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PoliSci: R&D Up, But Mostly For Defense
Washington, DC (UPI) Dec 20, 2004 Federal science programs generally fared well in Congress's final amalgamation of spending decisions this month, although much of the money went to defense-related research and the National Science Foundation, a major supporter of basic research, took a cut. Congress gave an unprecedented amount of money to research and development, said Kei Koizumi, director of the R&D Budget and Policy Program at the American Association for the Advancement of Science. AAAS estimates federal R&D will top $132.2 billion next year, roughly $6 billion more than last year and a 4.8 percent increase. Much of that spending, however, is going to defense-related research, Koizumi told United Press International. The Department of Homeland Security, for example, is receiving $1.2 billion, an increase of 20 percent over last year. Most of that (DHS increase) is going to the biological counter measures area, Koizumi said. Activities in this arena include research to improve BioWatch, a network of sensor stations that monitor the air in some 30 cities. The National Institutes of Health, within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, also is funding biodefense research. In addition to financing individual research projects, the NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases is giving universities some $150 million in grants to build new biodefense labs. One non-defense agency that did receive an increase is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA got $16.2 billion, as part of the omnibus funding bill signed into law on Dec. 3. Congress gave the agency, which is working hard to find its footing after the lost of the Columbia shuttle, $822 million more than last year. Congress also granted NASA near total spending flexibility to help it pursue President Bush's vision to return the moon and then Mars. The amount still is $44 million below NASA's request, however, and it comes with strings attached. NASA has to absorb increasing costs to return the shuttle fleet to flight status and repair the Hubble space telescope. It also has to report back to Congress in 60 days on its plans to do so. The Office of Science within the Department of Energy got a funding boost as well, Koizumi said, receiving $3.3 billion for research and development - a 4.3 percent increase. DoE is a major funding source for basic research, particularly physics research. The National Science Foundation, also a major funder of basic research, took a cut with its $5.5 billion allotment. That is $62 million less than last year and $278 million below the president's request. Within its fiscal year 2005 budget, NSF has $4.3 billion for research and $175 million for research equipment - $3 million and $20 million over last year respectively. The budget for education and human resources was cut by $91 million from last year, to $848 million. We need to increase the amount for basic research. I think it is important that NSF doesn't lose any more ground, said Sam Rankin, who watches the budget closely as associate executive director of the American Mathematical Society. If you look at basic research, Rankin told UPI, it only went up 1.5 percent - that is across all agencies. Increasing federal funding for most exploratory areas of science is not, however, going to be easy to do. The Office of Management and Budget already was projecting science cuts for future years during the drafting of the FY 2005 budget last fall. Now, at the very beginning of his second term and with a self-described mandate, Bush has pledged to cut the U.S. budget deficit. Considering the struggle in Iraq and the war-time footing of the country, non-military discretionary spending is most likely to get the ax. Those (downward) projections, unless there is going to be a radical reshuffling of priorities, are likely to be the path that domestic agencies will follow in the next few years, Koizumi said. Non-defense discretionary spending is where the bulk of the cuts are going to take place, Rankin agreed. That is about the only place where they can cut. Up to now, Rankin said, this category of spending has been about 19 percent of the U.S. budget. He said OMB is seeking to cut that back to around 16 percent. That is going to impact science, Rankin said. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express Military Space News at SpaceWar.com
Space Group To Activate New Unit
Colorado Springs CO (SPX) Jan 6, 2006Air Force Reserve Command's 310th Space Group will travel deeper into the space program when it activates a new unit Jan. 7. Headquarters Reserve National Security Space Institute will be a Reserve associate unit to the National Security Space Institute in Colorado Springs, Colo. The institute is the Department of Defense's focal point for providing education about space power in joint warfighting. |
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