Advocacy Archive
Letter to Sen. McConnell on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Senator Mitch McConnell Majority Leader,U.S. Senate Russell Building—S230 1st and C Streets NE Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator McConnell:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: Brian McGuire
Letter to Sen. Reid on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Senator Harry Reid Minority Leader, U.S. Senate Hart Senate Office Building 522 2nd and C Streets NE Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Reid:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: David Krone
Letter to Sen. Mikulski on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Senator Barbara A. Mikulski Ranking Member, Senate Appropriations Committee Hart Senate Office Building, 503 2nd and C. Streets NE Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Mikulski:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: Shannon Kula
Letter to Sen. Cochran on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Senator Thad Cochran Chair, Senate Appropriations Committee Dirksen Senate Office Building 113 1st and C Streets NE Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Cochran:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: Keith Heard
Letter to Rep. Boehner on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Representative John A. Boehner Speaker, U.S. House of Representatives Longworth House Office Building 1011 Independence and New Jersey Avenues SE Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Speaker Boehner:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: Ryan Day
Letter to Rep. Pelosi on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Representative Nancy Pelosi Minority Leader, U.S. House of Representatives Cannon House Office Building 233 1st Street and Independence Avenue SE Washington, D.C 20515
Dear Representative Pelosi:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: Robert Edmonson
Letter to Rep. Rogers on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Representative Harold Rogers Chair, House Appropriations Committee Rayburn House Office Building Room 2406 Independence Avenue and South Capitol Street NW Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Representative Rogers:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: Megan O’Donnell Bell
Letter to Rep. Lowey on Social & Behavioral Sciences, September 2015
September 8, 2015
Representative Nita M. Lowey Ranking Member, House Appropriations Committee Rayburn House Office Building Room 2365 Independence Avenue and South Capitol Street SW Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Representative Lowey:
As the Senate reconvenes to consider and pass a Continuing Resolution for the Federal Government, the Council of Scientific Society Presidents urges you and your colleagues to consider “The Centrality and Importance of Behavioral and Social Sciences” to the welfare of the United States. We have attached CSSP’s policy statement. CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines through its member societies and federations, whose combined membership is over 1 million.
Robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences is critically important to advances in scientific and medical areas—and has profound economic implications for our nation. Over the weekend, The Washington Post reported the significance of behavioral research in ensuring that patients take their medication (see Washington Post, September 5, “Researchers are trying again to help you take your medicine”, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/researchers-are-trying-again-to-help-you-take-your-medicine/2015/09/05/6f26d896-525d-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html). The article points out that $289 billion is spent annually on needless hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and other costs for people who don’t follow drug regimens prescribed for them, but behavioral economic research funded by the Federal Government has demonstrated new and inexpensive ways to get patients to comply.
As the attached policy statement indicates, psychology and the social sciences have been identified as two of seven hub sciences which are central connectors to all other sciences. The other hub sciences are chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, medicine, and physics. Examples abound of instances in which behavioral and social sciences have helped in prevention and management of chronic disease, cybersecurity, and energy efficiency. Please ensure that robust funding of the behavioral and social sciences are included in the CR and future appropriations bills.
Sincerely,
 John Downing Chair Council of Scientific Society Presidents
 Madeleine Jacobs President & CEO Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Cc: Elizabeth Stanley
Letter to Sen. Carper on FASTR Amendment - July 2015
July 27, 2015
Senator Thomas R. Carper Ranking Member, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs U.S. Senate Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Carper:
I am writing to you on behalf of the Council of Scientific Society Presidents (CSSP) to express our support for the Johnson-Carper substitute amendment to S. 779, Fair Access to Science and Technology Research Act of 2015. We appreciate that you were open to changes and sought the views of a large community. As I have previously written on July 10, CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines, from the physical and biological sciences through the behavioral and social sciences, via our several dozen member societies and federations. CSSP’s member societies represent more than a million scientists and engineers.
We are in support of the following provisions of the legislation: The 12-month embargo period, with an evidence-based petition process to allow for revising the embargo period for a specific field of science, balancing sustainable peer review and public access. From the perspective of CSSP, anything less than 12 months would severely impair scientific societies’ ability to offer irreplaceable services that uniquely enhance the strength of the scientific enterprise of the United States. We also appreciate that the amendment authorizes federal agencies to determine the most efficient and cost-effective means to establish and maintain their public access capabilities, including how best to manage their respective article and data repositories.
We share the concerns of many of our publishing colleagues around the language in Section 4(f) on the GAO reporting mechanism. In particular, we suggest that Section 4(f), or the accompanying committee report, be strengthened to empower GAO to evaluate the cost effectiveness of federal agency compliance costs of maintaining and operating public access capabilities, and assess the impact of the bill’s implementation on IP rights holders. The requirements related to productive reuse and computational analysis could prove to be troublesome, and the current bill language appears to prejudge that a licensing solution would be called for, rather than GAO’s consideration of other available options. We believe these changes will improve taxpayer transparency of the legislation’s enactment.
We thank you for considering our views and those of the larger publishing community in crafting this legislation. Please let us know if you would like to talk further with us about our thoughts. You may reach me on my mobile (515) 231-5376.
Sincerely,

