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A new US COMPETES Act was agreed in late December - an umbrella law that covers a wide range of scientific initiatives and coordination.  There will be quite a lot of haggling to come on the money to implement some of these elements, but some reorganise existing allocations and it is an interesting expression of direction and ambition.  Of specific interest is section 104 on collections which gives responsibility to OSTP and reads /.....

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SEC. 104. FEDERAL SCIENTIFIC COLLECTIONS.

(a) MANAGEMENT OF SCIENTIFIC COLLECTIONS.—The Office of Scienceand Technology Policy shall develop policies for the management and use of Federal scientific collections to improve the quality, organization, access, including online access, and long-term preservation of such collections for thebenefit of the scientific enterprise. In developing those policies the Officeof Science and Technology Policy shall consult, as appropriate, with—

(1) Federal agencies with such collections; and

(2) representatives of other organizations, institutions, and otherentities not a part of the Federal Government that have a stake in thepreservation, maintenance, and accessibility of such collections, includingState and local government agencies, institutions of higher education, museums,and other entities engaged in the acquisition, holding, management, or use ofscientific collections.

(b) CLEARINGHOUSE.—The Office of Scienceand Technology Policy, in consultation with relevant Federal agencies, shall ensure the development of an online clearinghouse for information on the contents of and access to Federal scientific collections.

(c) DISPOSAL OF COLLECTIONS.—The policies developed under subsection (a) shall—

(1) require that, before disposing of a scientific collection, a Federal agency shall—

(A) conduct a review of the research value of the collection; and

(B) consult with researchers who have used the collection, and other potentially interested parties, concerning—

(i) the collection's value for research purposes; and

(ii) possible additional educational uses for the collection; and

(2) include procedures for Federal agencies to transfer scientific collections they no longer need to researchers at institutions or other entities qualified to manage the collections.

(d) COST PROJECTIONS.—The Office of Science and Technology Policy, in consultation with relevant Federal agencies, shall develop a common set of methodologies to be used by Federal agencies for the assessment and projection of costs associated with the management and preservation of their scientific collections.

(e) SCIENTIFIC COLLECTIONDEFINED.—In this section, the term ''scientific collection'' means a set of physical specimens, living or inanimate, created for the purpose of supporting science and serving as a long-term research asset, rather than for their market value as collectibles or their historical, artistic, or cultural significance, and, as appropriate and feasible, the associated specimen data and materials. 

The orchids responded to temperature in the same way in the two periods, indicating the potential value of collections for investigating ecological responses to climate and as research resources for new scientific interests.