AAAS R&D Funding Update on R&D in DOD FY 2007 House Appropriations -

House Boosts DOD R&D to Another Record High

Go to: -Table A. DOD R&D by Program in FY 2007 House Appropriations -Table B. DOD R&D by Agency in FY 2007 House Appropriations -Table C. DOD "S&T" by Agency in FY 2007 House Appropriations -Table D. DOEand DHS Defense R&D in FY 2007 House Appropriations PDF version of this document Main R&D in the FY 2007 Budget Page Supplemental Materials: "DOD Proposes Research Cuts, Weapons Gains in Record-Setting 2007 Budget," AAAS R&D Funding Update on R&D in the FY 2007 DOD Budget AAAS Analysis of R&D in the FY 2007 Budget

Highlights - R&D in the Department of Defense (DOD) would reach another record high in the latest FY 2007 House appropriation with a $3.0 billion or 4.1 percent increase to $76.2 billion (see Table A). Nearly the entire increase would go to weapons development programs, but unlike in the Pentagon request DOD support of research would also increase.  - The House would reverse sharp proposed cuts in DOD’s “Science and Technology” (S&T) investments. Instead of a greater than 20 percent requested cut, the House would hold DOD S&T spending near the 2006 funding level at $13.7 billion, $2.5 billion more than the request (see Table C).  - DOD’s support of basic and applied research would increase in the House plan, mostly from the addition of congressional earmarks. Basic research (“6.1”) would climb 6.3 percent to $1.6 billion (see Table A), while applied research (“6.2”) would increase 1.6 percent to $5.3 billion. The research-oriented Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) would see its budget climb 11.2 percent to $3.3 billion (see Table B).  - The Air Force and the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) would be the big winners in the House boosts for weapons development funding. Air Force R&D would climb 10.6 percent to $24.3 billion (see Table B), while MDA development would surge 16.0 percent to $8.9 billion after a steep cut in 2006.  DOD R&D in FY 2007 House Appropriations  On June 13, the House Appropriations Committee approved its version of the FY 2007 Defense appropriations bill (HR 5631), which funds most of the Department of Defense (DOD). DOD, still engaged in a long and expensive war in Iraq, continues to spend record amounts on current operations. But DOD is also investing record amounts in the next generation of weapons; in February, Pentagon requested $74.1 billion for DOD R&D next year, another substantial $1 billion increase after similar increases in previous years (see Table A). But the House would add another $2 billion to the request for a total DOD R&D appropriation of $76.2 billion, a $3 billion or 4.1 percent increase over 2006 that would again send DOD R&D into record territory (see Figure 1), even though the 2006 total grew just last week by nearly $1 billion. Although supplementals normally pay for short-term needs, last week, Congress approved $62 billion in supplemental DOD appropriations for FY 2006 (the current year), including $760 million in development funds to bring the revised 2006 DOD R&D total to $73.2 billion instead of $72.5 billion as reported in February.  Although physical sciences research is a top priority for the Bush Administration on the nondefense side of the budget, in the Pentagon request DOD support of research would fall. DOD is the fifth largest federal supporter of physical sciences research, with about a tenth of the federal total. But the House would reverse proposed cuts: DOD basic research funding (the “6.1” category) would climb 6.4 percent to $1.6 billion (see Table A). Funding for the three-service University Research Initiatives would receive a combined $294 million, an 8 percent increase. URI competitively awards basic research grants to university performers. The Defense Research Sciences program, funded in the three services and Defense Agencies, would receive a combined $977 million, up 6.3 percent. DARPA’s Defense Research Sciences effort would climb a substantial 30 percent to $173 million, part of a broader increase for the agency. The relatively new National Defense Education Program (NDEP), founded last year to encourage U.S. students to pursue science and engineering degrees, would see its budget rise from $2 million last year to $10 million in 2006 and up to $20 million next year in both the request and the House plan.    Figure 1. (click on the image for PDF)  Applied research funding (the “6.2” category) would increase 1.6 percent to $5.3 billion, a dramatic improvement over a requested cut of 15 percent. Much of the improvement would be due to the addition of congressional earmarks that DOD proposed to eliminate. Defense Agencies applied research would increase by 7.6 percent to $2.2 billion, led by a 9 percent increase in DARPA “6.2” funding and a 15 percent increase in applied research for the Chemical and Biological Defense Program (CBDP).  In a repeat of the usual pattern, the House would restore funding for congressionally designated medical research programs that the Pentagon proposed to reduce. Medical research programs (see Table A) in the Defense Health Program, funded out of the FY 2007 Military Quality of Life appropriations bill (HR 5385, already approved by the full House), would receive $444 million in the House. These programs would award $210 million combined in 2007 for breast, ovarian, and prostate cancer research through peer-reviewed, competitively awarded grants, roughly the same amount as this year. Over the years, the DOD program has become a major force in cancer research; NIH spending on these cancers, for example, is estimated at $1.2 billion annually. There are also earmarked research projects on medical topics, and a separate pool of $45 million for peer reviewed grants for miscellaneous medical topics. In addition, there would be nearly $500 million in earmarked medical research in the Army’s regular appropriation for a total DOD medical research effort approaching $1 billion.  