January 7, 2026
The co-chairs of the Science and Technology Action Committee (STAC), a nonpartisan alliance of nonprofit, academic, foundation and business leaders advocating for greater focus and funding of science and technology, issued the following statement on the agreement reached by appropriators on the FY26 Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations legislation released on January 5:
“Recent steps in the FY2026 appropriations process reflect continued bipartisan recognition that U.S. leadership in science and technology is central to economic growth, national security, and global competitiveness. The FY26 Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations agreement reached by congressional appropriators restores critical funding that avoids the most damaging cuts and signals a bipartisan understanding that sustained research capacity matters.
Even with these improvements, critical research programs remain underfunded and subject to uncertainty, conditions that undermine the very leadership policymakers seek to preserve. The ongoing instability facing the National Center for Atmospheric Research is a case in point. At a moment of intensifying global competition, uneven and stopgap funding weakens the institutions that protect public safety, drive discovery, and strengthen national resilience.
We thank appropriators for working hard to minimize damage from proposed cutbacks in federal research funding and look forward to working with them to secure sustained, predictable investments that reflect the central role of science and technology in the nation’s future.”