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Congressional Testimony on FY 2008 R&D Budget by OSTP Director John Marburger
Washington, DC, 15 February 2007:
Statement of Dr. John Marburger, Director,
Office of Science and Technology
Policy, to the Committee on Science and Technology, United States House of
Representatives.Chairman Gordon, Ranking
Republican Member Hall, and Members of the Committee, I am pleased to appear
before you today to present the President's Fiscal Year 2008 research and
development (R&D) budget. Although this is my sixth year coming before the
Committee to discuss the President's R&D program, it is my first under the new
Congressional leadership. I am aware that this Committee has expressed
bipartisan support for science funding in the past, and values scientific
research and its applications for the benefits it brings to every part of our
society. On behalf of the Administration, I thank the Committee for the good
working relationship it has established with the science agencies and with my
office, and look forward to working together in the future to advance American
innovation and competitiveness.
This year, President Bush presents a Federal Budget that will
balance in five years. The President proposes to do this by continuing strong
pro-growth economic policies and by holding non-security discretionary spending
below inflation. This strategy inevitably requires establishing priorities and
allocating resources to achieve the greatest impact. Winning the war on terror,
securing the homeland and strengthening the economy remain the President's top
priorities, and this year's budget once again emphasizes investments in
America's future competitiveness through research and development. The President
is proposing a record $142.7 billion 2008 Federal R&D Budget, an increase of
$5.5 billion over the 2007 Budget. And while the overall 2008 non-defense
discretionary budget grows by on 0.65 percent relative to the 2007 levels in the
current continuing resolution, non-defense R&D is increased by 4.26 percent, or
almost seven times faster. The President's commitment to the government's R&D
enterprise is strong, and the advancement of science remains among his top
budget priorities.
While significant increases have occurred for defense-related
development - most of the "D" in R&D- it is important to be aware of the very
significant growth during this Administration in non-defense research spending,
as shown in an accompanying chart. Non-defense R&D has continued on a
significantly upward trajectory. In fact, with President Bush's 2008 Budget,
real growth in outlays for the conduct of non-defense R&D -- i.e. corrected for
inflation -- is up 26.5 percent in seven years during this Administration.
With the launch of the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI)
last year and further discussion of the importance of research and development
to our future energy independence this year, President Bush's recent State of
the Union addresses advance a strong agenda for science and technology. This
focus on research and development, science and math education, and other
technology themes directly supports our National goals of securing the nation,
protecting the homeland, and making the economy strong.
Before I get into the specifics of this year's research budget,
I want to express my concern about the very serious deleterious impacts of
earmarking on the science budget. I do this knowing that this Committee already
fully appreciates the problem and supports best practices in the allocation of
research funding. As we discuss the importance of pursuing the best science to
contribute to U.S. competitiveness, I hope the Congress will eliminate research
earmarks in the FY 2008 appropriations process, as it is so commendably doing in
a spirit of reform for the current fiscal year.
The 2008 Budget raises funding for the category of Basic
Research almost $1 billion above the last appropriated level of 2006: $28.4
billion compared with $27.5 billion. Since the effect of last year's earmarks
only enhance this difference and make the real programmatic increases even
bigger, in my view this is a direct indication of the Administration's strong
focus on fundamental research and the discovery of new knowledge as a leading
mission of the Federal government. It is notable that this favorable treatment
of Basic Research is occurring in a year of belt-tightening for many other
domestic programs, indicating the high priority this Administration places on
the importance of this activity.
Basic Research is not the complete measure of investment
activities that drive future innovation. The accounting category known as the
Federal Science and Technology Budget emphasizes both basic and applied science
and engineering research short of development, and thus captures other important
activities relevant to competitiveness This category advances $1.3 billion in
2008 relative to FY 2006 levels, and when only civilian S&T agencies are
considered, that represents a four percent increase. If Congress funds the
President's 2008 request and avoids earmarking, FS&T funds available for science
agency programs will increase $1.5 billion from the President's own 2007 Budget.
