Federal Research and Development (R&D)
January 19, 2022
Funding: FY2022
John F. Sargent Jr.,
President Biden’s budget request for FY2022 includes approximately $171.3 billion for research
Coordinator
and development (R&D), $13.5 billion (8.5%) above the FY2021 estimated level of $157.8
Specialist in Science and
billion. In constant FY2022 dollars, the FY2022 R&D request represents an increase of $10.6
Technology Policy
billion (6.6%) above the FY2021 estimated level.
Funding for R&D is concentrated in a few federal departments and agencies. In FY2021, five
agencies received 93.0% of total federal R&D funding, with the Department of Defense (DOD,
40.1%) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS, 27.6%) combined accounting for more than two -thirds of
all federal R&D funding. In the FY2022 request, the top five R&D agencies would account for 92.4%, with DOD accounting
for 36.7% and HHS for 29.9%.
Under the President’s FY2022 budget request, nearly all federal
Federal Research and Development
agencies would see their R&D funding increase relative to FY2021.
Funding, FY2020-FY2022
The only exception is DOD, which would decrease by $550 million
In bil ions of dol ars
(0.9%) in FY2022 to $62.8 billion. The largest dollar increases in R&D
funding would be made to HHS (up $7.7 billion, 17.8%), the
Department of Energy (up $2.1 billion, 11.1%), and the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (up $1.3 billion, 10.1%). The
largest percentage increases in R&D funding would be at the
Department of the Interior (up 30.8%), the Department of Commerce
(up 29.3%), and the Department of Agriculture (up 21.7%).
The President’s FY2022 budget request would increase funding for
basic research by $4.4 billion (10.2%), applied research by $6.3 billion
(14.0%), development by $2.4 billion (3.6%), and R&D facilities and
equipment by $380 million (9.0%).
Several multiagency R&D initiatives continue under the President’s
FY2022 budget request. Some activities supporting these initiatives are
discussed in agency budget justifications. However, comprehensive
Source: CRS analysis of data from OMB,
Analytical
aggregate budget information on these initiatives will likely not be
Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government,
available until budget supplements for each are released later in the
Fiscal Year 2022, Research and Development, May 28, year.
2021.
The request represents the President’s R&D priorities. Congress may opt to agree with none, part, or all of the request, and it
may express different priorities through the appropriations process. Congress provides annual R&D appropriations through 9
of the 12 regular appropriations bills .
In recent years, Congress has completed the annual appropriations process after the start of the fiscal year. Completing the
process after the start of the fiscal year and the accompanying use of contin uing resolutions can affect agencies’ execution of
their R&D budgets, including the delay or cancellation of planned R&D activities and acquisition of R&D-related equipment.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1
The President’s FY2022 Budget Request ............................................................................ 3
Federal R&D Funding Perspectives ................................................................................... 3
Federal R&D by Agency............................................................................................. 3
Federal R&D by Character of Work, Facilities, and Equipment......................................... 5
Federal Role in U.S. R&D by Character of Work ............................................................ 5
Federal R&D by Agency and Character of Work Combined ............................................. 6
Multiagency R&D Initiatives ............................................................................................ 7
Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program......................... 8
U.S. Global Change Research Program ......................................................................... 9
National Nanotechnology Initiative ............................................................................ 10
FY2022 Appropriations Status ........................................................................................ 11
Department of Defense .................................................................................................. 12
Department of Health and Human Services ....................................................................... 16
National Institutes of Health ...................................................................................... 17
Department of Energy.................................................................................................... 24
National Aeronautics and Space Administration ................................................................. 27
National Science Foundation .......................................................................................... 30
Department of Agriculture .............................................................................................. 36
Agricultural Research Service ................................................................................... 37
National Institute of Food and Agriculture ................................................................... 38
National Agricultural Statistics Service ....................................................................... 40
Economic Research Service ...................................................................................... 40
Office of the REE Under Secretary and Office of the Chief Scientist ............................... 41
Department of Commerce .............................................................................................. 43
National Institute of Standards and Technology ............................................................ 43
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ....................................................... 46
Department of Veterans Affairs ....................................................................................... 49
Department of Transportation.......................................................................................... 52
Federal Aviation Administration................................................................................. 52
Federal Highway Administration................................................................................ 53
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration .......................................................... 53
Other DOT Components ........................................................................................... 53
Department of the Interior .............................................................................................. 55
U.S. Geological Survey ............................................................................................ 55
Other DOI Components ............................................................................................ 56
Department of Homeland Security ................................................................................... 57
Environmental Protection Agency.................................................................................... 59
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Figures
Figure 1. Composition of U.S. Basic Research, Applied Research, and Development by
Funding Sector, 2019 .................................................................................................... 6
Tables
Table 1. Federal Research and Development Funding by Agency, FY2020-FY2022 .................. 4
Table 2. Federal R&D Funding by Character of Work and Facilities and Equipment,
