January 21, 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 bipartisan, bicameral FY26 Labor–Health and Human Services–Education appropriations package on January 20, 2026:
“We commend the bipartisan leaders of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, especially Senate Labor-HHS Subcommittee Chair Shelley Moore Capito and Ranking Member Tammy Baldwin, and House Subcommittee Chair Robert Aderholt and Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro, for their resolve and hard work in advancing a FY2026 Labor–HHS funding package that supports sustained investment in our nation’s scientific enterprise. A strong American scientific enterprise is essential to protecting public health, driving innovation, and maintaining America’s global competitiveness.
By sustaining funding for the National Institutes of Health and other health agencies, this bill represents meaningful progress and an important course correction on proposed cuts that would have severely undermined the research enterprise. These funding levels help provide stability and continuity for the researchers and institutions driving forward scientific progress.
We now urge Congress to swiftly pass this legislation before the January 30 funding deadline. STAC stands ready to work with lawmakers to secure sustained, predictable investments that reflect the central role of science and technology in the nation’s future.”