n sharp contrast to a requested cut greater than 20 percent, the House would preserve DOD funding of “S&T” (the “6.1” through “6.3” categories plus medical research) at $13.7 billion in FY 2007, close to this year’s funding level (see Table C). For every year this decade, Congress has been far more supportive of S&T funding than the Pentagon, with the Pentagon proposing sharp cuts each year and Congress adding billions of dollars in the appropriations process.  Advocates of DOD S&T in the science and engineering community argue that S&T funding is essential for building the knowledge and technology base for future DOD needs. In the FY 2007 budget, the House agrees by sticking to the script of boosting a declining Pentagon request.    Figure 2. (click on the image for PDF)  The House 2007 appropriation keeps DOD S&T near its record-high 2005 funding level in real terms (see Figure 2). DOD S&T has increased in recent years after hitting post-Cold War lows in the late 1990s, though it took nearly two decades for S&T funding to return to mid-1980s levels. While this is a relief for DOD S&T advocates, Figure 2 shows that the composition of the DOD S&T portfolio has been changing. DOD support of basic research has increased relatively little, and is a shrinking proportion of the DOD S&T portfolio. While “6.2” funding has increased a little more, recent growth in DOD S&T has come predominantly from growth in “6.3” funding of advanced technology development rather than from research, a trend that has many DOD S&T advocates worried. Recently, advocates have called for at least 20 percent of S&T funding to be devoted to basic research. As Figure 2 shows, the House, by increasing basic research more than the other categories, would reverse the longstanding trendline by boosting the share of S&T devoted to basic research, though only to 11 percent.  But despite the good news for research programs, as usual the weapons development effort is where the big gains would be. DOD weapons development (the non-S&T portion of DOD R&D) would jump $3.1 billion or 5.2 percent to $62.5 billion, led by large increases for the Air Force and the Missile Defense Agency (MDA; see Table B). These programs, in “6.4” and higher categories in DOD’s classification system, are devoted to engineering, development, and testing work on specific weapons systems and are extraordinarily expensive compared to research programs. For example, the largest single development project in DOD, and indeed the entire federal budget, would once again be the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), funded by the Navy and the Air Force at $4.2 billion in 2007. Much of the Air Force’s $2.3 billion increase would go to development of space and satellite communications, new weapons systems, and classified development programs. The MDA’s efforts in missile defense systems development would receive large increases in 2007 after a cut in 2006, rising 16.0 percent to $8.9 billion, with large increases for ballistic missile defense technologies.  Led by the MDA increase, R&D in the Defense Agencies would climb $1.4 billion or 7.1 percent to $21.1 billion (see Table B). In addition to the 16 percent increase for MDA, which is entirely development, there would be an 11.2 percent or $333 million increase to $3.3 billion for the research-oriented Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Slightly more than half of DARPA’s budget goes to “6.1” and “6.2” activities, with the remainder devoted to “6.3” technology development. Its broad research portfolio is aimed at expanding the frontiers of knowledge and military technology to provide future solutions to DOD’s technology needs. DARPA’s funding would increase across the board in areas such as tactical technology, materials, network-centric warfare, information and communications technology, cognitive computing, electronics technology, sensors, guidance technology, and basic research, but with the notable exceptions of cuts in land warfare technology and biological warfare defense (down $36 million to $112 million). DARPA’s IT (information technology) research efforts would be the biggest winners in both the request and the House: the Information and Communications Technology “6.2” portfolio would jump 24 percent to $243 million, and the Cognitive Computing Systems “6.2” portfolio would climb 36 percent to $222 million. Among the other Defense Agencies, the Chemical and Biological Defense Program (CBDP) would lose 1.6 percent of its total funding in 2007 after a large increase in 2006, but the CBDP research program would continue to expand, with $118 million for “6.1” funding (up 25 percent) and $285 million for “6.2” funding (up 15 percent) offsetting cuts in DARPA’s efforts in this area.  