Michigan Congresswoman Haley Stevens Leads Special Order Hour on Science Cuts

WASHINGTON, D.C. –– Yesterday, Michigan Congresswoman Haley Stevens and Congressman Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA) led House Democrats in a Special Order Hour to call out President Trump and Elon Musk’s reckless policies and budget cuts to federal science agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF), which is causing chaos across Michigan and the country. Federal science agencies, including NSF,  fund vital scientific research, train the next-generation of scientists, and support technology transfer. These harmful policies and budget cuts jeopardize more than $3 billion in federal research dollars that Michigan universities and small businesses receive, threatening Michigan’s competitiveness in the global economy and threaten to deny Michigan students opportunities in STEM

During the Special Order Hour, the Congresswoman brought attention to the unprecedented attacks on the National Science Foundation. Since the second Trump Administration began, NSF has:

• Terminated over $1 billion in grants for research and STEM education authorized by Congress.
• Attacked STEM education programs authorized by bipartisan Congressional action, including the Congresswoman’s Building Blocks of STEM Act which President Trump signed into law in 2019.
• Carried out chaotic “Reduction in Force” efforts at NSF to tackle so-called “bloat” in an already efficient workforce; over 94% of NSF’s $9 billion in Fiscal Year 2025 budget was distributed in the form of grants, awards, and scholarships.
• Undermined technical and subject-matter expertise by removing NSF scientific advisory boards
• Politicalized gold-standard merit review process for choosing scientific awards. 

Congresswoman Stevens was joined on the floor by her colleagues Reps. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA); Don Beyer (D-VA); Bill Foster (D-IL); Valerie Foushee (D-NC); Melanie Stansbury (D-NM); Mark Takano (D-CA); Paul Tonko (D-NY); and George Whitesides (D-CA).

Workers who were fired from the National Science Foundation sat in the gallery during the Special Order Hour.

“The State of Michigan is known for its manufacturing prowess, its best-in-class skilled workforce, and the beauty of the Great Lakes. But what’s often overlooked is that the State of Michigan relies on innovation,” said Michigan Congresswoman Haley Stevens. “But Trump’s anti-science agenda undermines this symbiotic relationship and threatens Michigan’s future in advanced manufacturing, environmental protection, and next-generation mobility technologies. Trump’s chaotic policies are setting Michigan up to lose. 

“The Trump Administration’s attack on science is not about cutting waste, fraud, and abuse. Federal science funding and programs return double or triple the investment we make in them. What these cuts and agency firings will do is lead to a brain drain in our government, which will hurt the health and safety of every American and diminish our country’s standing in the world,” said Congressman Suhas Subramanyam.

###