DOE FY 2001 Budget Request: Selected Office of Science Programs

FYI #14 provided an overview of the FY 2001 budget request for the Department of Energy. Below are excerpts from DOE’s “Budget Highlights” document, describing details of the request for selected Office of Science programs tracked by FYI. High Energy Physics (HEP) would not keep pace with inflation, with an increase of $10.9 million, or 1.5 percent, to $714.7 million. Funding for Nuclear Physics would grow by $14.1 million, or 4.0 percent, to $369.9 million. Basic Energy Sciences (BES) would see a significant increase of $236.4 million (30.0 percent) to $1,015.8 million, largely due to increased construction funding for the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS). Fusion Energy Sciences would remain essentially flat, falling from $247.8 million in FY 2000 to $247.3 million in FY 2001, a drop of $0.5 million (0.2 percent).

According to DOE, HEP funding “will focus on the utilization of new facilities at Fermilab (Main Injector) and SLAC (B-Factory).” Highlights for Nuclear Physics include “the second full year of operations for the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC),” and MIT’s Bates Laboratory “will begin operation of the BLAST Detector at the end of FY 2001.” In addition to operation of a number of large user facilities, the Basic Energy Sciences (BES) request will support initiatives in nanoscale science, robotics, and climate change technology. Fusion highlights include continued operation of “DIII-D, Alcator C-Mod, and the NSTX facilities...to address high priority fusion energy science issues.” As always, this budget information should be qualified by stating that there may be changes to the content of these programs from year to year that also have an impact on the effective amount of funding available. The budget document states:

HIGH ENERGY PHYSICS REQUEST: $714.7 million; up 1.5 percent

“The U.S. finalized negotiations for DOE and NSF to participate in CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) project in December 1997. Funding for the LHC remains at $70.0 million in FY 2001, with funding split between accelerator systems ($17.8 million), procurement from industry ($18.5 million) and detectors ($33.7 million).

“The FY 2001 HEP budget is largely driven by the operation of and research at three major facilities: Fermilab, SLAC, and the Brookhaven National Laboratory AGS [Alternating Gradient Synchrotron].

“Funding decreases slightly at Fermilab as operation of the Tevatron, with the new Fermi Main Injector, is brought on-line, and fabrication of upgrades to the two major detectors nears completion; assembly of the MINOS Detector continues at $7.0 million in FY 2001; and funding for Muon-Muon Collider R&D, most of which is funded at Fermilab, remains at $8.7 million. Funding increases at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) primarily for operation of the B-Factory with its BaBar detector; the SLAC portion of the research on the Next Linear Collider (NLC) increases to $17.5 million in FY 2001, while total R&D on the NLC increases from $17.4 million in FY 2000 to $19.2 million in FY 2001. At Brookhaven National Laboratory HEP funding increases for incremental operation of the AGS for high priority HEP experiments; full funding responsibility for the AGS was transferred to Nuclear Physics at the end of FY 1999. Funding for university research decreases by $1.9 million, but is offset by an increase in university equipment of $5.5 million, primarily for fabrication of non-accelerator hardware. Large scale modeling and simulation is funded at $5.0 million.”

NUCLEAR PHYSICS REQUEST: $369.9 million; up 4.0 percent

“The Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (TJNAF) will continue operation at 4,500 hours, and deliver continuous beam (at differing energies and currents) to all three experimental halls. The BATES Accelerator at MIT will continue to operate at 2,000 hours and assembly of the BLAST Detector for BATES will be completed (FY 2001 $1.2 million). The Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) was completed on schedule in FY 1999, and it is scheduled for 4,800 hours of operation in FY 2001. The Radioactive Ion Beam (RIB) facility at Oak Ridge continues operation at a level of 2,300 hours. Nuclear Theory is increased to $18.2 million to support modeling and simulation.”

BASIC ENERGY SCIENCES REQUEST: $1,015.8 million; up 30.3 percent

“Most of this increase is attributable to the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) which increases from $117.9 million in FY 2000 to $281.0 million in FY 2001. Funding for the Climate Change Technology Initiative (CCTI), which is funded in all subprograms, remains at $19.5 million. A Nanoscale Science initiative and an initiative in Robotics and Intelligent Machines have been enhanced.

“Materials research, in addition to enhanced funding of $16.9 million for nanoscale science, provides $8.0 million to begin a jointly funded (with NIH) upgrade to SPEAR 3 at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laborataory (DOE share of TEC $29.0 million). The Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) increases from $6.8 million in FY 2000 to $9.8 million in FY 2001 to support education activities in the EPSCoR states. FY 2001 includes $17.5 million for shutdown and surveillance of the High Flux Beam Reactor (HFBR), the Secretary of Energy announced HFBR’s closure in November 1999. Chemical Sciences increases by $16.7 million and supports nanoscale science (+$13.5 million) and modeling and simulation (+$2.0 million). Research in Engineering and Geosciences will increase by $3.7 million, mostly for nanoscale science and robotics and intelligent machines ($2.7 million), and Energy Biosciences research will increase by $3.0 million over FY 2000 for the microbial cell and plant genome.”

FUSION ENERGY SCIENCES REQUEST: $247.3 million; down 0.2 percent

“Funding for the Doublet III-D (DIII-D) at General Atomics supports three additional weeks of operation. The Alcator C-Mod at MIT has four fewer weeks of operation in FY 2001. The National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) increases operations in FY 2001. A three-year, $48.0 million, decontamination and decommissioning of the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) begun in FY 2000 continues (FY 2000 $13.4 million; FY 2001 $19.6 million). Theory increases by $3.0 million to support simulation and modeling. General Plasma Science and Inertial Fusion Energy are funded near FY 2000 levels.”