President Releases Bare Bones FY 1997 Budget Request; Details to Follow

The release of the President’s annual budget request is usually a red-letter day. Budget briefings are scheduled from early morning to late afternoon and into the next day across metropolitan Washington, D.C. Weeks of analysis are then needed to digest the voluminous budget books issued by various departments and agencies.

That is not the case this year. Yesterday the President, to meet the letter of the law, released a 20-page summary of his $1.64 trillion budget request for FY 1997. There is already talk that the request, which is basically a recasting of a budget proposal the President has already submitted to Congress, will go nowhere. Comments White House Press Secretary Michael McCurry, “Since the 1996 budget discussions still are not going anywhere, we’re not going to bravely predict that this budget document will get a more favorable reception on the Hill.” From Capitol Hill, House Budget Committee Chairman John Kasich (R-OH) warns, “Discussing the ’97 budget is grounds for commitment.”

The reason for this is, of course, what has bogged down Washington for the last five months or so: the continuing impasse over the FY 1996 budget. Five appropriations bills remain unsigned, resulting in parts of nine departments and various agencies forced to operate with stopgap funding (one of which is the Department of Energy, with selected programs not having full year budgets since they are funded by the stalled Interior Appropriations bill.)

Notwithstanding Chairman Kasich’s warning, a reading of the request reveals what is called “a thematic overview of...priorities.” Found throughout this slim document are references to science and technology. Although this budget would cut $297 billion in discretionary spending over seven years, it is notable that the request states:

“The budget also invests in science and technology, through a balanced mix of basic research, applied research, and technology development, including cooperative projects with private industry and universities. It adds funds for biomedical and behavioral research at the National Institutes of Health, for basic research and education at the National Science Foundation, for basic research at NASA (including Mission to Planet Earth) and other agencies, and for such important initiatives as the Advanced Technology Program and the Technology Reinvestment Project.”

No hard numbers describing this proposed spending are provided. Details are to be released the week of March 18.

The FY 1997 budget send to Congress can be found at the following URL: http://www.doc.gov/BudgetFY97/index.html