Geoscience Policy Monthly Review
may 2016

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budget

House Appropriations Committee approves funding for NASA, NSF, NIST, NOAA and OSTP

May 24, 2016

This May, the House Appropriations Committee approved their fiscal year (FY) 2017 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) appropriations bill. The CJS appropriations bill provides funding for NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), among other federal agencies.

The bill proposes decreases for NSF, NIST, and NOAA and would keep funding for NASA and OSTP relatively flat when compared to FY 2016 levels.

Within NASA and NOAA, the geosciences would see significant decreases in funding: NASA Earth Science would receive $1.7 billion, a 12 percent decrease compared to FY 2016 levels, and NOAA’s National Ocean Service and Oceanic and Atmospheric Research division would receive $475 million and $436 million, respectively, a 5 percent and 5.7 percent cut.

NSF would receive $7.4 billion, a slight decrease from FY 2016; however, research would receive a slight increase within NSF to $6.1 billion, a 1 percent increase. Furthermore, the House version of the bill does not include cuts to specific NSF directorates, which has been a major concern for the geosciences community during the budget negotiations for FY 2016 and FY 2017.

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved their version of the CJS bill last month. Both bills still need to be passed by their respective chambers before they can be conferenced into a final appropriations bill.

Sources: House Appropriations Committee

Senate passes Energy and Water appropriations bill, House unable to do so

May 26, 2016

The Senate passed their fiscal year (FY) 2017 Energy and Water Development appropriations bill this May. The House, however, was unable to pass its version of the bill due to a controversial rider on LBGT rights included within it.

The bills, which provide funding for the Department of Energy (DOE), show a stark contrast in funding priorities between the House and Senate. Although both bills provide modest increases for DOE—a 0.8 percent increase from the House, and a 3.4 percent increase from the Senate—the House bill cuts the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) by almost 12 percent, whereas the Senate bill includes a small increase for EERE compared to FY 2016 levels.

Within EERE, the House bill would cut Geothermal (-21.1 percent), Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Technology (-3.9 percent), Solar (-18.5 percent), Water Power (-21.4 percent), and Wind (-5.7 percent). Although the Senate version of the bill would also cut Geothermal (-0.7 percent), Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Technology (-8.8 percent), Solar (-7.9 percent), and Wind (-16.1 percent), it would provide a 20 percent increase to Water Power.

Additionally, the House bill would provide a more than 2 percent increase to Fossil Energy Research and Development (FER&D), whereas the Senate bill would keep FER&D flat.

Both bills would keep funding for DOE’S Office of Science flat compared to FY 2016 levels.

The House still needs to approve its version of the bill, and the two bills still need to be conferenced and re-approved before they can become law.

Sources: House Appropriations Committee, Senate Appropriations Committee