Congress finalized a $790
billion economic recovery bill (HR 1) on February 12, and President Obama signed
the bill into law on February 17. AAAS estimates the final stimulus bill contains
$21.5 billion in federal research and development (R&D) funding, more than
the $17.8 billion in the Senate or $13.2 billion in the House versions of the
bill. The AAAS analysis of the final stimulus
bill is now available. The final bill contains $10.4 billion for the National
Institutes of Health (NIH), $3.0 billion for the National Science Foundation (NSF),
$1.6 billion for the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, and $600 million
for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Within the $21.5
billion R&D total, the stimulus bill would give $18.0 billion to federal agencies
for the conduct of R&D and $3.5 billion for R&D facilities and large equipment. The
AAAS analysis of the final stimulus appropriations bill
on federal R&D funding is now available and has been updated to reflect the
final agreement. Basic competitiveness-related research, biomedical research,
energy R&D, and climate change programs are high priorities in the economic
recovery bill. The National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy
Office of Science (DOE OS), and the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST), the three agencies highlighted in the America COMPETES Act of 2007 and
President Bush's American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI), would all be on track
to double their budgets over 7 to 10 years, as envisioned in the America COMPETES
Act and in President Obama's campaign promises. NIH's $10.4 billion stimulus appropriation
would give NIH an unprecedented budget approaching $40 billion. Congress would
provide billions for energy R&D at the Department of Energy (DOE) and would
fund climate change-related projects in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The
complete series of AAAS R&D Funding Updates on FY 2009 congressional appropriations
is available on the AAAS R&D web site on the "FY 2009
R&D" page. These updates supplement AAAS
Report XXXIII: Research and Development FY 2009, a comprehensive analysis
of R&D in the proposed federal budget for FY 2009 that was published in April.
Also available is a continually updated table on the status
of FY 2009 appropriations.
- February 17, 2009
 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 April 30 - May 1, 2009, in Washington, DC.
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