ACS applauds Congress for passing American competitiveness bill

(Press-News.org) WASHINGTON, Dec. 21, 2010 — The American Chemical Society (ACS) applauds Congress for reauthorizing the America COMPETES Act today.

America COMPETES (Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education and Science), was originally enacted in 2007 and needed to be reauthorized this year in order to provide continued support for scientific research, technological development, science, technology, engineering and math education.

"I want to extend our appreciation to Congress for passing COMPETES; it is the backbone of our nation's scientific and technological economy," ACS President Joseph S. Francisco, Ph.D., said. "Despite a very difficult economy, I am glad that members of Congress have agreed to reauthorize this key legislation that keeps the engines of invention and innovation moving forward."

If America is to recover from years of severe job losses and financial crisis, the nation must stay the course of smart, sustained investments in our most valuable economic engine: scientific research and globally competitive education that together fuel technological innovation.

The bill authorizes key funding for science agencies including the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science.

According to a report of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), economists broadly agree that more than 50 percent of U.S. economic growth during the last 60 years was due to scientific and technological innovation.

###The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 161,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

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