Center of Science, Policy and Society Programs: R&D Budget and Policy Program
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R&D Budget and Policy ProgramStatus of FY 2013 Appropriations
OMB Tells Agencies to Intensify Sequester PlanningIn a memo (PDF) released last week, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) told federal agencies to “intensify” their efforts towards planning for the March 1 sequestration. The memo urges agencies to reduce civilian workforce costs, review grants, and take other steps to reduce outlays while minimizing impacts to core missions. Initially, nondefense agencies had been preparing for an 8.2% cut to discretionary spending. The American Taxpayer Relief Act, passed earlier this month, trims those cuts somewhat – closer to 6% of their annual budget, roughly speaking – but also fits them into a smaller timeframe.
New OECD Data Show U.S. Research Intensity Slipped in 2011Last week the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development released updated science and technology indicator data. According to the data, U.S. research intensity – the measure of R&D expenditures as a share of the economy – fell to 2.77% in 2011, from 2.83% in 2010 and 2.91% in 2009. The U.S. was in 8th place in 2010, and will likely slide to 9th place in the 2011 data, pending additional reporting from other countries.
Tax Deal Leaves Spending Question On the TableThe American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 – passed on the first day of 2013 by a 257-167 vote in the House, after passing by an 89-8 vote in the Senate – makes substantial changes to the tax code, and likely lets the country avoid recession, but it does not address the fundamental question for research funding: how to avoid the across-the-board sequestration in the long-term. Thus, it is essentially a first step towards a more comprehensive fiscal fix, making some progress but leaving the future of science funding in limbo. The bill raises roughly $620 billion in new revenues and will save more than $100 billion in federal interest payments, according to OMB. Instead of tackling the sequestration question head-on, it delays the cuts until March 1. It also reduces the cuts in FY 2013 by $24 billion, which means the total spending amount to be sequestered on March 1 stands at $85 billion rather than the original $109 billion in the current fiscal year; future years would remain at the higher figure. In exchange for this marginal reduction in sequestration, Congress agreed to cut base discretionary spending by $12 billion over the next two years: by $4 billion in FY 2013, and $8 billion in FY 2014. These cuts are to be distributed evenly between defense and nondefense accounts, and would effectively keep base spending flat at 2012 levels (contra the current Continuing Resolution, which provided a minor increase). The advantage, however, is that the Administration and Congress will have discretion in allocating this new round of cuts, rather than the across-the-board approach taken by the sequester – which leaves open the possibility that they’ll prioritize science and innovation funding. While the tax portion of the fiscal cliff appears to have been averted, the spending portion thus remains in nearly full effect, only with a new deadline. This means the weight of uncertainty remains in place for federal science agencies and research institutions that rely on federal funding – especially given that full-year base appropriations for FY 2013 remain to be determined by Congress. It may also mean a more difficult crunch this summer, as still-sizeable cuts are crammed into a shortened time period. OMB had issued guidance before the holidays on how agencies should plan for sequestration, and that planning will now apparently continue beyond January. What this all means for the FY 2014 budget release – due in just a month – is another open question. Further, while the nation’s long-term fiscal trajectory will no doubt improve due to the deal, it remains unsustainable. Tough choices will still need to be made on the debt ceiling neither branch of government has come close to an operable plan to address entitlements, while there may yet be another round of revenues as part of the next deal, as the President has said. It remains to be seen how balanced the next phase of deficit reduction will be, and where science funding fits in.
OMB Issues Sequestration Guidance as Fiscal Cliff Talks Fall ApartAccording to a report from Federal News Radio, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has issued guidance to federal agencies and employee unions about what to expect should the sequestration take effect in January as scheduled. According to the report, OMB officials don't expect a major change in daily operations, and aren't expecting to receive detailed plans on how individual agencies are handling the cuts until January. It appears agencies will likely implement a gradual phase-in of reductions rather than a sharp set of cuts, with the goal of hitting reduced budget targets by the fiscal year's end. OMB's guidance memo, available here (PDF), has been distributed to employees at several agencies, including Defense, NASA, and Commerce. It has also been reported that the current situation has led OMB to delay in providing agency guidance for the FY 2014 budget request. The communication from OMB comes amid the widely-reported challenges that have emerged during the fiscal cliff negotiations.
White House Releases Report on the U.S. Research EnterpriseThe President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology today released a new report assessing the challenges facing the U.S. research system. The report identifies two major trends that are shifting the research landscape: industry's increasing focus on R&D for short-term needs in the face of increased international competition; and the globalization of science and technology, marked by increased foreign investments in research capacity - particularly in Asia. These trends, PCAST argues, offer the U.S. the opportunity to renew its commitment to the research and innovation enterprise, with universities taking up a prominent role alongside industry. The report's broad recommendations touch on several areas. Some highlights:
PCAST Report:
Congressional Briefing On Sequestration This Wednesday, Nov. 12In light of the coming spending reductions under sequestration, AAAS will hold a briefing in conjunction with the House R&D Caucus to explore what these cuts could mean for federally-funded research. The briefing will take place from noon to 1:30pm in 2212 Rayburn, and we'll be joined by experts from Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Pennsylvania.
New Brief: Impacts of Sequestration on Science Budgets
In a new brief, we attempt to illuminate the size of these potential cuts by estimating budget impacts for the federal R&D enterprise in the first five years of sequestration, through 2017. We examine budgets for most key science agencies, and took a look at the funding ramifications by state. Depending on the assumptions one uses, science agencies could be looking at cuts anywhere from 7.6 percent to 17.5 percent of their R&D budgets. Read More.
Congress Passes Continuing Resolution, Funding Government Through March 2013As expected, the Senate over the weekend passed legislation by a 62-30 vote to keep government funded and operating through March 2013, after the House had passed the same resolution on September 13 by a 329-91 vote. With a few exceptions, the continuing resolution (CR) grants a very small (0.62 percent) increase to federal appropriations across-the-board, to bring funding up to the $1.047 trillion spending level agreed to in last year's debt ceiling agreement. The resolution does grant an outsized increase for atomic weapons R&D activities at the Department of Energy, essentially meeting the President's request in this category, and provides an additional $100 million for domestic uranium enrichment R&D. Additionally, the resolution makes provisions to ensure the Joint Polar Satellite System and the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite system remain on their planned launch schedules. These changes bring annualized R&D funding levels up to $141.7 billion, a 0.8 percent or $1.2 billion increase above FY 2012 levels, according to our estimates, compared to an expected inflation rate of 1.7 percent. See the below PDF for a full summary of current appropriations. It is worth remembering that the CR does not affect the looming sequestration, which could reduce federal R&D by over $12 billion next year should it go forward as planned in January. Negotiations over sequestration and the tax elements of the fiscal cliff continue, but as Congress is now in recess until after the election, an agreement is unlikely until the post-election lame duck period, at the earliest. Table:
OMB Releases Sequestration ReportOn Friday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a detailed report (PDF) outlining the funding impacts of sequestration. According to the report, which had been mandated by Congress, defense programs would decline by 9.4 percent, while nondefense programs would decline by 8.2 percent (both figures refer to discretionary spending only). This would amount to roughly $12.3 billion in R&D cuts: $7.4 billion on the defense side, and $5.0 billion on the nondefense side.
Congress to Tackle Continuing Resolution as OMB Misses Report DeadlineAs Congress returns from August recess this week, a key order of business will be to tackle the continuing resolution that would fund the government through March 2013. The resolution, if successfully passed and signed into law, would avoid a government shutdown when the fiscal year ends September 30. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) announced, and the White House endorsed, an agreement on such a resolution just before the recess. The agreement appears to temporarily settle a running dispute between the parties over total FY 2013 spending, as it is expected to adopt the $1.047 trillion spending level agreed upon in last year’s debt ceiling deal. This is in contrast with the House budget resolution, which capped overall spending at a somewhat lower level, and some in the House will likely object to the higher spending limit in the continuing resolution. Meanwhile, the White House has missed their deadline for issuing a much-anticipated report on how sequestration would be implemented in FY 2013, and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will instead issue the report by the end of this week, according to White House Press Secretary Jay Carney. The report was mandated by the Sequestration Transparency Act of 2012, signed into law on August 7.
