Fiscal Year 2005 Appropriation

November 23, 2004

The U.S. National Science Foundation, suffering its first budget cut in years, will operate at 1.9% below Fiscal Year 2004 spending levels. The foundation is funded at $5.47 billion, $105 million below last year and $232 million below the FY 2005 request.

The budget cut affects the two major NSF accounts: Research and Related Activities and Education and Human Resources. The Research and Related Activities Account, which funds NSF's core research directorates and programs, falls to $4.22 billion, $30.8 million (0.7%) below FY 2004 funding levels and $200.95 million below the FY 2005 request level. Funding decisions by directorates and programs will be left to the discretion of NSF, pending congressional approval. The Education and Human Resources account drops $97.56 million, or 10.4%, below FY 2004 spending levels to $841.4 million.

The mark includes a 12.1%, or $18.68 million, increase for the Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction account, resulting in a total of $173.65 million for FY 2005. The conferees provided funding for two new starts: the Scientific Ocean Drilling Vessel received $15 million ($25.85 million below the FY 2005 request), and the Rare Symmetry Violating Processes Project received $15 million ($15 million below the FY 2005 request). The Large Millimeter Array ($49.7 million) and EarthScope ($47.35 million) projects received requested funding levels. The IceCube Neutrino Observatory received $48 million, $6.25 and $14.6 million increases above the FY 2004 estimate and FY 2005 request, respectively. The National Ecological Observatory Network was not funded in the Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction account, but may receive up to $6 million in funding from the Research and Related Activities account.

NSF's Salaries and Expenses account is funded at $223.2 million, $4.5 million (2.1%) above FY 2004 levels. The National Science Board is provided $3.97 million, up $90 thousand from last year. The Office of Inspector General is funded at $10.03 million, $90 thousand over the FY 2004 level.

The table below provides NSF funding levels (in millions of dollars) as determined from the report language, with FY 2005 marks incorporating the across-the-board rescission of 0.8%.

_{*Including 0.8% across-the-board rescission.}

_{Totals may not add due to rounding.}