Stimulus Bills Include Billions For R&D
The Senate's $838 billion economic stimulus package contains about $17.8 billion in federal research and development while the $819 billion House bill, which passed last month, contains $13.2 billion for R&D, according to the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The House version contains far less for the National Institutes of Health but provides more for other R&D programs, AAAS analyst Kei Koizumi said Wednesday. Senators added $6.5 billion for biomedical research during floor debate, bringing NIH's total Senate funding to $10.4 billion. The House offered $3.9 billion.
Basic competitiveness-related research, biomedical research, energy R&D, and climate change programs seem to be the highest priorities for both bills. The National Science Foundation, the Energy Department's science office and the National Institute of Standards and Technology -- three agencies highlighted in U.S. competitiveness legislation that passed the 110th Congress -- would do well in both versions, Koizumi said. But some, like the Alliance for Science & Technology Research in America, believe the Senate language is lacking, and are pushing conferees to restore some of the House-passed funding. A detailed update is available on the AAAS R&D Web site here.
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