As the next now-familiar chart displays, the American
Competitiveness Initiative identifies three priority science agencies: the
National Science Foundation; DoE's Office of Science; and the laboratories of
the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The 2008 Budget calls for a
7.2% increase on top of 2007's 9.3% requested increase. This additional $764
million brings the total two-year ACI Research incremental investment to $2.6
billion.
As I prepared this testimony, the then-current draft of the FY
2007 Continuing Budget Resolution (CR) provides only 50 percent of the
first-year ACI budget. As you can see on this table, that is $452 million short
of the President's request. I know this Committee is as disappointed as I am at
this shortfall for science. The Statement of Administration Policy on the
continuing resolution makes clear this is not sufficient to meet America's
competitiveness challenge, and falls short of the doubling path that is an
important component of the Initiative. If not corrected before completion of the
FY 2007 process, a year of enhanced and expanded high-impact innovation research
will be lost and a $1.2 billion increase would be required in 2008 to "catch-up"
to the President's commitment. This would require a difficult 12% increase in
2008.
While future competitiveness is the featured priority goal in
this science budget, other science areas remain important to our nation's goals.
Since 2002, the Administration has spent approximately $9 billion on climate
change science research through the multi-agency Climate Change Science Program,
and the President's 2008 Budget sustains the level of effort. Further, between
2003 and 2006, the President has committed nearly $3 billion annually to the
climate change technology research and deployment programs that constitute the
multi-agency Climate Technology Program. The U.S. leads the world in advancing
climate science and technology, with expenditures of nearly $29 billion in
climate-related science, technology, international assistance, and incentive
programs during this Administration.
Undoubtedly previous investments in energy-related science and
technology have put the U.S. well on track to meet the President's goal of
reducing greenhouse gas intensity 18 percent by 2012. In other programs relevant
to the environment, the 2008 Budget includes funding for a number of related
Earth Observations programs including ocean observing systems, earthquake
monitoring and prediction, tsunami warnings, Landsat, and the Global
Precipitation Measurement mission. This year's budget also includes a new Ocean
Initiative with over $80 million in new 2008 funding for ocean science and
research at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NSF and the
U.S. Geological Survey.
Biomedical research is supported in the 2008 NIH Budget with an
increase of $431 million over the 2007 request. This will allow NIH to award
over 10,000 new and competing research grants, an increase of more than 900, and
will double the New Investigators program. The NIH Director's Roadmap Initiative
is increased 10 percent in 2008 to enhance this interdisciplinary incubator for
new ideas that will accelerate the pace of discovery across the NIH's 27
Institutes and Centers.
The Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI) at DoE is funded at $2.7
billion in the 2008 Budget, which is a 26 percent increase over the President's
2007 request and almost $1 billion more than 2006. The AEI will contribute to
the President's goal of cutting gasoline use by 20 percent in 10 years by
accelerating the technical and cost viability of plug-in hybrids,
hydrogen-powered fuel cells, and "cellulosic" ethanol derived from biomass. AEI
will also accelerate clean electricity generation technologies such as solar,
wind, nuclear, and clean coal. Perhaps most critically, the 2008 AEI includes
over $700 million in basic research at DoE's Office of Science, a 32 percent
increase, to overcome major technical barriers to the use of solar, biomass,
hydrogen and fusion. With the 2008 Budget, the Presidential commitment to invest
$2 billion on clean coal research is fulfilled, as is President Bush's
commitment to propose a five-year, $1.2 billion Hydrogen Fuel Initiative.
This Administration's National Nanotechnology Initiative also
strongly continues with $1.45 billion in 2008 for this multi-agency,
well-coordinated investment in fundamental research, multi-disciplinary centers
of excellence, and development of focused cutting-edge research and education
infrastructure. With the 2008 request, over $8 billion will have been spent on
nanoscale R&D in seven years. The NNI also supports activities addressing the
societal implications of nanotechnology, including those related to human and
environmental health and methods for managing potential risks.