FY2020-FY2022 .......................................................................................................... 5
Table 3. Selected R&D Funding Agencies by Character of Work, Facilities,
and Equipment, FY2020 Actual, FY2021 Estimated, and FY2022 Request............................ 7
Table 4. Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program
Funding, FY2019-FY2022 ............................................................................................. 9
Table 5. U.S. Global Change Research Program Funding, FY2019-FY2022 ........................... 10
Table 6. National Nanotechnology Initiative Funding, FY2019-FY2022 ................................ 11
Table 7. Alignment of Agency R&D Funding and Regular Appropriations Bills ...................... 11
Table 8. Department of Defense RDT&E .......................................................................... 15
Table 9. National Institutes of Health Funding ................................................................... 22
Table 10. Department of Energy R&D and Related Activities............................................... 26
Table 11. National Aeronautics and Space Administration R&D ........................................... 29
Table 12. National Science Foundation Funding................................................................. 34
Table 13. U.S. Department of Agriculture R&D ................................................................. 42
Table 14. National Institute of Standards and Technology Funding........................................ 45
Table 15. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration R&D ....................................... 48
Table 16. Department of Veterans Affairs R&D.................................................................. 50
Table 17. Department of Veterans Affairs R&D by Designated Research Area ........................ 51
Table 18. Department of Transportation R&D Activities and Facilities .................................. 54
Table 19. Department of the Interior R&D ........................................................................ 57
Table 20. Department of Homeland Security R&D Accounts ............................................... 59
Table 21. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Science and Technology Account ................ 61
Appendixes
Appendix A. Acronyms and Abbreviations ........................................................................ 63
Appendix B. CRS Contacts for Agency R&D .................................................................... 68
Contacts
Author Information ....................................................................................................... 69
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Introduction
The 117th Congress continues its interest in U.S. research and development (R&D) and in
evaluating support for federal R&D activities. The federal government has played an important
role in supporting R&D efforts that have led to scientific breakthroughs and new technologies,
from jet aircraft and the internet to communications satel ites, shale gas extraction, and defenses
against disease. In recent years, federal budget caps have driven executive and legislative branch
decisions about the prioritization of R&D, both in the context of the entire federal budget and
among competing needs within the federal R&D portfolio.
The U.S. government supports a broad range of scientific and engineering R&D. Its purposes
include addressing national defense, health, safety, the environment, and energy security;
advancing knowledge general y; developing the scientific and engineering workforce; and
strengthening U.S. innovation and competitiveness in the global economy. Most of the R&D
funded by the federal government is performed in support of the unique missions of individual
funding agencies.
The federal R&D budget is an aggregation of the R&D activities of these agencies. There is no
single, centralized source of R&D funds. Agency R&D budgets are developed internal y as part
of each agency’s overal budget development process. R&D funding may be included either in
accounts that are entirely devoted to R&D or in accounts that also include funding for non-R&D
activities. Agency budgets are subjected to review, revision, and approval by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) and become part of the President’s annual budget submission to
Congress. The federal R&D budget is then calculated by aggregating the R&D activities of each
federal agency.
Congress plays a central role in defining the nation’s R&D priorities as it makes decisions about
the level and al ocation of R&D funding—overal , within agencies, and for specific programs. As
Congress acts to complete the FY2021 appropriations process, it faces two overarching issues: the
amount of the federal budget to be spent on federal R&D and the prioritization and al ocation of
the available funding.
This report begins with a discussion of the overal level of R&D in President Biden’s FY2022
budget request, followed by analyses of R&D funding in the request from a variety of
perspectives and for selected multiagency R&D initiatives. The remainder of the report discusses
and analyzes the R&D budget requests of selected federal departments and agencies that,
collectively, account for approximately 99% of total federal R&D funding.
Selected terms associated with federal R&D funding are defined in the text box on the next page.
Appendix A provides a list of acronyms and abbreviations
. Appendix B lists the primary CRS
experts on R&D funding for the agencies covered in this report.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Definitions Associated with Federal Research and Development Funding
Two key sources of definitions associated with federal research and development funding are the White House
Office of Management and Budget and the National Science Foundation.
Office of Management and Budget. The Office of Management and Budget provides the fol owing definitions
of R&D-related terms in OMB Circular No. A-11, “Preparation, Submission, and Execution of the Budget.”1 This
document provides guidance to agencies in the preparation of the President’s annual budget and instructions on
budget execution. In 2017, OMB adopted a refinement to the categories of R&D, replacing “development” with
“experimental development,” which more narrowly defines the set of activities to be included. This definition is
used in the President’s FY2022 budget. The new definition has resulted in lower reported R&D by some agencies,
including the Department of Defense (DOD) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). For
FY2022, OMB has also opted to exclude DOD budget activity 6.6 (“Management Support”) funding from its R&D
calculations; historical y, this funding has been included in the DOD R&D total and federal R&D total figu res. DOD
R&D funding in
Table 1 an
d Table 3 reflect this change for FY2020 and FY2021 (applied retroactively), as wel as
for FY2022. OMB and DOD are currently evaluating whether budget activity 6.6 may be categorized as
experimental development in the future.
Conduct of R&D. Research and experimental development (R&D) activities are defined as creative and
systematic work undertaken in order to increase the stock of knowledge—including knowledge of people,
culture, and society—and to devise new applications using available knowledge.
Basic Research. Basic research is defined as experimental or theoretical work undertaken primarily to
acquire new knowledge of the underlying foundations of phenomena and observable facts. Basic research may
include activities with broad or general applications in mind, such as the study of how plant genomes change,
but excludes research directed towards a specific application or requirement, such as the optimization of the
genome of a specific crop species.
