Tuesday, October 10, 2023
Context: In my role as division director of IIS, I’m sending out a short message to the IIS mailing list on the Second Tuesday Every Month (STEM). Here’s the installment for October 2023.
Hi IIS Community,
If you were been keeping up with the news at the end of last month, you know that the federal government got very close to shutting down. The 45-day agreement that was put into place (known as a “continuing resolution”) expires November 17th. You might have wondered, what happens to NSF in the event of a government shutdown? I definitely did. Here’s what I’ve been able to figure out, but my understanding is that literally everything about this stuff is subject to change. So, think of this as what would have happened in the beginning of this month had a deal not been reached and what might happen next month.
Can research continue during a shutdown? Yes, just because NSF shuts down, doesn’t mean you have to. That said, if you are depending on funds that would arrive during a shutdown, you might need to wait.
Will trips or purchases that take place during a shutdown be reimbursed? Yes (assuming they’d be reimbursed not during a shutdown---reminds me of the old joke where a patient asks a doctor after a hand injury, “Will I be able to play piano?” The doctor says, “Yes, when it heals.” The patient says, “Great, I was never able to play before!”). Since reimbursements happen at the level of your institution and NSF isn’t involved in that, there shouldn’t be a problem.
Do review panels happen during a shutdown? No.
What about an NSF-funded workshop? Yes, though NSF people won’t be able to attend.
What happens to proposal deadlines that occur during a shutdown? Once things open up again, there will be an announcement for when the deadline will be. It’s a good idea to have everything ready to go, though, because there might not be a lot of warning once the new deadline is decided.
Will universities get their money? Often, the money is provided in advance and therefore won’t be affected. Increments of funding meant to arrive on a date that is during a shutdown, however, will be delivered sometime afterward.
Can PDs work? Federal employees are not allowed to work at all during a shutdown. IPAs like me (rotators from other institutions) are paid by NSF through their institutions and therefore can continue to work during a shutdown. (Federal employees don’t get paid during a shutdown, but the current rules make it so that they will be paid once things open up again. It’s significant hardship for them and I’m glad the rules don’t add injury to more injury.)
Can we submit reports? Yes, we expect the NSF systems to be functioning during a shutdown.
Will there be any messages from Wendy or Michael? Nope, not until after when we can speak in our NSF roles again.
Ideally, this information is only for interesting background reading and it won’t be needed before my next STEM update in December. Oh, wait. Next update should be November 9th, so … never mind. Meanwhile, if you have a topic you’d like me to look into for you, let me know.
Until next time!
-Michael
P.S. I apologize that the unsubscribe button doesn’t work.