Senate Appropriations Committee Passes Defense Spending BillYesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed its version of the FY 2013 Defense Appropriations bill, after the full House passed its own version two weeks ago. According to AAAS estimates, the bill would reduce DOD R&D by $1.9 billion or 2.5 percent below FY 2012 levels, nearly equal to the overall cut proposed by the Administration. By contrast, the House version would reduce overall DOD R&D by about half as much. Basic research across all military departments and agencies would be funded at $2.1 billion under the Senate bill, roughly the same as the House and the Administration proposals. The only divergence between the Senate Committee and the Administration in basic research funding is an additional $10 million from the Senate committee for the Navy's Defense Research Sciences program. Applied research funding in the Senate bill is more generous than either the Administration or the House proposals. The overall Defense S&T budget would be virtually the same as that in the House. As in prior years, and mirroring the House, the Senate Committee has restored substantial funding to the Defense Health Research program, which the Administration had targeted for a nearly 46.9 percent cut. The Senate bill would not go quite as far as the House version: while the Committee would keep the program's R&D budget above $1 billion, the program would still be cut from FY 2012 levels by $240 million or 18.9 percent, whereas the House voted to keep program funding virtually flat. The bill is unlikely to reach the Senate floor anytime soon, given the recent agreement by Congressional leaders to adopt a continuing resolution funding the government through the first few months of 2013. The FY 2013 Interior/Environment spending bill is now the lone R&D-heavy spending legislation yet to be taken up by the Senate Committee. Congressional Action on R&D at the Department of Defense
Congressional Leaders Announce Agreement to Fund Government Through March 2013Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) announced yesterday that they have reached an agreement on a continuing resolution to fund the government through March 2013, avoiding a shutdown prior to the election while the appropriations process grinds to a halt for the time being. Such an agreement became necessary after Reid and an aide working for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) said neither chamber were likely to act on further spending bills before the election. The White House has praised the initial agreement in a statement. The agreement appears to temporarily settle a running dispute between the parties over total FY 2013 spending. Last year's debt ceiling agreement established a discretionary spending cap of $1.047 trillion. While the Administration and Senate Democrats have abided by this agreed limit, the House GOP passed a budget resolution that capped overall spending at $1.028 trillion. The lower cap has drawn the ire of Democrats, and the White House has consistently promised to veto any spending bill that abides by the lower cap. The agreement will reportedly follow the higher spending level, adding an additional $4 billion in discretionary spending above FY 2012 levels, a less than one percent increase overall. The resolution itself will be drafted, revealed, and voted on after the August Congressional recess. How Congress will allocate this increase remains to be seen, but in general the impacts on R&D spending will likely be uneven depending on the agency, since it merely extends FY 2012 funding levels. Some R&D funders, like NIH, were already slated for a flat budget in FY 2013 by Congress and the Administration, and so the continuing resolution would have little effect on funding. Some agencies or programs slated for moderate or large increases - like the National Science Foundation and the Department of Homeland Security - will lose out on these increases for the time being, while programs apparently headed for cuts - like NASA's Planetary Science program or R&D at EPA - may dodge these reductions for now. Programs targeted for zeroing-out - such as NSF's political science research and climate change education programs or NIH's economics research, all targeted by the House - also should get a temporary reprieve. The plan is for the resolution to be free of policy riders. What the continuing resolution will likely not do, however, is resolve the sequestration, though bipartisan negotiations along these lines continue. Congress has passed the Sequestration Transparency Act (PDF), which would require the Administration to provide details on the implementation of sequestration within 30 days. Previously, the President had objected to detailing the sequestration cuts saying that the cuts were unlikely to take effect. He hoped that the threat of the unknown would force Congress to replace the sequester with a bipartisan debt reduction deal. Meanwhile, the Office of Management and Budget has announced (PDF) they will begin consultations with federal agencies to begin planning for the cuts.
House Subcommittee Approves NIH Funding with Strings AttachedThe House Appropriations Subcommittee for Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education approved the draft spending bill that provides funding for the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Education, and other agencies last week. While the bill keeps NIH funding flat from FY2012 levels, in accord with the President’s request, it would keep funding for the National Center for Translational Sciences flat at FY 2012 levels, rather than providing the 11 percent increases sought by the Administration. It offsets this cut with 0.3 percent increases in most other institutes, with some exceptions. However, it also attaches several strings to overall NIH funding. Notably, it requires 90 percent of NIH research funding to go towards extramural research, and 55 percent for basic research. It would also reduce the maximum salary researchers could receive from NIH grants by 8 percent, from $179,700 to $165,300 - the second reduction to the NIH salary cap in recent months - and it would forbid NIH from funding economic research. Outside NIH, the bill takes a few steps intended to reverse implementation of the healthcare reform bill: it would eliminate the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; rescind $150 million in funding to the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Trust Fund; and forbid any funding for patient-centered research. It is not clear when the bill will move to the House floor, as the appropriations process appears set to grind to a halt until after the election. The Senate Appropriations Committee previously approved its Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (Labor/HHS) funding bill (S. 3295) in June. According to AAAS estimates, the NIH budget under the committee's mark, plus select mandatory funding and transfers, would amount to $31 billion, $99 million over the President's request in total funding. The President’s budget had proposed keeping NIH funding flat from FY 2012 levels; the increase thus represents a 0.3 percent increase above both the request and FY 2012. Virtually every individual institute within NIH would receive a 0.3 percent increase under the Senate bill. Congressional Action on:
3,000 Public Interest Organizations Ask Congress to Avert Indiscriminate Spending CutsIn recent years, nondefense discretionary spending (NDD) – a budget category that includes virtually all federal spending outside of defense and entitlements, and virtually all nondefense R&D – has been a particular target for severe budget cuts, most notably in the FY 2013 House Budget Resolution. Last week, approximately 3,000 organizations from across the public interest spectrum – including AAAS – sent a letter to Congress asking for a responsible deficit reduction approach that does not include further cuts to NDD. Over the past few years, NDD programs for science, environment, health, transportation, education, housing, public safety, and other areas have been cut by an average of 10 percent. Last year’s Budget Control Act is expected to cut NDD spending by a further 7 percent over the next decade, and the looming across-the-board sequestration will cut into these programs even further. Several proposals have emerged that would shift the onus of sequestration entirely onto nondefense discretionary spending, which would have severe consequences for the nation’s research enterprise, as prior AAAS assessments have found. The letter asks Congress to achieve a balanced approach to cutting the deficit, without subjecting science and other nondefense programs to even deeper cuts than have already taken place. Read More:
Reid: No Appropriations Bills on the Senate Floor Anytime SoonEarlier this week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said the full Senate will not consider any spending bills before the November elections, a position that drew quick criticism from House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) and would all but guarantee the necessity of continuing resolutions by October 1. At the core of the dispute is the long-running disagreement between the parties over how much spending should be allowed in FY 2013. Last year's debt ceiling agreement established a discretionary spending cap of $1.047 trillion. The Administration and Senate Democrats have since abided by this agreed limit, but earlier this year the House GOP passed a budget resolution that capped overall spending at $1.028 trillion. The lower cap has drawn the ire of Democrats, and the White House has consistently promised to veto any spending bill that abides by the lower cap. To date, nine of the 12 annual spending bills have passed the Senate Appropriations Committee (all but Defense, Interior/Environment, and Legislative Branch funding), which appears to be as far as they'll go for the time being. The full House has already passed five out of 12 bills.
House Passes Transportation/HUD Spending BillOn Friday, the full House voted 261-163 to approve the FY 2013 Transportation and Housing and Urban Development spending bill. According to AAAS estimates, the Department of Transportation would receive approximately $1 billion for R&D funding in FY 2013 under the bill, an increase of $70 million or 7.4 percent above FY 2012 levels, though this would represent an $85 million or 7.7 percent reduction below the President's request. The Federal Highway Administration would receive most of the R&D boost sought by the Administration, reaching $494 million, 20.2 percent higher than in FY 2012. This is partially offset by a 6.1 percent or $22 million reduction in Federal Aviation Administration R&D. Elsewhere, the House Appropriations Committee signaled approval of the Administration's plan to move the Research and Innovative Technology Administration into the Office of the Secretary, but the House did not provide funding. The Senate Appropriations Committee passed its version of the Transportation/HUD bill on April 19, following similar contours as the House bill for the most part.
House Appropriations Committee Passes Interior/Environment Spending BillOn Thursday, the House Appropriations Committee approved its FY 2013 Interior/Environment appropriations bill, which now awaits floor action. The bill includes R&D funding for the Department of Interior, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Forest Service, and would cut research at all three agencies significantly. According to AAAS estimates, the bill would fund R&D at the Department of Interior at approximately $740 million, which is $122 million, or 14.2 percent, below the President’s budget request and $56 million, or 7.1 percent, below FY 2012 levels. The United States Geological Survey (USGS), which conducts most research within Interior, would receive R&D funding of $622 million, which is $105 million, or 14.4 percent, below the President’s request and $54 million, or 8.0 percent, below FY 2012 levels. All other R&D programs within the Department of Interior are also funded below the President’s request with the exception of the Bureau of Reclamation, which is funded 1.8 percent above the request. The House bill would reduce total funding for the EPA by 16.5 percent. On R&D-specific funding, the bill includes $517 million, $59 million or 10.2 percent below the President’s request and $51 million or 8.9 percent below the FY 2012 appropriation. The cut is almost entirely for EPA Science and Technology, which is reduced by $51 million, or 9.4 percent, to $493 million. The committee also passed several amendments to limit EPA's ability to regulate green house gases emissions and other toxins. One amendment, offered by Rep. Austria (R-OH) and approved 26-18, prohibits use of funds to set emissions standards for cars with a model year after 2017. Another amendment, offered by Rep. Loomis (R-WY) and approved 27-18, prohibits use of funds to set emissions standards for new fossil energy plants. Other amendments prohibit EPA from applying asbestos emissions standards for housing complexes with less than five units, and the committee report included language to restrict the scope of EPA research on the effects of hydraulic fracturing on water quality, so that the funds are not used to study environmental justice impacts. The appropriations bill also includes funding for the Forest Service, a part of the Department of Agriculture. The bill funds R&D at the Forest Service at $281 million, a decrease of $49 million, or 14.9 percent, from the budget request and $53 million, or 15.9 percent, from FY 2012 levels. The committee report highlights concerns about the long terms costs of the Forest and Rangeland Research program, pointing out that the fixed costs of the program’s research stations exceed 90 percent of their budgets.