Applied Research. Applied research is defined as original investigation undertaken in order to acquire new
knowledge. Applied research is, however, directed primarily towards a specific practical aim or objective.
Experimental Development. Experimental development is defined as creative and systematic work,
drawing on knowledge gained from research and practical experience, which is directed at producing new
products or processes or improving existing products or processes. Like research, experimental development
wil result in gaining additional knowledge.
R&D Equipment. R&D equipment includes amounts for major equipment for research and development. It
includes acquisition, design, or production of major movable equipment, such as mass spectrometers, research
vessels, DNA sequencers, and other major movable instruments for use in R&D activities. It includes programs
of $1 mil ion or more that are devoted to the purchase or construction of major R&D equipment .
R&D Facilities. R&D facilities includes amounts for the construction of facilities that are necessary for the
execution of an R&D program. This may include land, major fixed equipment, and supporting infrastructure
such as a sewer line or housing at a remote location.
National Science Board/National Science Foundation. The National Science Board/National Science
Foundation
(NSB/NSF) provides the fol owing definitions of R&D-related terms in its report
Science and
Engineering Indicators: 2020.2
Research and Development (R&D): Research and experimental development comprise creative and
systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge—including knowledge of humankind, culture,
and society—and its use to devise new applications of available knowledge.
Basic Research: Experimental or theoretical work undertaken primarily to acquire new knowledge of the
underlying foundations of phenomena and observable facts, without any particular application or use in view.
Applied Research: Original investigation undertaken to acquire new knowledge—directed primarily,
however, toward a specific, practical aim or objective.
Development (or Experimental Development): Systematic work, drawing on knowledge gained from
research and practical experience and producing additional knowledge, which is directed to producing new
products or processes or to improving existing products or processes.
1 T he White House, Office of Management and Budget, Circular No. A-11, “Preparation, Submission, and Execution of
the Budget ,” April 2021, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/a11.pdf.
2 National Science Board/National Science Foundation,
Science and Engineering Indicators 2020, January 2020,
https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsb20201/glossary.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
The President’s FY2022 Budget Request
On May 28, 2021, President Biden released his proposed FY2022 budget. President Biden is
proposing $171.3 bil ion for R&D for FY2022, an increase of $13.5 bil ion (8.5%) above the
FY2021 level of $157.8 bil ion. Adjusted for inflation to FY2022 dollars, the President’s FY2022
R&D request represents a constant-dollar increase of 6.6% above the FY2021 actual level.3
The President’s request includes continued R&D funding for existing single-agency and
multiagency programs and activities, as wel as new initiatives. This report provides government-
wide, multiagency, and individual agency analyses of the President’s FY2022 request as it relates
to R&D and related activities. More information wil become available as the House and Senate
act on the President’s budget request through appropriations bil s.
Factors Affecting Analysis of the FY2022 Budget Request
Several factors complicate the analysis of changes in R&D funding for FY2022, both in aggregate and for selected
agencies:
R&D included in President’s Biden’s proposed American Jobs Plan is not included in his FY2022 budget
request. The American Jobs Plan includes $50 bil ion for the National Science Foundation, $30 bil ion for
R&D at other agencies, and $40 bil ion to upgrade research infrastructure.
Inconsistency among agencies in the reporting of R&D and the inclusion of R&D activities in accounts with
non-R&D activities may result in different figures being reported by OMB and the White House Office of
Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), including those shown in
Table 1, and those in agency budget
analyses that appear later in this report.
Federal R&D Funding Perspectives
Federal R&D funding can be analyzed from a variety of perspectives that provide different
insights. The following sections examine the data by agency, by the character of the work
supported, and by a combination of these two perspectives.
Federal R&D by Agency
Congress makes decisions about R&D funding through the authorization and appropriations
processes primarily from the perspective of individual agencies and programs
. Table 1 provides
data on R&D funding by agency for FY2020 (actual), FY2021 (estimate), and FY2022 (request).4
Under the request, eight federal agencies would receive 97% of total federal R&D funding in
FY2022: the Department of Defense (DOD), 36.7%; Department of Health and Human Services
(HHS), primarily the National Institutes of Health (NIH), 29.9%; Department of Energy (DOE),
12.5%; National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), 8.5%; National Science
Foundation (NSF), 4.8%; Department of Agriculture (USDA), 2.1%; Department of Commerce
(DOC), 1.6%; and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), 0.9%. This report provides an analysis of
the R&D budget requests for these agencies, as wel as for the Department of Homeland Security
3 As calculated by CRS using the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (chained) price index for FY2021 -FY2022 in T able
10.1, “Gross Domestic Product and Deflators Used in the Historical T ables: 1940 –2026,”
Budget of the United States
Governm ent, Fiscal Year 2022, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/hist10z1_fy22.xlsx.
4 EOP, OMB,
Analytical Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2022, Research and
Developm ent, May 28, 2021, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ap_14_research_fy22.pdf.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
(DHS), Department of the Interior (DOI), Department of Transportation (DOT), and
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
With the exception of DOD, al federal agencies would see their R&D funding increase under the
President’s FY2022 request compared to their FY2021 estimated levels. The agencies with the
largest R&D funding increases (measured in dollars) in the FY2022 request compared to FY2021
estimated levels are HHS (up $7.738 bil ion), DOE (up $2.140 bil ion), and NASA (up $1.339
bil ion). DOD R&D funding would decline by $550 mil ion (down 0.9%). Se
e Table 1.
