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THE WEEK OF JUNE 30, 2025
What’s Ahead
Three men in suits stand behind a podium that reads, "HUD's New Home in VA." A sign behind them reads, "The New Golden Age of HUD."

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (center) speaks at a press conference announcing the takeover of the National Science Foundation’s headquarters by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

HUD

NSF to be booted from headquarters, aims to stay in VA

The Department of Housing and Urban Development plans to take over the National Science Foundation’s headquarters building in Alexandria, Virginia, officials announced at a surprise press conference last week. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) said at the event that some of the potential sites in Virginia originally offered to HUD would be suggested to NSF, which currently has more than 1,800 employees and moved to Alexandria from nearby Arlington in 2017. Many NSF staff gathered at the press conference to protest the decision, and the agency’s union blasted the takeover. “NSF employees are being displaced with no plan, no communication, and no respect,” the union stated. The union also said it was told HUD Secretary Scott Turner’s plans include construction of a new executive dining room, reserved parking spaces for his five cars, and a potential gym for him and his family. Turner denied these claims at the press conference and defended the move as necessary given that HUD’s current home in Washington, DC, has long been in a state of disrepair.

Democrats in Congress were quick to criticize the move, with Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) condemning the “luxury upgrades” for the HUD secretary. Democrats from Virginia’s congressional delegation are seeking details about NSF’s displacement from the General Services Administration, which manages federal real estate. GSA official Michael Peters said at the press conference that the relocation will save taxpayers $500 million in deferred maintenance and an additional $56 million in annual operating and maintenance expenses, while Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) reacted by noting GSA has not offered an estimate of how much it will cost to relocate NSF. NSF is aiming to remain in northern Virginia and a move outside the DMV area is not under consideration, according to an internal memo sent last week by the agency’s acting director.

DOD, NOAA, and NIST detail major proposed science cuts

The Trump administration is asking Congress to cut the Department of Defense’s basic research programs by 9% to $2.26 billion and its applied research programs by 8% to $5.7 billion for fiscal year 2026, according to new budget request documentation released last week. (These figures exclude funds the administration presumes will be provided through the reconciliation process.) The budget document also indicates that DOD used the wide discretion provided by Congress in its fiscal year 2025 appropriations to reduce the department’s applied research budget by 17% from fiscal year 2024 to 2025.

The Commerce Department has also just finished posting its budget request documents, including those for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The administration proposes eliminating NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research and transferring some of its programs to the National Ocean Service and the National Weather Service. In total, the document calls for cutting more than 2,200 positions from NOAA, roughly 18% of the agency. At NIST, the request details how the administration’s proposed cut of around 30% to the agency would require slashing hundreds of staff positions from the agency’s laboratory programs.

Meanwhile, House appropriators are gearing up to advance their own science spending proposals. They have scheduled markups for next week that will cover the Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, NOAA, NIST, and NASA.

$150 million for DOE AI R&D added to Senate reconciliation bill

Senate Republicans released the full text of their reconciliation bill late last week and are pushing to pass it this week. Among the changes made as the bill approached the Senate floor is the addition of $150 million for the Department of Energy to get scientific data ready for use in AI models and “initiate seed efforts for self-improving artificial intelligence models for science and engineering.” The models developed by DOE in partnership with the private sector will be provided to the research community via a cloud computing service called the “American science cloud.” The bill also proposes expanding compensation eligibility for people exposed to radiation from nuclear weapons testing and manufacturing, including adding affected areas and modifying qualifying cancers. Provisions that have been the focus of last-minute negotiations include efforts to institute a moratorium on state regulation of AI and roll back tax credits for certain clean energy technologies.

Other portions of the bill relevant to R&D policy include tax breaks for private R&D and funding for a Golden Dome missile defense shield, similar to the House’s bill passed late last month. The Senate bill also proposes modifying the current 1.4% endowment tax on some private colleges and universities’ net investment income to introduce a tiered system of rates, with a top rate of 8% for institutions with endowments exceeding $2 million per student, compared to the House’s proposed rate of 21%. The Senate bill also proposes a nearly $10 billion boost for human exploration at NASA, reauthorization of spectrum auction authority, and billions for the Coast Guard to acquire new icebreakers.