Finally, let me finish by expressing a concern regarding NASA
and the budget danger that lies ahead for this agency. The President's FY 2008
Budget includes a 3.1 percent increase for NASA in 2008 on top of the
President's 3.4 percent requested increase for 2007. However, the 2007 full-year
CR as it stands now cuts NASA $545 million from the President's request. That
leaves NASA at its 2006 level with no increase and puts at risk the Vision for
Space Exploration and priority Earth and space science missions. Certainly at
risk is the timely development of a new, much more capable U.S. human spacecraft
to follow the Shuttle which will be retired in 2010.
AGENCY BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS
National Science Foundation (NSF):
Funds are requested to increase the budget for NSF to $6.43
billion in FY 2008, 45 percent above 2001's $4.43 billion level. Similar
investments in the past have yielded important scientific discoveries, which
boost economic growth and enhance Americans' quality of life.
The centerpiece of the American Competitiveness Initiative is
President Bush's plan to double investment over a 10-year period in key Federal
agencies that support basic research programs emphasizing the physical sciences
and engineering. NSF is one of the three key agencies, as it is the primary
source of support for university and academic research in the physical sciences,
funding potentially transformative basic research in areas such as
nanotechnology, advanced networking and information technology, physics,
chemistry, material sciences, mathematics and engineering.
NSF has central roles in two previously mentioned Administration
priority research areas that promise to strengthen the Nation's economy: the
National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) and the Networking and Information
Technology R&D program (NITRD). NSF-funded nanotechnology research, proposed at
$390 million in FY 2008, a 5 percent increase over the 2007 request and 160
percent since 2001, has advanced our understanding of materials at the molecular
level and has provided insights into how innovative mechanisms and tools can be
built atom by atom. This emerging field holds promise for a broad range of
developing technologies, including higher-performance materials, more efficient
manufacturing processes, higher-capacity computer storage, and microscopic
biomedical instruments and mechanisms. NSF's investments in NITRD, funded at
$994 million in 2008, up $90 million over 2007 and 56 percent since 2001,
support all major areas of basic information technology (IT) research. NSF also
incorporates IT advances into its scientific and engineering applications,
supports using computing and networking infrastructure for research, and
contributes to IT-related education for scientists, engineers, and the IT
workforce.
The 2008 NSF Education and Human Resources (EHR) budget will
continue efforts to prepare U.S. students for the science and engineering
workforce with a 7.5 percent increase (+$53 million) over the level in the
House-passed 2007 full-year CR, adjusted for the movement of EPSCoR to the
Research and Related Activities account. To further strengthen NSF's emphasis on
increasing the quality and quantity of the science and engineering workforce and
ensuring that undergraduate students are well prepared for an increasingly
technological global society, EHR will increase funding for its undergraduate
education portfolio by $13.4 million. This total includes $3.5 million for the
Course, Curriculum, and Laboratory Improvement program and $5.1 million for the
Advanced Technological Education program to improve technician training at
community colleges. The FY2008 EHR budget also provides an increase of $8.9
million for the Graduate Research Fellowship program, an amount that will
support an additional 200 graduate students, and $4.53 million for the Centers
of Research Excellence in Science and Technology, a program designed to broaden
participation in the science and engineering workforce. NSF's K-12 education
programs remain strong with $30 million made available in FY2008 for new awards
under the Math and Science Partnerships program.
Department of Energy (DOE):
DOE implements the President's Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI),
highlighted above. The 2008 AEI Budget proposes:
$217 million for the solar R&D to accelerate development of cost-effective
photovoltaic materials;
$292 million for the biomass R&D, including $179 million for the Biofuels
Initiative and an additional $113 million in supporting basic research, to help
enable cellulosic ethanol to become practical and competitive;
$42 million for development of high-energy, high-power batteries for
hybrid-electric and "plug-in" hybrid vehicles;
$309 million for the Hydrogen Fuel Initiative to accelerate development of
hydrogen production, storage, and infrastructure technologies that can help make
possible the use of hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles and infrastructure to
support them;
$40 million for wind energy research to help improve the efficiency and
lower the costs of wind technologies for use in low-speed wind environments, and
to help overcome technical and regulatory barriers to more wide-scale deployment
of wind technologies; and
$108 million for the FutureGen Initiative to develop technologies for a coal
gasification plant with near-zero atmospheric emissions.