The agencies with the largest percentage increases in R&D funding in the FY2022 request
compared to the FY2021 estimated level are DOT (up 30.8%), DOC (up 29.3%), USDA (up
21.7%), DOI (up 18.2%), and HHS (up 17.8%). Se
e Table 1.
Table 1. Federal Research and Development Funding by Agency, FY2020-FY2022
(budget authority, dol ar amounts in mil ions)
FY2021-FY2022
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Dollar
Percentage
Department/Agency
Actual
Estimate
Request
Change
Change
Department of Defense
62,43
8a
63,35
0a
62,800
-550
-0.9%
Dept. of Health and Human Services
44,455
43,494
51,232
7,738
17.8%
Department of Energy
19,476
19,312
21,452
2,140
11.1%
NASA
14,801
13,226
14,565
1,339
10.1%
National Science Foundation
6,800
7,408
8,173
765
10.3%
Department of Agriculture
2,989
2,965
3,609
644
21.7%
Department of Commerce
1,953
2,122
2,743
621
29.3%
Department of Veterans Affairs
1,366
1,420
1,498
78
5.5%
Department of Transportation
1,043
1,024
1,339
315
30.8%
Department of the Interior
1,094
1,033
1,221
188
18.2%
Department of Homeland Security
532
590
627
37
6.3%
Smithsonian Institution
516
524
585
61
11.6%
Environmental Protection Agency
237
445
473
28
6.3%
Department of Education
344
322
346
24
7.5%
Other
582
563
597
34
6.0%
Total
158,626
157,798
171,260
13,462
8.5%
Source: CRS analysis of data from EOP, OMB,
Analytical Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal
Year 2022, Research and Development, May 28, 2021, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/
ap_14_research_fy22.pdf.
Notes: Components may not sum to totals due to rounding.
a. DOD R&D in this table does not include funding for budget activity (BA) 6.6 and BA 6.7. OMB considers
BA 6.6 to be “non-investment activities” and BA 6.7 to be considered nonexperimental development.
Combined BA 6.6 and BA 6.7 funding is $46.2 bil ion in FY2021 and $48.0 bil ion for FY2022.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Federal R&D by Character of Work, Facilities, and Equipment
Federal R&D funding can also be examined by the character of w ork it supports—basic research,
applied research, or development—and by funding provided for construction of R&D facilities
and acquisition of major R&D equipment. (Se
e Table 2.) President Biden’s FY2022 request
includes $47.387 bil ion for basic research, up $4.402 bil ion (10.2%) from the FY2021 estimated
level; $51.126 bil ion for applied research, up $6.283 bil ion (14.0%); $68.136 bil ion for
development, up $2.397 bil ion (3.6%); and $4.611 bil ion for R&D facilities and equipment, up
$380 mil ion (9.0%).
Table 2. Federal R&D Funding by Character of Work and Facilities and Equipment,
FY2020-FY2022
(budget authority, dol ar amounts in mil ions)
Change, FY2021-FY2022
Character of Work, Facilities,
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
and Equipment
Actual
Estimated
Request
Dollars
Percentage
Basic research
44,290
42,985
47,387
4,402
10.2%
Applied research
45,992
44,843
51,126
6,283
14.0%
Development
62,124
65,739
68,136
2,397
3.6%
Facilities and Equipment
6,220
4,231
4,611
380
9.0%
Total
158,626
157,798
171,260
13,462
8.5%
Source: CRS analysis of data from EOP, OMB,
Analytical Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal
Year 2022, Research and Development, May 28, 2021, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/
ap_14_research_fy22.pdf.
Note: Components may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Federal Role in U.S. R&D by Character of Work
A primary policy justification for public investments in basic research and for incentives (e.g., tax
credits) for the private sector to conduct research is the view, widely held by economists, that the
private sector wil , left on its own, underinvest in basic research from a societal perspective. The
usual argument for this view is that the social returns (i.e., the benefits to society at large) exceed
the private returns (i.e., the benefits accruing to the private investor, such as increased revenues or
higher stock value). Other factors that may inhibit corporate investment in basic research include
long time horizons for achieving commercial applications (diminishing the potential returns due
to the time value of money), high levels of technical risk and uncertainty, shareholder demands
for shorter-term returns, and asymmetric and imperfect information.
The federal government is the nation’s largest supporter of basic research, funding 41% of U.S.
basic research in 2019 (the most recent year for which comprehensive data are available).
Business funded 31% of U.S. basic research in 2019, with state governments, universities, and
other nonprofit organizations funding the remaining 29%.5 For U.S. applied research, business is
the primary funder, accounting for an estimated 55% in 2019, while the federal government
accounted for an estimated 33%. State governments, universities, and other nonprofit
5 Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
organizations funded the remaining 12%. Business also provides the vast majority of U.S.
funding for development. Business accounted for 86% of development funding in 2019, while the
federal government provided 13%. State governments, universities, and other nonprofit
organizations funded the remaining 2% (se
e Figure 1).6
Figure 1. Composition of U.S. Basic Research, Applied Research, and Development
by Funding Sector, 2019
Source: CRS analysis of
National Science Foundation,
National Patterns of R&D Resources: 2018–19 Data Update,
NSF 21-325, Tables 7-9, April 9, 2021.
