Details about who will serve on key congressional committees with jurisdiction over scientific research and education are emerging.
The House Appropriations Committee, which is responsible for allocating federal funding, including to federal science agencies and programs, will have new leadership and several new faces. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) will succeed Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) as the Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, while Representative Kay Granger (R-TX) will serve as Ranking Member. The Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies, which has jurisdiction over funding for the National Science Foundation, will be chaired by Representative Matt Cartwright (D-PA), with Representative Robert Aderholt (R-AL) serving as Ranking Member. The Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, which has jurisdiction over funding for the Department of the Interior and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), will be chaired by Representative Chellie Pingree (D-ME), with Representative David Joyce (R-OH) serving as Ranking Member. DeLauro will remain Chairwoman of the Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education Subcommittee, while Representative Tom Cole (R-OK) will serve as the top Republican.
Newly assigned members on the House spending panel include: Representatives Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Josh Harder (D-CA), Susie Lee (D-NV), David Trone (D-MD), Lauren Underwood (D-IL), Jennifer Wexton (D-VA), David Valado (R-CA), Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), Mike Garcia (R-CA), Ben Cline (R-VA), Tony Gonzales (R-TX), and Ashley Hinson (R-IA). Representatives Pete Visclosky (D-IN), Jose Serrano (D-NY), Martha Roby (R-AL), and Will Hurd (R-TX), who served previously on the panel have retired.
Committees with jurisdiction over science will also have new members. The House Science, Space, and Technology Committee will have several freshman lawmakers: Representatives Deborah Ross (D-NC), Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Carlos Giménez (R-FL), Stephanie Bice (R-OK), Young Kim (R-CA), Jay Obernolte (R-CA), Randy Feenstra (R-IA), Jake LaTurner (R-KS), and Peter Meijer (R-MI). Veteran lawmakers Representatives Daniel Webster (R-FL), Pete Sessions (R-TX), and Donald Norcross (D-NJ) have also been assigned to the panel. Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Ranking Member Frank Lucas (R-OK) will retain leadership of the House science panel.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over biomedical R&D at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and Food and Drug Administration (FDA), will be led by Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Ranking Member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA). Several new members have been assigned to the panel, including Representatives Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), John Curtis (R-UT), Neal Dunn (R-FL), John Joyce (R-PA), Debbie Lesko (R-AZ), Gary Palmer (R-AL), Greg Pence (R-IN), Angie Craig (D-MN), Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX), Kathleen Rice (D-NY), Kim Schrier (D-WA), and Lori Trahan (D-MA).
The House Committee on Agriculture, which oversees agricultural research programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will be chaired by Representative David Scott (D-GA), with Representative Glenn Thompson (R-PA) serving as Ranking Member.
Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) will retain leadership of the House Committee on Natural Resources, which has jurisdiction over most of the Department of the Interior, including the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), National Park Service (NPS), and Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Representative Bruce Westerman (R-AR) will replace Rob Bishop (R-UT) as Ranking Member.
Details about membership changes to Senate committees are yet to emerge with the evenly divided Senate still finalizing its power-sharing agreement. Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Richard Shelby (R-AL) will likely serve as Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Roger Wicker (R-MS) will presumably lead the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