The 2008 AEI budget also proposes $395 million for the Global
Nuclear Energy Partnership in Nuclear Energy with the goals to demonstrate
advanced fuel cycle technologies, to expand the domestic use of nuclear power,
and to provide for safe, environmentally responsible global nuclear energy
systems that support non-proliferation objectives. Full funding of $160 million
for the U.S. contribution to the ITER international fusion energy project is
included as well.
The Office of Science in DoE (DoE-SC) is one of the three
priority research agencies in the President's American Competitiveness
Initiative, supporting scientific studies and infrastructure for a wide range of
basic research related to potentially significant innovations. The 2008 Budget
provides $4.4 billion for DoE SC, an increase of 16 percent over the level in
the 2007 House-passed full-year continuing resolution (CR), which is $306
million below the President's 2007 ACI request. The Budget includes funding for
priorities such as nanotechnology ($286 million), materials science research
facilities ($699 million), basic research in support of the hydrogen fuel
initiative ($60 million), the advanced energy initiative ($713 million), and
high-end computing facilities and research ($340 million). The Budget also
completes funding ($45 million) for project and engineering design of the
National Synchrotron Light Source II, a new x-ray light source that will enable
the study of materials properties and functions at a level of detail and
precision (nanoscale) never before possible. It continues support for
construction of the Linac Coherent Light Source--a materials research facility
that will provide laser-like x-rays allowing an unprecedented real-time glimpse
of chemical and biological processes, fully funds operations for the five
nanoscale science research centers, and provides funding for the project and
engineering design for the upgrade of the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator
Facility.
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST):
The Department of Commerce's NIST "core" research and facilities
receive $594 million in 2008, an increase of 21 percent from the level in the
2007 House-passed full-year CR, which is $44 million below the President's 2007
ACI request. In 2008, the American Competitiveness Initiative proposes NIST
funding increases of $69 million for new initiatives in research and
measurements in high-leverage areas such as the Disaster-Resilient Structures
and Communities Program, the interagency Climate Change Science Program, and the
interagency National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. Support continues for
high-leverage, broad impact research in quantum information processing,
nanotechnology, and new and expanded capabilities at the NIST Center for Neutron
Research and at its Boulder, Colorado, high-performance labs.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA):
The President's 2008 Budget for NASA is $17.3 billion, a 3.1
percent increase over the President's 2007 request, reflecting a strong
commitment by the Administration to the continued pursuit of the Vision for
Space Exploration. The 2007 House-passed full-year CR, however, reduces the 2007
Budget by $545 million to $16.2 billion. If NASA is not provided its 2007
request level of $16.8 billion, the agency needs flexibility within its
appropriation accounts to reduce the adverse consequences of a top-line
reduction.
In 2008, NASA requests $3.92 billion for exploration systems
including the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) and the Ares I launch vehicle
that will carry astronauts to the Moon. Having already initiated the acquisition
process for certain elements of this architecture during 2006, NASA anticipates
that all Orion CEV and Ares I elements will be under contract by the end of
2007, with the first crewed-flight planned to occur no later than 2014.
