This report is a summary of AAAS estimates and
analyses of final FY 2003 appropriations for federal R&D. This
report is a preview of the publication Congressional
Action on Research and Development in the FY 2003 Budget.
On February 20, more than four
and a half months into fiscal year (FY) 2003, President Bush and the 108th
Congress finally reached agreement on FY 2003 appropriations, including federal
support for R&D. That day, President Bush signed an FY 2003 omnibus
appropriations bill that bundles together 11 appropriations bills covering all
domestic programs to add to the 2 appropriations bills covering defense
programs signed into law last fall. Within a tight fiscal environment for
discretionary spending, Congress stayed within the President’s proposed
discretionary totals but managed to award record increases for federal spending
on R&D, especially in the areas of defense, health, homeland security, and
general science.
Every year, AAAS
analyzes appropriations for R&D as signed into law and provides
detailed estimates on the federal investment in R&D for the new
fiscal year in the publication Congressional
Action on Research and Development. The
FY 2003 edition will be published online in early March; because
of the late completion of the FY 2003 budget, there will be no printed
edition. The full text will be available on line
on the AAAS R&D Web site (www.aaas.org/spp/rd).
Detailed information on the largest R&D funding agencies, historical
tables, and other supplemental materials will also be available on the
AAAS R&D Web site. This
preview offers selected highlights from the book.
Highlights of Federal R&D in
FY 2003: DOD, NIH, and NSF Up
On February 13, the 108th Congress approved the 11 unfinished fiscal
year (FY) 2003 appropriations bills in an omnibus package, completing a task
the 107th Congress should have finished. President Bush signed the
omnibus bill on February 20, finally providing final FY 2003 budgets for
agencies that had been operating at FY 2002 levels on stopgap appropriations
for more than four months. Although not the latest conclusion of the budget
process in recent years (the FY 1996 budget was finished on April 25 of that
year), the FY 2003 budget nevertheless seriously disrupts the federal budget
process, following as it does the release on February
3 of proposals for the next budget
for FY 2004. The budget provides a record-breaking increase for defense
R&D, nearly completes the campaign to double the National Institutes of
Health (NIH) budget over five years, and offers a substantial increase for the
National Science Foundation (NSF). (All figures are adjusted to reflect an
across-the-board cut of 0.65 percent for nearly all domestic programs included
in the FY 2003 omnibus bill.)
- The federal investment in research and development (R&D) hits a new record
of $117.3 billion in FY 2003, a $14.2 billion or 13.8 percent increase
over FY 2002 that is the largest dollar increase in history coming after
another record increase last year, and the largest percentage increase
in 20 years (see Table 1).
- In contrast to proposed cuts for
most agencies in the Bush Administration budget request, the FY 2003
budget provide at least modest increases for nearly all the major R&D
funding agencies (see Table 1 and Figure
1). The priority areas of defense,
health, general science, and homeland security receive even greater
increases. The largest dollar and percentage increases go to the
two largest R&D funding agencies, the Department of Defense (DOD)
and NIH, reflecting the high priority placed on defense and health by
the Bush Administration and Congress. DOD R&D increases by $8.8
billion or 17.6 percent to reach $58.6 billion following a similar increase
last year. NIH R&D increases 15.5 percent to $26.2 billion to fall
only slightly short of completing a five-year campaign to double the
NIH budget. Among the other agencies, NSF does well with an 11.4
percent boost in its R&D funding to an all-time high of $3.9 billion,
which could be the first installment of a five-year campaign to double
its budget.
- There are large increases for basic
and applied research in FY 2003, especially in NIH. The total federal
investment in research is $52.9 billion, an increase of 9.7 percent
or $4.7 billion over FY 2002 that is well above the FY 2003 request
(see Table 2 and Figure 1). NIH remains
the largest single sponsor of basic and applied research; in FY 2003,
NIH alone will fund 47 percent of all federal support of research, its
highest share in history. All federal departments except the Departments
of Transportation (DOT) and Commerce receive increases for their research
portfolios, with especially large increases for research in NIH, NSF,
and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Figure 1. (click on the image to view or download
a full-page version of this chart)
- Although it was officially created only last month at the end of January,
the new Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) is poised to become a major player in federal R&D funding.
For FY 2003, R&D programs scheduled to transfer to the new department
this year would receive $669 million in R&D funding, nearly triple
the $266 million for comparable programs in FY 2002. Because there is
no budget account yet for DHS, these programs are funded in FY 2003 in
their current agencies (DOT, DOD, USDA, and DOE) and will transfer to
DHS beginning March 1. In FY 2004, when the new DHS will initiate its
own R&D programs, DHS R&D would jump to $1.0 billion in the request
(see the AAAS Analysis of R&D in the FY 2004
Budget for details).
