From the Hill – Winter 1999

R&D is big winner in 1999 federal budget

A last-minute congressional spending frenzy helped boost federal R&D funding significantly in the FY 1999 year to $80.2 billion-$4.1 billion or 5.3 percent more than FY 1998. Every major R&D funding agency except the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Department of Commerce received increases well above the inflation rate. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) received nearly $2 billion or 14.1 percent more, and the Department of Energy (DOE) received $714 million or 11.4 percent more.

Congress approved $17.5 billion for basic research, an increase of $1.8 billion or 11.3 percent. Every major R&D funding agency received significant increases in basic research support. NIH was again the biggest winner, but the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) also had big increases.

Defense R&D for FY 1999, which includes programs in DOE and the Department of Defense (DOD), will increase by 3.5 percent to $41.8 billion, and nondefense R&D will increase by 7.4 percent to $38.3 billion.

Here is a summary of how various agencies fared:

DOD will receive $38.5 billion to spend on R&D in FY 1999, a 2.9 percent increase. Congress increased DOD’s basic research budget by 6.1 percent to $1.1 billion, the first real increase in six years. Applied research will increase by 5.8 percent to $3.2 billion. Ballistic missile defense received a $1 billion increase, to $4 billion. The DOD budget also includes $135 million for breast cancer research and $58 million for prostate cancer research.

NIH was once again the beneficiary of strong congressional and administration support for biomedical research. Its total R&D budget increased to $14.9 billion, and its basic research budget increased by 14.6 percent to $8.4 billion. NIH basic research now accounts for 48 percent of all federal support for basic research. Every institute received an increase of 10 percent or greater, and three received increases of more than 20 percent.

NASA will receive 1.6 percent less, or $9.7 billion, for total R&D in FY 1999, within an overall budget of $13.7 billion. NASA’s budget includes substantial cuts in development funding for the international space station (down 7 percent to $2.3 billion) and in the Aeronautics and Space Transportation Technology account (down 10.2 percent to $1.3 billion). However, basic research is up 6.4 percent to $2.2 billion, with significant increases for programs such as Space Science (up 4.9 percent to $2.1 billion) and Life and Microgravity Sciences and Applications (up 20.3 percent to $264 million).

DOE R&D spending totals $7 billion, with large increases for numerous energy, science, and defense programs. The Solar and Renewables R&D program received a 24.4 percent increase to $332 million, and the Energy Conservation program received an 8.4 percent boost to $386 million. In the Science account, the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) received $107 million for first-year construction costs. As a result, the Basic Energy Sciences budget, which funds the SNS, will increase by 19.8 percent to $794 million. The Biological and Environmental Research account, which funds DOE’s contribution to the Human Genome Project, received a 7.9 percent boost to $433 million. In defense R&D, the Stockpile Stewardship program was funded at $2.1 billion, up 15.6 percent.

NSF will receive $2.8 billion for R&D in FY 1999, 8.4 percent more than last year. The core Research and Related Activities (R&RA) account, which primarily funds extramural research grants and is a major supporter of basic research in the nation’s colleges and universities, totals $2.8 billion, up 8.8 percent. This increase should allow all the R&RA directorates to receive increases of at least 7 percent. Congress expressed strong support for the plant genome initiative in the Biological Sciences directorate, providing up to $50 million for this program in FY 1999.

Overall R&D spending at the Department of Commerce will decline slightly in FY 1999. The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST’s) budget will decline by $26 million to $467 million, mostly because of a fall in construction funding. However, NIST’s intramural and extramural programs received increases. NIST labs received $229 million for R&D, slightly more than last year, whereas the Advanced Technology Program received $181 million for R&D, 6.3 percent more than last year. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) programs for natural resources and environmental R&D are up 3.3 percent to $599 million.

USDA‘s R&D budget is up 6.6 percent to $1.7 billion. Congress blocked funding for a new, competitively awarded agricultural research grants program that was created in June 1998. However, funding for the existing National Research Initiative will increase by $22 million to $119 million. The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) received $23 million in emergency funding to develop ways to destroy crops of illegal drugs, bringing total ARS R&D to $880 million, 4.9 percent more than last year.

The Department of the Interior‘s research budget grew by 3 percent to $627 million. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) received $567 million for its R&D, 3.8 percent more than FY 1998 because of large increases for its biological research activities. Natural resources research in the Biological Resources Division received the largest increase among USGS divisions for a FY 1999 budget of $161 million. The National Park Service R&D budget totals $26 million, including $12 million for research on the Florida Everglades.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) received 3 percent more than last year, including $47 million in the Science and Technology account to study the effects of particulate matter on human health. Climate change research was given a $10 million increase to $37 million. Congress said that although it opposes any administration actions to implement the Kyoto Protocol on climate change until the Senate ratifies it, it supports research by EPA to better understand climate change.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) received a 3 percent boost in R&D to $696 million. This increase is dwarfed by a $4.6 billion jump in DOT’s total budget because of the six-year reauthorization of transportation programs in the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), which was passed earlier in 1998.

House science policy study receives mixed reviews

The House Science Committee unveiled the results of its 11-month National Science Policy study on September 24, billing its report, in the words of Rep. Vernon Ehlers (R-Mich.), as “an attempt to build a foundation upon which we can base future policy work over the next half century.”

The 74-page report, called “Unlocking our Future: Toward a New National Science Policy,” is designed to provide a broad perspective on key issues facing the R&D enterprise. It highlights the importance of basic research; the roles of the federal government, the private sector, and universities in the scientific enterprise; the use of sound science in making good decisions; and the importance of science education.

