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H.R. 4664 -- (Extensions of Remarks - November 19, 2002)
[Page: E2103] GPO's PDF
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SPEECH OF
HON. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON
OF TEXAS
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Thursday, November 14, 2002
- Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman
BOEHLERT, Ranking Member HALL, and Chairman SMITH for
working with me in a bipartisan manner on this important piece of legislation
that makes a strong statement about our commitment to invest in America's
future. I would also like to extend my appreciation to Senator KENNEDY,
Senator HOLLINGS, Senator GREGG, and Senator BOND in the
other body.
- As Ranking Member of the House Science Research Subcommittee, I am
pleased to say that this is truly an historic piece of legislation for science policy in the United States.
The conference report of H.R. 4664 begins the process of doubling NSF's
budget, which was the goal of H.R. 1472, the NSF authorization bill I
introduced in April of 2001. I introduced H.R. 1472 because I strongly believe
that investing in basic science
, math , and engineering
research is essential to the future economic prosperity and global
competitiveness of our country. Many of today's scientific breakthroughs in
medicine, consumer electronics, homeland security and other technical fields
are the direct result of investments made in basic research decades
ago.
- To appreciate the importance of NSF to scientists in America, consider
some facts. NSF provides 23 percent of basic research funding at academic
institutions and as much as 72 percent and 78 percent of the research in
critical areas such as mathematics and science . Yet despite its importance
to key sectors of our nation's economy, NSF previously had to decline more
than $1 billion worth of high quality research proposals each year due to
insufficient funds. With the passage of today's conference report, that
situation has begun to change. The increase is applied equally to research and
education programs, and specific funding authorizations are made for the
focused research initiatives in some of the most promising frontiers of science , such as information
technology and nanoscale science
and engineering. The bill also makes a number of improvements in the way major
research projects are funded, the transparency of the agency, and the
coordination with other federal research agencies.
- NSF also plays a leading role in educating our youth in the math and sciences and training the
scientists and engineers of tomorrow, and the agency is working to ensure that
tomorrow's high-tech workers reflect the diversity of America. This
legislation includes a number of important initiatives that will improve upon
science education in the United
States. With Senator KENNEDY's help, H.R. 4664 includes portions of
H.R. 1660, the Mathematics and Science Proficiency Partnership Act I introduced in May of
2001 to help secondary schools leverage private sector funds for math , science , and engineering
scholarships. The Technology Talent Act of 2002, H.R. 3130, is also included
in the NSF reauthorization. This initiative will increase the number of
students studying and receiving associate's or bachelor's degrees in
established or emerging fields within science , mathematics, engineering,
and technology. It also establishes specific grant programs in these fields at
Historically Black Colleges and Universities and enables eligible nonprofit
organizations to work with NSF and public-private consortia to improve science and math education. My home state of Texas
has an excellent track record of these innovative partnerships.
- I am also pleased that the conference report of H.R. 4664 includes the
text of H.R. 2051, the Regional Plant Genome and Gene Research Expression Act
Chairman SMITH and I developed together and that passed the House in
May of 2002. The legislation establishes competitive, merit based grants to
eligible entities to conduct basic research on crops that can be grown in the
developing world. The research supported by these grants will help scientists
discover innovative solutions to some of the developing world's most
intractable problems, such as hunger, malnutrition, and disease. An important
feature of this authorization is that U.S. scientists are required to partner
with their colleagues in developing nations, which will help develop the
scientific capacity of developing nations and stimulate the free flow of
ideas, which is so essential to the progress of science .