Tell your Senators to support the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019

The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology urges you to spend one minute and send an email to your U.S. Senator to pass the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019. The bill includes a two-year agreement to lift the budget caps put in place since 2011 and allows the U.S. to raise its debt ceiling to pay off its debts. The bill, which passed the house on Thursday, also increases nondefense discretionary spending by $24 billion, which includes funding for the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. Send an email now.

 

House bill combating sexual harassment passes by voice vote

The House passed House Resolution 36, the “Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act,” by voice vote on Tuesday. It remains unclear whether the Senate version of the bill, S.B. 1067, which has not yet passed out of committee, will gain similar traction. The bill has 10 co-sponsors, all of whom are Democrats. Learn more about the bill here.  

 

California stem cell agency to ask voters for more money

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, which has recently run out of state funding, plans to ask voters in the state for an additional $5.5 billion. The institute has been credited for creating a robust stem cell research community in California. CIRM’s future is unclear if voters do not pass the initiative. Read more here.