The Public Affairs Committee advises the APS Council on policy issues and how best to address them. The Committee also informs Council of specific initiatives undertaken by the Commit-tee itself. The Committee recognizes the importance of careful integration of its activities with Council's goals as well as with activities of the Animal Care and Experimentation Committee, the Communications Committee, and the Science Policy Committee of the FASEB. It has worked closely with these groups to define and reach common goals. Likewise, the Public Affairs Committee works closely with the APS Office of Public Affairs both to coordinate activities and to more effectively communicate relevant issues to Council and, when appropriate, to the general membership.

A major focus of the Public Affairs Committee is to advocate for federal funding of biomedical research. Results of the past year's advocacy have been disappointing in that regard. With much of the legislative and executive attention being devoted to funding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and with the economy's having inhibited discretionary spending, funding for NIH in particular suffered and lost some of the ground that had been gained during the preceding five-year period when its budget had been doubled. Prospects for the NIH budget are reportedly more dismal for the upcoming fiscal year. Some projections even suggest that the Administration will seek to propose an actual reduction of the NIH budget. APS and its Public Affairs Committee continue to work with elected representatives to assure their having all the information that they need to realize that stagnant (or declining) funding of NIH, VA, and NSF would have a negative short- and long-term impact on the health of research in our country. However, it is essential that members of the Society take every possible opportunity to act as their own advocates in that regard.

In order to promote advocacy among its members, APS had developed and enhanced a Legislative Action Center or LAC on the APS web site. In the past year the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) purchased software that further enhanced the capabilities of the LAC and, with the support of APS, accepted responsibility for maintaining that site. The LAC can now be accessed on the FASEB web site at http://capwiz.com/faseb/home/. The Public Affairs Committee urges APS members to act through that site to promote issues that they feel are critical for American biomedical science.

The Public Affairs Committee and APS continue to work closely with FASEB on numerous other public affairs issues. These include scientific ethics, peer review, use of animals in research, postdoctoral training and postdoctoral support. Liaison with FASEB's Office of Public Affairs is affected through membership on the FASEB Science Policy Committee (SPC). The Chair of the Public Affairs Committee is a permanent member of the SPC, which meets monthly. In the past year the SPC voted to have the Chair of the APS Public Affairs Committee serve as the Chair of the SPC subcommittee on use of animals in research and to have the Chair of the APS Animal Care and Experimentation (ACE) Committee serve as an ad hoc member. The subcommittee is currently developing a new entry, one that deals with animals in research, to the FASEB website and anticipates having that site open within the next year. The FASEB website on animals will be linked to the APS website as well as to others that promote and inform about the value of animal research. In the past year the Chair of the Public Affairs Committee has also been actively involved in FASEB's efforts to work with the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) to promote funding for, and philosophical support for, basic research within that agency. There has been a dramatic change in leadership within the DVA and the new leadership has shown great willingness to partner with the scientific community in directing DVA research. It will be critically important for APS and FASEB to continue their support for DVA research as well as for NIH and other federally supported research programs inasmuch as a number of members of Congress have openly criticized administration of these agencies and have stood in the way of the budgetary support that the agencies need to keep American science at the forefront.

The Public Affairs Committee continues to work with officials at NIH in efforts to promote training and retention of scientists in integrative or systems physiology. APS efforts have complimented those of other FASEB societies such as ASPET and AAA. The organizations seek to emphasize the need for development of scientists who can bring the innovations allowed by molecular biological approaches to whole animal research and the study of mechanisms that underlie systems physiology. Such a multifaceted approach to the study of physiology is in keeping with the NIH Roadmap and promotes integrative and systems science as a partner with more cellular approaches. 

The Public Affairs Committee recognizes that it is an instrument of the Society as a whole and must work to respond to the needs of the Society as directed by its leadership. Within the next year Council and the Executive leadership of APS will seek to revitalize the Society's strategic plan. To promote Public Affairs and make it even more responsive, the Committee will seek to enhance further its communication with Council and with the Section Advisory Committee, thus providing an expanded avenue for membership to have the needs that it recognizes addressed. Implicit in that responsibility, however, is recognition that advocacy cannot be effectively applied through committees. It is the responsibility of each member of the Society to speak forth on issues that affect us all. Public Affairs will continue to seek to provide members the most "user-friendly" means to do so. 

William T. Talman, Chair

Council Actions

• Council accepted the report of the Public Affairs Committee.

• Council approved the necessary funding for a joint meeting between the Public Affairs Committee, the Executive Cabinet and the PA Committee's Council Liaison to be held, if necessary, after the Strategic Plan meeting.

• Council approved the request to continue participation in the "Bridging the Sciences" coalition.