- R&D for nearly all the national
missions increases, with especially large boosts for defense and health
R&D (see Table 3). In defense,
DOD S&T investments exceed $11 billion to reach $11.2 billion (up
8.6 percent) but there are even larger increases for DOD development projects.
In health, the NIH budget nearly doubles between FY 1998 and FY 2003 with
a $3.5 billion increase in FY 2003 to $26.2 billion for R&D, including
substantial increases for bioterrorism research
and bioterrorism research facilities. Another
priority would be general science programs, up 6.4 percent to $7.0 billion,
led by an 11.4 percent for NSF’s R&D programs but moderated by flat
funding for the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science. Space
R&D would also be a big winner with a 9.2 percent increase to $10.1
billion because of large increases in the Space Science program and a
continuing shift from aeronautics R&D to space-related technology
development. The only area of R&D to decline would be transportation
(down 7.6 percent to $1.7 billion) because of cutbacks in NASA aeronautics
R&D and a decline in DOT R&D.
Figure 2. (click on the image to view or download a full-page
version of this chart)
- Nondefense R&D reaches another all-time high in FY 2003, the seventh
year in a row that nondefense R&D has increased in inflation-adjusted
terms (see Figure 2). A large part of this recent growth has been due
to steady growth in the NIH budget, including increases of approximately
15 percent for five years in a row. As a result, NIH R&D has become
nearly as large as all other nondefense agencies’ R&D funding combined.
Funding for nondefense R&D excluding NIH has stagnated in recent
years; after steady growth in the 1980s, funding peaked in FY 1994 and
then declined sharply as a result of tight budget conditions in the
mid-1990s. The FY 2003 increases for non-NIH agencies, while large,
just barely bring these agencies back to the funding levels of the early
1990s. The FY 2004 budget request, already released, would provide increases
smaller than the expected rate of inflation for nondefense
R&D compared to FY 2003 (see the AAAS Analysis
of R&D in the FY 2004 Budget for details of the FY 2004 request).
- R&D earmarks total $1.4 billion in FY 2003, according to a AAAS analysis of congressionally designated, performer-specific
R&D projects in the final FY 2003 budget. Although these projects
amount to only 1.2 percent of total R&D, they are concentrated in
a few key agencies and programs. Four agencies (USDA, $297 million;
NASA, $190 million; DOE, $138 million; and DOD, $426 million) receive
nearly three-quarters of the total R&D earmarks. FY 2003 earmarks
are down $26 million from the $1.5 billion in FY 2002. (For full details
see the AAAS R&D Funding Update on R&D
Earmarks in the FY 2003 Budget, available on the FY
2003 R&D page of the AAAS
R&D web site).
Go to Tables
1-3
R&D Appropriations for Key
Agencies
Full information on final
FY 2003 funding levels and program details for individual agencies can
be found in revised AAAS R&D Funding Updates on the AAAS R&D
Web site, available now for NSF, DOD,
NIH, and NASA and
shortly for the other agencies. (The on-line version of this document
features links to the updates; see also the agency chapters in Congressional
Action on R&D in the FY 2003 Budget.)
· Department
of Defense (DOD) R&D totals $58.6 billion, an increase of
17.6 percent or $8.8 billion from the FY 2002 level of $49.9 billion,
the largest dollar increase in history surpassing last year’s then-record
increase. The FY 2003 appropriation would bring DOD R&D to an all-time
high in inflation-adjusted dollars. In comparison with the request of
the Bush Administration, this total represents an additional $4.2 billion.
Nearly all ($7.9 billion) of the enormous $8.8 billion DOD R&D increase
goes to weapons development activities. Basic research (“6.1”) and applied
research (“6.2”) programs receive increases in funding, though smaller
than the increases for development: “6.1” funding rises 5.0 percent
to $1.4 billion, while “6.2” rises by 4.8 percent to $4.3 billion. DOD
S&T, which encompasses the “6.1” through “6.3” categories plus medical
research, exceeds $11 billion for the first time to reach $11.2 billion,
just meeting the DOD goal of setting aside 3 percent of the ($379 billion)
DOD budget for S&T. The final appropriation brings DOD S&T back
up to the FY 1993 level in inflation-adjusted dollars, its peak funding
year before steep post-Cold War cuts in the mid-1990s.
