Snapshot of Future Federal R&D Funds

Proposed Nondefense R&D Funding

Total nondefense R&D budget authority is scheduled to increase by $1.6 billion, to $58.5 billion in FY 2009. The nondefense share of federal R&D budget authority decreased from 43% in FY 2004 to 40% in FY 2007 but rose to an estimated 41% for both FY 2008 and FY 2009. Nevertheless, in constant FY 2000 dollars, increases in nondefense R&D have barely exceeded inflation in each of the past 2 years and, in real terms, its proposed FY 2009 R&D budget authority total is less than it was 5 years ago, in FY 2004 (table 1). The six functions accounting for most (93%) of the federal budget proposed for nondefense-related R&D activities are discussed below and are shown in table 1.

Energy

Energy R&D is budgeted at $2.5 billion in FY 2009, up 3.7% from the FY 2008 level. The Department of Energy accounted for nearly all of these funds. Since FY 2006, energy R&D budget authority will have more than doubled (an average annual increase of 27.3% in current terms). Most of the 3-year increased funding has been to support energy efficiency and renewable energy R&D programs and nuclear energy R&D programs.

Natural Resources and Environment

Proposed natural resources and environment R&D is $2.0 billion in FY 2009, down 1.0% ($21 million) from the FY 2008 level. Four agencies provide nearly all of the support for R&D in this area: Department of the Interior, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Commerce, and Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Agriculture

Agriculture R&D is scheduled to total $1.6 billion in FY 2009, down by 12.7% from the FY 2008 funding level. USDA would receive all of these funds for its projects, with the bulk of the dollars going to the Agricultural Research Service and to the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service.

Health

R&D funding for health mostly includes programs of the National Institutes of Health and is proposed to increase by $0.15 billion from the FY 2008 level, or by 0.5%. Health, projected to be $29.8 billion in FY 2009, is the second largest R&D budget function after national defense. However, in constant FY 2000 dollars, health R&D budget authority fell for the fifth consecutive year, this time by 1.5%. The health share of total federal R&D budget authority reached 23% in FY 2004 and FY 2005 then declined, dipping to 21% in 2007, where it has remained each year since.

Space Research and Technology

The Bush administration has proposed a 5.4% increase in R&D budget authority, to $9.7 billion, for space research and technology, an increase of about $0.5 billion from FY 2008. National Aeronautics and Space Administration programs account for this entire amount. The share of R&D funding for space research and technology has increased each year since FY 2005, rising from 5.8% to an expected 6.8% of the proposed total federal R&D budget authority in FY 2009.

General Science

Research funding for general science is expected to increase 13.9% in FY 2009, or by nearly $1.1 billion, to a total of $9.0 billion. This represents the largest dollar and percentage increase proposed for any individual nondefense R&D funding category. The National Science Foundation accounts for 53% ($4.7 billion) of these general-science funds, and DOE and the Department of Homeland Security account for the remaining portion ($4.3 billion). Under the proposed budget, general science would account for 6.3% of the total federal R&D budget authority, up from 5.7% in FY 2008.