The 2008 Budget requests $5.52 billion, almost a third of NASA's
total budget, to continue operating the 59 spacecraft of NASA's Science Mission
Directorate and to support investments in future Earth and space science
missions, vital technologies, and frontier research. NASA will develop seven new
Earth observing space missions, including the Landsat Data Continuity Mission
and the Global Precipitation Measurement mission, which will launch no later
than 2013. NASA will continue its roles in the interagency Climate Change
Science Program and the international initiative on the Global Earth Observing
System of Systems. NASA will also support studies of the Earth-Sun system using
data from the STEREO mission and the upcoming Solar Dynamics Observatory. A new
Lunar Science Research program will leverage robotic investigations of the lunar
surface in support of the Vision for Space Exploration. Following up its
missions to Mars and Saturn, NASA is sending ever-more capable spacecraft to
Mars, Mercury, the asteroids, and Pluto. NASA also will continue its vibrant
astronomy program through its Great Observatories, and will upgrade Hubble in
2008 to provide five more years of productive on-orbit life, while planning new
spacecraft, such as Webb and Kepler, that will search for planets around other
stars and peer deep into the universe. Funding for the Beyond Einstein program
is increased in FY 2008 to act on the forthcoming recommendation from the
National Research Council regarding a strategy to unlock the secrets of the
fundamental physics of the universe.
In December 2006, the President approved the nation's first
National Aeronautics R&D Policy. Consistent with this Policy, the 2008 NASA
aeronautics budget prioritizes fundamental aeronautics research, the improvement
of aviation safety, and research that will help support the development of the
Next Generation Air Transportation System. In addition, NASA will address
infrastructure upgrades and maintenance requirements for aeronautical test
facilities across NASA centers that are of vital importance to the Nation. The
2008 Budget requests $554 million for NASA aeronautics, an almost 5 percent
increase over the 2007 request after adjusting for NASA's implementation of
simplified full-cost accounting.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA):
For NOAA in the Department of Commerce, the FY 2008 Budget
provides $358 million for Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), a $20 million
increase over the 2007 Budget. OAR provides for ongoing research on climate,
weather, air quality, and ocean processes.
The 2008 NOAA budget supports a new interagency oceans
initiative to implement the President's U.S. Ocean Action Plan including $60
million in new funding over the 2007 Budget to advance oceans science and
research (of which $13 million is in OAR). $20 million will address four
near-term ocean research priorities established by the Ocean Research Priorities
Plan and Implementation Strategy (ORPPIS), published in January (with another
$20 million from NSF and USGS). The NOAA Budget also proposes $8 million to
develop an operational ocean monitoring network, for technology and other
infrastructure to support ocean science, for International Polar Year
activities, and for research on protected species and commercial fisheries.
United States Geological Survey (USGS):
The President has proposed a budget of $975.0 million for USGS
in the Department of the Interior in Fiscal Year 2008. The proposed budget
includes an increase of $3 million for the new oceans initiative activities,
including $1.5 million in the Coastal and Marine Geology program to begin
implementation of the Oceans Research Priorities Plan and Implementation
Strategy. This involves conducting observations, research, and sea-floor mapping
and developing forecast models. The budget also includes $1.5 million in the
Hydrologic Networks and Analysis program to begin implementation of an
interagency National Water Quality Monitoring Network that will integrate
watershed, coastal waters, and ocean monitoring based on common criteria.
The FY 2008 USGS budget continues funding for operations and
maintenance of Landsats 5 and 7. The Budget also funds efforts with NASA and the
Landsat Science Team to continue development of the Landsat Data Continuity
Mission. The FY 2008 budget includes $24 million for Landsat 8.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):
The FY 2008 Budget for science and technology funding at EPA is
$755 million. Research priorities include supporting the agency's risk
assessment programs including Air Quality Science Assessments (formerly called
the Air Quality Criteria Documents) and the Integrated Risk Information System
(IRIS), and the Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program of extramural research
and graduate fellowships in areas of environmental science and engineering. $69
million is requested to fund new and ongoing research in water security,
including monitoring and surveillance of terrorist threat agents, and
post-incident decontamination.
Department of Transportation (DOT):
The FY 2008 Budget request for highway-related research is $430
million, consistent with the level in the multi-year surface transportation
research authorization. Highway research includes the Federal Highway
Administration's transportation research and technology contract programs. These
research programs include the investigation of ways to improve safety, reduce
congestion, improve mobility, reduce lifecycle construction and maintenance
costs, improve the durability and longevity of highway pavements and structures,
enhance the cost-effectiveness of highway infrastructure investments, and
minimize negative impacts on the natural and human environment.