House Appropriations Committee Passes Agriculture Spending BillOn Tuesday, the House Appropriations Committee approved its FY 2013 Agriculture funding bill (HR. 5973). According to AAAS estimates, the bill would provide approximately $1.9 billion for R&D at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), $88 million or 4.5 percent below the President's request and $118 million or 5.9 percent below FY 2012 levels. These numbers include the department's Biomass R&D Initiative, which is mandatory funding allocated in the Farm Bill; it received $40 million for FY 2012, but is up for reauthorization for FY 2013 in the current Farm Bill, and thus would not receive an appropriation in the regular spending bill. Within USDA, the House Committee would reduce Agricultural Research Service R&D by $22 million or 2.2 percent below FY 2012 levels, and reduce National Institute of Food and Agriculture R&D by $91 million or 12.2 percent below FY 2012 ($51 million or 7.3 percent if leaving out the Biomass R&D program). However, the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) would receive a boost of $12 million or 4.6 percent above current year funding. Most other sources of R&D funding at USDA would receive small cuts from FY 2012. The bill generally falls short of both the President's request and the current Senate version of the bill (S. 2375), which passed committee April 26 and awaits floor action. Outside USDA, the bill also provides funding for the Food and Drug Administration, where R&D would be cut slightly by $2 million or 0.9 percent from FY 2012, to $263 million.
OSTP and OMB Release FY 2014 R&D PrioritiesThe Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) have released their joint guidance memo detailing the Administration's priorities for R&D in FY 2014, following an earlier OMB memo that directed agencies to find additional 5 percent cuts in FY 2014 based on the appropriations outcomes from FY 2013. The OSTP/OMB memo encourages agencies to focus on ambitious "grand challenges" requiring major advances, and directs agencies to prioritize research investments over development activities. Specific priority areas include advanced manufacturing; clean energy; climate change; R&D for informed management and ecosystem sustainability; IT; nanotechnology; the biological sciences; STEM education; and innovation and commercialization.
House Passes FY 2013 Homeland Security Spending BillYesterday, the House approved its FY 2013 Homeland Security appropriations bill on a 234 - 182 vote, leaving the ball in the Senate's court. No R&D-relevant funding changes were made on the House floor, and thus the numbers out of Committee stand. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science & Technology Directorate, the major source of R&D within the department, would be granted a $162 million or 30.4 percent increase above FY 2012 funding, in accord with the President's budget request. Additionally, the Defense Nuclear Detection Office, another key R&D funder at DHS, would receive a $35 million increase in R&D funding, nearly double FY 2012. Total DHS R&D would increase by $189 million, or 30.6 percent. These numbers are virtually the same as those that have emerged in the Senate version of the bill, which passed committee on May 22 and awaits floor action. See Chapter 11 of the AAAS FY 2013 R&D budget report for more on R&D at DHS (PDF).
House Passes FY 2013 Energy and Water BillYesterday, the House of Representatives approved its version of the FY 2013 Energy and Water spending bill, which mainly deals with Department of Energy (DOE) funding along with a handful of other agencies, on a 255-165 vote. According to AAAS estimates (PDF), the bill would provide approximately $11 billion for DOE R&D in FY 2013, essentially flat from FY 2012 and $856 million, or 7.2 percent, below the President's request. The funding mix will change somewhat: Atomic defense-related R&D would be increased by 8.4 percent, or $361 million, while Office of Science R&D would be cut by 1.6 percent, or $69 million. Overall R&D in the Department's energy technology programs would be slashed by 11.6 percent, or $264 million, though this is almost entirely due to funding cuts for renewable energy, energy efficiency, and low-carbon innovation. In very few cases would R&D funding in the House bill meet or exceed the President's request. Conversely, the Senate version of the bill, which was approved the Senate Appropriations Committee on April 26 and awaits floor action, grants several programs modest increases from FY 2012, getting somewhat closer to the President's request in many instances. Read more: AAAS Energy and Water summary.
House Passes Military Construction/Veterans Spending BillYesterday, the House approved its FY 2013 Military Construction/Veterans appropriations bill (H.R. 5854) on a 407-12 vote. The bill meets the President's request to hold Department of Veterans Affairs R&D flat from FY 2012, at $1.2 billion in direct funding. None of the floor amendments change the topline R&D figures originally estimated from the Appropriations Committee bill, though one amendment (H. Amdt. 1158), introduced by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and approved via voice vote, ensures that the VA dedicates at least $35 million to posttraumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. R&D in the House bill also matches the Senate's version, which was approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on May 22 and awaits action on the Senate floor. See Chapter 12 of the AAAS FY 2013 R&D budget report for more information on VA R&D (PDF).
OMB Releases FY 2014 Budget Guidance, Calls for Continued CutsOffice of Management and Budget (OMB) Acting Director Jeffrey Zients sent a memo to department and agency heads late Friday, May 18 providing guidance on the preparation of the FY 2014 budget. The memo focuses squarely on controlling spending in light of the constraints set by the Budget Control Act of 2011, and asks agencies to cut lower-priority spending to allow for continued investment in "areas critical to economic growth and job creation, including education, innovation, infrastructure, and research and development." The guidance memo directs agencies to cut their bottom-line FY 2014 requests by 5 percent below the net discretionary spending levels appropriated for FY 2013. The memo also directs agencies to exclude the across-the-board sequestration from their requests. In a second appended memo, OMB spotlights the importance of evidence for evaluation, cost-benefit analysis, budgeting, and policymaking. The memo asks agencies to demonstrate such approaches in their requests, and says there will be some funding available for initiatives that seek improved use of evidence or expanded evaluative capacity, including in the area of grant-making. The memo also highlights the Office of Science and Technology Policy's Science of Science Policy working group as one such entity seeking to apply evidence-based principles.
House Appropriations Committee Approves Homeland Security, Military Construction/Veterans LegislationYesterday, the full House Appropriations Committee approved spending bills for the departments of Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs, as well as funding for military construction. The Homeland Security bill cuts DHS funding by $484 million below FY 2012 levels and $393 million below the President's request, according to the committee. However, AAAS estimates that R&D at DHS would actually increase by 27 percent above FY 2012 levels under the House bill (PDF), mainly because the House committee granted nearly all of the funding increase sought by the Administration for the DHS Science & Technology Directorate, which is the primary funder of R&D at DHS. Specifically, the S&T Directorate's total budget would increase by 24 percent or $158 million above FY 2012 levels to $826 million under the House bill, essentially equal to the level sought by the Administration. See Chapter 11 of the AAAS FY 2013 R&D budget report for more on DHS (PDF). The Military Constructions/Veterans bill contains $71.7 billion in discretionary funding, even with the FY 2012 appropriation, according to the committee. Within the VA, the committee keeps Medical and Prosthetics Research even with the Administration's request and slightly above FY 2012 levels, though a slight decline in Medical Services could yield a very small decline in total R&D funding at VA for FY 2013, according to the preliminary AAAS estimate. See Chapter 12 of the AAAS FY 2013 R&D budget report for more on the VA(PDF).
House Passes CJS BillLast week, the House of Representatives approved its version of the FY 2013 Commerce, Justice, Science spending bill – the first of the year – on a 247-163 vote. The bill, which covers funding for NSF, NASA, NOAA, NIST, and other agencies, is more generous in many areas than might have been expected, though R&D at most agencies would fall somewhat short of the President’s request. NSF R&D would receive a $221 million or 3.9 percent boost over FY 2012 levels, slightly less than the President’s request. The House also defeated a proposed floor amendment to further reduce NSF funding by more than $1 billion, though two amendments prohibiting funding for the Climate Change Education Program ($10 million) and for political science research at NSF ($11 million) both passed. Like NSF, NASA R&D would receive a boost above FY 2012 levels, of 1 percent or $91 million, with cuts to space exploration more than offset by increases elsewhere. The largest increase in dollar terms was reserved for science, where the House notably provided planetary science with more than $200 million more than the request, in an attempt to offset the major cuts the Administration is seeking. Many of the increases the Administration has sought for R&D at the Department of Commerce also appear to be largely holding up. The National Institute of Standards and Technology would receive a substantial R&D boost of nearly 14 percent, while the NOAA increase comes in spite of the fact that the overall NOAA budget would be largely flat. According to the Administration’s figures, increases in NOAA’s requested FY 2013 R&D funding substantially outpaced its overall budget request. Elsewhere, the House passed amendments to end the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey and to potentially allow federal agencies to purchase alternative fuels with higher emissions profiles than regular gasoline. The CJS bill now awaits floor action in the Senate, where a version has already been approved in committee.
