July 18, 2017

House Rejects Trump’s Budget, but Still Cuts Science

Posted by bwebster

Appropriations Update: Part 2

Leaders in the House of Representatives have directed the Appropriations Committee to introduce and consider all 12 appropriations bills before the chamber breaks for August recess. Overall, science fared poorly in the House spending bills, although most agencies did not receive the drastic cuts proposed by the President’s budget request. Here’s a recap of the Energy and Water spending bill, which includes funding for the Department of Energy, and the Interior and Environment spending bill, which includes funding for the EPA and USGS, for fiscal year 2018 (FY18).

Be sure to read Part 1 of the appropriations update, which details the funding outlook for NASA, NOAA, and NSF.

Department of Energy

  FY2016 FY2017 President Budget Request for FY2018 AGU Request for FY2018 House Appropriated Amount for FY2018
Overall $29,717.28 $30,786.01 $28,042.00 $27,870.60
Office of Science $5,350.20 $5,392.00 $4,472.52 $5,560.00 $5,392.00
ARPA-E $291.00 $306.00 $20.00 $325.00 $0.00

*Proposed and enacted funding levels in millions

Thumbs Up

  • The House bill would result in less drastic cuts to the Department than the President’s proposed budget and provides robust funding for advanced computing initiatives.

Thumbs Down

  • Nearly all offices would see significant cuts compared to FY2017 levels, including Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and the Basic Energy Research line offices.
  • Additionally, despite support in the FY2017 omnibus, funding for Advanced Research Project Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) is zeroed out under the House bill.

Environmental Protection Agency

  FY2016 FY2017 President Budget Request for FY2018 House Appropriated Amount for FY2018
Overall $8,139.89 $8058.49 $5,700.00 $7,500.00
Science & Technology $734.65 $713.82 $397.00 $629.24

*Proposed and enacted funding levels in millions

The Committee is expected to release more details about the bill and the recommended funding levels to specific programs at EPA in the coming weeks.

Thumbs Up

  • The President’s budget proposed a nearly 30% and 45% cut to EPA’s overall and science and technology funding, respectively. The House bill would result in less extreme cuts (about 7% and 12%, respectively).

Thumbs Down

  • Under the House bill, EPA would see funding levels below FY2009 enacted levels. Additionally, the bill supports the President’s proposal to reduce the workforce at EPA.

United States Geological Survey

  FY2016 FY2017 President Budget Request for FY2018 AGU Request for FY2018 House Appropriated Amount for FY2018
Overall $1,062.00 $1,085.12 $922.17 $1,200 $1,038.92

*Proposed and enacted funding levels in millions

Thumbs Up

  • The House bill proposes cuts that are not as drastic as the President’s budget. In the bill, Energy, Minerals, and Environmental Health saw a 2% increase.

Thumbs Down

  • Nearly every mission area received substantial cuts.
  • The largest cut was given to the Land Resources mission area, formerly known as Climate and Land Use Change.
  • Land Resources received a debilitating 19% cut from FY17 levels, which includes a 31% cut from regional Climate Science Centers.
  • Overall, USGS received a 4% decrease in the House Interior Appropriations Bill, which funds the agency at $1 billion.