FASEB Submits Fiscal Year 2026 Funding Requests to Congress

By: Jennifer Zeitzer
Thursday, April 10, 2025
Amid rumors that President Donald Trump will send his fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget request to Congress in either late April or early May, FASEB sent a letter to the leaders of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees summarizing the federation's funding recommendations for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and other science agencies. Following the submission of the president’s budget, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees are expected to hear testimony from the federal agencies before beginning to draft the 12 annual appropriations bills that provide funding for each agency. 

FASEB’s letter noted that timely consideration of FY 2026 funding legislation is especially critical following the passage of the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, H.R. 1968 (P.L. 119-4) in March. That bill flat funded critical biomedical, biological, and physical sciences research supported by NIH, NSF, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Department of Energy Office of Science (DOE SC), and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).  

FASEB also praised the House and Senate Appropriations Committees for their long-standing record of bipartisan accomplishment in making funding for research a national priority but expressed concern that the process will repeat itself in FY 2026, unless the Appropriations 
Committee leadership begins immediate negotiations to reach a consensus on top-line discretionary spending limits that will allow for above-inflation increases for NIH, NSF, DOE SC, and other science agencies and research programs.  

Consideration of the FY 2026 appropriations bills will take place as new leadership takes over at both NIH and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). On April 7, FASEB issued a statement commenting on the confirmation of Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, as the 28th Director of NIH and Michael Kratsios as Director of the OSTP.  The FASEB statement noted Bhattacharya and Kratsios are assuming their new roles during a time of extreme uncertainty across federal science agencies and that the federation looks forward to the opportunity to work with each to ensure the United States maintains its leadership in research discoveries that further human health and wellness.