House, Senate Continue Appropriations Activities on Science, Energy, AgLast week, the full House and Senate Appropriations Committees approved spending bills impacting the budgets for several federal agencies. Both committees passed their respective Energy and Water appropriations bills, which provide funding for the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Bureau of Reclamation, among other agencies. As previously reported, the House would trim the DOE Office of Science budget and keep funding for fossil and nuclear energy, while making more substantial cuts to effiency, renewables, and ARPA-E. The Senate version, as expected, is more generous on renewables, efficiency, ARPA-E, and the Office of Science than the House, though would not fund any of these agencies at the levels requested by the Administration; it would also substantially cut fossil energy R&D. The Senate Appropriations Committee also approved the Agriculture spending bill, which would provide a small increase to USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, and a 3% increase to the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, matching the President’s request. The bill would also boost the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) by 13%, though short of the 23% increase requested by the Administration. Lastly, the House Appropriations Committee approved the Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bill, which provides funding for NASA, NSF, and the Department of Commerce. As previously reported, the bill would provide boosts to NIST, NSF, and NOAA, while trimming the NASA budget; it would also seek to restore some of the cuts to planetary science proposed by the Administration. The House Appropriations Committee also approved its 302(b) allocations for FY 2013, which set the appropriations framework for the subcommittees. As expected, the Committee approved a total discretionary budget of $1.029 trillion, $19 billion below the spending level agreed to in the Budget Control Act and proposed by the Administration and the Senate. The lower House levels continue to set up a conflict with the President, who has said he would veto any bills that don’t abide by the higher spending level agreed to by both parties last year.
OMB: No Sequestration for Veterans AffairsAs expected, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has confirmed that the Department of Veterans Affairs would be exempt from the across-the-board cuts of between 8 and 10% scheduled to take effect under the sequestration in January 2013. VA was always intended to be excluded from these cuts, but some ambiguities in the statute language had led to concerns that it would have to shoulder some of the burden. VA has a $1.2 billion research budget for health and prosthetics R&D. However, even though VA would be exempt from direct cuts, it could still feel the effects of sequestration indirectly, as it receives an additional $500 million each year from other federal agencies for R&D. Separately, OMB last week told the House Budget Committee that it is not yet developing contingency plans for the sequestration. See also: AAAS Analysis of Sequestration and the House Budget
AAAS Report XXXVII: Research and Development FY 2013
Senate Appropriations Committee Adopts Spending Limits While Markups CommenceYesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee adopted their subcommittee spending limits, known as "302(b) allocations" in Congressional parlance. The spending limits set the appropriations framework for the appropriations subcommittees, and are normally based on the levels established in the budget resolution, though the Senate appears unlikely to pass the resolution at this time (for a brief primer on how this process works, see this Congressional Research Service report [PDF] from 2003). The committee accepted a total discretionary budget of $1.047 trillion, matching the discretionary spending cap established in last year's Budget Control Act, and $19 billion higher than the limit established by the House budget. It is not yet clear when the House Appropriations Committee will establish its own 302(b) allocations. Meanwhile, Senate and House appropriators have also begun the process of marking up separate spending bills related to the National Science Foundation, NASA, and the Departments of Commerce, Energy, and Transportation, among other agencies. Amid fears of major cuts in a tough fiscal environment, NSF, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and NASA appear to be fairing well initially in both chambers. Among other items, the Senate committee proposes moving key satellite programs from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to NASA; the House bill does not. Elsewhere, the House has proposed flat funding for the Department of Energy Office of Science, but substantial cuts of 20 percent or more for ARPA-E and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Visit the links below for more.
New Brief: Potential Impacts of the House Budget on Federal R&D
What have we found? In short, the impacts of the House budget on the federal research enterprise could be substantial, especially when coupled with the sequester. The budget could reduce total baseline spending in key budget accounts by 15 percent below the President's budget request, amounting to a three percent cut in total R&D from FY 2012 and a five percent cut in nondefense R&D, without accounting for the sequestration. Factoring in these additional cuts, the House budget could yield reductions in total R&D of up to 12 percent below the current year, with nondefense R&D receiving a disproportionate share of the cuts. Over the next decade, the House budget could reduce nondefense R&D by up to 27 percent, or $161 billion, below the President's request. Read more.
House Budget Committee Releases FY 2013 BudgetHouse Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan has unveiled the GOP's proposed FY 2013 budget, which if passed would serve as a budget blueprint for the House. Ryan proposes an overall discretionary spending limit of $1.028 trillion in FY 2013 - $19 billion below the spending caps established in the Budget Control Act, but $97 billion above the reduced spending levels sought by some in the House. Even as the budget proposes an overall spending decline, it would seek to increase defense spending to $554 billion, $8 billion above the FY 2013 cap. Over the next ten years, the budget would lead to $352 billion less in discretionary spending than the President's budget. How R&D would fare in all this remains to be determined by appropriators.
Research and Development in the President's BudgetAccording to AAAS analysis of data from the Office of Management and Budget and individual agencies, federal R&D investment would rise to $142.2 billion under the President's FY 2013 budget request. This would represent $1.7 billion increase, or 1.2%, above FY 2012 estimated funding levels, though less than the expected rate of inflation. Further, in constant dollars, the President's budget would leave federal R&D expenditures approximately 10% below the peak achieved in FY 2010.
In the nondefense realm, R&D at several agencies that fared well in last year's budget cycle - including the Department of Energy, NASA, NIST, and the National Science Foundation - would again receive increases under the President's budget to varying degrees. Conversely, NIH funding would fail to keep up with inflation for the second year in a row. The Department of Agriculture is subject to a mixed picture, with a flat overall R&D budget but increases in some key research-oriented offices and initiatives. See the below tables for further agency details. Looking ahead to Congressional action, the funding picture remains murky. While many research agencies no doubt remain generally popular with appropriators, several specific components of the President's budget have been criticized for being too generous, or not generous enough. The constrained budget environment will likely force difficult funding choices, and appropriators will be keen to push agencies to explore efficiencies, eliminate waste and duplication, and find ways to further reduce spending. Please note: the below data represent current estimates, and may undergo minor revision. Aggregate Tables Agency Tables Selected Graphs
The President's FY 2013 Budget ReleasedThe Administration has released its FY 2013 budget request. The main budget documents are available here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget. Visit agency budget pages (links provided in the schedule section below) for more detailed agency proposals. The budget projects a $1.33 trillion deficit for 2012, but a $900 billion deficit for 2013. According to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Administration is pledging roughly $141 billion for R&D overall. Defense research activities would experience continued cuts compared to FY 2012, while non-defense R&D would actually increase by 5% according to OMB. Other items of interest emerging early from the FY 2013 request:
We'll post further updates and analyses as they come available. View the President's Budget Request
Agency Budget Briefing Schedule FY 2013Schedule information will be added as it becomes available. Check back frequently for updates.Office of Science and Technology Policy
National Science Foundation
Department of Energy - NOTE NEW TIME
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Department of Health and Human Services
Department of Agriculture
Department of Defense
U.S. Geological Survey
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Institute of Standards and Technology
Administration Delays FY 2013 Budget Release by One WeekEarlier this week, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) notified reporters that the President's proposed budget would be released on Monday, Feb. 13, one week after the Feb. 6 date required by law. The reason for the delay is not yet clear, but according to one unnamed source, the delay is to allow the Administration to "finalize technical and programmatic decisions" related to the budget. The release of last year's budget was also delayed by one week. Both the Chairman of the House Budget Committee and the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee have criticized the decision.
NSF Releases Science & Engineering Indicators 2012The National Science Foundation has released its biennial Science & Engineering Indicators report, which tracks data trends in global and domestic R&D funding, STEM education, the science workforce, and public attitudes on science and technology. The report, using data through 2009, finds that long-term growth in domestic R&D investment, while slowing considerably, nevertheless outpaced broader economic growth. The U.S. also maintained a substantial lead in global research investments, though its share of global R&D declined from 38 percent in 1999 to 31 percent in 2009. This slippage is primarily due to substantial acceleration of research investments in Asia, especially in China. Thanks to explosive growth of 20 percent per year, China now ranks second in research investment, recently surpassing Japan. The report finds continuing support by the American public for science and technology, but also notes some troubling trends for the U.S. high-tech sector in the global marketplace. Click below for more.
Appropriations Megabus Becomes Law, Finalizes R&D Expenditures for Remainder of FY 2012Appropriations Megabus Becomes Law, Finalizes R&D Expenditures for Remainder of FY 2012 On Friday, December 23, the President signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2012, the so-called “megabus” spending bill. With the Presidents’s signature, the FY 2012 appropriations process is now complete. The trillion-dollar compromise package incorporates the remaining nine individual spending bills in the following areas: Defense; Energy and Water; Interior and Environment; Homeland Security; Financial Services; Labor, HHS and Education; State and Foreign Operations; Military Construction and Veterans; and the Legislature. This marks the first time since 2009 that Congress and the President were able to enact every spending bill prior to the year’s end. Based on initial AAAS analysis, total R&D spending for FY2012 stands at $142 billion, approximately $1.9 billion or 1.4% below FY2011 levels. The summary table is posted immediately below, and individual agency tables can be found under the subject headings that follow. FY 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act
Defense R&D in the Final FY2012 Appropriations Bill: Science and Technology Holds Steady, but Overall Investment DownOn balance, the FY 2012 spending package will yield moderate reductions in overall Defense research and development activities, with notable exceptions in basic and applied research. RDT&E funding stands at $72.9 billion, a 3.4 percent decrease from last year’s levels. Most of these cuts are the products of reductions in development, demonstration, and support activities. For instance, advanced technology and components development are each seeing cuts greater than 5 percent below FY 2011 levels. These cuts are partially offset by increases to basic and applied research, which combined will receive a $421 billion or 6.5 percent increase above FY 2011 levels. As a result, science and technology spending actually holds steady from last year in the aggregate, but the character changes. Among the services, Army sees the greatest reduction in RDT&E spending, at $927 million or 9.6 percent below FY 2011 levels, while Navy and Air Force hold nearly steady; conversely, Army sees the largest increase in science and technology activities, receiving $364 million or 16.8 percent more for basic and applied research and advanced technology development than in FY 2011, while Navy and Air Force see very small cuts. Defense-wide agencies will see the largest cuts of all, with FY 2012 funding reduced by $1.6 billion below FY 2011 levels. Lastly, note that university research partnerships will see a 10 percent increase in FY 2012.
