After US midterms, 3 science issues: budget, House panel, grants

With the U.S. midterm elections held on Nov. 3 (local time), the attention of the American scientific community is shifting to federal science agency budgets and the congressional oversight system. In a roundup published the day before the election, FYI, the science policy news service of the American Institute of Physics (AIP), reported that most federal funding expires on Dec. 12 and that, depending on the makeup of Congress, investigations could begin into the termination of research grants at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Energy (DOE).

First issue: the Dec. 12 funding deadline

According to AIP, most federal government funding expires on Dec. 12. If spending bills are not passed before then, parts of the federal government will shut down. Congress returns from recess on Nov. 9. This session, held after an election and before a new Congress convenes, is called a “lame-duck session.” Bills that do not pass before the new Congress convenes in January die.

Another deadline the scientific community is watching is Dec. 11. The current stopgap funding bill puts on hold, until Dec. 11, the overhaul of federal research grant rules being pursued by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Whether this hold provision is carried over in year-end budget negotiations could decide how research funding is administered.

Second issue: the direction of the House Science Committee

The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology oversees federal science agencies including NSF, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). In an Oct. 20 article, AIP reported that Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), the committee’s ranking Democrat, appeared likely to become chair in the next Congress if polls at the time held.

The committee’s Democrats have set out three priorities: restoring research funding, stabilizing the research workforce and investigating senior administration officials. Lofgren said she would halt OMB’s overhaul of research grant rules and lift budget restrictions placed on NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). She also laid out plans to examine NSF’s research funding cuts and to revive quantum and AI bills that never reached the House floor. She said she would also revisit the referral to the Justice Department of allegations that Energy Secretary Chris Wright lied under oath at a June 10 hearing. Lofgren said the administration had “taken a hammer to the foundations of scientific research and innovation” and that “we are losing a generation of scientists.”

Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.) argues that NIST’s AI research and cybersecurity work should be strengthened. Foster, whose district includes Argonne National Laboratory and Fermilab, is the only physics Ph.D. in Congress.

Third issue: grant terminations and the loss of researchers

AIP reported that if Democrats win the House, they plan to investigate grant terminations and leadership conduct at federal science agencies such as DOE and NSF. Behind this are figures from the research community. According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), staffing at most federal agencies fell by more than 10% in 2025, and by as much as 30%. In September, 17 researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) filed a lawsuit alleging that NIH was canceling grants based on a list of 235 banned words. AIP’s own report found that physics Ph.D. recipients left the United States in 2025 at the highest rate in 30 years.

The limits of what Congress can change

Some observers note that even if the makeup of Congress changes, policies are unlikely to be reversed quickly. AIP relayed the view that lawmakers have few tools to roll back administration policies. Joel Widder, a former senior NSF official, told Science that even if control of the House changes, many major policies stem from presidential executive orders and would have to be overturned in court. Several appropriators who control science agency budgets, as well as leaders of relevant committees, were also up for reelection in this election.

U.S. federal research funding is one of the largest single sources of funding for basic science in the world. The December budget negotiations and the makeup of the new Congress convening in January will affect research funding at NSF, NIH and DOE, international research collaboration and even the flow of researchers to the United States. Once election results are finalized, the next thing to watch is whether the three issues above actually make it onto the legislative agenda.

Sources: AIP FYI, The Week of Nov 2, 2026 · AIP FYI (2026-10-20)

This article was translated from the Korean edition of Science Monitor with AI assistance and reviewed by our editors.