Impacts of Defense R&D  The Department of Defense (DOD) is by far the largest supporter of R&D in the federal government, accounting for more than half the total federal R&D portfolio. Defense-related R&D is also funded by the Department of Energy (DOE), which is responsible for maintaining the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile, and the new Department of Homeland Security (DHS), whose primary mission is homeland defense but also performs biodefense R&D related to military security (see Figure 1). Combining DOD, DHS, and DOE contributions, total federal defense R&D would exceed $80 billion for the first time in FY 2007 if House appropriations prevail (see Table D), far outdistancing the $60 billion or so Congress is likely to allocate for nondefense R&D. The 2007 House appropriation would take DOD R&D and total defense R&D to a record high for the 11th year in a row, with no signs of slowing down.  DOD supports a diverse group of science and engineering disciplines. More than half of DOD’s research portfolio supports the engineering sciences, not surprising considering the discipline’s potential contributions to DOD’s warfighting capabilities. But DOD also invests heavily in the mathematics and computer sciences research necessary to sustain a high-tech, IT-heavy military and in physical sciences research. In recent years, DOD support of life sciences research has also grown, as a result of growth in congressionally designated medical research programs but also from DARPA and service investments in biological defense.  DOD is responsible for only 11 percent of all federal support of basic and applied research (“6.1” and “6.2”), but is a key sponsor for several science and engineering (S&E) disciplines (see Figure 3). DOD supports 34 percent of all federal research in the computer sciences and a similar proportion of all engineering research, as well as significant shares of research in mathematics and oceanography. DOD’s impact is even greater in several engineering sub-disciplines such as electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. DOD funds research in these disciplines for their contributions to national defense, but this research also supports graduate education in these fields and seeds major innovations in the civilian economy, most evident in DOD’s early support for research that led to the now-ubiquitous Internet. DOD is also a key supporter of social sciences research. DOD support for these disciplines should increase in FY 2007 as a result of the House Defense appropriations bill.  A majority of DOD’s R&D (and nearly all the work in categories “6.4” and higher) is performed by industrial firms such as the large defense contractors Lockheed Martin and Boeing. FFRDCs (federally funded research and development centers), defense laboratories, and colleges and universities also perform R&D. If one excludes DOD development, which is nearly exclusively performed by industry, DOD basic and applied research (“6.1” and “6.2”) is performed by a diverse group of institutions. 39 percent of DOD research is performed by DOD laboratories, while 37 percent is performed by industry. 18 percent of DOD basic and applied research is performed by universities and colleges. All performers should benefit from the increases in “6.1” and “6.2” funding in the FY 2007 House appropriations; the development increases will go almost entirely to defense contractors.    Figure 3. (click on the image for PDF)  Outlook and Next Steps  The full House will debate and likely approve the Defense bill later this week. The Senate version of the bill, however, may not be drafted until July or later. This analysis is one of a series of AAAS R&D Funding Updates on FY 2007 congressional appropriations. The complete series of AAAS R&D Funding Updates, including continually updated analyses of R&D in FY 2007 appropriations, is available on the AAAS R&D Web Site (http://www.aaas.org/spp/rd) in the “FY 2007 R&D” or the “What’s New” sections.) - June 19, 2006 AAAS R&D Budget and Policy Program 1200 New York Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20005 (202) 326-6607 AAAS R&D Web site: http://www.aaas.org/spp/rd

Table A. Department of Defense by Program
House Appropriations Committee Action on R&D in the FY 2007 Budget
(budget authority in millions of dollars)
			Action by House
	FY 2006	FY 2007	FY 2007	Chg. from Request		Chg. from FY 2006
	Estimate	Request	HOUSE	Amount	Percent	Amount	Percent
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation:
Basic Research  ("6.1")	1,470	1,422	1,563	141	9.9%	93	6.3%
Applied Research  ("6.2")	5,168	4,478	5,251	773	17.3%	83	1.6%
	______	______	______	______		______
Total Research, or Tech. Base	6,638	5,900	6,814	915	15.5%	176	2.7%
Advanced Tech. Dev. ("6.3")	6,610	5,183	6,430	1,246	24.0%	-180	-2.7%
	______	______	______	______		______
Total Science and Technology	13,248	11,083	13,244	2,161	19.5%	-4	0.0%
Adv. Component Dev.  ("6.4")	13,925	15,387	15,090	-297	-1.9%	1,166	8.4%
System Dev. And Demon. ("6.5")	19,365	19,277	19,163	-114	-0.6%	-202	-1.0%
Management Support  ("6.6")	4,032	3,938	4,166	228	5.8%	135	3.3%
Operational Systems Dev.  ("6.7")	21,312	23,471	23,312	-159	-0.7%	1,999	9.4%
BA Adjustment	-106	0	0	0	--	--	--
	______	______	______	______		______
TOTAL RDT&E	71,776	73,156	74,975	1,819	2.5%	3,199	4.5%
Other appropriations 1	902	789	789	0	0.0%	-113	-12.5%
Medical research 2	537	131	444	314	240.0%	-93	-17.3%
	______	______	______	______		______
Total DOD R&D	73,215	74,076	76,208	2,133	2.9%	2,994	4.1%
DOD S&T ("6.1" - "6.3" & medical)	13,785	11,214	13,688	2,474	22.1%	-97	-0.7%
AAAS estimates based on FY 2007 appropriations bills.  Includes conduct of R&D and R&D facilities.
