$1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan Includes Funds for Manufacturing Research

Last week, President Biden signed into law a long-awaiting $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (H.R.1319), designed to accelerate the distribution of vaccines and treatments proven effective against the coronavirus and provide relief to individuals and communities impacted by the continuing economic fallout from the pandemic. While Congress rejected inclusion of $26 billion specifically to support research and related activities disrupted by the pandemic, the legislation does include limited funds to address critical supply chain gaps and invest in new collaborative research partnerships in the manufacturing sector, as well as limited funds for the National Science Foundation and Department of Education to address research and student learning disruptions. 
 
Manufacturing research funding highlights include:

• $5.2 billion for research, development, manufacturing, production, and the purchase of vaccines, therapeutics, and ancillary medical products and supplies
• $500 million for the evaluation of the continued performance, safety, and effectiveness of vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics and the facilitation of advanced continuous manufacturing activities related to production of vaccines and related materials, and oversight of the supply chain and mitigation of shortages of vaccines, therapeutics, and devices approved, cleared, licensed, or authorized for use for the treatment, prevention, or diagnosis of COVID-19 by the Food and Drug Administration.
• $150 million for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to fund awards for research, development, and testbeds to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the pandemic, including through NIST’s network of manufacturing research institutes. 

Other research and education funding highlights include:

• $600 million for the National Science Foundation to fund or extend new and existing research grants, cooperative agreements, scholarships, fellowships, and apprenticeships related to the pandemic.
• $100 million for the Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences. The money is earmarked for research on how the pandemic has impacted student learning, including comparisons of remote, in-class, and hybrid approaches. 

To read the full text of the American Rescue Plan, visit: https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1319/text. For a section by section summary, visit: https://budget.house.gov/american-rescue-plan-act-2021-hr-1319.