·
The National
Institutes of Health (NIH) FY 2003 budget of $27.2 billion represents
the effective conclusion of a five-year doubling plan. In contrast to
the strong across-the-board growth enjoyed by all of the NIH institutes
over the first four years of the doubling plan, a new picture begins
to emerge in FY 2003. As a result of increased priority-setting in the
direction of homeland security, the final FY 2003 budget features disproportionate
increases for bioterrorism research and facilities construction. Most of
the new funds for bioterrorism research go
to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAIAD),
which enjoys a hefty 46.8 percent in its overall budget to $3.7 billion
as NIH’s lead institute for bioterrorism
R&D. Much of this funding will go toward basic and applied research
aimed at developing biomedical tools to detect, prevent, and treat infection
by biological agents. The NIH
Buildings and Facilities
account more than doubles in size, jumping from $296 million in FY 2002
to $629 million in FY 2003. These funds will be used to address bioterrorism and laboratory security needs. There are also
construction funds in other accounts. In addition to $375 million for
bioterrorism-related extramural facilities in NIAID, there
is also $120 million for competitively awarded extramural facilities
construction grants in the National
Center for Research Resources
(NCRR). Most of the other institutes receive increases between 8 and
12 percent.
· The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
received $15.3 billion in FY 2003, up $443 million or 3.0 percent
from FY 2002. Included in the total is $50 million specifically allocated
for expenses related to the investigation of the loss of the space shuttle
Columbia on February
1. Two-thirds of the NASA budget, which excludes
the Space Shuttle program and its associated costs, is classified as
R&D. NASA R&D rises 7.6 percent in FY 2003 to $11.0 billion,
an increase of $775 million above the FY 2002 level (see Table
1). A large portion of this above-request increase is due to the
insertion of congressionally designated projects in the Science, Aeronautics,
and Technology (SAT) account. Space Science enjoys the largest absolute
and percentage increase from the FY 2002 level, climbing $599 million
to $3.5 billion, a 20.7 percent increase. Funding for the Space Launch
Initiative climbs from $467 million to $719 million in an effort to
develop the next generation of space launch systems including possible
replacements for the Space Shuttle. Earth Science and Biological and
Physical Research funding grow by 7.3 percent and 4.7 percent, respectively.
·
The Department
of Energy (DOE) receives $8.2 billion for its R&D programs in
FY 2003, a modest $127 million or 1.6 percent increase over FY 2002.
R&D in DOE’s mission areas of energy and defense receive increases
of 3.0 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively, but funding for R&D
in the science mission (the Office of Science) remains flat (up 0.0
percent) at $3.1 billion for the third year in a row. Most Science programs
receive funding close to FY 2002 levels, with cuts in the Biological
and Environmental Research (BER) program (down 5.0 percent to $527 million)
distributed as small increases to other programs in High Energy Physics,
Nuclear Physics, Fusion Sciences, and Basic Energy Sciences. In Defense
programs, Weapons Activities R&D totals $2.9 billion, an increase
of 5.5 percent, mostly to fund R&D at DOE’s three weapons labs. Congress rejected the proposed steep
cuts in DOE Fossil Energy and Energy Conservation R&D investments
and gave Fossil Energy a substantial 8.2 percent increase to $483 million
and Energy Conservation a smaller-than-requested cut of 1.6 percent
to $427 million.
· The National Science Foundation (NSF) receives
$5.3 billion in FY 2003 appropriations, up $487 million or 10.1 percent
from FY 2002. NSF R&D enjoys an even greater percentage increase,
rising $401 million or 11.4 percent to $3.9 billion (see Table
1). The final appropriation is greater than the $5.0 billion Administration
request by $282 million, and could be the first installment of a plan
to double the NSF budget over the next five years. In December, President
Bush signed a NSF authorization bill that called for the NSF budget
to double over five years, and the final FY 2003 appropriation almost
matches the FY 2003 authorization of $5.5 billion but still falls short.
Most of NSF’s research directorates receive increases greater than 12
percent, with the notable exception of the social and behavioral sciences
(up 3.8 percent). The final FY 2003 budget rejects the proposed transfer
of three programs from other agencies to the Geosciences directorate,
and funds these programs in their current agencies. The Major Research
Equipment and Facilities Construction (MREFC) account, which funds construction
of large-scale scientific facilities, rises by 7.0 percent to $149 million,
up $10 million from the FY 2002 level. The already-released FY 2004
budget would slow the recent trend of large annual increases for NSF,
to only a 2.8 percent boost in FY 2004 over the final FY 2003 funding
level (see the AAAS Analysis of R&D in the
FY 2004 Budget for details of the FY 2004 NSF request).
