Proposed 1995 Federal Budget Terry A. May 16 Feb 1994 13:49 EST
This is an attempt to piece together several different things concerning the Federal Budget. First, the Internet Version is available by sending the following message [Send 95budget catalog] to "xxxxxx@ACE.ESUSDA.GOV" or connect to SUNSITE.UNC.EDU (through telnet or by gopher) where the budget is summarized under a directory called "What's New on SunSite" (Source: Chronicle of Higher Education, February 16, p. A25). Second, the following is a synopsis of the Federal Budget distributed by the AOU Legislative Alert System [xxxxxx@umdd.bitnet]. ********************************************************************** WHAT'S NEW (in my opinion), Friday, 11 Feb 1994 Washington, DC [From the American Physical Society, edited by Irene Pepperberg] 1. THE CLINTON BUDGET FOR FY 95: HOW WELL DID SCIENCE REALLY DO? Congress is asked to increase spending for civilian and military R&D by 4%. Sounds pretty good in a year of cuts and caps, but it would represent the smallest percentage of the Gross Domestic Product spent on R&D since 1958, according to Rep. George Brown (D-CA). Moreover, most of the growth is in technology rather than research aimed at understanding nature ("understanding" is the politically correct replacement for "curiosity driven" which is said to have a frivolous ring to it). The shift from defense R&D to civilian, promised by the Administration, did not materialize. 2. NSF: RESEARCH WOULD GO UP 8.3%; EDUCATION WOULD INCREASE 2.9%. But in recent years, Congress has insisted on giving NSF more for education than it requests and less for research. Continuing the emphasis on the near term, Computer Science and Engineering would get a 13.7% increase, while only a 6.1% increase is requested for Mathematical and Physical Sciences. Materials would go up just 5.3%, due largely to flat funding for Centers; Physics is up 6%; and Biological sciences is up 8.7%. The big winner is Social Science, up 15% after several bad years. ********************************************************************** Third, I receive daily copies of Washington information via Washington FAX - an information and communication service. They have been including brief summaries of proposed 1995 budget information and have highlighted the proposed "pause" in indirect cost reimbursements for amounts in excess of 1994 amounts. Is there great discussion about this proposal on the various campuses? Is there any consensus on whether or not this has a chance of being approved? Terry