Energy R&D in the FY 2012 Appropriations Bill: Boosts in Science, Renewables & Efficiency, ARPA-E, and Atomic Defense at the Expense of Fossil EnergyAmid the fierce debates that surround the nation’s energy policy, the FY 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act actually increases R&D funding at the Department of Energy in some unexpected ways. For instance, while the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s overall budget remains steady, the portion devoted to R&D will increase above FY 2011 levels by 36.7 percent, or $283 million. Conversely, fossil energy R&D will actually decrease in FY 2012 by $70 million, or 15.4 percent below FY 2011 levels. The Office of Science R&D is funded at $4.5 billion, representing a relatively moderate increase of $209 million or 4.9 percent. The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy has been the subject of substantial budgetary debate, but ended up receiving a $92 million or 53.1 percent increase above FY 2011 levels. The National Nuclear Security Administration also receives a moderately large R&D boost of $318 million or 8.3 percent, primarily through increases in nonproliferation research and naval reactors.
Interior and Environment in FY 2012 Appropriations Bill: Moderately Large Increases for USGS, EPAThe Interior and Environment appropriations bill, passed as part of the FY 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act, is fairly generous in R&D funding for both the Department of the Interior – especially at the U.S. Geological Survey – and the Environmental Protection Agency. The USGS, which performs of bulk of Interior’s R&D work, will see a $54 million increase in research funding above FY 2011 levels, an 8.5 percent increase. The largest increases come through climate and land use change research, which will see a 19.3 percent increase, and core science systems, which will receive a 57.6 percent increase; water resources research will also see a moderate increase. Elsewhere at Interior, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement has officially been reorganized into two separate offices: the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement. At EPA, research funding will see a moderate 1.9 percent increase, with FY 2012 funding reaching $568 million, even as the agency's total discretionary budget has declined. This increase is due to a small $14 million boost in EPA’s science and technology program, though a recent reorganization in subprogram structure makes more detailed comparisons difficult for now.
Health and Human Services in the FY 2012 Spending Bill: NIH Holds Steady, New Translational Sciences Center EstablishedOn the whole, the FY 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act leaves the overall National Institutes of Health R&D budget fairly unchanged, with any additional appropriations offset by an across-the-board reduction in discretionary spending leaving the NIH R&D budget $56 million below last year's $30.2 billion budget. Most individual research centers received a one-third percent increase, but there are also some notable changes. In the final bill, Congress agreed to establish within NIH the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, an entity that will seek to “reengineer” the process by which new discoveries in fundamental science move from lab to clinic. The Senate had originally approved the proposed center in its version of the appropriations bill, but the House had not. Elsewhere at NIH, the National Institute of General Medical Sciences will also see a $396 million or 19.5 percent increase. Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and the Food and Drug Administration see substantial cuts in R&D budgets of 11.4 percent and 28.5 percent, respectively.
Homeland Security in the FY 2012 Approps Bill: Cuts Continue for Science and TechnologyContinuing the trend from FY2010, Congress made marginal cuts to the DHS Science and Technology Directorate in the FY 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act. Final FY 2012 funding stands at $533 million, 1.7 percent below FY 2011 levels and slightly more than half of the Administration’s request. Congress’s clearest break with the Administration is in funding support for the Directorate’s research, development and innovation function; the compromise bill provides $266 million, 59.7 percent less than the request. Congress also provided $177 million for lab facilities, 36.2 percent less than the request but a 26.1 percent increase from FY 2011. Elsewhere, the Office of Domestic Nuclear Detection also is subject to a $52 million or 15.1 percent cut below FY 2011 levels, primarily due to a $60 million or 21.8 percent cut to research, development and operations. FEMA is also facing a 40.7 percent cut of $2.9 billion below FY 2011 levels.
Appropriations Minibus Signed Into Law; Includes CR Through December 16Three sets of appropriations including Agriculture, Rural Development and Food and Drug Administration; Commerce, Justice, and Science; and Transportation and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) were signed into law on Friday, November 18th as part of the first appropriations "minibus", the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012 (H.R.2112). Details, including R&D estimates in the bills, are in separate headlines below. The bill includes a continuing resolution (CR) to extend funding for other agencies at FY 2011 levels through December 16. While the Senate was originally going to try to package the remaining appropriations bills into a series of minibuses each containing 3 appropriations bills, it now looks likely that the remaining nine bills will be compiled into a single omnibus bill.
Transportation and HUD Appropriations Signed Into LawThe Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies appropriations were signed into law on Friday, November 18th as part of the first appropriations "minibus", the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012 (H.R.2112). The bill provides $72.3 billion for the Department of Transportation (DOT), rejecting most of the Administration's proposed initiatives which would have brought the DOT budget to a total of $129.4 billion. The FY 2012 funding level is, however, an increase over the FY 2011 by $3.6 billion (5.2 percent). The R&D investment in the bill is estimated at $1.1 billion, $137 million (11.3 percent) less than the President's request, but $64 million (6.4 percent) more than last year. The biggest decreases from last year come in the Federal Transit Administration which saw its Research and University Research Centers budget line get cut by $15 million (25.2 percent) and in the Federal Aviation Administration which suffered cuts in its Facilities and Equipment account for R&D projects, particularly in NextGen: System Development.
Final Agriculture Appropriations Signed Into LawThe Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies appropriations were signed into law on Friday, November 18th as part of the first appropriations "minibus", the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012 (H.R.2112). The bill provides $17.5 billion in discretionary spending for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) which is $72 million (0.4 percent) less than FY 2011 and $1.8 billion (9.4 percent) less than the President's request. The projected USDA R&D investment in the bill is $1.9 billion, $120 million (6.0 percent) less than last year and $136 million (6.7 percent) less than the request. The Agricultural Research Service, the USDA's intramural funding program, is funded at $1.1 billion, a $39 million (3.4 percent) cut in total budget from FY 2011 while the National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA), the USDA's extramural funding program, received $1.2 billion, a $13 million (1.0 percent) cut from last year. The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), NIFA's competitive funding program which has seen gains in recent years and was slated for an increase in the President's request, was flat funded at $264 million. The House bill had included a prohibition on funding the implementation of the June 3rd USDA departmental regulation on climate change adaptation, but the conference report does not contain that provision. While the majority of USDA funding was settled in the "minibus," one remaining agency -- the Forest Service -- had to wait for passage of the FY 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 2055), signed into law on December 23. R&D at the Forest Service was cut by $7 million below FY 2011 levels, a 2.1 percent reduction, but $3 million higher than the Administration's request.
Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations Signed Into LawCommerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies appropriations were signed into law on Friday, November 18th as part of the first appropriations "minibus", the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012 (H.R.2112). The House version of the bill is the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2012 (H.R.2596) and the Senate version is the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2012 (S.1572). The conference report funded two of science agencies at levels greater than either the of the original House or Senate levels, implying some support for investment in science and technology despite the current tough budget climate. The National Science Foundation was one of those agencies, receiving $7.0 billion in the bill, $173 million (2.5 percent) more than in FY 2011. But this funding level is still well short of the President's request of $7.8 billion which would have been consistent with his budget doubling plan for the agency. The other agency receiving a higher funding level than in the original House or Senate bills was the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). NIST is funded at $751 million for FY 2012, a $1 million (0.1 percent) increase from last year. However, the conference report fails to fund all but one of the Industrial Technology Services (ITS) programs. Funding was eliminated for the Advanced Manufacturing Technology Consortium, the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program and the Technology Innovation Program. The sole surviving program in ITS is the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership. The National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) received $17.8 billion in the bill, a $648 million (3.5 percent) decrease from last year. The House bill had eliminated funding for the James Web Space Telescope, but the conference sided with the Senate and funded the project at $530 million. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fared the least well in the bill with an estimated R&D investment of $620 million for FY 2012, $28 million (4.3 percent) less than in FY 2011 and $116 million (15.8 percent) less than the President's request. The administration had proposed the establishment of a National Climate Service, and while the proposal was supported by the Senate, the conference sided with the House and did not fund the new line office.
