Need for Funding

Our centers are essential to millions of workers and to the economic vibrancy of the nation’s industries and businesses. But our impacts on workers and businesses have only been possible through the leadership of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). 

Given that, we urge Congress to provide the $363.8 million in federal funding for NIOSH for Fiscal Year 2026 as approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee in July 2025. 

This funding is essential. Beyond NIOSH’s many indispensable roles not directly tied to our regional centers, we have found that being organized and coordinated through a federal agency that serves as a nationwide hub for occupational health and safety research and initiatives enables us to achieve far more than we could as an independent collection of centers. The guidance and framework that NIOSH provides spurs efficiency and allows us to complement one another rather than duplicate efforts, which is key to our ability to cover all U.S. regions and comprehensively address all businesses, industries, and worker populations. 

We additionally request that Congress allot funding for our centers at the following levels as part of the
$363.8 million for NIOSH:

  • At least $32 million to support the 18 regional Education and Research Centers (ERCs).   

  • At least $29 million to support the 12 regional Centers for Agricultural Safety and Health. 

  • At least $11.8 million to support the 10 regional Centers of Excellence for Total Worker Health.

The total cost of funding our centers amounts to roughly $0.45 per worker in the U.S. annually. As only one example of the historical benefits of that funding, our graduates are estimated to have created $50.6 billion in inflation-adjusted cost savings for their employers through the reduction of workplace injuries and fatalities. That is a return on investment of greater than 30:1 on the federal dollars we’ve received — which doesn’t account for our economic impacts related to research and collaborating with businesses. 

Without ongoing federal support, most of our centers would cease to exist. More of America’s workers, from dairy farmers to miners, would be injured or killed, with businesses left to shoulder the costs. 

In contrast, we envision a future where our centers, as well as the workers and businesses relying on us, continue to thrive.