At the second of two hearings this month on the National Science Foundation, the House Science Committee looked primarily at the health of cross-directorate funding and at the public availability of data and other research inputs. The hearing also addressed the question of reproducibility in research, which is emerging as a major theme in the committee’s work.

Earlier this week, President Trump signed into law two bills that leverage existing programs at NASA and NSF to promote the advancement of women in STEM fields. Trump’s remarks at the signing constituted his first extemporaneous comments on science policy.

At a Senate Commerce Committee hearing with four inspector general witnesses, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) underscored their role in protecting whistleblowers and highlighted a bill he introduced to strengthen federal scientific integrity policies. Among the witnesses was the National Science Foundation’s inspector general, who described ongoing efforts to strengthen the foundation’s oversight of large facilities and reduce costs associated with its use of rotating personnel, among other management challenges.

Among his final actions in office over the past month, President Obama signed three major research-related bills into law: the 21^st Century Cures Act, the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act, and the National Defense Authorization Act.