On Monday, February 4, the Bush Administration released its
$2.1 trillion budget for fiscal year 2003. Two days later, AAAS
released its preliminary analysis of proposed R&D funding in this
budget. For a free, downloadable copy of this analysis, visit
http://www.aaas.org/spp/R&D
/
The total request for federal R&D in the new budget is a record
$112 billion. Basic research would grow by 8.5 percent or $2.0
billion to $25.5 billion. The biggest increases will go to DOD and
NIH. For other agencies, including NSF, DOE, and NASA, the
picture is decidedly mixed.
You probably know these basic facts, which have been widely
reported in the press. The AAAS analysis, however, goes behind
the headlines and looks at R&D in the context of the overall budget
situation and the funding trends of recent years. It will help you
understand how the budget process will play out in the coming
months and how the science and engineering communities can play
a role.
The AAAS R&D Budget and Policy Program — an objective,
non-partisan effort — is widely recognized as the most timely and
authoritative source of information on the future prospects for
federal funding of science and engineering.
More detailed, updated analyses will be posted regularlyNegnd the
full AAAS Report on R&D in the FY 2003 Budget, prepared in
collaboration by AAAS and more than 20 of its affiliated societies,
will be available on the web in late March and in hard copy in
early April.
For more information, please contact Kei Koizumi at the AAAS
R&D Budget and Policy Program at kkoizumi@aaas.org or
(202) 326 6607.
Sincerely,
Alan I. Leshner
Chief Executive Officer
