Congressman Fattah is the lead Democrat responsible for funding some of the largest science agencies in the federal system (NASA, NSF, Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).[20] In December 2011, Fattah through his role on the Appropriations Committee, directed the OSTP to establish an Interagency Working Group on Neuroscience (IWGN].[21] Housed within the White House and chartered on June 20, 2012, the IWGN convenes representatives across the Federal government to make recommendations about the future of neuroscience research.

The Fattah Neuroscience Initiative is a policy initiative designed to make major progress understanding the human brain by intensifying, in a collaborative fashion, federal research efforts across brain disease, disorder, injury, cognition and development.[22] The initiative aims to coordinate Federal research across agencies and draw upon public-private partnerships and the world of academia. The initiative promotes research and discovery across brain cognition, development, disease and injury.