Research and Science Education Subcommittee - HR 1736, HR 1709

Opening Statement By Chairman Daniel Lipinski

This afternoon the Subcommittee will consider H.R. 1709, the STEM Education Coordination Act of 2009, and H.R.1736, the International Science and Technology Cooperation Act of 2009.

I thank the Members for their participation. The first bill we will consider this afternoon is H.R. 1709, the STEM Education Coordination Act of 2009. This legislation will improve the coordination of STEM education programs at the Federal agencies, so that federal efforts in STEM education can be better focused and more effective. An area we explored in great detail in the last Congress was the role the federal government can play in improving STEM education. One conclusion that came up time and time again, was that coordination and collaboration across the agencies must be improved in order to make the most of our tax dollars. H.R. 1709 establishes a mechanism to ensure that, through better planning, coordination, and evaluation, we are maximizing the impact of federally funded STEM education activities. I commend Chairman Gordon and Mr. Hall for introducing this good bipartisan legislation.

The second bill we will consider this afternoon is H.R. 1736, the International Science and Technology Cooperation Act of 2009. I want to thank Dr. Baird for introducing this bill and for all of his work over the last two years that led up to this legislation. I would also like to thank Dr. Ehlers for his support, passion and work on international science cooperation and science diplomacy. We held a hearing specifically on a draft version of this bill last week and the feedback from a panel of diverse experts, each with many decades of experience, was very positive. The shared conclusion was that a committee under OSTP devoted to interagency coordination of international science and technology partnerships would serve both our domestic S&T agenda and our foreign policy goals. I believe that the new Administration gives us a tremendous opportunity and a fresh outlook for both science and foreign policy, and H.R. 1736 is right at the intersection of those two realms. I commend Chairman Baird and Dr. Ehlers for this important and timely legislation, and I look forward to a productive markup.
 

HR 1736, the International Science and Technology Cooperation Act of 2009

HR 1709, the STEM Education Coordination Act of 2009