Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5056, the Research and Development Efficiency Act. I would like to thank my colleagues, Mr. Bucshon and Mr. Peters, for introducing this important bill. As ranking member of the Subcommittee on Research and Technology, I have also been working on a topic of research regulations for some time, and I am pleased to be a cosponsor of this bill. Recent reports have found that federally funded researchers face significant administrative burdens, spending about 40 percent of their time on paperwork instead of what they do best, which is conducting research. This could mean a delay in research progress and lengthening the time for the next scientific breakthrough. It is certainly not the best use of some of our Nation's greatest science and engineering talent or of taxpayers' investment in that talent. I want to stress that administrative requirements are very important and many are in place for a reason. We must have a system that ensures that human participants are being protected and our resources are being used wisely. We have heard from those most affected by these requirements, and they fully agree. That being said, we also agree that we need to find the right balance that meets our safety and accountability goals, but still allows researchers to advance science for the good of the Nation. Right now, we are not striking the appropriate balance. H.R.…”