In its fiscal year (FY) 2007 budget, the Bush administration
proposed a total budget authority of $136.9
billion for research and development (R&D) and R&D
plant programs, an increase of 1.2 percent over the
preliminary FY 2006 R&D and R&D plant total of
$135.2 billion (table 1).[1] After adjusting for expected
inflation, the FY 2007 R&D and R&D plant budget
authority represents a decrease of 1.0 percent over he
FY 2006 figure.[2]
Table 1 Source Data: Excel file
This InfoBrief contains information on the overall
distribution and changing patterns of federal funding of
these R&D components, as proposed by the Bush
administration for FY 2007. The discussion follows on
the eight largest mission area budget functions[3] with
respect to R&D and R&D plant funding: national
defense, health, space research and technology, general
science, natural resources and environment, agriculture,
transportation, and energy. These R&D and R&D plant
activities cut across agency lines and account for 97.8
percent of the total R&D and R&D plant budget
authority for FY 2007.
Proposed Defense R&D and R&D Plant
The Bush administration proposed a 1.0 percent
increase in national defense R&D and R&D plant
budget authority in FY 2007. With this increase, defense
would account for 57.3 percent ($78.4 billion) of the
federal R&D and R&D plant total (tables 1 and 2).
Most—93.3 percent, or $73.2 billion—of the FY 2007
national defense R&D budget authority is vested in the
Department of Defense's (DOD's) military research,
development, test, and evaluation programs (RDT&E)
(table 3). R&D funding for the Department of Energy's
(DOE's) atomic energy defense activities accounts for
another 5.1 percent ($4.0 billion) of the proposed FY
2007 national defense R&D budget. Most of the DOE
defense funding for R&D is for weapons activities
($2.9 billion). The remaining money for this budget
function is for other military funding ($0.9 billion), which
includes DOD military funding for personnel costs in
direct support of conduct of R&D, medical research
funding outside RDT&E accounts, and other DOD
programs, as well as for the Department of Homeland
Security funding for defense programs ($0.3 billion).
Table 2 Source Data: Excel file
Table 3 Source Data: Excel file
Proposed Nondefense R&D and R&D Plant
The nondefense share of federal R&D and R&D plant
budget authority accounts for 42.7 percent of the total
in FY 2007 (table 2). The President's budget contains a
$0.9 billion increase in total nondefense R&D and
R&D plant budget authority. The resulting $58.5 billion
total represents a 1.5 percent increase over preliminary
FY 2006 funding.
Among individual budget functions, health accounts for the largest share of the total nondefense R&D and R&D plant budget authority at 49.6 percent ($29.0 billion) and the second largest share of the total R&D and R&D plant budget authority at 21.2 percent (tables 1 and 2). Health, however, is budgeted to decrease slightly (down $63 million) below the FY 2006 level. The National Institutes
of Health programs make up the bulk of the health R&D and R&D plant account ($27.8 billion).
Space research and technology makes up 8.4 percent
($11.5 billion) of the total R&D and R&D plant budget
authority (tables 1 and 2). The Bush administration
proposed a 10.2 percent increase in R&D and R&D
plant budget authority for space research and technology
activities, up $1.1 billion from the FY 2006 level.
The entire space research and technology account is
covered by National Aeronautical and Space Administration
programs.
General science accounts for 6.1 percent of the proposed
total federal R&D and R&D plant budget
authority, and is proposed to increase 11.0 percent—or
$826 million—in FY 2007, to a total of $8.3 billion (tables 1 and 2). National Science Foundation accounts for
54.4 percent ($4.5 billion) of these dollars, with DOE
providing the rest ($3.8 billion) of the general science
funds.
Natural resources and environment R&D and R&D
plant is budgeted at $2.0 billion in FY 2007, down 7.2
percent from the FY 2006 level (table 1). Five agencies
provide support for R&D activities in natural resources
and environment: Department of Agriculture, Department
of Commerce, DOD's Army Corps of Engineers,
Department of the Interior, and the Environmental
Protection Agency. Natural resources and environment
R&D account for 1.5 percent of the total federal R&D
and R&D plant budget authority under the proposed
budget (table 2).
Agriculture R&D and R&D plant is slated to get $1.7
billion for R&D and R&D plant activities in FY 2007,
down 19.6 percent from the FY 2006 level (table 1).