Senate Appropriations Committee Approves 302(b) Subcommittee AllocationsThe full Senate Appropriations Committee approved their 302(b) subcommittee allocations on September 7. The House approved their 302(b) subcommittee allocations back in May. The 302(b) subcommittee allocations provide a framework for the total discretionary budget that each appropriations subcommittee may allocate for federal departments and agencies under its jurisdiction. The total Senate budget authority comes to $1.043 trillion, a $23.3 billion increase over the House 302(b) allocations. Under the Senate Appropriation's plan, the Labor-HHS Subcommittee which has oversight of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), would have an additional $17.9 billion to spend; Commerce-Justice-Science, with jurisdiction over the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), would have an additional $2.5 billion; and Energy and Water Development would have an additional $986 million.
OMB Releases FY 2013 Budget GuidanceOMB Director Jacob Lew sent a memo to department and agency heads dated August 17 providing guidance on the preparation of their FY 2013 budget requests given the enactment of the Budget Control Act of 2011. The memo directs agencies to submit FY 2013 budget requests totalling at least 5 percent below their FY 2011 enacted discretionary appropriation and to identify additional reductions that would bring the total request to at least 10 percent below their FY 2011 enacted discretionary appropriation. In addition, the memo asks agencies to identify programs to "double down" on that provide the "best opportunity to enhance economic growth".
12 Member Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction SetHouse and Senate leaders have chosen their representatives to serve on the bipartisan Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction which has been charged to find at least $1.2 trillion in savings over ten years to avoid automatic spending cuts. Each member's name links back to his/her official Congressional website.
Sen. Patty Murray and Rep. Jeb Hensarling will co-chair the committee. While initial assumptions were that each leader would select party-loyalists that would be unlikely to yield on the Republican's call for no increased tax revenues and the Democrat's desire to not decrease entitlement benefits, there are a few picks that may not fit that mold completely. Sen. Jon Kyl is retiring, and thus, may be more willing to compromise since he does not have a future election to worry about. Also, Sen. Max Baucus, Rep. Xavier Becerra, Rep. Dave Camp, and Rep. Jeb Hensarling all served on the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform that convened last year, and while they all eventually voted against the recommendations, they do bring some bipartisan experience on the topic of deficit reduction to the table.
House and Senate Pass Veterans Affairs Appropriations BillThe House passed the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2012 (H.R.2055) on June 14 and the Senate passed an amended version on July 20. The House bill provides $531 million for the Medical and Prosthetic Research program at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). This funding level is $22 million (4.3 percent) more than the President's request and $49 million (8.4 percent) less than in FY 2011. The Senate version of the bill provides $581 million for the Medical and Prosthetic Research program which is $72 million (14.2 percent) more than the President's request and $1 million (0.2 percent) more than FY 2011. Including research support from other VA programs, the total R&D investment in the Senate bill is estimated at $1.16 billion, $144 million (14.2 percent) more than the President's request and $2 million (0.2 percent) more than FY 2011 while the House bill's R&D investment estimate is $1.06 billion, $44 million (4.3 percent) more than the President's request and $98 million (8.4 percent) less than FY 2011. VA also performs R&D for other federal agencies and non-federal organizations which is estimated at $720 million for FY 2012. Adding this non-VA funded R&D brings the total for VA-performed R&D to $1.87 billion in the Senate bill and $1.77 billion in the House bill.
R&D in the FY 2011 Year-long Continuing ResolutionTotal R&D investment in the FY 2011 full-year continuing resolution is estimated at $144.4 billion, a 3.5 percent ($5.2 billion) cut from FY 2010. However, $4.7 billion of that cut comes from the Department of Defense appropriations bill that was included in the year-long continuing resolution. Non-defense R&D received cuts of just 0.9 percent with increases at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (+$605 million to $9.9 billion) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (+$507 million to $543 million) balancing out the largest decreases at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (-$501 million to $2.1 billion), the Department of Energy's energy programs (-$357 million to $2.1 billion), the National Institutes of Health (-$329 million to $30.2 billion), and the Department of Homeland Security (-$175 million to $712 million).
AAAS Report XXXVI: Research and Development FY 2012
R&D in the FY 2011 CompromiseCongress released their year-long continuing resolution for FY 2011 this morning which contains a total of around $38.5 billion in cuts, the largest collection of spending cuts in history. R&D intensive programs and agencies were spared the worst of the cuts. Basic research programs faired the best, while applied research programs, especially at the Department of Energy did less well, accurately reflecting the current policy debates taking place. Basic research generally has broad, bi-partisan support, but there is discussion as to how much the federal government should be involved in applied research and the role of industry in funding the applied research stage of the innovation pipeline. The National Institutes of Health are funded at $30.7 billion in the continuing resolution, a 0.8 percent ($260 million) cut from current FY 2010 spending levels. The National Science Foundation is funded at $6.8 billion, a 1.0 percent ($67 million) cut from current levels. The Department of Energy's Office of Science will receive $4.9 billion, a 0.4 percent ($20 million) cut from current levels while the applied reseach-oriented Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) program would receive $1.8 billion, a 18.4 percent ($408 million) cut from current levels. By comparison, the EERE program had been slated for a budget of $1.5 billion in the original H.R. 1, a 35.0 percent ($775 million) cut. ARPA-E received $180 million in the continuing resolution. These funding levels to not include the 0.2 percent across the board cut for non-defense agencies. More details and analysis will be posted as it is available.
R&D in the FY 2011 and FY 2012 BudgetsThe Senate Appropriations Committee released their Full-Year CR proposal on Friday. The total amount of discretionary spending in the bill, $1.079 trillion, splits the difference between the President's FY 2011 request ($51 billion lower) and the House year-long CR proposal, H.R.1 ($51 billion higher). See the table below for more details.
President's FY 2012 Budget Compared to House CR (H.R.1)The President's FY 2012 budget request, released today, contains $147.9 billion in R&D investment, a $772 million (0.5%) increase from FY 2010. While the overall R&D budget is essentually flat, the President funds priority areas such as clean energy R&D, education, infrastructure, and innovation, and keeps the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy's Office of Science, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology on their multi-year doubling path. The FY 2012 Budget Request, however, differs greatly from the recently introduced continuing resolution (CR), H.R.1, which represents the House Republican leadership's plan for $100 billion in discretionary spending cuts. Overall, the FY 2012 request totals $7.4 billion more (12.5%) non-defense R&D investment than the CR. Some of the bigger discrepancies are in funding for energy R&D, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Science Foundation. See the table below for more details.
House Republicans Propose CR for Remainder of Fiscal YearHouse Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) has announced that House Republicans plan to bring to the floor the week of February 14 a continuing resolution (CR) that would cover government funding through the end of FY 2011 (that is, through September 30, 2011). No specific budget figures have been released, but it is expected that the proposed CR would reduce spending to FY 2008 levels as passed in last week’s House resolution (H.Res.38). Additionally, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Harold Rogers (R-KY) said during debate on that resolution that the CR would "make the largest series of spending cuts in history." These actions would coincide with the anticipated release of President Obama’s FY 2012 budget proposal.
Biennial Budget Appropriations Acts IntroducedSens. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) have introduced the Biennial Budget Appropriations Act (S.211), which would switch the annual federal budget process to a two-year cycle, with the first year dedicated to appropriations and the second year dedicated to oversight of federal programs. Reps. David Dreier (R-CA) and Ed Whitfield (R-KY) are sponsoring a similar bill, the Biennial Budgeting and Appropriations Act (H.R.114) in the House. Nineteen states have biennial budget cycles. These proposals respond in part to the increased difficulty of completing the federal budget on time. Congress has done that only twice since 1980.
R&D Tax Credit Tied to Domestic Production ProposedSenator Herb Kohl (D-WI) announced plans last week to introduce a bill, the Domestic Jobs Innovation Bonus Act, that would increase the existing R&D tax credit for companies that produce goods domestically. The increase would range from 2% for companies with 50-60% of sales from domestically-produced goods, up to a 10% increase for companies with 90%-100% of sales from domestically-produced goods. President Obama released his plan, which was not tied to domestic production, for an increased and permanent R&D tax credit in September of last year.
Detailed Proposals on How to Cut the Discretionary Budget EmergeOn January 7, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) introduced The CUTS Act of 2011 (H.R.235) which includes $154 billion in discretionary budget cuts. The list of programs borrows heavily from the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform's list of illustrative savings released in November of last year, but also includes terminations suggested by the Obama and the previous Bush administrations. R&D programs listed in The CUTS Act include the same four programs named in the fiscal commission's list:
Taxpayers for Common Sense, a non-partisan budget watchdog organization, released their own set of recommended cuts for the 112th Congress on January 11. Their cuts tally $148 billion over the next five years with just six of their recommended cuts totaling over $100 billion in savings. The list focuses on tax breaks and individual projects, many of them infrastructure-related. Two R&D programs are included in their list:
The Republican Study Committee (RSC) released details of The Spending Reduction Act of 2010 on January 20. The Act calls for holding FY 2011 non-security discretionary spending at FY 2008 levels and holding FY 2012 - FY 2021 non-defense discretionary spending at FY 2006 levels, with no allowance for inflation. The Act details $330 billion in program cuts and eliminations over the next ten years as part of the overall spending reductions. Three R&D related programs are included in this list of eliminations and reductions:
Sens. Bob Corker (R-TN) and Claire McCaskill (D-MO) introduced the Commitment to American Prosperity Act, the CAP Act, on February 1 which would enact a 10-year plan starting in FY 2013 to decrease mandatory and discretionary spending from the current level of 24.7% of gross domestic product (GDP) to 20.6% of GDP, the 40-year historical average. The bill includes authorization for the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to make evenly distributed cuts throughout the budget each year to bring the budget down to the prescribed level. It would take a two-thirds vote in both chambers to override the spending cap. The bill contains no specific guidance on individual programs.
