Congress has completed action on a bill that increases the National
Science Foundation's budget by 8.4% in FY 2002. Congressional sources
calculate that NSF's budget will rise by $373 million to $4,789 million.
The Administration requested a 1.3% increase.
The FY 2002 budget for RESEARCH AND RELATED ACTIVITIES will
increase 7.4% or $248 million to $3,598.3 million. Within this
amount:
$300.0 million is provided for "polar research and operations
support."
The Engineering budget will increase 8.5%, or $36.7 million to $467.5
million.
The Geosciences budget will increase 8.7%, or $48.5 million, to
$610.7 million.
The Mathematical and Physical sciences budget will increase 8.4%, or
$71.4 million, to $922.2 million. This budget funds the Physics,
Astronomical Sciences, and Materials subactivities. The conference
report language states: "Of the appropriated amount, $4,000,000 is
provided for the Telescope Systems Instrumentation Program (TSIP) and
$5,000,000 has been provided for astronomical sciences to augment
individual investigator support. The conferees expect NSF to continue
its program of upgrading, on a priority basis, its astronomical
facilities and equipment, including the Greenbank Observatory and Robert
C. Byrd Telescope in West Virginia, and the Very Large Array radio
telescope in New Mexico. The conferees have also placed a high priority
on mathematics research within the amounts provided for this
activity."
Also within this section, the conference report language states that
U.S. Polar Research Programs will increase 9.0% or $18.9 million to
$229.7 million. U.S. Antarctic Logistical Support Activities will
increase 9.3% or $5.8 million to $68.1 million.
The conference report also states that it "provides specific
increases of $25,000,000 for information technology research,
$25,000,000 for nanotechnology, and $12,500,000 for increased energy and
fuel costs in the polar and ocean sciences as well as national
facilities in physics and materials."
Regarding a contemplated underground physics laboratory in South
Dakota, the conferees state: "The conferees have not included funds
from within the NSF appropriation for maintaining the integrity of the
Homestake Mine site in Lead, South Dakota and instead have provided
funding from within the Community Development Fund under title II of
this Act. While the conferees acknowledge the role NSF and the National
Science Board will play in determining whether the mine is a suitable
facility for proposed research, as well as whether such proposed
research should be a priority for the NSF, it is not appropriate for NSF
to maintain the mine until such determinations are made." In the
U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department section of the bill, the
conferees provide $10.0 million "for the State of South Dakota to
maintain the physical integrity of the Homestake Mine in preparation for
the potential development of a major research facility on that site."
The FY 2002 budget for MAJOR RESEARCH EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES
CONSTRUCTION, a new budget category, is $138.8 million. The
conferees included fairly extensive language on large facility
management and oversight. In addition, they provided the requested
amounts for the Large Hadron Collider and the Network for Earthquake
Engineering Simulation. $35.0 million was provided for "continued
development, production, and instrumentation" of the High-Performance
Instrumented Airborne Platform for Environmental Research (HIAPER); NSF
had not requested funding for FY 2002. NSF requested $55.0 million for
the Terascale Computing Program; appropriators provided only $35.0
million. The foundation requested $9.0 million through another budget
for the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA); appropriators provided
$12.5 million for initial construction. Finally, the bill includes $15.0
million for start-up costs for the IceCube Neutrino Detection project.
The FY 2002 budget for EDUCATION AND HUMAN RESOURCES will
increase 11.4% or $89.4 million to $875.0 million.
The Math and Science Partnership program to improve science and math
education will receive $160.0 million; NSF requested $200.0 million. The
report states: "The Foundation is strongly urged to provide regular,
detailed information to the Committees on Appropriations regarding the
planning and execution of this new initiative."
EPSCoR will receive $80.0 million, with an additional $30.0 million
from the Research and Related Activities budget for "research to be
conducted at EPSCoR institutions."
Various amounts are specified for minority scholarship programs and
initiatives and for the Office of Innovation Partnerships.
The conference report states that it provides $5.0 million "for a
new undergraduate workforce initiative, which is to include a new,
merit-based, competitive grants program for colleges and universities
for increasing the number of undergraduate degree recipients in science
and engineering, consistent with the provisions of S. 1549."
(Technology Talent Act of 2001)
In addition, it provides "$105,500,000, an increase of $10,000,000
above the budget request, has been provided to increase graduate level
stipends for the research and teaching fellowship programs and the
trainee program administered by the Foundation through its Graduate
Education subactivity. The conferees support increasing the graduate
stipend leve lto $21,500 during fiscal year 2002 if funding
permits."
Richard M. Jones
Media and Government Relations
Division
American Institute of Physics
fyi@aip.org
(301) 209-3095