AIP tool measures federal science workforce

The American Institute of Physics released an interactive tool this month that breaks down the types of appointments and lengths of service of federal employees in the physical sciences and engineering, as well as the number and occupations of employees at agencies that oversee physical sciences research. AIP built the tool using data from the Office of Personnel Management to help understand the composition of the federal workforce prior to and following major cuts and changes made in 2025. The tool includes data up until September 2024, the latest available from OPM, and will be updated as newer data is posted.

Also on our radar

  • The Trump administration has cut subscriptions to Springer Nature journals held by NIH, DOE, and USDA, according to reporting by Science.
  • The Senate confirmed Paul Dabbar as deputy secretary of commerce last week on a vote largely split along party lines. Dabbar previously served as DOE’s under secretary for science during the first Trump administration.
  • Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia sued the Trump administration last week over an OMB regulation it has used to cancel grant funding, including at science agencies.
  • Republicans on the House Science Committee have asked GAO to assess the implementation of recent research security requirements and to review agencies’ approaches to setting indirect costs for federal research awards.
  • NIH is reinstating hundreds of canceled grants and halting further grant terminations following a federal judge’s ruling.
In Case You Missed It

Some astronomers and atmospheric scientists want to see protections for relevant spectrum bands in reconciliation proposals.

From Physics Today: Looking to solidify their post-LHC plans, CERN and its partners are considering an ambitious project that would stretch to the end of the century.

Upcoming Events

All events are Eastern Time unless otherwise noted. Listings do not imply endorsement. Events beyond this week are listed on our website.

Monday, June 30

National Academies: The science and practice of team science, report release event
9:30 - 10:30 am

National Academies: Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal Standing Committee, meeting one
12:00 - 2:00 pm

Tuesday, July 1

National Academies: Workshop session on transformative science and technology for the Department of Defense: Synthetic biology for biomanufacturing and predictable engineering
8:30 am - 5:00 pm

National Academies: A vision for the Manufacturing USA Program in 2030 and 2035 meeting
12:00 - 1:30 pm

Wednesday, July 2

No events.

Thursday, July 3

No events.

Friday, July 4

Independence Day.

Monday, July 7

National Academies: Future directions for NSF’s advanced cyberinfrastructure, meeting seven
2:00 - 4:00 pm

House: Subcommittee markup of the Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill
5:30 pm, Appropriations Committee

House: Subcommittee markup of the Energy-Water appropriations bill
5:30 pm, Appropriations Committee

Opportunities

Deadlines indicated in parentheses. Newly added opportunities are marked with a diamond.

On April 15, the Trump administration extended the federal hiring freeze into the summer.

Job Openings

AAU: Editorial and communications assistant (July 6)
AAAS: Engagement manager for SciLine (July 24)
National Academies: Biotechnology regulatory fellowship program (Aug. 31)
Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI): Legislative correspondent, energy, space, and science policy (ongoing)
Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA): Energy and environment staffer (ongoing)
AIP: Editor for Physics Today magazine (ongoing)
ACS: Policy and regulation reporter, Chemical & Engineering News (ongoing)
RAND: Multiple AI policy and research positions (ongoing)

Solicitations

House Science Committee: Survey of individuals whose grants have been canceled (ongoing)
Grant Watch: Collection form for NSF grant cancellations (ongoing)
Grant Watch: Collection form for NIH grant cancellations (ongoing)
AAS: Grant cancellation survey (ongoing)
AAAS: Assessing the impacts of federal policies on the US STEMM community (ongoing)
APS: Survey collecting stories about the positive impact of federally funded research (ongoing)
NSF: RFI on the Higher Education Research and Development Survey (June 30)
American Science Acceleration Project: RFI for the American Science Acceleration Project (June 30)
State Department: RFC on J-1 visa waiver recommendation application (July 14)
NIH: RFI on the NIH artificial intelligence strategy (July 15)
National Academies: Assessing radiation exposure, health outcomes, and mitigation strategies for flight crewmembers: Call for experts (July 18)
NSF: RFI on key technology focus areas for the Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (July 21)
FCC: RFC on satellite spectrum abundance proposed rule (July 28)
National Academies: Call for applications for the US-Africa Frontiers of Science, Engineering, and Medicine Symposium 2026 (July 31)
BIS: RFC on national security and critical technology assessments of the US industrial base (Aug. 12)
OSTP: RFI for the National Strategic Plan for Advanced Manufacturing (Sept. 30)

Know of an opportunity for scientists to engage in science policy? Email us at fyi@aip.org.