Secretary Gates Announces $178 Billion in Cuts and ReinvestmentDefense Secretary Robert Gates announced $178 billion in program cuts over the next five years in a speech on January 6 as part of the Defense Efficiences Initiative started in May 2010. Of the $178 billion, $100 billion will be reinvested in higher-priority programs and $78 billion will go towards deficit reduction. Most of the cuts deal with personnel, operations and procurement and appear to have limited effect on Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) programs, especially those operating in the Basic Research (6.1) through Advanced Technology Development (6.3) budget classifications. However, of the programs receiving new or increased spending named in the speech, a number appear to have RDT&E components including new electronic jammers, modernization of F-15 radars, new sea-borne unmanned strike and surveillance aircraft, and a new long-range nuclear-capable penetrating bomber, making this announcement look favorable for R&D investment at the Department of Defense.
House Sets New Budget RulesThe House adopted their new rules (H.Res.5) for the Republican majority on January 5 after electing Rep. John Boehner (R-OH) to be the Speaker of the House for the 112th Congress. Some of the newly adopted rules have directly affect the budget process. First, the pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) rule as established by the 110th Congress was replaced with a cut-as-you-go rule which requires new mandatory spending to be offset with cuts to existing programs and does not allow new spending to be offset with increased revenues as in the previous PAYGO rules. Since the new rule only pertains to spending, tax cuts or other revenue decreases are not covered by cut-as-you-go and do not need to be offset. Extension of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, the repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and other Republican priorities are explicitly exempted from the cut-as-you-go rule. Second, the chair of the House Budget Committee, Paul Ryan (R-WI), is given expanded power under the new rules to establish overall budget spending limits for FY 2011 - 2015 without a committee vote. Previously, these limits, known as the 302(a) allocations, were approved by the Budget Committee and voted on by the full House as part of the yearly budget resolution.
FY 2012 Budget Request DelayedThe National Journal has reported that the Administration's FY 2012 budget request is likely to be postponed until February 14 rather than being released on the traditional first Monday in February. The reason for the delay is the recent appointment of the new OMB director Jacob Lew, whose Senate confirmation was delayed due to a hold by Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA). The Administration has not yet made any official announcement about a release date for the budget request.
President Obama Signs America COMPETES Reauthorization ActAs part of a flurry of Congressional activity at the end of the lame-duck session, Congress passed the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (H.R.5116). President Obama then signed the bill into law on January 4, 2011. The scope of the final bill was scaled down from the original House bill passed at the end of May to ease its passage in the lame-duck session, but it still contains a significant amount of policy guidance relating to innovation, workforce development, and education. The bill also reaffirms the 10-year budget doubling track of the Department of Energy's Office of Science, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the National Science Foundation.
President Signs FY 2011 Defense AuthorizationCongress passed the Ike Skelton National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011 (H.R.6523) in the final days of the lame-duck session and President Obama signed the bill on January 7, 2011. The bill is similar to the Defense authorization bill that passed the House (H.R.5136) back in May with some controversial provisions removed to expedite its passage. The bill authorizes $10.1 billion for Army Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E), $17.9 billion for Navy RDT&E, $27.3 billion for Air Force RDT&E, and $21.3 billion for Defense-wide RDT&E for a total of $76.6 billion, just short of the $76.8 billion in the President's FY 2011 budget request.
R&D Tax Credit Extended Through End of 2011The research and experimentation tax credit was extended to December 31, 2011 as part of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (H.R.4853). The President has proposed a permanent and increased tax credit, but that will have to wait until the next Congress.
Fourth Short-term CR of FY 2011 PassedCongress passed the Continuing Appropriations and Surface Transportation Extensions Act, 2011 (H.R.3082) on December 21, just hours before the third continuing resolution (CR) of the FY 2011 appropriations cycle expired. The FY 2011 appropriations cycle has been particularly dynamic with the House passing an over 150 page year-long CR earlier in December only to have it replaced by a nearly 2000-page omnibus bill in the Senate which was pulled from consideration during floor debate when Republican support for the bill evaporated after an intense lobbying effort by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to his Republican colleagues. A short-term extension of federal funding at FY 2010 levels sets up a face-off in the new Congress between the newly elected House Republican majority which is pushing for $50-60 billion in discretionary cuts and the Democrat-led Senate early in 2011.
Appropriations Update: Omnibus Pulled From Senate Floor After Support EvaporatesWhile passage of the omnibus seemed likely as it was brought to the Senate floor for debate last night, the required Republican support evaporated and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) pulled the bill from consideration without a vote. The House has passed a year-long continuing resolution (CR), but instead of taking up that bill, Sen. Reid has indicated that he will bring a short-term CR introduced by Senator Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to the floor to fund the government through February 18. The House will then have to quickly pass that short-term CR and send it to the President to avoid a government shutdown at midnight on Saturday.
Update on Federal R&D Funding Outlook:
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Current Summary Table: AAAS Estimates of Congressional Action on R&D by Agency
Status of Appropriations Legislation for Fiscal Year 2013
| Posted December 9, 2010 |
House Passes Year-Long CR With Over 150 Pages of Adjustments
The House passed a year-long continuing resolution (CR) last night by just 6 votes, sending the bill to the Senate. The bill, H.R.3082, also includes the Surface Transportation Extension bill, the Airport and Airway Extension bill and the Food Safety bill. The CR extends federal funding through the end of FY 2011, September 30, 2011, at FY 2010 levels, but includes over 150 pages of "anomalies", or funding adjustments. A summary and bill text can be found at the House Appropriations Committee website. The majority of R&D programs look to be funded at FY 2010 levels, but some adjustments include the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to appropriate funding consistent with the newly passed NASA reauthorization bill and the Department of Energy (DOE) is allowed to transfer up to $300 million to ARPA-E from Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) or the Office of Science. More details will follow.
H.R.3082 - Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011 (Thomas)
2011 Full Year Funding Resolution (House Appropriations Website)
| Posted December 8, 2010 |
Recommendations to Reduce the National Debt:
What Do They Mean For R&D Funding?
The President's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform failed to get the required 14 votes to force a Senate vote on its fiscal plan, but 11 of the 18 commission members, a majority, did express their support for the final report, far more than many anticipated. The 66-page report titled, The Moment of Truth, recommends a combination of tax restructuring, discretionary spending cuts, and adjustments to mandatory programs to save nearly $4 trillion through 2020 and reduce the yearly federal deficit to 2.3% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2015, exceeding the President's goal of 3% of GDP.
While the President's debt commission report may be the most widely publicized set of recommendations to reduce the national debt, a number of other fiscal plans to curb the federal deficit have been released previously and many of these plans contain similar recommendations. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a bipartisan, non-profit organization has compiled a comparison table highlighting many of the recommendations contained within the various reports, but what do all these recommendations mean for the federal R&D enterprise?
Below is a non-exhaustive list of some of recommendations made in at least one of the reports that would affect federal R&D:
Invest in high-value research. [NCFRR, p.12] [Obama, 23:00]
One of the President's debt commission's guiding principles was to "cut and invest to promote economic growth and keep America competitive", and investment in "education, infrastructure, and high-value research and development" was recommended. While investment with the hope of future returns can be especially difficult during tight budgets, there is broad evidence of the important role of scientific and technological advancement in the overall economic growth. Robert M. Solow was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economic Studies in 1987 for his work on the exogenous growth model, also known as the Solow-Swan growth model. Solow's seminal 1957 paper showed that productivity growth through technological change accounted for over 80% of U.S. economic growth in the first half of the 20th century. Studies since then have shown that technological change has played a similar role since WWII in the U.S. and other developed economies. Not only is technological growth important to the overall economy, but a 1991 study by Edwin Mansfield showed that investment in academic scientific research yields a 28 percent return on investment (ROI) over time. The National Research Council report, Rising Above the Gathering Storm (p.48-49), provides a thorough overview of other studies that show generous ROI on research and development in both the private and public sectors. The importance of R&D investment to drive economic growth and the high ROI on R&D investment warrants making R&D investment a priority, even during tight budgets.
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Discretionary Budget Cuts / Freezes. [APTA, p.19] [BPC, p.86] [CRFB, p.8] [NCFRR, p.20] [OMB1]
Almost all of the fiscal plans recommend some level of discretionary funding decreases or funding freezes. Over 95% of federal R&D funding is discretionary, therefore cuts in discretionary funding potentially have a large effect on R&D funding. Additionally, the overall level of R&D spending is historically highly correlated with overall discretionary spending, with R&D spending consistently making up an average of 12.0% (+/- 1.9%) of the total discretionary budget since 1969 when the large investment in the Apollo program wound down (see chart).
