Tillis Co-Introduced Legislation to Provide Relief to U.S. Research Community Passes Committee

Today, Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Edward Markey (D-MA), Gary Peters (D-MI), and Cory Gardner (R-CO) applauded the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee's passage of bipartisan legislation they introduced that would provide $26 billion to U.S. researchers who have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The Senators introduced the Research Investment to Spark the Economy (RISE) Act in July to provide necessary relief to preserve the current scientific workforce and ensure that the United States is prepared to continue our global scientific leadership once this crisis ends.

Although coronavirus-related research is a current federal government priority, most other research has slowed or stopped due to closures of campuses and laboratories. The people who comprise the research workforce -- graduate students, postdocs, principal investigators, and technical support staff -- face financial and other hardships from the disruption of their research activities. More than 300 organizations have endorsed the RISE Act, including the Association of American Universities, The American Council on Education, and U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

"Our world-class medical researchers, scientists, research institutions and labs in North Carolina and across the United States continue to work tirelessly to improve the health and economic growth of the country," said Senator Tillis. "The bipartisan support for the RISE Act from the Commerce Committee is an important step in the right direction and I will continue to fight for the passage of the bill to ensure that the medical and scientific research community can resume operations, restore progress to pre-pandemic levels, and deliver innovative solutions moving forward."

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