Congress Okays More War Funds

The House of Representatives has passed a revised supplemental war appropriations bill (H.R. 2642) that includes $400 million in additional 2008 federal funding for science programs. The Senate is likely to take up and pass the legislation this week, and the Administration has indicated that President George W. Bush will sign it into law.

The revised legislation comes about a month after the Senate passed a version of the bill that would have given science agencies nearly $1 billion in additional 2008 funding (C&EN, June 2, page 16). The Administration made it clear, however, that the President would veto any bill that included significant domestic spending. The current House version of the bill represents a compromise worked out with the Administration.

Under the House bill, NIH is set to receive $150 million to be distributed across the agency's 27 institutes and centers. NSF, NASA, and the Department of Energy's Office of Science will each receive $62.5 million for various science programs. For NSF, $22.5 million will go to the research directorates, and $40 million will go to Education & Human Resources for scholarship and fellowship programs. The bill directs NASA to apply its additional funds to its science programs, and the bill directs DOE to use its new funds to rejoin the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor fusion project and to support its High Energy Physics program. DOE will also receive $62.5 million for environmental cleanup activities under the bill.

In addition to the science funds, the House-passed bill will provide $150 million to FDA for salaries and other expenses.

"I am very pleased that this supplemental appropriations bill includes $400 million in additional fiscal 2008 funding for science programs, including $125 million to boost funding for critical programs at the National Science Foundation and Department of Energy Office of Science," says Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.), chairman of the House Committee on Science & Technology. "This funding will help avert layoffs and job losses at our national labs and boost research and teacher-training programs that are critical to our nation's competitiveness."