**********************************************
This
message was sent from aas.org on
08 MAY 2000
at 12:10pm ET
**********************************************
AAS
ACTION ALERT 2000-4
SUMMARY
This
action alert summarizes the current appropriations situation and
urges
AAS members to continue to write their representatives and
senators
regarding funding for science and technology and especially
astronomy
and space science. Current levels of
available funds (302 B
levels)
for appropriators are not able to meet the President's funding
request.
BACKGROUND
The
start of every legislative year begins with the passage of a joint
budget
resolution by the House and Senate.
This piece of legislation is
not a
law, but merely a joint statement by both houses of Congress
setting
initial appropriations targets. How the
budget resolution will
affect
subcommittees is difficult to assess because the resolution only
sets
maximum appropriations levels for various functional categories.
The
functional categories, or budget functions, break government
spending
up into 21 broad areas. Perhaps the
most important for
scientists
being General Science, Space, and Technology aka, budget
function
250. The bill title is House Concurrent
Resolution 290. The
AAAS
has compared the President's request with this joint budget
resolution. A summary document is available at the
following web
page
http://www.aaas.org/spp/dspp/rd/bdgres01.pdf.
In
short, the President and Congress differ by about 3% in their
function
250 levels, with the President's level being $20.8 billion for
FY 2001
and the Congress' level being $20.2 billion.
This roughly
$600
million difference would have an impact on the President's
proposed
increase for NSF and NASA. NSF would be
funded $92
million
below the President's level and NASA would be funded $95
million
below the President's request. However,
the situation is not
that
simple.
The
so-called Cardinals, the members of the appropriations committee
itself,
decide the true apportionment of funding levels amongst the
appropriations
subcommittees. These "302(b)
levels" were released on
May 4th
and an early analysis has been made by the AAAS
(http://www.aaas.org/spp/dspp/rd/302up505.htm)
and is discussed
below. Their decision is not favorable for the
President's proposed
increase
for R&D and could severely affect both NSF and NASA.
Both
the House and Senate VA-HUD-IA subcommittees fall about $6
billion
less than the President's request and slightly less than their
total
budget authority for FY 2000. These
committees are responsible
for
funding NASA and NSF. Their allocation
is a clear cause for
concern. Both the dramatic increase requested for NSF
and the first
increase
in many years requested for NASA will stand out as likely
targets
for hard-pressed subcommittee staffers who will be forced to
squeeze
all of their budgets within the Cardinals' allocation.
As the
budget season progresses, only vocal constituencies will not see
their
proposed funding levels shrink. Since
2000 is an election year,
Congress
is on a fast track to finish business early and return home to
campaign. There will be little time to respond to
crises later in the
year. The best strategy is to initiate contact
with key members of
Congress
now, accompanied by direct contact with your elected
officials.
REQUEST
FOR ACTION
AAS
members are requested to continue their contact with Congress by
writing
directly to the chairs of the House and Senate Appropriations
committee
and the subcommittees responsible for NSF and NASA
funding. Their addresses are below. Further, please send copies of
these
letters to your own elected representatives so that they know
their
constituents are concerned enough with the appropriations process
to
contact the appropriators directly. AAS
members can find the
addresses
for their Congressional representatives at the following link:
http://www.aas.org/policy/aas.bios.html.
ADDRESSES
House
Appropriations Committee
Chairman
Bill Young (FL)
2407
Rayburn House Office Building
Washington,
DC 20515
Ranking
Minority Member
David
Obey (WI)
2314
Rayburn House Office Building
Washington,
DC 20515
House
Appropriations Committee
Subcommittee
on VA, HUD, and Independent Agencies
Chairman
James T. Walsh (NY)
2351
Rayburn House Office Building
Washington,
DC 20515
Ranking
Member Alan B. Mollohan (WV)
2346
Rayburn House Office Building
Washington,
DC 20515
Senate
Appropriations Committee
Chairman
Ted Stevens (AL)
522
Hart Senate Office Building
Washington,
DC 20510
Ranking
Member Robert Byrd (WV)
311
Hart Senate Office Building
Washington,
DC 20510
Senate
Appropriations Committee
Subcommittee
on VA, HUD, and Independent Agencies
Chairman
Christopher S. Bond (MO)
Russell
Senate Office Building 274
Washington,
DC 20510
Ranking
Member Barbara Mikulski (MD)
Hart
Senate Office Building 709
Washington,
DC 20510
Sample
Letter
Dear
Senator Bond,
I am
writing in support of the President's requested specific funding
levels
for NSF and NASA and in support of the function 250 levels
more
generally.
As you
know, science and technology play a key role in our economy.
Our
current economic success can be directly linked to federal
investment
in basic research during the 1960's and 1970's. This
funding
allowed the development of fundamental technologies used
today
in computers, automobiles, airplanes manufacturing and even in
modern
children's toys. In short, federal
investment in basic research
is
responsible
for our nation's success today.
Astronomy
receives most of its funding through the NSF and NASA,
but
also receives important resources from the Department of Energy,
the
Navy and the Air Force. Basic astronomy
research helps with
navigation,
the functioning of satellites (for both military and other
applications)
as well as helping scientists understand the fundamental
physics
of the universe, which can lead to the development of new
energy
technologies. NSF has supported the
country by helping to
maintain
a scientifically trained workforce as well as providing support
for
fundamental research. For our nation's
astronomers, NSF provides
both
research grants and support for national observatories, which are
of
fundamental importance for the entire US astronomy community.
Finally,
NASA also provides funding for astronomical research as well
as for
orbiting observatories such as the Hubble Space Telescope and
the
Chandra X-ray observatory. All of these
agencies help keep our
nation
on the cutting edge of astronomical research.
As our
nation moves into the new millennium, it is of the utmost
importance
that we increase the federal investment in basic research.
The
President's requested budget seeks to begin this increase. I hope
that as
your committee works to prepare the budget you will strive to
meet
his budget targets.
Sincerely,
P. D.
Q. Astronomer