WASHINGTON – The Science Coalition (TSC) today issued the following statement after a tentative deal to raise the budget caps was reached between congressional leaders and the Trump administration:
“Consistent federal funding for key research agencies is critical to America’s long-term success and ability to compete globally. The unique partnership between our country’s research universities and these federal agencies is the engine of American innovation. Stable, predictable funding enables university researchers to focus on the discoveries that will strengthen our economy and encourage technological advancements. A budget framework for the next two years – that moves us past the threat of future sequestration – is a win for American science. We urge Congress to appropriate the necessary funding to demonstrate America’s commitment to this endeavor.”
TSC recently released a state-by-state analysis of post-sequestration cuts to core federal research agencies’ state-level spending. Without a deal on federal budget caps, cuts to non-defense discretionary spending and defense basic research for federal agencies would have totaled more than $5.1 billion.
A recent poll from The Science Coalition found that eight in 10 voters, across party lines, support the federal government using taxpayer funds to invest in scientific research.
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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.