The report received a positive but muted response from the scientific community. Many science and technology (S&T) policy experts said that although the report does not provide any new or startling insights, it can serve as a catalyst for raising the S&T profile in Congress. Letters to the committee from the Office of Science and Technology Policy and NSF pointed out the many similarities between the congressional perspective and the administration’s policies.

Congressional reaction to the report was mixed. All but one of the Republicans on the 46-member Science Committee voted for a House resolution that adopted the study “as a framework for future deliberations on congressional science policy and funding.” But 10 of the 21 Democrats on the committee dissented. The committee’s ranking minority member, Rep. George E. Brown, Jr. (D-Calif.), commended Ehlers for his role in heading the study but was critical of its results, saying “[I] have cast my role here in Congress as trying to look beyond the status quo at what needs to be done to solve the problems of the future. To me, this report does not go far enough in terms of that particular goal. . . .We need to look for new ways of answering the question, for what purpose are we supporting this very large scientific establishment that we have created.”

Some dissenting members said the report lacked sufficient support for mathematics, engineering, and social sciences. Others said the report should have said more about environmental quality and the role that S&T plays in the distribution of educational opportunities, access to health care, income, and wealth.

Russia’s woes continue to plague space station project

Although the first piece of the international space station, a Russian-built module called Zarya, was launched on November 20, Russia’s problems in meeting its commitments to the project continue to hamper the station’s development. Russia’s difficulties are prompting some members of Congress to try to force it out of the project.

Last fall, NASA asked Congress for a four-year, $660-million appropriation, including an emergency request of $60 million, to help Russia meet its space station responsibilities, particularly construction of the key service module, the launch of which has now been delayed until July 1999. Congress approved the $60 million but delayed a decision on the rest. It also ordered NASA to produce an analysis of alternative financing mechanisms to directly transferring funds.

NASA’s request infuriated Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R.-Wisc.), chair of the House Science Committee and a critic of Russia’s space station performance. Sensenbrenner introduced a bill that would cap space station costs and create a contingency plan to remove Russia from the “critical path” of the project.

At a Science Committee hearing in October, committee members and witnesses alike accused the Russian Space Agency (RSA) of being corrupt, unreliable, and poorly managed. Members were frustrated that RSA had been placed on the critical path of building the station, even though NASA and the Clinton administration have promised, in writing, that the Russians’ role would be minimal. Serious doubts were also expressed about RSA’s capabilities even with the $660 million bailout.

NASA administrator Daniel Goldin vigorously defended Russia’s role in building the station, maintaining that concerns about corruption and Russia’s recent economic woes have not affected RSA’s capabilities. The problem, he said, is not with RSA but with the flow of funds to RSA to complete the service module. Goldin said about 98 percent of the module has already been completed and the extra funding is required for final tests and software. The module, he explained, is not newly developed technology that overtaxes RSA; rather, its construction is a relatively simple task.

Although Goldin pledged that NASA would take additional precautions to ensure that Russia’s problems wouldn’t further hinder space station construction, he pointed out that a replacement for the service module would take years to develop, test, and build. The RSA service module, he argued, is a critical element that only RSA has the capability and experience to build.

Goldin also maintained that the $660 million would not be a gift but would buy specific goods and services from Russia. The $60-million first installment will be exchanged for cosmonaut time on the space station over the next four years and valuable storage space for research equipment. The deal would effectively double NASA’s research time on the station, he said.

United States signs Kyoto Protocol on climate change

Although Congress continues to oppose the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, the Clinton administration signed the document on November 12, saying that it hoped to spur overall progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The protocol was signed during a Buenos Aires conference aimed at working out the Protocol’s details.

President Clinton said, however, that he would not submit the protocol to the Senate for ratification until key developing countries agree to take significant steps to address climate change, a key Senate condition.

“By signing the agreement,” said Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), who attended the conference, “the administration ensures that the United States will have the credibility to continue to take a leadership role in shaping . . . these programs and in persuading the developing nations to become part of the solution.”

The United States received some good news at the conference when Argentina and Kazakhstan said they would voluntarily comply with the protocol. But the United States faces a major challenge in convincing large fossil-fuel users such as China to jump on the climate change bandwagon.

Congressional opponents of the protocol were unfazed by the U.S. decision. “As this treaty stands now, it will not be ratified by the Senate. It’s dead on arrival,” said Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-Wisc.), chairman of the House Science Committee. Republican representatives at the conference demanded that the president send the signed treaty to Congress immediately rather than allowing more time for additional negotiations. The congressional contingent said in a written statement, “Putting the signature of the United States on a treaty does mean something . . . it represents the solemn word of our nation. And sending it to the U.S. Senate for an up or down vote should not be contingent on the results of further negotiation that may or may not achieve the desired results.”

The Kyoto Protocol calls for developed nations to reduce their current emissions of six key greenhouse gases by an average of five percent below 1990 levels by 2012. The United States must reduce its emissions levels by seven percent below the 1990 level by 2012.

The United States is the 60th nation to sign the protocol, but only two countries, Fiji and Antigua and Barbuda, have ratified it. To come into effect, 55 countries must ratify the treaty and at least 55 percent of those countries must be developed nations. The protocol’s backers hope that it can be ratified by 2001. Without U.S. support, however, the protocol, even if it becomes legally binding, will be seen as largely ineffective.

“From the Hill” is prepared by the Center for Science, Technology, and Congress at the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C., and is based on articles from the center’s bulletin Science & Technology in Congress.