Notes: Components may not add to total due to rounding. Data are preliminary and may be revised.
Federal R&D by Agency and Character of Work Combined
Federal R&D funding can also be viewed from the combined perspective of each agency’s
contribution to basic research, applied research, development, and facilities and equipment.
Table
3 lists the three agencies with the most funding in each of these categories as proposed in the
President’s FY2022 budget. The overal federal R&D budget reflects a wide range of national
priorities, including supporting advances in spaceflight, developing new and affordable sources of
energy, and understanding and deterring terrorist groups. These priorities and the mission of each
individual agency contribute to the composition of that agency’s R&D spending (i.e., the
al ocation of R&D funding among basic research, applied research, development, and facilities
and equipment).
In President Biden’s FY2022 budget request, the Department of Health and Human Services,
primarily NIH, would account for more than half (50.7%) of al federal funding for basic
research. HHS would also be the largest federal funder of applied research, accounting for about
52.5% of al federal y funded applied research in the President’s FY2022 budget request. DOD
would be the primary federal funder of experimental development, accounting for 80.5% of total
federal development funding in the President’s FY2022 budget request. DOE would be the
6 CRS analysis of
National Science Foundation,
National Patterns of R&D Resources: 2018–19 Data Update, NSF 21-
325, T ables 6-9, April 9, 2021. Data are preliminary and may be revised. Components may not add to total due to
rounding.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
primary federal funder of R&D facilities and equipment, accounting for 58.2% of total federal
R&D facilities and equipment funding in the President’s FY2022 budget request.7
Table 3. Selected R&D Funding Agencies by Character of Work, Facilities,
and Equipment, FY2020 Actual, FY2021 Estimated, and FY2022 Request
(budget authority, dol ar amounts in mil ions)
Change, FY2021-FY2022
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Character of Work/Agency
Actual
Estimate
Request
Dollars
Percentage
Basic Research
Health and Human Services
21,826
21,872
24,022
2,150
9.8%
NSF
5,437
5,966
6,532
566
9.5%
Energy
5,494
5,519
5,892
373
6.8%
Applied Research
Health and Human Services
22,081
21,297
26,835
5,538
26.0%
Energy
8,444
7,395
7,669
274
3.7%
Defense
6,274
6,654
5,559
-1,095
-16.5%
Experimental Development
Defense
51,764
54,045
54,859
814
1.5%
NASA
5,430
5,990
5,915
-75
-1.3%
Energy
3,060
3,715
5,206
1,491
40.1%
Facilities and Equipment
Energy
2,478
2,683
2,685
2
0.1%
Commerce
366
352
657
305
86.6%
NSF
529
594
594
0
0.0%
Source: CRS analysis of data from EOP, OMB,
Analytical Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal
Year 2022, Research and Development, May 28, 2021, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/
ap_14_research_fy22.pdf.
Note: This table shows only the top three funding agencies in each category, based on the FY2022 request.
Multiagency R&D Initiatives
For many years, presidential budgets have reported on multiagency R&D initiatives. Often, they
have also provided details of agency funding for these initiatives. Some of these efforts have a
statutory basis—for example, the Networking and Information Technology Research and
Development (NITRD) program, the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), and the U.S.
Global Change Research Program (USGCRP). These programs general y produce annual budget
supplements identifying objectives, activities, funding levels, and other information, usual y
published shortly after the presidential budget release. Other multiagency R&D initiatives have
7 CRS analysis of data from EOP, OMB,
Analytical Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year
2021, Research and Developm ent, February 10, 2020, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/
ap_17_research_fy21.pdf.
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operated at the discretion of the President, without a specific statutory mandate, and may be
eliminated at the discretion of the President. President Biden’s FY2022 budget is largely silent on
funding levels for these efforts and whether any or al of the nonstatutory initiatives wil continue.
Some activities related to these initiatives are discussed in agency budget justifications and may
be addressed in the agency analyses later in this report. This section provides available
multiagency information on these initiatives and wil be updated as additional information
becomes available.
Networking and Information Technology Research
and Development Program8
Established by the High-Performance Computing Act of 1991 (P.L. 102-194), the Networking and
Information Technology Research and Development Program is the primary mechanism by which
the federal government coordinates its unclassified networking and information technology R&D
investments in areas such as supercomputing, high-speed networking, cybersecurity, software
engineering, and information management. The NITRD National Coordination Office (NCO)
coordinates the information technology R&D activities of 24 federal agency members and more
than 45 other participating agencies with program interests and activities in IT R&D. NITRD
efforts are further coordinated by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) NITRD
Subcommittee.9
P.L. 102-194, as reauthorized by the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act of 2017 (P.L.
114-329), requires the director of the NITRD NCO to prepare an annual report to be delivered to
Congress along with the President’s budget request. This annual report, often referred to as a
budget supplement, is to include, among other things, detailed information on the program’s
budget for the current and previous fiscal years and the proposed budget for the next fiscal year
(FY). The latest annual report was published in August 2020 and related to the FY2021 budget
request. For additional information on the NITRD program, see CRS Report RL33586,
The
Federal Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program:
Background, Funding, and Activities, by Patricia Moloney Figliola. Additional information on the
NITRD Program can be obtained at https://www.nitrd.gov.
