Congress Nearing Completion on FY 1996 NSF Budget

The Senate Appropriations Committee met this morning to consider H.R. 2099, the VA, HUD, Independent Agencies Appropriations Bill for FY 1996. This meeting follows earlier action this week by Senator Christopher Bond’s (R-Missouri) appropriations subcommittee on the bill. This is what is now known about the subcommittee’s recommendations regarding the National Science Foundation’s appropriation for the new fiscal year beginning on October 1.

The earlier House version of H.R. 2099, as well as the Senate subcommittee’s recommendations, provide 100% of NSF’s budget request for Education and Human Resources, Academic Research Infrastructure, and Major Research Equipment. It should be noted that in each of these areas the foundation requested less money for FY 1996 than it now receives. These and other NSF activities such as salaries and expenses account for 27% of NSF’s request.

Approximately 73% of NSF’s original budget request was for the Research and Related Activities account. Both the House bill, and Senate subcommittee recommendations, provide less than the $2,454 million originally requested. The House bill provides around 92% of the request, a cut of $200 million. The Senate subcommittee recommendations cut less: $160 million. (The current Research and Related Activities budget is $2,280 million.)

Within the near future, the Senate will take up H.R. 2099. Following its passage on the Senate floor, the House and Senate will appoint conferees to resolve differences between the two versions of the bill. There is expected to be little disagreement about NSF. With only the Research and Related Activities budget in dispute, it can be expected that the final R&RA figure will lie somewhere in the narrow $40 million difference. (For example, if conferees decide to split the difference, the Research and Related Activities appropriation for next year would be $2,274 million, a decline of $6 million from the current budget, although $180 million below the FY 1996 request.)

The final NSF appropriation is still somewhat tentative because it is only a part of a much larger bill funding the VA, NASA, Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Environmental Protection Agency. EPA was cut by 32% and HUD by 24% in the House version of H.R. 2099. The Clinton Administration has made known its opposition to these cuts, and a presidential veto is threatened. If Congress decides to restore some of these cuts to get the president’s acceptance of H.R. 2099, it may have to look for money in other areas of the bill. So while the outlook for NSF funding seems positive for FY 1996, there remain uncertainties in the coming weeks.