The 2008 Budget request for Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) Research, Engineering, and Development is $140 million, including $63
million focused on the advancement of the Next Generation Air Transportation
System led by its Joint Planning and Development Office.
In addition, the 2008 Budget requests $12 million for the
Research and Innovative Technology Administration to coordinate and advance the
pursuit of transportation research that cuts across all modes of transportation,
such as hydrogen fuels, global positioning and remote sensing. DOT research
programs also support the National Nanotechnology Initiative, the U.S. Climate
Change Technology Program, and the President's Hydrogen Fuel Initiative.
Department of Defense (DoD):
DoD's FY 2008 R&D budget is almost $79 billion. This level of
funding will support the Department's commitment to transform its capabilities
and forces for greater agility, while enabling effective responses to asymmetric
and uncertain challenges of future conflicts.
These funds will also help address emergent threats through
countermeasures to biological agents and will advance novel technologies to
detect and neutralize improvised explosive devices, mines, rockets and mortars.
DoD provides the largest share of NITRD program funding, over $1 billion, to
address IT needs for the Nation's defense. Likewise, DoD invests $375 million
under the National Nanotechnology Initiative, emphasizing development of
materials, devices and systems that address the national security mission.
The Science and Technology (S&T) component of the overall DoD
R&D budget includes basic research (6.1), applied research (6.2), and advanced
technology development (6.3). At $10.8 billion in the FY 2008 Budget, DoD S&T
exceeds the 2001 enacted level by 21 percent, or $1.8 billion. From 2000 to
2007, Congressional adds to DoD S&T quadrupled. For 2007, there were over 1200
of these adds (totaling $2.8 billion), most of which must be identified and
tracked down, advertised in a way specific to the Congressional mark, evaluated,
negotiated and awarded, in some way separate from other potential awards. This
means that those awards consume several times the staff and management resources
of the average research award, and may not even target a military-specific
research need. The large number of such additions creates impediments to the
creation of effective research programs throughout the Department, and should be
cause for concern to Congress as well as to the Administration.
A total of $1.43 billion is provided for DoD 6.1 basic research
in 2008. This is a nominal increase over the 2007 Budget and represents 13.3
percent of the DoD S&T Budget, more than last year's 12.8 percent share.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS):
The President's FY 2008 request includes $799 million for the
DHS Directorate of Science and Technology and $562 million for the Domestic
Nuclear Detection Office. R&D continues to play a key role in securing the
Nation against the terrorist threat. The President's 2008 Budget maintains an
aggressive investment in scientific research, technology development, and
research infrastructure aimed at continuing to enhance our Nation's security.
Priority research areas include: $100 million in transformational R&D aimed at
enhancing our ability to detect, identify, and attribute nuclear and
radiological materials; $68 million for explosives countermeasures research; and
$15 million to fund cyber security and information assurance R&D.
CONCLUSION
Making choices is difficult even when budgets are generous, but
tight budgets require priorities to be focused, and program management to be
strengthened. This year's R&D budget proposal provides robust levels of
investment that allow America to maintain its leadership position in science and
move ahead in selected priority areas. The American Competitiveness Initiative
and Advanced Energy Initiative properly focus R&D investments in areas that will
increase our economic competitiveness, decrease our dependence on foreign oil,
and accelerate development of clean energy technologies.
America currently spends one and a half times as much on
Federally-funded research and development as Europe, and three times as much as
Japan, the next largest investor. Our scientists collectively have the best
laboratories in the world, the most extensive infrastructure supporting
research, the greatest opportunities to pursue novel lines of investigation, and
the most freedom to turn their discoveries into profitable ventures if they are
inclined to do so.
We lead not only in science, but also in translating science to
economically significant products that enhance the quality of life for all
people.
This budget will sustain this leadership and maintain science
and technology capabilities that are the envy of the world. I ask that Congress
fully fund the initiatives advanced in the President's proposal. I would be
pleased to respond to questions.
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