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Rep. Veasey Statement on House Republican COMPETES Act

May 20, 2015

Veasey Votes Against H.R. 1806, the American COMPETES Reauthorization Act

Washington, D.C. –Congressman Marc Veasey, TX-33, member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, released the following statement after voting against the partisan H.R. 1806, the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act:

"Today, I voted against the partisan H.R. 1806, America COMPETES Reauthorization Act that passed the House earlier today. This legislation undermines the landmark America COMPETES Act of 2007 by significantly diminishing funding for critical research, engineering, and education programs supported by the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy's Office of Science, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

The COMPETES Act of 2007 and its reauthorization in 2010 made significant investments in important research and job creation programs like the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the Advanced Research Projects for Energy (ARPA-E), and essential seed funding for research and development to spur technological innovation, cutting edge research, and modern manufacturing. However, the partisan bill before the House today keeps R&D levels flat and slashes critical dollars to countless programs including a 50% cut to ARPA-E and a nearly 30% cut to EERE R&D.

I've joined not only with numerous scientific organizations like the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Association of American Universities that represent hundreds of universities, scientific societies, businesses, and professional organizations but also environmental organizations like Sierra Club, Natural Resource Defense Council, and League of Conservation Voters that all oppose this bill."