NSPE sent a joint letter with nearly 250 other professional organizations, universities, and corporations to Senate leaders urging them to pass the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act (H.R. 5116, S. 3605) this year. The America COMPETES Act, first enacted in 2007, was drafted in response to " Rising Above the Gathering Storm," the National Academies' report on America's lagging competitiveness in science and technology. The bill authorizes investments in science and engineering research and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education from kindergarten to the postdoctoral level.
The House passed the reauthorization bill in May. If the Senate passes the bill, Congress could produce a final bill for the President's signature before the 111 th Congress ends.