8 For additional information on the Networking and Information T echnology Research and Development program,
please contact Patricia Moloney Figliola, Specialist in Internet and T elecommunications Policy.
9 T he NST C was established by Executive Order 12881 in 1993. According to the White House, “T his Cabinet -level
Council is the principal means within the Executive Branch to coordinate science and technology policy across the
diverse entities that make up the Federal research and development enterprise. Chaired by the President, the
membership of the NST C is made up of the Vice President, Cabinet Secretaries and Agency Heads with significant
science and technology responsibilities, and other White House officials. In practice, the Assistant to the President for
Science and T echnology Policy oversees the NST C’s ongoing activities.” (Source: EOP, Office of Science and
T echnology Policy, “NST C,” https://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp/nstc/.) For more information on the NST C, see CRS
Report R43935,
Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP): History and Overview, by John F. Sargent Jr. and
Dana A. Shea; and https://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp/nstc/.
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Table 4. Networking and Information Technology Research and Development
Program Funding, FY2019-FY2022
(budget authority, in mil ions of current dol ars)
FY2019
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Actual
Enacted
Enacted
Request
Total, NITRD
6,472.1
7,092.7
7,175.4
7,777.3
Source: NITRD Dashboard, accessed January 19, 2022, https://www.nitrd.gov/apps/itdashboard/dashboard/
#NITRD-RD-Budgets-Fiscal-Years-19922022.
U.S. Global Change Research Program10
The U.S. Global Change Research Program coordinates and integrates federal research and
applications to understand, assess, predict, and respond to human-induced and natural processes
of global change. The program seeks to advance global climate change science and to “build a
knowledge base that informs human responses to climate and global change through coordinated
and integrated Federal programs of research, education, communication, and decision support.”11
In FY2019, 10 departments and agencies received appropriations for their USGCRP participation.
USGCRP efforts are coordinated by the NSTC Subcommittee on Global Change Research. Each
agency develops and carries out its activities as its contribution to the USGCRP, and funds are
appropriated to each agency for those activities; those activities may or may not be identified as
associated with the USGCRP in agency budget justifications or other program materials available
publicly. Complementing USGCRP activities are many federal climate change or global change-
related activities with programmatic missions, not predominantly scientific. These are reported
separately in budget justifications.
The Global Change Research Act of 1990 (GCRA, P.L. 101-606) requires each federal agency or
department involved in global change research to report annual y to Congress on each element of
its proposed global change research activities, as wel as the portion of its budget request
al ocated to each element of the program.12 The President is also required to identify those
activities and the annual global change research budget in the President’s annual budget request.
The President’s budget requests for years later than FY2017 do not report these budget data
required by the GCRA, although some agencies report their contributions in their budget
justifications to Congress.
In addition, in the 20 years prior to FY2018, language in appropriations laws required the
President to submit a comprehensive report to the appropriations committees “describing in detail
al Federal agency funding, domestic and international, for climate change programs, projects,
and activities … including an accounting of funding by agency….”13 As these are no longer
reported by OMB
, Table 5 presents data compiled by CRS from communications with
departments and agencies that participated in the USGCRP in FY2018.
10 For additional information on the U.S. Global Change Research Program, please contact Jane A. Leggett, Specialist
in Energy and Environmental Policy.
11 U.S. Global Change Research Program website, http://www.globalchange.gov/about/mission-vision-strategic-plan.
12 Directives to report annually to Congress on budget requests and spending occur in several sections of P.L. 101-606,
including Sections 105(b) and (c) on Budget Coordination, and Section 107, Annual Report.
13 See, most recently, P.L. 115-31, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017, Section 416.
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For additional information on the USGCRP, see CRS Report R43227,
Federal Climate Change
Funding from FY2008 to FY2014, by Jane A. Leggett, Richard K. Lattanzio, and Emily Bruner.
Additional USGCRP information can be obtained at http://www.globalchange.gov.
Table 5. U.S. Global Change Research Program Funding, FY2019-FY2022
(budget authority, in mil ions of current dol ars)
FY2019
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Enacted
Enacted
Request
Request
Total, USGCRP
2,451
2,461
1,915
n/a
Source: GlobalChange.gov, https://www.globalchange.gov/about.
Notes: n/a = not available. Funding for activities that contribute to the USGCRP has been appropriated to more
than a dozen federal departments and agencies in the past, and some spending of it is transferred or coordinated
through interagency agreements. Almost al of the funding is spent directly by agencies on research and related
activities; a smal percentage is spent for interagency coordination and communications in the USGCRP program
office.
National Nanotechnology Initiative14
Launched in FY2001, the National Nanotechnology Initiative is a multiagency R&D initiative to
advance understanding and control of matter at the nanoscale, where the physical, chemical, and
biological properties of materials differ in fundamental and sometimes useful ways from the
properties of individual atoms or bulk matter.15 In 2003, Congress enacted the 21st Century
Nanotechnology Research and Development Act (P.L. 108-153), providing a legislative
foundation for some of the activities of the NNI. NNI efforts are coordinated by the NSTC
Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET). For FY2020, the
President’s request included NNI funding for 15 federal departments and independent agencies
and commissions with budgets dedicated to nanotechnology R&D. The NSET includes other
federal departments and independent agencies and commissions with responsibilities for health,
safety, and environmental regulation; trade; education; intel ectual property; international
relations; and other areas that might affect or be affected by nanotechnology.
