INFORMS Open Forum

Good evening,

Congress remains in recess this week, however there are a number of important updates to share with from Washington:

White House

• First, and most important, the Trump Administration released its proposed FY2027 budget.

While I won't go into the complete details of this proposal, the FY2027 request is essentially structurally identical to what the administration proposed for FY2026 in terms of the same fundamental shift away from basic research and toward defense and security priorities, and at comparable magnitude -- including a proposed 55% reduction in NSF's budget.

Congress rejected that proposal in FY2026 thanks in no small part to the organized, sustained advocacy by coalitions of scientific organizations. The FY2027 fight will require the same.

We'll be sharing more information about how INFORMS members can get involved in this effort in the weeks ahead. 

• In the meantime, AAAS will be hosting a webinar on April 22^nd at 1:00 PM Eastern about what the Administration's FY2027 budget request means for science. You can learn more and register for this event here. 

• • If you missed the video from AAAS president Sudhip Parikh about the Administration's request, it's worth taking two minutes to watch it.

Federal Agencies

 

• Department of Energy (DOE) press release: Department of Energy Unleashes AI to Reduce Reactor Licensing Timelines

• Related resource- DOE: The Genesis Mission: A National Mission to Accelerate Science Through Artificial Intelligence

• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) press release: NASA Unveils Initiatives to Achieve America's National Space Policy

In the News

• The Scientist: H-1B Visa Restrictions Will Hurt America's Research Potential, Experts Say

• Axios: AI is making college students change majors

• Scientific American: Trump administration proposes massive budget cuts to science

As always, I will continue tracking these and other developments and sharing updates relevant to the INFORMS community.

Best regards,

Jeff Cohen

P.S. Don't forget, if you want to get more involved in or learn more about INFORMS advocacy and public relations efforts, please reach out to me at: jcohen@informs.org

------------------------------
Jeffrey M. Cohen, MBA | PhD Candidate
Chief Strategy Officer
INFORMS
jcohen@informs.org
linkedin.com/in/jmcsc
------------------------------