DOD Basic Research Remains Flat in FY 1998 Spending Bill

House and Senate Members have come to agreement on a Conference Report (H. Rpt. 105-265) for H.R. 2266, the DOD Appropriations Bill for FY 1998. The report passed both the House and Senate on September 25, and now goes to President Clinton for signing.

BASIC RESEARCH (6.1): The Administration had requested a 7.8 percent increase for DOD Basic Research, to $1,163.7 million. Although Senate appropriators, as well as authorizers in both the House and the Senate, recommended an increase to Basic Research, appropriators in the House called for maintaining funding “at the 1997 level.” The House position won the day in conference. DOD Basic Research was funded at $1,080.1 million, essentially equal to the FY 1997 appropriation of $1,079.8 million. This is a decrease of 7.2 percent from the FY 1998 request. No justification is provided in the conference report for this reduction from the request; it is necessary to go back to the House Appropriations Committee report, which “questions whether never-ending budget growth in basic research is wise, particularly in the context of the Administration’s failure to adequately address the Defense Department’s weapons system modernization needs.”

APPLIED RESEARCH/EXPLORATORY DEVELOPMENT (6.2): In contrast with Basic Research, accounts indicate that the Defense Department’s 6.2 Category (Applied Research) received $3,128.2 million, an increase of 8.9 percent over the FY 1997 appropriation of $2,873.1 million, and an increase of 11.2 percent over the Administration’s FY 1998 request of $2,814.1 million. The Administration’s request represented a decrease of 2.1 percent from the FY 1997 level.

TECHNOLOGY BASE (6.1 + 6.2): Several DOD officials expressed concern earlier this year (see FYIs #31 , 49 , 58 ) that the buying power of DOD’s technology base (basic and applied research) has been eroding, and is near an “18-year low.” The Administration had requested a total of $3,977.8 million for the combined categories, with an emphasis on increasing basic research funding. The conference report provides $4,208.3 million, but the emphasis is on applied research.

Details of the conference report’s funding for basic research (6.1) are provided below, with comparisons to the FY 1998 request, and the estimated FY 1997 funding levels:

DOD FY 1998 BASIC RESEARCH

COMPARISON TO FY 1997 BASIC RESEARCH