P.L. 108-153 requires the NSTC to prepare an annual report to be delivered to Congress at the
time the President’s budget request is sent to Congress. This annual report, often referred to as a
budget supplement, is to include detailed information on the program’s budget for the current
fiscal year and the program’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year, as wel as additional
information and data related to the performance of the program. The latest annual report was
published in October 2020 and related to the FY2021 budget request. President Trump requested
$1.723 bil ion for NNI research in FY2021, a decrease of $117 mil ion (6.3%) from the enacted
FY2020 level.16
For additional information on the NNI, see CRS Report RL34401,
The National Nanotechnology
Initiative: Overview, Reauthorization, and Appropriations Issues, by John F. Sargent Jr.
Additional NNI information can be obtained at http://www.nano.gov.
14 For additional information on the National Nanotechnology Initiative, please contact John F. Sargent Jr., Specialist in
Science and T echnology Policy.
15 In the context of the NNI and nanotechnology, the nanoscale refers to lengths of 1 to 100 nanometers. A nanometer
is one-billionth of a meter, or about the width of 10 hydrogen atoms arranged side by side in a line.
16 EOP, NST C,
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s 2020 Budget, August 2019.
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Table 6. National Nanotechnology Initiative Funding, FY2019-FY2022
(budget authority, in mil ions of current dol ars)
FY2019
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Estimated
Enacted
Request
Request
Total, NNI
1,858.3
1,839.7
1,723.2
n/a
Source: EOP, NSTC,
The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Supplement to the President’s 2021 Budget, October
2020.
FY2022 Appropriations Status
The remainder of this report provides a more in-depth analysis of R&D in 12 federal departments
and agencies that, in aggregate, receive nearly 99% of total federal R&D funding. Agencies are
presented in order of the size of their FY2020 R&D budget requests, with the largest presented
first.
Annual appropriations for these agencies are provided through 9 of the 12 regular appropriations
bil s. For each agency covered in this report
, Table 7 shows the corresponding regular
appropriations bil that provides primary funding for the agency, including its R&D activities.
Because of the way that agencies report budget data to Congress, it can be difficult to identify the
portion that is R&D. Consequently, R&D data presented in the agency analyses in this report may
differ from R&D data in the President’s budget or otherwise provided by OMB.
Funding for R&D is often included in appropriations line items that also include non-R&D
activities; therefore, in such cases, it may not be possible to identify precisely how much of the
funding provided in appropriations laws is al ocated to R&D specifical y. In general, R&D
funding levels are known only after departments and agencies al ocate their appropriations to
specific activities and report those figures.
As of the date of this report, the House has acted on six of the nine appropriations bil s that
provide R&D funding; the Senate has not acted on any of the appropriations acts. On October 18,
2021, the Senate Appropriations Committee majority released nine draft appropriations acts for
FY2022; the other three acts had previously been reported by committee.
In addition to this report, CRS produces individual reports on each of the appropriations bil s and
for a number of federal agencies. These reports can be accessed via the CRS website at
http://www.crs.gov/iap/appropriations. Also, the status of each appropriations bil is available on
the CRS web page “Appropriations Status Table,” available at http://www.crs.gov/
AppropriationsStatusTable/Index.
Table 7. Alignment of Agency R&D Funding and Regular Appropriations Bills
Department/Agency
Regular Appropriations Bill
Department of Defense
Department of Defense Appropriations Act
Department of Health and Human Services
(1) Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services,
- National Institutes of Health
and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act
(2) Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act
Department of Energy
Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act
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Department/Agency
Regular Appropriations Bill
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act
National Science Foundation
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act
Department of Agriculture
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug
Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act
Department of Commerce
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
- National Institute of Standards and Technology
Appropriations Act
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Department of Veterans Affairs
Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act
Department of the Interior
Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act
Department of Transportation
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act
Department of Homeland Security
Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act
Environmental Protection Agency
Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act
Source: CRS Report R40858,
Locate an Agency or Program Within Appropriations Bil s, by Justin Murray.
Department of Defense17
The mission of the Department of Defense is to provide “the military forces needed to deter war
and ensure our nation’s security.”18 Congress supports research and development activities at
DOD primarily through the department’s Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E)
funding. These funds support the development of the nation’s future military hardware and
software and the science and technology base upon which those products rely. This section
includes funding for budget activities 6.6 and 6.7 which OMB no longer counts as R&D.
Most of what DOD spends on RDT&E is appropriated in Title IV of the annual defense
appropriations bil . (Se
e Table 8.) Title IV RDT&E funds support activities such as R&D
performed by academic institutions, DOD laboratories, and companies, as wel as test and
evaluation activities at specialized DOD facilities, among other things.
However, RDT&E funds are also appropriated in other parts of the bil . For example, RDT&E
funds are appropriated as part of the Defense Health Program, the Chemical Agents and
Munitions Destruction Program, and the National Defense Sealift Fund.