Agriculture would account for 1.3 percent of the total
federal R&D and R&D plant budget authority in FY
2007 (table 2).
Transportation R&D and R&D plant is expecting $1.5
billion for R&D and R&D plant activities in FY 2007,
down 13.5 percent from FY 2006 (table 1). Under the
proposed budget, transportation would account for 1.1
percent of the total federal R&D and R&D plant
budget authority in FY 2007 (table 2).
Energy R&D and R&D plant is slated to get $1.4
billion for R&D and R&D plant activities in FY 2007,
down 3.9 percent from FY 2006 (table 1). Under the
proposed budget, energy would account for 1.0 percent
of the total federal R&D and R&D plant budget
authority in FY 2007 (table 2).
Historical Accuracy
The data in this InfoBrief represent agencies' best
estimates of actual and proposed federal funding for
R&D collected during the period February through April 2006. Agencies later revise their proposed data to
reflect actual changes in R&D program funding levels.
Agencies may also provide changes to prior-year data
to reflect program reclassifications or other corrections.
Therefore, actual data for a given year may
differ from the proposed data for the same year. As an
example, when first proposed by the Administration in
January 2004, the proposed FY 2005 R&D (excluding
R&D plant) budget authority was $127.1 billion. After
congressional actions and agency funding decisions,
actual R&D budget authority for FY 2005 was reported
at $126.6 billion, a downward revision of 0.4 percent
($487 million) from earlier expectations (figure 1).
Actual R&D funding for defense ($74.0 billion) and for
nondefense ($52.6 billion) activities were lower than
the proposed R&D funding for defense (down 0.2
percent, or $112 million) and for nondefense (down 0.7
percent, or $375 million) in FY 2005.
Figure 1 Source Data: Excel file
More pronounced differences between the proposed
R&D funding and the actual R&D funding occurred in
FY 2000 and in FY 2001, when actual defense R&D
funding was above the proposed defense R&D funding
by 12.9 percent in FY 2000 and 10.4 percent in FY 2001.
In FY 2000 and in FY 2001, actual nondefense R&D
funding was below the proposed nondefense R&D
funding by 4.3 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.
For at least the past 11 years, total actual R&D funding
differed narrowly (by 5 percent or less) from the total
amounts initially proposed by the administration (figure 1).
In each of the years from FY 1996 to FY 2004, actual
defense R&D funding was more than the amounts
initially proposed. By contrast, in about half those years
actual nondefense funding has been greater than the
amounts initially proposed, and in about half those years
has fared worse.
Data Collection Notes
These data are based primarily on information agencies
provide to the Office of Management and Budget and
account for nearly all federally sponsored R&D activities.
The annual report, Federal R&D Funding by
Budget Function: Fiscal Years 2005–07, and this
InfoBrief, also contain R&D information that became
available from the individual agencies after the
administration's budget was prepared and reported.
Such information consists of agency budget justification
documents submitted to Congress and supplemental,
program-specific information obtained from agency
budget and program staff. Therefore, budget numbers
for individual activities, programs, or agencies may differ
from those published in the President's budget or agency
budget documents. Pending congressional action will
determine the final budget authority for R&D in FY 2007.
For further information, contact
Ronald L. Meeks
Research and Development Statistics Program
Division of Science Resources Statistics
National Science Foundation
4201 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 965
Arlington, VA 22230
703-292-7787
rmeeks@nsf.gov
Footnotes
[1] Budget authority is what the law authorizes, or allows, the
federal government to spend for programs, projects, or activities.
Proposed FY 2007 funding levels are for budget authority, which is
the basis for initial congressional action. In future InfoBriefs, these
data will be revised to reflect congressional appropriation and
actual program-funding decisions.
Preliminary FY 2006 funding levels are for budget authority,
which reflects all past congressional actions but may be revised,
since at the time of InfoBrief preparation, FY 2006 had not been
completed.
[2] Details on federal funding of the R&D components of
agency programs for FY 2005–07 will be available in the forthcoming
National Science Foundation report, Federal R&D Funding by
Budget Function: Fiscal Years 2005–07.
[3] The budget functions used in this InfoBrief are the same
budget functions used in the President's report, Budget of the
United States Government, Fiscal Year 2007.