· The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) receives a modest boost in R&D
funds to $2.2 billion, up 2.6 percent from last year. USDA’s intramural
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) sees its R&D budget decline
2.5 percent to $1.2 billion because the FY 2002 total was inflated with
one-time emergency funds to improve security at two ARS laboratories
that handle pathogens. The budget offsets cuts in intramural ARS funds
with increases for the Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension
Service (CSREES), which handles USDA’s extramural research grants. CSREES
receives $608 million for R&D in FY 2003, a jump of 12.8 percent.
The final FY 2003 Agriculture budget again prohibits CSREES’ Initiative
for Future Agriculture and Food Systems (IFAFS) program from spending
mandatory R&D funds for competitively awarded research grants, but
the National Research Initiative, USDA’s regular competitive grants
program, receives $166 million, $46 million more than FY 2002. The final
CSREES budget boosts funding for congressionally designated research
projects, including $112 million (up 15.0 percent) for Special Research
Grants.
· The Department of Commerce’s R&D programs receive $1.2 billion in
FY 2003, $21 million or 1.8 percent more than FY 2002,
and a substantial $185 million more than the request. Commerce’s two
major R&D agencies—the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)—both
receive modest increases. NOAA R&D rises by 1.1 percent to $684
million, with increases across several NOAA accounts, including the
National Ocean Service (NOS) and Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR).
The budget keeps the Sea Grant program in OAR instead of transferring
it to NSF, and funds this extramural grant program at $62 million. The
final Commerce budget keeps NIST’s Advanced
Technology Program (ATP) alive at an R&D level of $153 million,
in contrast to the Administration proposal to eliminate it. Total NIST
R&D increases 4.7 percent to $527 million. NIST’s
intramural R&D programs rise by 9.0 percent to $308 million. Funding
for NIST’s Construction of Research Facilities account climbs
to $66 million, of which $28 million is reserved for 5 congressionally
designated research projects.
· The Department of the Interior’s (DOI) R&D budget totals $647 million
in FY 2003, a small increase of 1.0 percent. Although the President’s
FY 2003 request would have cut R&D in Interior’s U.S. Geological
Survey (USGS) by 7 percent, the final budget restores the cuts and gives
USGS a small additional increase of 1.1 percent over FY 2002 to $589
million, and keeps a toxic hydrology program proposed for transfer to
NSF within USGS.
·
The Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) has an FY 2003 R&D budget of $641 million,
a substantial $49 million or 8.2 percent boost over last year. The large
increase is due to $86 million in Superfund research funds (up $49 million),
with the increase going for building decontamination research to better
respond to future building contaminations such as the anthrax attacks
on congressional office buildings in fall 2001. R&D in the regular
Science and Technology (S&T) account would stay essentially even
with FY 2002 at $549 million, a decline of 0.6 percent. Most S&T
programs would be funded at slightly less than the FY 2002 level in
FY 2003 to make room for 50 congressionally designated research projects
to the S&T account, similar in number but higher in dollar terms
than the FY 2002 earmarks.
· Department of Transportation (DOT) R&D falls to $835 million in
FY 2003, $57 million or 6.4 percent less than FY 2002. The decline would
be due to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) receiving emergency
counterterrorism funds in FY 2002 to develop better aviation security
technologies in the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks,
funds that would not be renewed in FY 2003. FAA receives a total of
$271 million for R&D in FY 2003, $99 million less than last year.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) takes over part of
FAA’s aviation security portfolio in FY 2003 with an R&D appropriation
of $110 million, up 16 percent from last year. TSA and the Coast Guard
are included in DOT totals for this year, but these agencies will transfer
to the new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in a few weeks and
their R&D programs will be included in the DHS R&D portfolio
in future years.
The full report
offers 15 detailed funding tables, several charts, a chronology of the
events in the FY 2003 budget process, an analysis of funding trends,
and analyses of the impacts of the FY 2003 budget on each of the major
R&D funding agencies. Individual agency analyses, historical tables,
agency funding tables, and charts of recent funding trends are available
or will be available shortly on the AAAS R&D Web site in the “FY
2003 R&D” section.
Publication Information
The AAAS publication Congressional Action
on Research and Development in the FY 2003 Budget, from which
this preview report is excerpted, will be available in early March from
AAAS. The full report, and supplemental material including detailed agency funding
analyses, historical tables, and charts illustrating recent R&D
funding trends, will be available online only and will not be available
this year in a printed edition.
- February 25, 2003 (REVISED March 7)