FY 2006 and FY 2007 request figures based on OMB R&D data and supplemental agency budget data.
FY 2006 figures adjusted to reflect supplementals enacted in the 2006 emergency supplemental bill (P.L. 109-234).
FY 2007 House figures adjusted to reflect general reductions in the House Defense appropriations bill.
Figures are rounded to the nearest million. Changes calculated from unrounded figures.
1  R&D support in military personnel, military construction, and other DOD appropriations.
Includes chemical agents and munitions destruction R&D funded outside RDT&E.
2  Medical research appropriated in Defense Health Programs, not RDT&E. These funds are not included in "6.2."
June 19, 2006 - AAAS estimates of House Appropriations Committee action.
These figures may be modified or rejected by the full House.

Table B. Department of Defense by Agency
House Appropriations Committee Action on R&D in the FY 2007 Budget
(budget authority in millions of dollars)
			Action by House
	FY 2006	FY 2007	FY 2007	Chg. from Request		Chg. from FY 2006
	Estimate	Request	HOUSE	Amount	Percent	Amount	Percent
Research, development, test, and evaluation:
Army	11,071	10,856	11,778	923	8.5%	707	6.4%
Navy	18,837	16,912	17,570	658	3.9%	-1,267	-6.7%
Air Force	21,998	24,397	24,340	-57	-0.2%	2,342	10.6%
Defense Agencies	19,704	20,810	21,107	297	1.4%	1,402	7.1%
Defense Adv. Res. Projects Agcy.	2,979	3,294	3,311	17	0.5%	333	11.2%
Missile Defense Agency	7,682	9,310	8,913	-398	-4.3%	1,231	16.0%
Chem. And Bio. Defense Program	1,049	959	1,032	73	7.6%	-17	-1.6%
Defense Threat Reduction Agency	422	428	451	24	5.5%	29	6.9%
Office of Secretary of Defense	2,066	1,876	2,137	261	13.9%	71	3.4%
Other *	5,506	4,942	5,262	320	6.5%	-244	-4.4%
Director of Operational Test & Eval.	165	182	181	-1	-0.5%	16	9.5%
	______	______	______	______		______
TOTAL RDT&E	71,776	73,156	74,975	1,819	2.5%	3,199	4.5%
Other appropriations 1	902	789	789	0	0.0%	-113	-12.5%
Medical research 2	537	131	444	314	240.0%	-93	-17.3%
	______	______	______	______		______
Total DOD R&D	73,215	74,076	76,208	2,133	2.9%	2,994	4.1%
AAAS estimates based on FY 2007 appropriations bills.  Includes conduct of R&D and R&D facilities.
FY 2006 and FY 2007 request figures based on OMB R&D data and supplemental agency budget data.
FY 2006 figures adjusted to reflect supplementals enacted in the 2006 emergency supplemental bill (P.L. 109-234).
FY 2007 House figures adjusted to reflect general reductions in the House Defense appropriations bill.
Figures are rounded to the nearest million. Changes calculated from unrounded figures.
* Includes classified programs.
1  R&D support in military personnel, military construction, and other DOD appropriations.
Includes chemical agents and munitions destruction R&D funded outside RDT&E.
2  Medical research appropriated in Defense Health Programs, not RDT&E.
June 19, 2006 - AAAS estimates of House Appropriations Committee action.
These figures may be modified or rejected by the full House.

