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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION The President’s 2009 Budget will: • Support aggressive funding for key research agencies to advance basic science through the President’s American Competitiveness Initiative; • Invest in the foundations for innovative technologies that drive future economic growth; • Provide research facilities needed to keep America at the forefront of science and engineering; and • Enhance fellowship and early-career opportunities for beginning researchers. Doubling Basic Research through the American Competitiveness Initiative • Increases funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF). ¡ ¡ Maintains the President’s commitment to aggressive funding of critical basic research investments in the physical sciences, engineering, and related fields. Increases 14 percent over the 2008 enacted level, including a 16-percent increase for NSF’s primary research activities. Investing in the Future Economic Competitiveness of the United States • Promotes investment in new technologies. ¡ ¡ $397 million for nanotechnology research and facilities to continue advancing fundamental understanding of those devices and materials with revolutionary properties. $1.1 billion for fundamental information technology research and cutting-edge supercomputing and networking resources, including: $100 million, an 110-percent increase, for an NSF-wide effort to develop radically new computational concepts and tools; and $30 million for a new targeted cyber-security research effort in privacy, fundamental theory, and usability. • Supports a state-of-the-art computing infrastructure. $186 million, a 17-percent increase, for a widely accessible suite of supercomputers, data warehouses, advanced networks, and experimental facilities. • Constructs key new scientific facilities. $148 million for the design or construction of four major new cutting-edge research facilities in astronomy and physics, and $115 million for a diverse portfolio of smaller-sized instruments and other tools. • Maintains and extends the life of current facilities. Nearly $1 billion for the ongoing operation and maintenance of a wide range of major research facilities, including a research vessel 125 126 NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION fleet, astronomical telescopes, geological and environmental monitoring networks, and the NSF-owned and operated South Pole Station. Enhancing Opportunities for Beginning Researchers • Recognizes young researchers. $182 million, an 8-percent increase, for NSF’s most prestigious award program in support of the early career-development activities of those faculty members likely to become the academic leaders of the future. • Promotes student pursuit of advanced degrees. $125 million, a 30-percent increase, for the NSF-wide graduate research fellowship program, which recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students who are expected to significantly contribute to research, teaching, and future innovations in science and engineering. • Provides opportunities for new students. $62 million, a 6-percent increase, to support active and meaningful research participation by undergraduate students in NSF-funded research. Major Savings and Reforms • Improves project management and oversight by strengthening NSF’s project office and instituting new processes that provide clear go/no-go decision points for policy makers. The Budget slows funding of some facility projects that do not have fully developed project plans, and continues projects that have passed appropriate project reviews. Since 2001, the National Science Foundation has: Source: Stephen Swallen, University of Wisconsin-Madison A new type of glass—developed by NSF-supported • Advanced all fields of science, engiultimately aid drug delivery in the body. neering, and mathematics research by funding 70,000 grants at academic institutions via a competitive, merit-based process. scientists—may • Strengthened the foundations of the science and engineering workforce by directly supporting academic works of 77,600 graduate students and 31,500 undergraduate students. • Enabled breakthroughs with potentially significant future economic impacts through its key role in supporting and encouraging American science, math, and engineering. • Advanced understanding of the Earth’s poles, including detailed studies of environmental change in the Arctic, through its participation in the International Polar Year. THE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2009 127 National Science Foundation (In millions of dollars) Estimate 2007 Actual 2008 2009 Spending Discretionary Budget Authority: Research and Related Activities ..................................................................... Education and Human Resources ................................................................. Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction ........................ Agency Operations and Award Management ............................................ Inspector General ................................................................................................. National Science Board...................................................................................... Total, Discretionary budget authority ................................................................. 4,672 797 191 248 11 4 5,923 4,805 726 205 282 11 4 6,033 5,594 790 148 305 13 4 6,854 Total, Discretionary outlays ................................................................................... 5,469 6,061 6,263 Mandatory Outlays: H–1B Fee Programs ............................................................................................ All other .................................................................................................................... Total, Mandatory outlays ........................................................................................ 52 8 60 148 47 195 128 23 151 Total, Outlays .............................................................................................................. 5,529 6,256 6,414
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