The Bush administration 2009 R&D budget

Image source: ASEE Prism

Information Source: "President's FY 2009 Budget Requests 3.4% Increase in R&D Funding," Richard J. Bennof, NSF InfoBrief NSF 08-312, July 2008.

The Bush administration has proposed a total budget authority of $143 billion for federally funded research and development in FY 2009, an increase of 3.4% in current dollars over the preliminary FY 2008 figure. Defense R&D is slated to rise by 3.8% and nondefense R&D by 2.8%. In constant FY 2000 dollars, federally defense R&D is to grow by 1.7% and nondefense R&D by 0.8%.

In real terms, the Bush administration's proposed FY 2009 R&D budget authority total for nondefense R&D is less than it was 5 years ago, in FY 2004. R&D funding for health is proposed to increase by 0.5%; in constant FY 2000 dollars, health R&D budget authority fell for the fifth consecutive year, this time by 1.5%. Proposed natural resources and environment R&D is $2.0 billion in FY 2009, down 1.0% ($21 million) from the FY 2008 level. Agriculture R&D is scheduled to total $1.6 billion in FY 2009, down by 12.7% from the FY 2008 funding level. The increases in nondefense R&D are thus concentrated in Space research and technology, energy R&D, and the basic research funded by the National Science Foundation.

Comment: The priorities seem wrong. We should be increasing nondefense R&D, not military R&D. We should be increasing health, environment and agricultural R%D within the nondefense category, and the money going to space technology and basic research will yield fewer benefits to the public than those in health and agriculture. JAD