[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 76 (Wednesday, May 7, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2800-S2801]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. PADILLA (for himself and Mr. Moran):
  S. 1664. A bill to require the Director of the Office of Science and 
Technology Policy to develop a consistent set of policy guidelines for 
Federal research agencies to address financial instability of graduate 
researchers and postdoctoral researchers, and for other purposes; to 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the bipartisan 
RESEARCHER Act.
  This legislation would require Federal research Agencies to enact 
policies to address the financial insecurity of graduate and 
postdoctoral researchers, while collecting data to better understand 
the financial challenges that these researchers experience.
  This legislation would require the White House Office of Science and 
Technology Policy, OSTP, to develop guidelines on addressing the 
financial insecurity faced by graduate and postdoctoral researchers. 
Federal research Agencies would then be required to use these 
guidelines to implement their own policies to tackle this pressing 
issue.
  It would also improve our understanding of the financial insecurity 
experienced by graduate and postdoctoral researchers by awarding 
universities and nonprofit organizations grants to study this issue, as 
well as commissioning a study by the National Academies of Sciences, 
Engineering, and Medicine.
  The future of American leadership in science and technology depends 
on our

[[Page S2801]]

success in securing our scientific workforce by strengthening the STEM 
pipeline.
  One of the most significant barriers that imperils our ability to 
attract new talent into the STEM pipeline and keep our young people in 
the pipeline once they are there is the many financial stressors that 
make it difficult for graduate and postdoctoral researchers to provide 
for themselves while conducting critical research.
  Alongside issues with their salaries, young researchers face 
challenges concerning food insecurity, student loan debt, health, 
housing, childcare, and more.
  Research shows that graduate and postdoctoral researchers identify 
compensation, including salaries and benefits, as one of the most 
significant barriers that they face as young people trying to support 
their personal lives and jumpstart their early careers.
  Alongside requiring Federal research Agencies to update their 
policies to address these concerns, we must also collect more data on 
this problem to ensure that our solutions are well thought out and 
effective.
  Ensuring continued American leadership in STEM depends on what we do 
now to support the researchers who will guide the future of our 
scientific enterprise.

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