Table C. Department of Defense S&T by Agency
House Appropriations Committee Action on R&D in the FY 2007 Budget
(budget authority in millions of dollars)
			Action by House
	FY 2006	FY 2007	FY 2007	Chg. from Request		Chg. from FY 2006
	Estimate	Request	HOUSE	Amount	Percent	Amount	Percent
"Science and Technology" (S&T; "6.1" through "6.3" plus medical research)
Army	3,011	1,719	2,849	1,130	65.7%	-163	-5.4%
-  Basic Research  ("6.1")	372	312	350	38	12.3%	-22	-5.9%
-  Applied Research  ("6.2")	1,250	685	1,204	518	75.6%	-46	-3.7%
-  Advanced Tech. Dev. ("6.3")	1,389	722	1,295	573	79.4%	-94	-6.8%
Navy	2,296	1,599	1,940	341	21.3%	-356	-15.5%
-  Basic Research  ("6.1")	475	456	496	41	8.9%	21	4.5%
-  Applied Research  ("6.2")	799	639	724	85	13.3%	-75	-9.4%
-  Advanced Tech. Dev. ("6.3")	1,022	505	720	215	42.6%	-303	-29.6%
Air Force	2,444	2,148	2,500	351	16.4%	56	2.3%
-  Basic Research  ("6.1")	363	370	383	13	3.4%	20	5.6%
-  Applied Research  ("6.2")	1,071	973	1,119	146	15.0%	48	4.5%
-  Advanced Tech. Dev. ("6.3")	1,010	805	998	193	24.0%	-13	-1.3%
Defense Agencies	5,497	5,617	5,956	339	6.0%	459	8.3%
-  Basic Research  ("6.1")	260	284	333	49	17.4%	73	28.1%
-  Applied Research  ("6.2")	2,049	2,181	2,205	24	1.1%	157	7.6%
-  Advanced Tech. Dev. ("6.3")	3,188	3,152	3,417	265	8.4%	229	7.2%
	______	______	______	______		______
TOTAL "6.1" through "6.3"	13,248	11,083	13,244	2,161	19.5%	-4	0.0%
Medical research 1	537	131	444	314	240.0%	-93	-17.3%
	______	______	______	______		______
DOD S&T ("6.1" - "6.3" + medical)	13,785	11,214	13,688	2,474	22.1%	-97	-0.7%
AAAS estimates based on FY 2007 appropriations bills.  Includes conduct of R&D and R&D facilities.
FY 2006 and FY 2007 request figures based on OMB R&D data and supplemental agency budget data.
FY 2006 figures adjusted to reflect supplementals enacted in the 2006 emergency supplemental bill (P.L. 109-234).
FY 2007 House figures adjusted to reflect general reductions in the House Defense appropriations bill.
Figures are rounded to the nearest million. Changes calculated from unrounded figures.
1  Medical research appropriated in Defense Health Programs, not RDT&E.
June 19, 2006 - AAAS estimates of House Appropriations Committee action.
These figures may be modified or rejected by the full House.

Table D. DOE Atomic Energy Defense Activities and DHS Defense R&D
			Action by House
	FY 2006	FY 2007	FY 2007	Chg. from Request		Chg. from FY 2006
	Estimate	Request	HOUSE	Amount	Percent	Amount	Percent
National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Naval Reactors	759	771	771	0	0.0%	12	1.6%
Weapons Activities	2,959	2,908	2,944	36	1.2%	-15	-0.5%
Nonproliferation & Verification R&D	322	272	308	36	13.3%	-14	-4.3%
	______	______	______
Total NNSA R&D	4,040	3,951	4,023	72	1.8%	-17	-0.4%
Environmental Management	19	20	29	9	46.8%	10	54.5%
Other AEDA R&D	3	4	4	0	0.0%	1	33.3%
	______	______	______
TOTAL DOE Defense R&D	4,062	3,975	4,057	82	2.1%	-5	-0.1%
Dept. of Homeland Security defense	353	337	337	0	0.0%	-16	-4.5%
Total Defense R&D (DOD, DHS, DOE)	77,630	78,388	80,602	2,214	2.8%	2,972	3.8%
AAAS estimates based on FY 2007 appropriations bills.  Includes conduct of R&D and R&D facilities.
FY 2006 and FY 2007 request figures based on OMB R&D data and supplemental agency budget data.
Figures are rounded to the nearest million. Changes calculated from unrounded figures.
June 19, 2006 - AAAS estimates of House Appropriations Committee action.
These figures may be modified or rejected by the full House.