AIP FYI #94: Senate Appropriations Report Language on Science and Technology Policy

The Senate VA, HUD, and Independent Agencies FY 2002
Appropriations bill is accompanied by a committee report. The
report language is extensive and offers great insight into the
thinking of the people who control the pocketbook. The House
Appropriations Committee report, not yet available, will
provide similar guidance. This and future FYIs will quote
selected passages of interest to the physics community. The
full committee report, S Rpt. 107-143, may be accessed at
http://thomas.loc.gov/

There is Senate report language in the section on the Office
of Science and Technology Policy that is of considerable
interest regarding space station research, federal funding
for physics and other disciplines, workforce issues,
competitiveness, policy coordination, nanotechnology, high
field nuclear magnetic resonance instrumentation,
oceanographic research, and ITAR regulations. As a aid to
readers, headings have been inserted in the following report
language:

SPACE STATION RESEARCH:

“The Committee remains concerned about the impact NASA’s
latest space station cost over-run will have on both
NASA-supported research programs and the research capabilities
of the International Space Station. The Committee believes the
President’s Science Advisor should play a critical role in the
decision-making and re-scoping process the Administration is
going through so that the International Space Station does not
fall short of becoming the world class research facility it
was always proposed to be.”

FUNDING OF PHYSICS AND OTHER DISCIPLINES:

“Similarly, the Committee believes the President’s Science
Advisor should play an integral role in advising the President
on the appropriate balance among and between disciplines and
agencies in the Federal R&D portfolio. The Committee expects
the Science Advisor will conduct effective outreach to the
science and engineering community and become an active and
influential advisor to the President on important public
policy issues grounded in science and technology.

“The Committee notes that the government share for R&D funding
has declined substantially over the last 15 years. According
to a recent report by the Council on Competitiveness, in real
terms, the total Federal contribution to the Nation’s R&D
portfolio dropped from 46 percent in 1985 to 27 percent in
1999. However, industry’s dependence on public R&D for
innovation remains very high. Over 73 percent of U.S. industry
patents cite publicly funded science as the basis for the
invention. The Committee is concerned that further reductions
in public funding for science and engineering could result in
a decrease in the private sector’s capacity to innovate.

“The Committee is similarly concerned with recent funding
trends for Federal R&D which have led to significant shifts
within the balance of the Nation’s research portfolio. A
recent report by the National Academies’ Board on Science,
Technology, and Economic Policy concluded that between 1993
and 1999 support for such fields as the geological sciences,
chemical, electrical, and mechanical engineering, chemistry
and physics are down by as much as 20 percent or more. The
decline in research funding has contributed to a decline in
enrollment of graduate students in these disciplines. These
trends concern the Committee because the affected fields
generate knowledge and trained personnel that are critically
important for economic performance, national defense, and the
health and well being of our citizens. The Committee directs
the Office of Science and Technology Policy to assess the
impact of these reductions on these public policy objectives.
Based on this assessment, OSTP should develop an action plan
to address these issues in the fiscal year 2003 budget
request.”

WORKFORCE:

“The Committee is also concerned about the adequacy of this
Nation’s scientific and technical workforce, the Nation’s
dependency on foreign workers to meet our own scientific and
technical workforce needs, and the efforts needed to boost the
participation of women and minorities in the science and
engineering workforce.

“The Committee urges OSTP to work with the relevant agencies
on the development of policies and in the allocation of
resources to address these issues effectively.”

POLICY COORDINATION:

“The Committee reiterates its long standing interest in
improving coordination and cooperation among the various R&D
agencies under the auspices of OSTP and the National Science
and Technology Council (NSTC). The Committee expects the
President’s Science Advisor will quickly re-invigorate the
NSTC process by defining a key set of strategic issues and
establishing a small number of effectively led interagency
committees to move these issues through the policy and budget
processes.”

NANOTECHNOLOGY:

“The Committee is strongly supportive of the interagency
nanoscience and technology initiative and urges OSTP and the
interagency working group to continue to refine and strengthen
the emerging research, education and training objectives. As a
supplement to the fiscal year 2001 request, the Administration
produced a nanotechnology management and implementation plan.
The report highlighted the key themes and management
objectives as well as the various agencies’ roles and
responsibilities. The Committee directs OSTP and the National
Science and Technology Council’s nanotechnology working group
to update that report as a supplement to the fiscal year 2003
budget request. The Committee is particularly interested in
the efforts to transfer nanotechnology research results into
applications and urges OSTP to ensure that the fiscal year
2003 report address this issue in detail.”

MAGNETIC RESONANCE INSTRUMENTATION:

“For the past several years, the Committee has followed with
interest the progress that has been made in high field nuclear
magnetic resonance instrumentation and has requested OSTP to
assess the future needs in this field. At present, the
greatest impediment in this area is the lack of an available
NMR with capabilities at 900Mz and higher. Several companies
and the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory will soon test
and possibly make available such an instrument. The Committee
encourages OSTP and other agencies interested in this new
technology to monitor the progress of these efforts closely.
As these instruments become operative and available to the
research community, it is expected that OSTP will move forward
on an interagency initiative that will allow U.S. scientists
to take full advantage of these new instruments. The Committee
encourages novel linkages and collaborations among leading
academic institutions and national laboratories to respond to
these new opportunities.”

OCEANOGRAPHY:

“The Committee maintains significant interest in an integrated
interagency ocean observing system. Such a system would bring
together Federal, academic, State institutions, and industry
into a coordinated system for monitoring U.S. marine waters. A
coordinated national approach, linked effectively with similar
programs in other nations, is an essential prerequisite for
effective use and management of the oceans. The nation cannot
realize the economic, social and security benefits of the
oceans in a responsible, sustainable manner without such a
program. A number of agencies including OSTP, NOAA, NSF, and
the Office of Naval Research have varying interests and
responsibilities in this area. The Committee directs OSTP,
working through the National Science and Technology Council
and with the external oceans community, to develop an
interagency plan for the research, technology demonstration
and ultimately, the implementation of an ocean observing
system and submit this report to the Committee at the time the
President’s fiscal year 2003 budget is released.”

ITAR REGULATIONS:

“In the conference report that accompanied the Fiscal Year
2001 Appropriations Act, the Committee directed OSTP to work
with the National Security Council, NASA, and the Department
of State to issue a clarification of the International Traffic
in Arms Regulation (ITAR) to ensure that university
collaborations and personnel exchanges are allowed to continue
as they had under the long-standing fundamental research
exception in the Export Administration Regulations. This
clarification was to be issued within 120 days of enactment of
the fiscal year 2001 Act. Regrettably this clarification has
not yet been issued. The Committee directs OSTP to complete
the interagency consultation process and issue this
clarification immediately.”

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Richard M. Jones

Public Information Division

The American Institute of Physics

fyi@aip.org

(301) 209-3095

http://www.aip.org/gov

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