WASHINGTON – The Science Coalition (TSC) released the following statement after the U.S. House of Representatives voted to increase funding for the Department of Defense’s (DOD) Office of Basic Research, Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science, and National Institutes of Health (NIH) for Fiscal Year 2020.
“Increased funding for these key research agencies is imperative to strengthening local economies, driving innovation and competitiveness, and conducting fundamental research at America’s universities. This type of federal investment also enjoys strong bipartisan support from the American people, with a recent poll finding 60 percent of voters believe scientific investment should be increased. We urge the Senate to follow suit.”
This funding package includes approximately:
- $2.5 billion for DOD’s Office of Basic Research;
- $6.9 billion for DOE’s Office of Science; and
- $41 billion for NIH.
TSC continues to urge members of Congress to work with the administration to raise the budget caps. The looming threat of sequestration denies research universities the ability to plan for future projects conducted in close partnership with federal research agencies, which would face more than an estimated $5.1 billion in cuts if Congress and the administration do not act by October 1.
TSC recently released a state-by-state analysis of post-sequestration cuts to core federal research agencies’ state-level spending, which can be found here.
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About the Science Coalition
Established in 1994, The Science Coalition is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization of more than 50 of the nation’s leading public and private research universities. It is dedicated to sustaining the federal government’s investment in basic scientific research as a means to stimulate the economy, spur innovation, and drive America’s global competitiveness.