Funding
The 2009 Budget provides $1.5 billion for the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), reflecting steady growth in the NNI investment. This sustained major investment in nanotechnology research and development (R&D) across the Federal Government over the past nine fiscal years of the NNI reflects the broad support of the Administration and of Congress for this program, based on its potential to vastly improve our fundamental understanding and control of matter, ultimately leading to a revolution in technology and industry for the benefit of society. The NNI remains focused on fulfilling the Federal role of supporting basic research, infrastructure development, and technology transfer, in the expectation that the resulting advances and capabilities will make important contributions to national priorities, with applications across a wide range of industries including healthcare, electronics, aeronautics, and energy. Increasing investments by mission agencies in nanotechnology-related research since 2001 reflect a recognition of the potential for this research to support agency missions and responsibilities.
Table 1 provides NNI investments in 2007–2009 for Federal agencies with budgets/investments for nanotechnology R&D. Tables 2 lists the investments historically by agency program component area (PCA). Note that the program component areas shown in these tables are those outlined in the new NNI Strategic Plan released in December 2007, with nanotechnology-related environmental, health, and safety (EHS) research now reported for the first time in a separate PCA from education and other societal dimensions investments.
The 2009 NNI budget (PDF) supports nanoscale science and engineering R&D at 13 agencies. Agencies with the greatest investments are the Department of Defense (DOD—investments addressing the defense mission); the National Science Foundation (NSF—fundamental research across all disciplines of science and engineering); the Department of Energy (DOE—research providing a basis for new and improved energy technologies); the National Institutes of Health (NIH, within the Department of Health and Human Services, DHHS—nanotechnology-based biomedical research at the intersection of biology and the physical sciences); and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST— fundamental research and development of tools, analytical methodologies, and metrology for nanotechnology). Other agencies that are investing in mission-related research are the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH/DHHS), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Departments of Agriculture (USDA—Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, CSREES; and Forest Service, FS), Homeland Security (DHS), Justice (DOJ), and Transportation (DOT—Federal Highway Administration, FHWA).
Other Resources
See the budget summary: NNI FY 2009 Budget Highlights.
See 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act.
NNI Budget Overview by Agency
The table below presents the requested budget breakdowns by agency.
| Table 1 NNI Budget, 2007 - 2009 (dollars in millions) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 Actual | 2008 Estimate* | 2009 Proposed | ||||
| DOD |
450 |
487 |
431 |
|||
| NSF |
389 |
389 |
397 |
|||
| DOE** |
236 |
251 |
311 |
|||
| DHHS (NIH) |
215 |
226 |
226 |
|||
| DOC (NIST) |
88 |
89 |
110 |
|||
| NASA |
20 |
18 |
19 |
|||
| EPA |
8 |
10 |
15 |
|||
| DHHS (NIOSH) |
7 |
6 |
6 |
|||
| USDA (FS) |
3 |
5 |
5 |
|||
| USDA (CSREES) |
4 |
6 |
3 |
|||
| DOJ |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|||
| DHS |
2 |
1 |
1 |
|||
| DOT (FHWA) |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|||
| TOTAL |
1,425 |
1,491 |
1,527 |
|||
*The 2008 DOD estimate exceeds the 2008 request by $112 million, but includes many Congressional earmarks that are outside the NNI
plan.
** 2008 and 2009 funding levels for DOE include the Offices of Science, Fossil Energy, and Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
NNI Budget History by Agency
| Table 2 NNI Budget History by Agency* (dollars in millions) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agency |
2001
Actual |
2002 Actual | 2003 Actual | 2004 Actual | 2005 Actual | 2006 Actual |
| DOD |
125
|
224
|
220
|
291
|
352
|
424
|
| NSF |
150
|
204
|
221
|
256
|
335
|
360
|
| DOE |
88
|
89
|
134
|
202
|
208
|
231
|
| DHHS (NIH) |
40
|
59
|
78
|
106
|
165
|
192
|
| DOC(NIST) |
33
|
77
|
64
|
77
|
79
|
78
|
| NASA |
22
|
35
|
36
|
47
|
45
|
50
|
| EPA |
5
|
6
|
5
|
5
|
7
|
5
|
| USDA (CREES) |
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
||
| DHHS (NIOSH) |
3
|
4
|
||||
| USDA (FS) |
2
|
|||||
| DOJ |
1
|
1
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
.3
|
| DHS |
2
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
2
|
|
| DOT(FHWA) |
1
|
|||||
| TOTAL |
464
|
697
|
760
|
989
|
1200
|
1351
|
*Totals may not add up due to rounding.
Acronyms
DHS — Department of Homeland Security
DOC — Department of Commerce
DOD — Department of Defense
DOE — Department of Energy
DHHS— Department of Health and Human Services
DOJ — Department of Justice
DOT — Department of Transportation
EPA — Environmental Protection Agency
FHWA — Federal Highway Administration
NASA— National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NIH — National Institutes of Health
NIST— National Institute of Standards and Technology
NSF — National Science Foundation
TSA — Transportation Security Administration
USDA — U.S. Department of Agriculture