[visionlist] President's Budget Request, elimination of SBE at NSF

Mon Apr 6 13:45:27 -05 2026

Hello

I am forwarding a note from Juliane Baron, the Exec Director of FABBS - the Federation of Associations for Behavioral and Brain Sciences - one of our advocacy organizations in DC. 

The Social, Behavioral, and Economic Directorate (SBE) is the part of NSF most likely to fund our kind of research.

Best

Jeremy Wolfe

======================
Dear Colleagues,

As many of you have no doubt heard, the President's budget request for FY27 <https://secure-web.cisco.com/1LVKBwRgX5o0X2HMcMfMo1P1ZYc7R0phJYM33TgJsBimTBo572DkTwmxYaQqgi-IDtx8-3zne7ExSubsjXgCW-8zVaU1Gi7WgTdFzFuv_HBodMXWvglxIhJhaE-0zbaKPPSNGpVyfvGvREb98DEClVn9Lzm3AKd9Z_9n4xQ6usQuYC5vwPI8zsUuItJgTjm-fXGK8lLrxebUXsWAhGzozV7omybr67meD0-u6j_-WD4jdMkAYk0Db-G_4FWsqATtXzO9MRjm5zNqJaUUhi9mLv4nlhB3BGeYUcoXxIwv-EUGvbzczKwEPGcrThpOvvweyJXT5cBaGvid_xOTgu12dxfScERudEeJvYs3jsE05mJI/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.whitehouse.gov%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F04%2Fbudget_fy2027.pdf> recommends not only cutting the National Science Foundation (NSF) by nearly 55 percent (page 77), it also zeros out funding for the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Directorate (see budget appendix <https://secure-web.cisco.com/1lji5dGDX0XMpFZyFpYipluFnfa3bvWsITgb18rsIkQBGlm2XPdyCzJ3GK8grbaH2Bpu0fNHijPi404pqmeWaVqACKwhneYz8HtGuJiCCIFvxNZ8iuXX0YTkvgTvJ8GQQSTvAILp-kecEFiu52qJJfTOZC6x-JdOW_7Lc6UyPS-F2zfI49tx1DrC3xjncDFhPkrWeU-PCgljHYeTFVXMMmgf48pCiGjRqmm2hf6KPW3gn8_7ttvtyRvGrDoExljDAjrev2oAuwcT-Dvzid6zFW-63sXtfeQd3OH703adqe296D3oUgjb3e__nBHGD377mWgsxV8YEGs4ePG_JYo4XbLfHfgViZcZoNSWN8lDeo1I/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.whitehouse.gov%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F04%2Fnsf_fy2027.pdf>). 

We are extremely concerned by reports that NSF plans to move forward with the dismantlement, independent of Congressional deliberations on the annual budget. See Nature <https://secure-web.cisco.com/1_m6mHe0O4HR0yR3h2fZZVNLiYIM3QVzb_8O1_KoagFc4OK6iJAPxJoFO6olPpGE1idF_qflE_wLHm1zGk368TrB-8i_Tcdb17v_zK-xPmW-vONlBHvs4iRFOiaS5vk-TJQBZit86-a_0Y5LCllxmOI0Z1vySSQrMBw8LgsUkKE76YNq4D4qGJE7a45vdt0IyLEd1f1kO3f4HN5-vMmLUDI8Z_FovN7VZ9BEHzFIiiWPnyJHTCUpV1BmTZlX-QAdouDNL2d4Pmqr04vklbwX-v4LhZgSS1cTtnHBCBPRsnmiyrCsPNsLWNplMieWy6vwJ_TidUm5cdTNDk6ZZpn46_u7d7WAV9Mzn73utH5yayfs/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nature.com%2Farticles%2Fd41586-026-01105-7> article.

FABBS is in close contact with colleagues at NSF, congressional offices, and the broader scientific and academic communities. This consequential proposal directly contradicts Congressional guidance and is being advanced without a transparent or thoughtful evidence-informed process at a time when NSF has no congressionally confirmed director.

Join us on Friday, April 10 @ 1:30 pm ET for an update and guidance on what FABBS and our members can do to protect the NSF investment in our disciplines. Registration Link <https://secure-web.cisco.com/1PLW-R8-747prmN2va6-Z6w16Y72iKaUnfY2_L0qXj5pKK7z6SFZ4FX33oi96d19KIGkQvEKpZAqrcSjkjgbaOzi2VSAonuV7os6n9VcIogjDFEv5JaGPKvxJMUkeU4jlx6ufk_Fj2WzffJoIiUe6rwCYx7fC9qMccyfkWSpLKlyWaw8o0z571Y7cXQwB_hyTNmB9DZgKdcgZok5Sd2RHK9uNdxLHWTBlukIJQGtDiDODHjs0rkrOQS_XmSwp8fCGRLQ2ENKdE-uUc9wezfMvbQ5GWazgA454zsBIL4uOWgnSkCUDy5OdIYymZMIILaZJ33i1ulxhw0dJRgI800RaPMx3UqdkClMOLp07wjJY1iY/https%3A%2F%2Fus02web.zoom.us%2Fmeeting%2Fregister%2F05jdofr6R_mLrwsbwsfIWA%23%2Fregistration>. Please consider sharing this link with your society colleagues and faculty.

Onward,
Juliane

=======================

Jeremy M Wolfe, PhD 
Professor of Ophthalmology & Radiology, 
Harvard Medical School

Visual Attention Lab   
Department of Surgery   
Brigham & Women's Hospital

900 Commonwealth Ave
3rd Floor
Boston, 02215

Phone:  617-851-1166
Fax:  617-768-8816

Best email: jwolfe at bwh.harvard.edu
Backup: jeremywolfe0131 at gmail.com
URL: search.bwh.harvard.edu

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