NIST: Appropriations and Authorization Action
One of the last bills passed by the House before Members departed for the August recess was H.R. 4276, the FY 1999 Commerce, Justice and State appropriations bill, passed on August 6. The NIST section of the bill remains the same as that passed by the House Appropriations Committee on July 15 (see FYI #112 .)
Two amendments that would have cut NIST were offered during the House floor debate; both failed. The first, offered by Rep. Charles Bass (R-NH), would have reduced the Advanced Technology Program (ATP) by $43 million and prohibited any new awards in FY 1999. It was defeated on a 267-155 vote. The second, by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), would have completely eliminated the ATP. Royce’s amendment failed on a 291-137 vote.
The House bill now needs to be reconciled with the version passed by the Senate on July 23. Both chambers would provide less total funding for NIST than requested. NIST’s intramural laboratory work, known as Scientific and Technical Research and Services (STRS), would receive almost the full request from the Senate but less from the House. The ATP would be significantly reduced from the requested level by the Senate, and even more so by the House. Both chambers would provide the requested amounts for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) and for Construction and Renovation.
NIST FY98 FY99 Senate House
Program Approp. Request Mark Mark
(In millions)
STRS $276.9 291.6 290.6 280.5
ATP 192.5 259.9 192.5 180.2
MEP 113.5 106.8 106.8 106.8
Construction 95.0 56.7 56.7 56.7
TOTAL 677.9 715.0 646.7 624.2
The Senate left for its recess a week before the House. On July 31, their last day in town, Senators passed S. 1325, a reauthorization bill for NIST. The bill would authorize funding levels for fiscal years 1999 and 2000, and also eliminate the sunset provision prohibiting federal funding of the MEP centers after the sixth year. (In later years, centers could receive one-third of their total operating costs in federal funds.) Authorization bills, of course, can provide guidance for appropriators, but they cannot dole out the actual money. For fiscal year 1999, the Senate would authorize the following amounts: STRS - $287.6 million; ATP - $204.0 million; MEP - $114.4 million; Construction - $67.0 million.
For fiscal year 2000, the bill would authorize the following amounts: STRS - $296.3 million; ATP - $210.1 million; MEP - $114.4 million; and Construction - $56.7 million.
Last year, the House passed a bill to reauthorize NIST through fiscal year 1999. It would set the following authorization levels for FY 1999: STRS - $292.2 million; ATP - $150.0 million; MEP - $111.3 million; Construction - $67.0 million.
