Overview
- Board members received boilerplate emails Friday saying their positions were “terminated, effective immediately,” with Nature and other outlets reporting that all 22 current members were removed.
- The National Science Board sets policy for the National Science Foundation, approves major funding decisions, and advises Congress and the president, raising concern that grant approvals and a May 5 meeting could stall.
- Scientists and Democratic lawmakers denounced the action, with House Science Committee ranking member Zoe Lofgren calling it a reckless move that weakens independent advice on U.S. research.
- The removals follow proposed deep cuts to the NSF budget, steep staff losses at the agency, and reports that the White House budget office restricted what NSF leaders could share with the board.
- Created by Congress in 1950, the board’s staggered six-year terms are meant to ensure continuity across administrations, yet it is now unclear when or how replacements will be named.