Around the Web

News and views currently in circulation. Links do not imply endorsement.

White House

White House: OSTP issues agency guidance for gold standard science
White House: It is possible to support science and hold it accountable at the same time
Chemical & Engineering News: Amid White House claims of a research ‘replication crisis,’ scientists offer solutions
E&E News: Implementation of Trump’s science executive order prioritizes AI
White House: 60+ organizations sign White House pledge to support America’s youth and invest in AI education
Washington Post: Trump administration is preparing to challenge budget law, US officials say
New York Times: In the quest to shrink NASA, Trump forgets national security (perspective by Bill Nelson)
New York Times: Behind closed doors, Harvard officials debate a risky truce with Trump

Congress

House CCP Committee: Committee launches AI campaign with legislation to block CCP-linked AI from US government use
House Science Committee: Republicans seek answers to CCP-linked bioagent smuggling
Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA): Murray calls for Kennedy to reinstate fired ACIP members or delay meeting until new members appropriately vetted
Stat: Proposed cuts could have ‘catastrophic effect,’ 110 biomedical, health sciences industry leaders tell Congress (perspective)
E&E News: House Republican to float tax incentives for rare earths

Science, Society, and the Economy

Nature: The economic effects of federal cuts to US science — in 24 graphs
The Daily: Breaking down the massive cuts to science funding (audio)
Nature: Can industry fill the gap left by US research funding cuts?
Wall Street Journal: Harvard is asking corporations to fill its federal funding gap
Stat: To tackle race in clinical guidelines, researchers seek alternatives to federal dollars
Stat: Private sector, philanthropy can’t replace Trump administration science cuts (perspective by James Alwine and Gregg Gonsalves)
Brookings: Attacks on R&D could hamper technological innovation
NSF: NSF invests $25.5M in research to drive new US manufacturing technologies and talent pipelines

Education and Workforce

New York Times: Grand jury indicts Russian scientist on smuggling charges
Chronicle of Higher Education: How Chinese college students have become political pawns, again
NBER: Funding the US scientific training ecosystem: New data, methods, and evidence
AFGE: Victory for working people as judge blocks Trump’s efforts to bust federal employee unions
Nature: Harvard vs Trump: What this epic battle means for science
Inside Higher Ed: Harvard Kennedy School’s plan B for international students
Stat: Eric Green was the first institute director forced out of NIH. He still hasn’t been told why
HPCwire: QED-C report outlines actions to strengthen quantum workforce pipeline

Research Management

Washington Post: DOGE loses control over government grants website, freeing up billions
New York Times: Johns Hopkins gets the most federal money, but now much of it is at risk
Science: Federal judge orders agencies to restore grants to University of California scientists
Nature: NIH-funded science must now be free to read instantly: what you should know
National Academies: Views on agenda items at issue at the World Radiocommunication Conference 2027 (report)
National Academies: Issues at the intersection of engineering and human rights: Proceedings of a symposium (report)
National Academies: The science and practice of team science (report)
Retraction Watch: In defense of direct replication studies (if they even need defending) (perspective by Csaba Szabo)

Labs and Facilities

E&E News: How Chris Wright is remaking the national labs
E&E News: Ernst pushes bill to sell DOE, USDA buildings
HPCwire: NIST names Shyam Sunder associate director for laboratory programs
CERN: Venice event brings future of particle physics into focus

Computing and Communications

Wall Street Journal: It’s known as ‘the list’—and it’s a secret file of AI geniuses
The Information: DeepSeek’s progress stalled by US export controls
MIT: Researchers present bold ideas for AI at MIT Generative AI Impact Consortium kickoff event
Nature: AI, peer review, and the human activity of science (perspective by Carl Bergstrom and Joe Bak-Coleman)
Bloomberg: Promises to spend billions on US chip revival still depend on a fickle market
Bloomberg: China’s $50 billion chip fund switches tack to fight US curbs
GAO: Quantum computing: Leadership needed to coordinate cyber threat mitigation strategy (report)

