ASCE Seeks Reauthorization of Earthquake and Wind Research Programs
February 01, 2024
ASCE’s efforts to spur Congressional action to reauthorize two federal programs that are critical to the nation’s resilience has finally achieved some results. Both the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) and the National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP) are past due for reauthorization and Congress has been slow to act. Efforts by ASCE and......
Lame-Duck Look Ahead: Resilience Measures Still Pending
October 31, 2022
When Congress returns to Washington after the midterm, a number of ASCE-supported measures are still in play and may ultimately be enacted. As a broad issue, infrastructure resilience received serious attention in Washington during 2022 as both Congress and the Administration focused on various initiatives to make the nation’s infrastructure more resilient. For decades, ASCE......
Congress Approves Chips Plus Science Bill
July 28, 2022
Among the flurry of pre-August break activity, Congress approved The CHIPS and Science Act. Led by the Senate, which crafted and passed the bipartisan legislation, the bill injects tens of billions of dollars into the domestic production of semiconductor chips, as well as increases authorizations for a number of science and research programs, which ASCE......
Movement on School Infrastructure Data Collection
May 25, 2022
The Report Card on America’s Infrastructure’s chapter on schools opens with the statement that school facilities represent the second largest sector of public infrastructure spending, after highways, and yet there is no comprehensive national data on the condition of K-12 public school infrastructure. To develop the ASCE schools grade of a D+, engineers instead relied......
House Advances Technology Bill
February 07, 2022
On February 4th the House passed H.R. 4521, the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology and Economic Strength (or COMPETES) Act of 2022. The measure passed by a vote of 222-210, largely along party lines with one Republican, Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, voting for the bill and one Democrat, Rep. Stephanie Murphy......
House Science Committee Continues Focus on Research and Development
July 29, 2021
The House Science, Space, and Technology Committee added five more bills to its efforts to enhance and expand the nation’s research enterprises. The five bills join with previous passed legislation, including the National Science Foundation for the Future Act and the Department of Energy for the Future Act, to form a package of legislation that......
Senate Passes Massive Technology Bill
June 10, 2021
On June 8th, the Senate passed on a 68-32 vote, the United States Innovation and Competition Act, a comprehensive piece of legislation to expand funding for science and innovation and to combat China on economic, scientific, and diplomatic fronts. The bill, containing more than 1,400 pages, authorizes $250 billion for basic and advanced technology research, as well......
White House Doubles Funding for BRIC
May 26, 2021
The Biden administration has announced that it will double federal funding to encourage communities to better prepare for hurricanes, floods, and other natural disasters. Specifically, the President has authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to double to $1 billion for FY 2021 the funding available for the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities, or BRIC......
The Endless Frontier Act – A Dramatic Boost for Research and Development
April 22, 2021
On Wednesday, April 21, the U.S. Senate introduced a bipartisan bill — the Endless Frontier Act — that would increase American investments in science and technology innovation with the goal of strengthening the economy and competing worldwide. The effort is led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Todd Young (R-IN), and would,......