# Understanding the RISE Act of 2021

The RISE Act is designed to help America's research institutions recover from the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. When labs shut down and researchers couldn't work in person, ongoing research projects got delayed or stopped entirely. This bill provides federal funding to help get those projects back on track and protect the people who work in research.

The core idea is straightforward: the government will give money to universities, national laboratories, and research centers to extend existing research projects that were disrupted by COVID-19. This funding can be used to keep graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and lab staff employed while they finish work that got interrupted. It can also pay for replacing equipment that was donated to hospitals during the pandemic, fixing damaged research animals or biological samples, and completing field work that couldn't happen during lockdowns. The bill also allows funding for new research specifically focused on understanding COVID-19 and preparing for future pandemics.

The bill authorizes roughly $25 billion in total spending across multiple federal agencies, with the largest amounts going to the National Institutes of Health ($10 billion), the Department of Energy ($5 billion), the Department of Defense ($3 billion), and the National Science Foundation ($3 billion). Smaller amounts go to NASA, the Department of Agriculture, and other agencies that fund research. This money is meant to be distributed quickly to minimize delays in getting research back to normal.

Who benefits? Primarily graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and lab workers who might otherwise lose their jobs or have their training interrupted. Universities and research institutions also benefit by being able to complete projects without having to cut corners or abandon work. The broader benefit is to American innovation and competitiveness—the bill's supporters argue that without this funding, the U.S. risks falling behind other countries in key research areas like artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and medical breakthroughs.

RISE Act of 2021

DeGette, Diana

Research Investment to Spark the Economy Act of 2021 or the RISE Act of 2021 This bill authorizes the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, the Interior, Health and Human Services, and Transportation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Science Foundation, and Environmental Protection Agency to provide support for research regarding COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) or research disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Support may be used to <ul> <li> provide supplemental funding to extend the duration of a grant to a research institution, national laboratory, or individual that was awarded prior to the enactment of this bill, or to expand the purposes of such a grant as specified; </li> <li>issue awards to research the effects of the current pandemic and potential future pandemics; and</li> <li>provide flexibility on awards to account for facility closures or other limitations during the COVID-19 public health emergency.</li> </ul> Agencies must provide the support as rapidly as possible. Provided funds shall remain available through FY2021.