Space

SpaceNews: First Rubin Observatory images released amid concerns about budget cuts
NASA Watch: NASA planetary defense ignores Rubin Observatory’s asteroid-hunting abilities
Planetary Society: The Giant Magellan Telescope takes its next big step (audio)
AAS: Archiving astronomy education resources on the web
SpaceNews: Threatening the endless frontier of US science (perspective by Daniel Baker)
Planetary Society: Save NASA Science Campaign progress report
Research Professional: ‘Reinforced’ R&I funding part of new EU vision for space

Weather, Climate, and Environment

E&E News: Trump admin scraps NOAA’s climate website
E&E News: Trump terminates satellite data considered crucial to storm forecasting
E&E News: US exports much of the world’s climate misinformation — report
E&E News: How Trump plans to use his limited budget authority to kill EPA grants
NPR: Trump administration considers a new way of extracting minerals in the Pacific Ocean
NBC News: Fired, rehired, and fired again, some NOAA employees get letters demanding money
AFGE: Oversight agency affirms worker complaints of safety issues at USDA research center

Energy

New York Times: How the US helped create Iran’s nuclear program
E&E News: DOE-led nuclear licensing gains traction under Trump
Power: DOE pilot program targets three nuclear test reactors for 2026 criticality under department authorization
Power: Deadline vs. deployment: Can US advanced reactors meet DOE’s 2026 criticality goal?
Power: Centrus completes 900-kg HALEU delivery to DOE in US Nuclear fuel enrichment milestone
American Nuclear Society: DOE extends Centrus’s HALEU production contract by one year
GAO: Nuclear waste cleanup: DOE needs to improve contractor oversight at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (report)
E&E News: DOE hydrogen hub program lacks adequate staff, risk controls — IG

Defense

Nature: Did the US really destroy Iran’s nuclear program?
NPR: Why America’s giant bunker-busting bombs may have failed to reach their target
Breaking Defense: Hegseth: ‘No one’s under there able to assess’ efficacy of US strike on Iranian facility
Politico: JD Vance said the Iran strikes set their nuclear program back ‘substantially.’ He’s wrong (perspective by James Acton)
SpacePolicyOnline: Sullivan, Cramer introduce Golden Dome Act
Inside Defense: Trump nominates Guetlein, whose career through US tech evolution leads to Golden Dome gig
SpaceNews: A strategy for peaceful Golden Dome development (perspective by Brian Chow)
SpaceNews: Pentagon to consider SpaceX alternative for Space Force satellite program

Biomedical

Axios: NIH grantees may face long wait for restored money
New York Times: Kennedy withdraws funding pledge to international vaccine agency
Stat: Trump’s pick to run CDC ratifies importance of vaccines as RFK Jr. moves to limit access
Nature: RFK Jr’s vaccine advisers vote down flu-shot ingredient — but back some jabs
The Guardian: RFK Jr’s vaccine panel recommends new RSV treatment for infants
Stat: We will not stay silent on vaccines, say leaders of five major US medical associations (perspective)
Stat: WHO expert group fails to find a definitive answer for how COVID-19 began
The Guardian: The COVID ‘lab leak’ theory isn’t just a rightwing conspiracy – pretending that’s the case is bad for science (perspective by Jane Qiu)

International Affairs

New York Times: America’s Trump-fueled brain drain benefits Canada
Wall Street Journal: Europe is recruiting academics disenchanted with America
France 24: US ‘science refugees’ arrive at French university after Trump spending cuts
Science|Business: G7 leaders set out new AI and quantum research agenda
Nature: Here’s why China’s science and innovation model is thriving
Bloomberg: China vows ‘forceful measures’ after Taiwan’s Huawei export curb
Research Professional: Trump administration axes UK university research projects
Science|Business: ERC makes bid to become a ‘permanent standalone’ EU body
Science|Business: Weizmann Institute missile strikes hit EU-funded research projects
AP: Israel killed at least 14 scientists in an unprecedented attack on Iran’s nuclear know-how
New York Times: Iran holds state funeral for military commanders and nuclear scientists

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