Act Now – Tell Congress That Cutting Research Is Not The Solution To Our Fiscal Problems!

The nation's research agencies face automatic, draconian budget cuts unless Congress takes action before the end of the year. Under a process known as sequestration, the National Institutes of Health（NIH）could lose $2.8 billion（2,300 fewer grants would be funded – one quarter of the total grants the agency would award for the year）. The National Science Foundation（NSF）could be reduced by nearly $600 million. Sequestration will require NIH, NSF, and other federal agencies to make funding cuts that will affect all areas of research and prevent critical projects from being completed at universities and institutions across the country. Many labs may be forced to close, resulting in layoffs of tens of thousands of researchers. It will take generations to recover the lost talent, as highly trained and dedicated young scientists and engineers will be driven from science by the disruption of their training and lack of jobs. The damage to our nation's health, security, and international competitiveness will be devastating.

These cuts can be avoided if Congress and the Administration reach an agreement on an alternative plan to reduce the deficit. Tell your Senators and Representative that funding for research is not the cause of the nation's debt; and that slashing research budgets will compromise our future. Please use the form below to send an email to your elected officials to let them know why federal funding from NIH, NSF, and other agencies is critical to your research, home institution, and your state/city's local economy. Please remember to personalize the information in the second paragraph of the sample letter! You can use information from FASEB's new NIH congressional district and state factsheets, as well as our NSF factsheets in your email messages.

http://capwiz.com/faseb/issues/alert/?alertid=62032501