- Roll Back Discretionary Funding to a Previous Fiscal Year. [APTA, p.21] [NCFRR, p.20]
Discretionary funding cuts can have increased negative impact on the R&D enterprise when using an historical year as the reference baseline for funding. Many R&D priorities are funded through relatively short-term initiatives, typically in a ramp-up / ramp-down paradigm that increases funding during a startup phase, sustains funding through a number of years, and then decreases funding while the project comes to an end. Large infrastructure projects such as the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) at the National Science Foundation (NSF), interagency projects such as the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS), and targeted R&D initiatives such as smart grid investments at the Department of Energy are examples of these types of R&D initiatives. Resetting budgets to previous years interrupts this funding cycle, and because R&D priorities shift between agency departments and divisions, simply falling back to previous agency department or division funding levels can stifle funding for important national priorities. Instead, discretionary cuts should be based on a percentage of funding in the current fiscal year so that priorities can be better managed during tight budgets and the effect on high-priority initiatives can be minimized.
- Targeted Cutbacks. [BPC, p.132] [CRFB, p.8] [NCFRR, Addendum] [OMB2]
A number of the debt commission reports included a list of suggested or recommended cutbacks to current programs. While cutbacks in R&D programs jeopardize future growth due to the importance of technological advancement in economic growth as mentioned previously, it is acknowledged that all government programs should be subject to regular review for effectiveness and their contribution to national priorities. Targeted program cuts, when properly reviewed, are an effective way to enforce fiscal discipline while supporting national priorities and preventing budget cuts from impacting high-performing programs.
Switch to biennial budgeting. [BPC, p.122] [NCFRR, Co-chair Proposal]
Biennial budgeting, where Congress enacts a two-year budget every other year, would provide more stable guidance to agencies when planning future investments. The current one-year fiscal cycle makes it difficult for agencies to plan future investment due to the volatile nature of Congressional Action on the yearly appropriation bills. In addition, with many budgets getting delayed well into the fiscal year, agencies are challenged to enact new priorities in the shortened fiscal year. Future investment planning is further hindered by budget request deadlines that occur before the current budget is even approved. R&D investment is especially susceptible to funding instability since, as mentioned before, many R&D initiatives are multi-year and function best in a ramp-up / ramp-down funding paradigm. The co-chairs of the President's debt commission originally included biennial budgeting as a recommendation, but it was removed in the final report. The Bipartisan Policy Center's Debt Reduction Task Force also recommended a move to biennial budgeting.
[APTA] A Pledge to America, The 2010 Republican Agenda
[BPC] Restoring America's Future, Bipartisan Policy Center
[CRFB] The Future is Now: A Plan to Stabilize Public Debt and Promote Economic Growth, The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget
[NCFRR] The Moment of Truth, National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform
[Obama] President Obama's November 3rd Press Conference
[OMB1] OMB Memo: Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Guidance
[OMB2] OMB Memo: Identifying Low-Priority Agency Programs
Fiscal Commission Co-Chairs Release Preliminary Proposal
On November 10, the co-chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, Alan Simpson, former Senator from Wyoming, and Erskine Bowles, former Chief of Staff to President Clinton, released a proposal to reduce the deficit below the 3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2015 goal set by President Obama. The proposal includes a number of spending cuts to both discretionary and mandatory programs along with 3 options for major tax reform, all of which would increase the tax burden by $80 billion a year by 2015. The proposal included a list of $200 billion in illustrative savings which included a number of R&D-related programs. Some of the R&D-related cuts are reducing the Department of Defense's Research, Development, Test & Evaluation (RDT&E) program budget by 10% ($7 billion in FY 2015), eliminating the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership, eliminating all earmarks, cutting fossil fuel research, eliminating private sector funding for spaceflight, and reducing Smithsonian and National Park Service funding.
National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform Co-Chair Proposal
AIP FYI #113: Proposal by Co-Chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform...
- posted November 12, 2010
Post-Election Outlook on Federal R&D Funding
While reining in the deficit is a priority for both Democrats and Republicans, both parties have different plans on how to do so. However, both parties agree that reduced government spending will be part of that plan, and with that reduced government spending, federal support for R&D will likely be subject to some of the cost-cutting measures.
As reported previously, the Obama administration, through Office of Management and Budget memos, directed non-security agencies to submit FY 2012 budget proposals that (1) totaled 5% less than FY 2012 budget estimates in their FY 2011 budget submissions and that (2) included a list of low-impact programs totaling an additional 5% of the agency's discretionary budget. It's possible that some portion of low-impact program budget cuts will be reinvested elsewhere within the agency, so for non-security agencies, we can expect discretionary budget cuts of between 5 - 10 percent from previous FY 2012 estimates. It is important to note that because the cuts are based on previous FY 2012 estimates, some agencies, such as those authorized in the America COMPETES Act, could still see increases for FY 2012 although those increases would be reduced by 5% from previous estimates. However, while overall budget cuts are imminent, President Obama, in a November 3rd press conference (23:00), said "I don't think we should be cutting back on research and development," so it's likely that his budget request will spare R&D from the same 5 - 10 percent budget cuts to which the overall discretionary budget will be subjected.
The 2010 Republican Agenda, A Pledge to America, contains a pair of policy positions which could have a significant impact on federal R&D investment. First, cutting government spending to pre-stimulus, pre-bailout levels for the FY 2011 budget would cut the federal R&D investment by $8.1 billion (5.5%) from FY 2010 and $8.5 billion (5.7%) from the President's FY 2011 request assuming FY 2008 R&D funding levels. The hardest hit agencies would be those that were authorized in America COMPETES Act and have seen strong increases since the Act was passed in 2007. These agencies include the National Science Foundation (-11.1% in R&D from FY 2010), the Department of Energy's Office of Science (-14.8% in R&D from FY 2010), and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (-14.1% in R&D from FY 2010). For the National Science Foundation, this equates to over 1,400 less new awards than in FY 2010. Additionally, the multi-agency US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) has seen an increase in funding from $1.8 billion in FY 2008 to $2.6 billion in the President's FY 2011 request, a 39.8 percent increase. Budget rollbacks would make it difficult for agencies to sustain their current level of commitment to multi-agency initiatives such as the USGCRP. Second, a hard cap on future growth of the discretionary budget would make it more difficult for Congress to implement R&D growth initiatives such as the President's Plan for Science and Innovation and the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act, currently under consideration in Congress. While A Pledge to America does not address R&D investment, Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX), the likely chairman of the House Science and Technology Committee in the 112th Congress, gave some indication as to his priorities in the next Congress in a November 3rd statement. In the statement, he mentioned checking runaway spending, strong oversight, and the use of science policy to drive innovation as some of his priorities for the future.
Its clear that both parties intend to reduce overall federal spending, but there is disagreement as to when those cuts will occur and to what extent. The administration wants to wait until the FY 2012 fiscal year to implement the budget cuts so as to not interrupt the current economic recovery, the House Republicans would like to see those budget cutbacks in the FY 2011 budget and to a greater degree than the administration, and Senate Republicans have announced they are working with their Democratic colleagues on a FY 2011 omnibus appropriations bill for consideration in the lame duck session with a much smaller spending cut ($28 billion less than the President's request) than suggested by their House counterparts. It will be up to the legislative process to determine what exactly will happen, but with Senate Republican support and a Democratic majority in the House for the lame duck session, an omnibus spending bill during the lame duck session looks most likely at this point.
Outdated... See Nov. 30 update above - Table: Estimated R&D in A Pledge to America
Coverage in the New York Times: Money for Scientific Research May Be Scarce With a Republican-Led House
OMB Memo: Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Guidance
OMB Memo: Identifying Low-Priority Agency Programs
Presidential Press Conference - November 3, 2010 (R&D discussed at 23:00)
The 2010 Republican Agenda, A Pledge to America
Hall Statement on Election Results and the 112th Congress
- updated November 9, 2010
- posted November 4, 2010
EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard Released
The 2010 edition of the EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard was released by the European Commission last week. The scoreboard shows that R&D investment by top EU companies fell by only 2.6% in 2009, while sales and profits posted double digit percentage declines of 10.1% and 21.0% respectively. R&D investment by top US companies fell by almost twice as much, 5.1%. Worldwide, flat or growing R&D investment by Asian countries resulted in a worldwide R&D investment reduction of only 1.9%.
EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard
- posted November 12, 2010
About the R&D Budget and Policy Program
Since 1976, the R&D Budget and Policy Program has been providing timely, comprehensive, and independent analyses of R&D funding trends in the federal budget as a service to the science, engineering and policymaking communities.
Through its Web site and email list, the Program makes available continually updated coverage of R&D funding trends, ongoing budget debates in Congress and the Executive Branch, and potential impacts of budget legislation. The Web site also offers a guide to R&D funding data as well as downloadable copies of its printed reports.
Every spring, the Program hosts the annual AAAS Forum on Science and Technology Policy (formerly the AAAS Colloquium), the nation's premier conference devoted to S&T policy. The next Forum will be held May 13 - 14, 2010, in Washington, DC.
