White House to make all federally funded research immediately accessible

What they're saying: "All members of the American public should be able to take part in every part of the scientific enterprise—leading, participating in, accessing, and benefitting from taxpayer-funded scientific research. That is, all communities should be able to take part in America’s scientific possibilities," the White House said in a statement Thursday.

• "In the last year alone, the American public has borne witness to extraordinary scientific achievements —transformative breakthroughs in medicine and vaccines, inspiring insights from the deepest depths of the ocean, and unprecedented glimpses into the farthest reaches of our universe," it added.
• "This research, which changes our lives and transforms our world, is made possible by American tax dollars. And yet, these advancements are behind a paywall and out of reach for too many Americans."

The big picture: The memo, signed off on by Alondra Nelson, the deputy assistant to the president and deputy director for science and society, orders all federal agencies to "develop new, or update existing, public access plans as soon as possible, and submit them to OSTP."

• Nelson is performing the duties of OSTP director in an acting capacity after White House science adviser Eric Lander resigned from the post in February after violating the Biden administration's workplace policy.
• President Biden nominated Arati Prabhakar, the former head of DARPA, as OSTP director in June, and the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee voted to advance her nomination last month.

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