Neal Lane on R&D Appropriations Bills

“I am confident that this situation can be turned around if America’s research community makes its strong voice heard in the days ahead...” -- Presidential science advisor Neal Lane

The Assistant to the President for Science and Technology, Neal Lane, released the following statement on August 6, regarding proposed congressional appropriations action affecting R&D.

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At the beginning of the FY 2000 budget debate last February, bipartisan support for strong, stable investment in science and technology never seemed more resilient. The President submitted a balanced budget that, for the seventh year in a row, requested a substantial increase in civilian research and development funding. The House had just released Unlocking our Future: Toward a New National Science Policy, reaffirming a commitment to America’s preeminence in science and technology. Additionally, the House was considering legislation that would dramatically increase funding for information technology research -- also an Administration goal, and the Senate had endorsed legislation to double civilian R&D funding over the next 11 years.

Today, as the Congress goes into its August recess, it is deeply disappointing to find that the current budget reality is no match for the early rhetoric. House action to date has decimated the President’s R&D budget request with:

70% cuts to the Information Technology Initiative;

$1.8 billion cuts from the President’s civilian R&D request;

$1 billion cuts to NASA’s budget that threaten 30 space missions, slash space and earth science programs, and defer Shuttle safety improvements and critical Space Station capabilities; and Cuts to the National Science Foundation ($275 million) and the Department of Energy’s science programs ($116 million) threaten university-based research funding affecting tens of thousands of researchers and educators, impacting students at all levels across the country, and sending a negative message to all young people about a future career in science and technology.

Scientists and engineers constitute one of the largest, most valuable, yet least heard constituencies in America. Their work makes major contributions to our economy, to our national security, and to the health and well being of our citizens and our environment. Our elected representatives need to understand that investments in the future of science and technology are investments in the future of our country, and are investments that Americans are willing to make.

The truth is that all scientists and engineers, all researchers and educators represent the constituency of the future. And all of us have a duty -- to ourselves, to our children, to future generations -- to ensure that Congress does the right thing by enacting a strong, farsighted science and technology budget to help build a better America for the twenty-first century.

I am confident that this situation can be turned around if America’s research community makes its strong voice heard in the days ahead; otherwise, if such cuts are allowed to stand, we will all be leading lesser lives in a lesser land.

President Clinton reflects the views of the overwhelming majority of Americans when he says, “Cutting back on research at the dawn of a new century where research is more important than it has been for even the last fifty years would be like cutting back our defense budget at the height of the Cold War.”

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Congress is currently on its August recess, and is expected to return to Washington on September 8. At that point, it will have less than a full month to complete all thirteen appropriations bills before the start of the new fiscal year on October 1. Congress is heading toward the proverbial train wreck, as it has not yet found a way to fit all the appropriations bills under the budget caps, or agreed to break the caps. Several continuing resolutions - or stopgap funding bills - will most likely be necessary to keep programs running after the October 1 deadline. There is sure to be a lot of last-minute negotiating and trade- offs. For tips on writing to your Members of Congress to make your views and priorities known, see our Science Policy web page at: http://www.aip.org/gov