What's New: To receive these updates and announcements by email, manage your subscription, or review the mailing list archive, go to the NCSE List User Form. Senate Appropriations Committee Approves 5.2 Percent Increase for NSF September 26, 2003—The Senate Appropriations Committee approved legislation that would increase funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF) by 5.2 percent to $5.6 billion in FY 2004.  The Senate bill would provide less funding than the House bill, which would increase the NSF budget by 6.2 percent in FY 2004.  Both bills fall far short of the doubling path specified in the NSF Authorization Act, which passed Congress less than one year ago.  The NSF authorization act specified a funding level of $6.4 billion in FY 2004. The 5.2 percent increase in the Senate bill would be distributed unevenly across NSF's disciplinary directorates (Table 1).  The smallest increases would go to the Biological Sciences Directorate (1.1 percent) and the Geosciences Directorate (1.2 percent), which would receive virtually no increase after the effects of inflation.  The largest increase would go to the Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate (8.2 percent), which received a relatively small increase last year.   Major Research Equipment.  One substantial difference between House and Senate bills is the funding level for Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction (MREFC) account, which supports large projects that typically cost between $50 million and $200 million.  The Senate bill would increase funding in this area by 3.1 percent over FY 2003 and allow no new starts, while the House bill would add 29.1 percent and provide initial funding for a new project.    NEON.  The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), a new environmental initiative included in the President's FY 2004 budget request, would not be funded under the Senate bill.  The House would provide $12 million for NEON in FY 2004.  Last year Congress deferred funding for NEON "without prejudice," implying that the project was not rejected based on merit and may be funded in the future.  As proposed in the President's budget request, NEON would be a continental scale research instrument consisting of 17 geographically distributed observatories, networked via state-of-the-art communications, and used for integrated studies to obtain a predictive understanding of the nation's environments.         EarthScope.  The Senate bill would provide $44. 7 million for EarthScope, another environmental project in the MREFC account, in FY 2004.  The House bill would provide a similar figure.  EarthScope is a geophysical instrument array designed to investigate the structure and dynamics of the North American continent.  It received $30 million in initial funding last year. The Senate bill would provide $145 million for the President's Math and Science Partnership program, which aims to strengthen K-12 math and science education by linking local schools with colleges and universities.  While the Senate bill would increase funding for this program by $18.5 million over the previous year, the allocation is $55 million less than the President's FY 2004 budget request.     Looking Ahead.  NSF appropriations will not be finalized until the FY 2004 appropriations bill is passed by the full Senate, reconciled by a House-Senate conference committee, approved in identical form by both chambers, and signed into law by the President.     Table 1. National Science Foundation Appropriations                                             Budget Authority   Change from FY2003 to FY 2004 Senate5 NSF Program (millions of dollars)     FY 2003 FY 2004 FY 2004 FY 2004   Amount Percent   Estimate1 Request2 House3 Senate4   ($Millions) (%)                 Research and Related Activities (R&RA) 4,056 4,106 4,306 4,221   165 4.1    Biological Sciences 571 562 587 577   6 1.1    Computer & Info. Science & Engineering 579 584 610 609   30 5.2    Engineering 531 537 560 550   19 3.6    Geosciences 684 688 718 692   8 1.2    Mathematical & Physical Sciences 1,035 1,061 1,108 1,086   51 4.9    Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences 191 212 222 207   16 8.2    Polar Programs 319 330 355 342   23 7.1    Integrative Activities 147 132 148 157   10 7.1 Education and Human Resources (EHR) 903 938 905 976   73 8.1 Major Research Equipment (MREFC) 149 202 192 154   5 3.1 Salaries and Expenses6 197 226 226 226   29 14.9 Office of Inspector General 9 9 10 10   1 11.1                 TOTAL 5,310 5,481 5,639 5,586   276 5.2                 Source: NCSE analysis of congressional and agency data 1 FY 2003 Estimate as provided by NSF 2FY 2004 President's budget request as released on Feb. 3, 2003 3H.R. 2861 as passed by the House of Representatives on July 25, 2003 4 VA, HUD Appropriations bill (S. 1584) as approved by Senate Appropriations Committee on September 4, 2002 5Change from FY 2003 Estimate to FY 2004 Senate Appropriations Committee mark 6Includes Office of the National Science Board

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