Statement on Passage of FY2017 Omnibus Spending Bill

The Science Coalition released the following statement on passage of the Fiscal Year 2017 omnibus spending bill. The statement can be attributed to Science Coalition President Glynda Becker.

May 4, 2017 – “The Science Coalition is pleased that Congress has passed an FY17 spending bill and applauds the funding for science contained in the bill. This funding continues the longstanding tradition of strong bipartisan support for scientific research and recognizes the very significant impact that federally funded research has on society and the economy.

“The Science Coalition recently released a report that identifies 102 examples of American-made innovation – companies created from federally funded university research. While companies are just one illustration of the many ways investments in basic scientific research benefit society and the economy, the companies highlighted in the report each are bringing to market transformational innovations, creating jobs, and contributing to economic growth. The companies exist because academic researchers had access to competitively awarded grants from America’s premier research agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Energy Office of Science, Department of Defense R&D, Department of Agriculture, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

“We are grateful for the leadership of House and Senate appropriators and to many others in Congress who are likewise committed to investing in the research that will keep the United States globally competitive and the world’s leader in science and technology. The unique partnership between America’s research universities and the federal government is also helping to meet the needs of industry partners by keeping the innovation and workforce pipelines primed.”

The Science Coalition is a non-profit, nonpartisan organization of the nation’s leading public and private research universities. It is dedicated to sustaining strong federal funding of basic scientific research as a means to stimulate the economy, spur innovation and drive America’s global competitiveness. Learn more at www.sciencecoalition.org.

American-Made Innovation Sparking Economic Growth and the accompanying database of companies are available at www.sciencecoalition.org/successstories.