John Downing Chair, Executive Board, CSSP
Letter to Sen. Johnson on FASTR Amendment - July 2015
July 27, 2015
Senator Ron Johnson Chair, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs U.S. Senate Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Johnson:
I am writing to you on behalf of the Council of Scientific Society Presidents (CSSP) to express our support for the Johnson-Carper substitute amendment to S. 779, Fair Access to Science and Technology Research Act of 2015. We appreciate that you were open to changes and sought the views of a large community. As I have previously written on July 10, CSSP is a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines, from the physical and biological sciences through the behavioral and social sciences, via our several dozen member societies and federations. CSSP’s member societies represent more than a million scientists and engineers.
We are in support of the following provisions of the legislation: The 12-month embargo period, with an evidence-based petition process to allow for revising the embargo period for a specific field of science, balancing sustainable peer review and public access. From the perspective of CSSP, anything less than 12 months would severely impair scientific societies’ ability to offer irreplaceable services that uniquely enhance the strength of the scientific enterprise of the United States. We also appreciate that the amendment authorizes federal agencies to determine the most efficient and cost-effective means to establish and maintain their public access capabilities, including how best to manage their respective article and data repositories.
We share the concerns of many of our publishing colleagues around the language in Section 4(f) on the GAO reporting mechanism. In particular, we suggest that Section 4(f), or the accompanying committee report, be strengthened to empower GAO to evaluate the cost effectiveness of federal agency compliance costs of maintaining and operating public access capabilities, and assess the impact of the bill’s implementation on IP rights holders. The requirements related to productive reuse and computational analysis could prove to be troublesome, and the current bill language appears to prejudge that a licensing solution would be called for, rather than GAO’s consideration of other available options. We believe these changes will improve taxpayer transparency of the legislation’s enactment.
We thank you for considering our views and those of the larger publishing community in crafting this legislation. Please let us know if you would like to talk further with us about our thoughts. You may reach me on my mobile (515) 231-5376.
Sincerely,

John Downing Chair, Executive Board, CSSP
Letter to Sen. Carper on FASTR, July 2015
July 10, 2015
Senator Thomas R. Carper Ranking Member, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs U.S. Senate Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Carper:
Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the Council of Scientific Society Presidents (CSSP) via this letter. I am regrettably unable to be present at the Roundtable you are hosting today on S. 779, Fair Access to Science and Technology Research Act of 2015. I appreciate your seeking stakeholder opinion prior to acting on this legislation. I am the Chair of the Executive Board of CSSP. We are a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines, from the physical and biological sciences through the behavioral and social sciences, via our several dozen member societies and federations. CSSP’s member societies represent more than a million scientists and engineers.
- 779 would impose a mandate that all journal articles reporting federally funded research be deposited for free access 6 months after publication. Publications in different fields of science recover the substantial publication and peer review costs over highly variable periods of time. A six month embargo therefore threatens the viability of the scientific enterprise in the United States and will adversely affect and undermine the scientific assistance science and the scientific societies provide to the American public.
We believe that the process outlined by OSTP in its February 2013 memo, built around a 12 month embargo with a process to amend that embargo to address the unique needs of different fields of science, is a better way to proceed. The OSTP memorandum and its process is the result of considerable interchange among federal agencies and publishers and, on behalf of the CSSP, I urge the committee to use this as the framework for any legislation. Anything less than 12 months would severely impair scientific societies’ ability to offer irreplaceable services that uniquely enhance the strength of the scientific enterprise of the United States.
In closing, CSSP members suggest that more flexibility in the embargo period will better enrich the science enterprise, without additional taxpayer contributions. Attached please find CSSP’s position on open access that offers additional insights on these ideas. Thank you for considering our views. Please call me any time on my mobile phone (515-231-5376) if I may offer any further information.
Sincerely,

John Downing Chair, Executive Board, CSSP
Letter to Sen. Johnson on FASTR, July 2015
July 10, 2015
Senator Ron Johnson Chair, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs U.S. Senate Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Johnson:
Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the Council of Scientific Society Presidents (CSSP) via this letter. I am regrettably unable to be present at the Roundtable you are hosting today on S. 779, Fair Access to Science and Technology Research Act of 2015. I appreciate your seeking stakeholder opinion prior to acting on this legislation. I am the Chair of the Executive Board of CSSP. We are a unique organization representing the breadth of science and engineering research disciplines, from the physical and biological sciences through the behavioral and social sciences, via our several dozen member societies and federations. CSSP’s member societies represent more than a million scientists and engineers.
- 779 would impose a mandate that all journal articles reporting federally funded research be deposited for free access 6 months after publication. Publications in different fields of science recover the substantial publication and peer review costs over highly variable periods of time. A six month embargo therefore threatens the viability of the scientific enterprise in the United States and will adversely affect and undermine the scientific assistance science and the scientific societies provide to the American public.
We believe that the process outlined by OSTP in its February 2013 memo, built around a 12 month embargo with a process to amend that embargo to address the unique needs of different fields of science, is a better way to proceed. The OSTP memorandum and its process is the result of considerable interchange among federal agencies and publishers and, on behalf of the CSSP, I urge the committee to use this as the framework for any legislation. Anything less than 12 months would severely impair scientific societies’ ability to offer irreplaceable services that uniquely enhance the strength of the scientific enterprise of the United States.
In closing, CSSP members suggest that more flexibility in the embargo period will better enrich the science enterprise, without additional taxpayer contributions. Attached please find CSSP’s position on open access that offers additional insights on these ideas. Thank you for considering our views. Please call me any time on my mobile phone (515-231-5376) if I may offer any further information.
Sincerely,

John Downing Chair, Executive Board, CSSP
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