September 10, 1996

Congress returned from its Labor Day recess in early September and promptly debated and passed H.R. 3666, the FY 1997 VA, HUD, and Independent Agencies Appropriations bill. This bill includes funding for the National Science Foundation, as well as NASA, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Veterans Department, the Environmental Protection Agency and numerous other independent agencies. It is expected that a conference between the House and Senate could take place either this week or next.

As passed by the Senate, H.R. 3666 contains the following recommendations for NSF. Overall, the Senate version of the bill includes a total of $3.275 billion for FY 1997. This is $55 million more than the level for FY 1996, $50 million below the President's request, and $22 million more than the House-passed level. Within this total, the Committee's bill would provide $2.432 billion for Research and related activities; $80 million for Major research equipment - such as the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory and the South Pole safety project; $624 million for Education and human resources - a $5 million increase over the budget request; $134.3 million for salaries and expenses - an amount equal to the budget request; and $5.2 million for the Office of Inspector General.

The Senate bill also includes an amendment offered at full committee by Chairman Bond -- with the support of Senators Mikulski (D-MD), Burns (R-MT), and Kerrey (D-NE) to add $5 million for Education and Human Resources -- bringing this account to the $624 million level. The additional funds were targeted for the informal science education program and the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCOR).

In addition, the Senate version of this bill does not contain a general provision which is included in the House bill, concerning an ongoing supercompter procurement being conducted by an NSF-supported research institution. However, a colloquy involving Senators Mikulski, Boxer, Feingold, and Kohl took place which discussed an on-going investigation by the Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission with respect to a petition filed which claims unfair pricing.

The table below provides a summary of the NSF budget for FY 1997 as the bill is readied for the upcoming House and Senate appropriations conference which is expected to include the membership of the House and Senate VA, HUD, and Independent Agencies Subcommittees.

NSF Acct	FY95 Level	FY96 Level	FY97 Req	FY97 H Auth	FY97 H Appr*	FY97 S Appr	FY97 C Appr
RRA	2245	2314	2472	2380	2431*	2432
EHR	606	599	619	600	612*	624
ARI	118	100	0	100	0	0
MRE	126	70	95	80	80*	80
S&E/REL	129	132	134	125	125*	134
OIG	4	5	5	5	5*	5
Total	3227	3220	3325	3290	3253*	3275

*The House bill included a general provision which contained a .4% across the board reduction for most accounts in this bill, including the NSF accounts.

RRA -- Research and Related Activities
EHR -- Education and Human Resources
ARI -- Academic Research Infrastructure
MRE -- Major Research Equipment
S&E -- Salaries and Expenses
REL -- Relocation
OIG -- Office of Inspector General

Related information:

Text of the NSF Section of the House Appropriation Report for FY 97.
Text of the NSF Section of the Senate Appropriation Report for FY 97.
Text of the NSF Section of the Conference Appropriation Report for FY 97.

See also:

• NSF & Congress Archive