The US House of Representatives has passed a bill that would require the National Science Foundation (NSF) to award grants only for research projects that are ¡°in the national interest¡±.

The , which was approved after a of 236 to 178, includes seven definitions of research that would be classed in this way. These include research that has the ¡°potential¡± to achieve ¡°increased partnerships between academia and industry¡±, the ¡°promotion of the progress of science¡± and the ¡°development of an American STEM workforce¡± that is ¡°globally competitive¡±.

It would also include research that could lead to ¡°increased economic competitiveness¡± in the US, the ¡°advancement of the health and welfare of the American public¡±, ¡°increased public literacy and public engagement with science and technology¡± and ¡°support for the national defense of the US¡±.

The bill states that the public announcement of each award of federal funding must include written justification as to how the grant meets these requirements.

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Almost all of those who voted in favour of the bill are Republicans while Democrats largely rejected the legislation.

However, the White House issued a threatening to veto the bill, stating that it would ¡°needlessly¡± add to ¡°bureaucratic burdens and overhead¡± at the NSF and ¡°replace the clarity of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950 with confusing language that could cast a shadow over the value of basic research¡±.

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In December 2014, the NSF revised its guidelines to state that a ¡°nontechnical project description¡± must explain the significance and importance of each project and serve as ¡°public justification¡± for NSF funding by articulating how the project ¡°serves the national interest¡±.

The bill¡¯s sponsor and chairman of the House science committee Lamar Smith said that the legislation ¡°makes this commitment permanent¡±.

However, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education, an NSF spokeswoman said that the agency stands by the administration¡¯s statement threatening a veto of the bill.

ellie.bothwell@tesglobal.com