In response to President Biden’s focus on science and technology in the first 100 days of his administration, Keith Yamamoto, Vice Chancellor for Science Policy & Strategy at UCSF and co-chair of the Science and Technology Action Committee, released the following statement on behalf of the Science and Technology Action Committee:
“In his first 100 days, President Biden has made clear that science and technology merit dramatically increased federal support in order to address a broad range of societal challenges, to maintain global leadership, and to strengthen our economy. Among many actions that underscore the President’s commitment are his elevation of the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to the Cabinet, and his goal to invest close to 2% of GDP in research and development.
Equally encouraging is the apparent bipartisan recognition in Congress that we need to increase substantially our federal investment in S&T. Our capacity to make transformative discoveries, to develop amazing technologies, and to create life-changing innovations — and all the societal, economic, and national security benefits that come from them — requires substantial, sustained and strategic federal investment now. The Science and Technology Action Committee stands ready to work with President Biden and Congress to ensure America is ready to out-innovate the existential challenges we face and out-compete our global competitors through the rapid advancement of science and technology in the U.S.”
Background on ten S&T-related actions President Biden’s administration took in his first 100 days:
- January 15, 2021: Elevated the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to the cabinet level.This is one of three recommendations made in the Science and Technology Action Plan.
- January 20, 2021 (Inauguration Day): Rejoined the Paris climate agreement.
- January 27, 2021: Issued an Executive Order focused on tackling the climate crisis.
- January 27, 2021: Issued a memorandum focused on “restoring trust in government through scientific integrity and evidence-based policymaking.”
- February 24, 2021: Issued and Executive Order to strengthen the resilience of America’s critical supply chains, including those for semiconductors, public health, biological preparedness, information communications technology, energy and food production sectors.
- March 25, 2021: Used his first presidential press conference to commit his administration to investing “in American workers and American science” by increasing federal investment in science research and technology relative to total GDP from 0.7% to “close to 2%.”
- March 31, 2021: Released his American Jobs Plan, an ambitious proposal that includes approximately $200 billion in R&D spending over eight years.
- April 9, 2021: Sent a preliminary budget request to Congress to dramatically increase R&D spending across non-defense agencies for Fiscal Year 2022, with a focus of investments on public health, environment, climate, biomedical and emerging technology R&D.
- April 16, 2021: Reversed restrictions on federally-funded research using fetal tissue to develop vaccines and treatments for a broad range of diseases.
- April 22, 2021: Hit the goal of 200 million vaccinations in first 100 days.
Please reach out with any questions or interest in speaking with Dr. Yamamoto to discuss the Committee’s statement or recommendations in more detail.