Constituents have the opportunity to give their support to a drive
to increase the FY 2007 budget for the Department of Energy's Office
of Science. A letter is now being circulated in the Senate to demonstrate
support for the budget request for the Office of Science. Interested
constituents are being urged to contact their senators to request that
they sign this letter to key Senate appropriators.
The Bush Administration requested $4.1 billion for the Office of Science
in FY 2007, an increase of 14.1% (see http://www.aip.org/fyi/2006/022.html.)
It is hoped that a letter signed by many senators will demonstrate to
Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Pete
Domenici (R-NM) and Ranking Member Harry Reid (D-NV) that this request
should be supported in their upcoming FY 2007 Energy and Water Development
Appropriations Bill. Domenici and Reid are well-recognized advocates
of the Office of Science; this letter is to serve as a tangible demonstration
to other Senate appropriators of the wide support that exists for the
Office.
Last year, 68 senators signed a letter in support of the Office of
Science (see http://www.aip.org/fyi/2005/063.html
for a list of these senators.) As was true last year, Senator Lamar
Alexander (R-TN) and Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) are the sponsors of
this letter.
This "Dear Colleague" letter was sent by Alexander and Bingaman
on February 16. Senators receive many such requests every week. A Dear
Colleague letter is much more likely to be acted on if constituents
express their views.
The following 13 senators have agreed to sign this newest letter: Alexander
(R-TN), Allen (R-VA), Bayh (D-IN), Bingaman (D-NM), Boxer (D-CA), Clinton
(D-NY), DeWine (R-OH), Dole (R-NC), Feinstein (D–CA), Johnson (D-SD),
Levin (D-MI), Menendez (D-NJ) and Warner (R-VA).
Guidance on writing to a Member of Congress and access to electronic
mail forms may be accessed at http://www.aip.org/gov/nb1.html
See "A State-by-State Guide to the Office of Science's Research
Investments Nationwide" at http://www.science.doe.gov/SC_Funding
The text of the February 16 Alexander-Bingaman "Dear Colleague"
letter follows:
"We are writing to express bipartisan support for the
Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Science. We request that you
uphold the Administration's request for a 14.1 percent increase in
the Office of Science's overall budget for fiscal year 2007.
"This year, the President included the Office of Science as part
of his American Competitiveness Initiative, a broad-based effort to
shore up our nation's basic R&D enterprise, educate our children
in math and science, and create the necessary tax incentives to keep
U.S. industry innovative by performing cutting edge R&D here instead
of overseas. As part of this initiative, funding for the Office of
Science - along with the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) - is projected
to double over the next 10 years.
"The Administration's proposed increase for the Office
of Science is critical in a time of increasing dependence on overseas
sources of energy and a global economy that is competing to attract
our best R&D talent. China plans to double their investment in
science and technology research over the next 15 years. Multinational
companies, including our own, have established more than 600 R&D
centers in China to support that nation's high-tech manufacturing
base. These corporations are also setting up large research centers
in India to take advantage of a highly-trained and eager scientific
workforce. In some cases, the computer chips being manufactured in
the U.S. are now being designed in India - the reverse of where we
were ten years ago.
"The Office of Science is at the tip of the spear in
our efforts to compete in this new flat world. It is building unrivaled
nanoscience facilities with products that include a new generation
of semiconductors, solar cells, hydrogen fuel cells, solid-state lights,
lightweight materials, and specially tailored drugs that work at a
targeted cellular level. These and the Office of Science's other national
user facilities, like synchrotrons, accelerators, and other large
world-class facilities, will bring forth a new generation of highly-trained
scientists and engineers that our industries need to remain competitive.
"We are acutely aware of the tight constraints on available
budgetary resources. Still, we believe that basic research is of such
vital importance to economic growth and protecting America's competitive
edge that it should be prioritized during the fiscal year 2007 appropriations
process. We urge you to support the President's request for the Office
of Science to ensure that America remains at the forefront of scientific
capability, thereby enhancing our ability to shape and improve our
future."
Richard M. Jones
Media and Government Relations Division
American Institute of Physics
fyi@aip.org
301-209-3095
Enlarge text
Shrink text
Print
E-mail
Digg this
Del.icio.us
Furl