016 to 2021, until he began his tenure as President of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He holds a B.S. from Harvard, a law degree from Yale, and a Ph.D. in Political Science from Stanford. Previously, he also served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of California, taught law and political science at Stanford University, and served on the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board and the U.S. Department of…
Register Now: First Headlines of 2026!
On January 29, join COSSA for the first Headlines webinar of the year. The COSSA Staff will cover recent key policy updates and what the future holds for advocacy in 2026. Register now and join the conversation. Headlines is a webinar series available to COSSA member organizations. Watch for additional webinar announcements, and previous webinar recordings, on the COSSA website.
Social Science Advocacy Day: Register Now for Informational Webinar
COSSA’s annual Social Science Advocacy Day is BACK and will take place March 23-24, 2026 in Washington, DC! This annual event brings together social and behavioral science researchers, faculty, students, association professionals, and other advocates from across the country. Together, we’ll meet with elected officials in Congress to discuss the value of our sciences and the importance of federal funding. Early Bird Registration is open! Register now to take advantage of early bird pricing and don’t forget to check out our sponsorship opportunities (some including free regsitrations). Curious about Social Science Advocacy Day 2026? Join us for an informational webinar! We will be hosting a session…
Congress Returns from Two-Week; Appropriations Front and Center
As previously reported by COSSA, Congress closed out 2025 with a continuing resolution (CR) that ended a historic 43-day government shutdown and punted the appropriations deadline for fiscal year (FY) 2026 to January 31. While there were rumors of a potential second year-long CR for FY 2026, Congress returned from their two-week recess with agreements on final funding levels for several remaining bills. Last week, House and Senate leaders released a three-bill package that includes the Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) bill—which provides funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the National Institute…
