OK, I was in DC all last week and I am WAY behind here...so I’ll provide in bite-size morsels. Now I’m hungry.
FY 2010. Yes, 2010. The president has laid out his “blueprint” meaning, I just got elected and I didn’t have time to put my full stamp with specifics. But the administration did lay out targets in areas that relate to higher ed. Hence, here are some priorities for the administration. Plus, OMB is still working on the details to be unveiled later this month. Congress will start hearings soon. The good folks at the AAU put together this summary:
National Institutes of Health
The only information on the National Institutes of Health in the budget outline is the inclusion of $6 billion to support cancer research. The document declares: “This funding is central to the President’s sustained, multi-year plan to double cancer research. These resources will be committed strategically to have the greatest impact on developing innovative diagnostics, treatments, and cures for cancer.”
National Science FoundationThe FY10 budget includes $7 billion for the National Science Foundation (NSF), compared to $6.49 billion in the FY09 omnibus appropriations bill. This represents an increase of $510 million, or 7.9 percent. While the budget offers no breakdown of proposed FY10 spending for NSF, the document does include the following among the President’s priorities:
· Supporting researchers at the beginning of their careers
The document states: “Ensuring America’s economic competitiveness requires that we develop the future scientific and technical workforce for our universities, national labs, and companies. To help accomplish these goals, the Budget provides substantial increases for NSF’s prestigious Graduate Research Fellowship and Faculty Early Career Development programs.”
· Supporting promising, high-risk research
The document states: “The Budget increases support for promising, but exploratory and high-risk research proposals that could fundamentally alter our understanding of nature, revolutionize fields of science, and lead to radically new technologies.
Department of EnergyNo specific funding details are provided regarding investments in the Department of Energy Office of Science. The document does, however, emphasis the important role that basic science must play in developing alternative energy sources, stating: “As part of the President’s plan to double Federal investment in the basic sciences, the 2010 Budget, along with the $1.6 billion provided in the recovery Act for the Department of Energy’s basic science programs, provides substantially increased support for the Office of Science.” The document also states that the budget “expands graduate fellowship programs that will train students in critical energy-related fields.”
NASAThe FY10 budget proposes a $918 million, or 5.2-percent, increase over the House-passed FY09 omnibus appropriations bill for NASA. Total spending would be $18.7 billion, compared to $17.782 billion in the omnibus. The document does not include any details for the various NASA programs.
Department of Education
The budget includes the following proposals for student financial aid:
· Increase the maximum Pell Grant to $5,550 in the 2010-2011 school year (a $200 increase above the maximum grant funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the House-passed FY09 omnibus appropriations bill, and the mandatory funding approved by Congress in 2007;
· Index the Pell Grant to the Consumer Price Index plus 1 percent in order to maintain its value in future years;
· Convert the Pell Grant to a mandatory program “to ensure a regular stream of funding and eliminate the practice of ‘backfilling’ billions of dollars in Pell shortfalls each year;”
· Originate all new loans through the direct lending program;
· Create a “new modernized” Perkins Loan program; and
· Simplify the student aid application process.
TaxesThe budget includes the following proposals:
· Make permanent the $2,500 American Opportunity Tax Credit, which was created by the Recovery Act and combined and strengthened existing tax incentives for attending college; and
· Further limit the benefits of itemized deductions (including for charitable contributions) for upper-income taxpayers, a provision that could affect charitable giving to colleges and universities.
Department of Defense
The budget document contains no information on funding of basic research at the Department of Defense.
Humanities
The budget document contains no information on FY10 funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities
Non-defense Discretionary Spending
The budget spells out overall non-discretionary spending totals for the next ten years. After rising to $675 billion in FY10, non-defense discretionary spending declines each year until bottoming out at $621 billion in 2013. While it begins to rise again, it does not reach the FY10 total until FY19. A portion of the post-FY10 decline may be attributable to the transfer of Pell Grant funding from discretionary to mandatory spending.