The Defense Health Program (DHP) supports the delivery of health care to DOD
personnel and their families. DHP funds (including the RDT&E funds) are
requested through the Defense-wide Operations and Maintenance appropriations
request. The program’s RDT&E funds support congressional y directed research
on breast, prostate, and ovarian cancer; traumatic brain injuries; orthotics and
prosthetics; and other medical conditions. Congress appropriates funds for this
17 T his section was written by John F. Sargent Jr., Specialist in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources,
Science, and Industry Division.
18 Department of Defense, https://www.defense.gov/Our-Story/.
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program in Title VI (Other Department of Defense Programs) of the defense
appropriations bil .
The Chemical Agents and Munitions Destruction Program supports activities to
destroy the U.S. inventory of lethal chemical agents and munitions to avoid
future risks and costs associated with storage. Funds for this program are
requested through the Defense-wide Procurement appropriations request.
Congress appropriates funds for this program also in Title VI.
The National Defense Sealift Fund supports the procurement, operation and
maintenance, and research and development associated with the nation’s naval
reserve fleet and supports a U.S. flagged merchant fleet that can serve in time of
need. In some fiscal years, RDT&E funding for this effort is requested in the
Navy’s Procurement request and appropriated in Title V (Revolving and
Management Funds) of the appropriations bil .
For more than a decade, RDT&E funds also have been requested and appropriated as part of
DOD’s separate funding to support efforts in what the George W. Bush Administration termed the
Global War on Terror (GWOT) and what the Obama and Trump Administrations referred to as
Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO). In appropriations bil s, the term Overseas Contingency
Operations/Global War on Terror (OCO/GWOT) was used. Typical y, the RDT&E funds
appropriated for OCO activities were directed toward specified Program Elements (PEs) in Title
IV. President Biden’s FY2022 request does not include separate OCO/GWOT funding.
For FY2022, the Biden Administration is requesting $111.964 bil ion for DOD’s Title IV RDT&E
PEs, $4.509 bil ion (4.2%) above the estimated FY2021 level. (Se
e Table 8.) In addition, the
FY2022 request includes $630.7 mil ion in RDT&E through the Defense Health Program (DHP;
down $1.762 bil ion, 73.6% from FY2021), $1.001 bil ion in RDT&E through the Chemical
Agents and Munitions Destruction program (up $58.7 mil ion, 6.2% from FY2021), and $2.4
mil ion for the Inspector General for RDT&E-related activities (up $1.3 mil ion, 118.2% from
FY2021). The FY2022 budget includes no RDT&E funding via the National Defense Sealift
Fund, the same as the FY2021 estimated level.
On July 13, 2021, the House Appropriations Committee reported the Department of Defense
Appropriations Act, 2022 (H.R. 4432). The act would provide $110.369 bil ion in Title IV
RDT&E, an increase of $2.914 bil ion (2.7%) over FY2021 funding and $1.595 bil ion (1.4%)
below the request. The act would also provide $1.839 bil ion for Defense Health Program R&D,
down $553.9 mil ion (23.2%) from the FY2021 level and up $1.208 bil ion (191.5%) from the
request; $1,001.2 bil ion for the Chemical Agents and Munitions Destruction program, up $58.7
mil ion (6.2%) from the FY2021 level and equal to the request; and $2.4 bil ion for the Inspector
General for RDT&E-related activities, up $1.3 (115.4%) mil ion from the FY2021 level and
nearly the same as the request.
On October 18, 2021, the Senate Appropriations Committee majority released nine draft
appropriations acts for FY2022. One of these acts was the Department of Defense appropriations
act, which was subsequently introduced as S. 3023. The act would provide $116.152 bil ion in
Title IV RDT&E, an increase of $8.698 bil ion (8.1%) over FY2021 funding, an increase of
$4.188 bil ion (3.7%) over the request, and an increase of $5.784 bil ion (5.2%) over the House
Committee-passed level. In addition, it would provide $1.850 bil ion for Defense Health Program
R&D, down $543.0 mil ion (22.7%) from the FY2021 level and up $1.219 bil ion (193.3%) from
the request; $1.094 bil ion for the Chemical Agents and Munitions Destruction program, up
$151.9 mil ion (16.1%) from the FY2021 level and up $93.2 mil ion (9.3%) from the request; and
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
$2.4 bil ion for the Inspector General for RDT&E-related activities, up $1.3 (115.4%) mil ion
from the FY2021 level and nearly the same as the request.
RDT&E funding can be analyzed in different ways. RDT&E funding can be characterized
organizational y. Each military department requests and receives its own RDT&E funding. So,
too, do various DOD agencies (e.g., the Missile Defense Agency and the Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agency), collectively aggregated within the Defense-wide account. RDT&E
funding also can be characterized by budget activity (i.e., the type of RDT&E supported). Those
budget activities designated as 6.1, 6.2, and 6.3 (basic research, applied research, and advanced
technology development, respectively) constitute what is cal ed DOD’s Science and Technology
(S&T) program and represent the more research-oriented part of the RDT&E program. Budget
activities 6.4 and 6.5 focus on the development of specific weapon systems or components for
which an operational need has been determined and an acquisition program established. Budget
activity 6.6 provides management support, including support for test and evaluation facilities.19
Budget activity 6.7 supports the development of system improvements in existing operational
systems.20 A new budget activity, 6.8, was added in the FY2021 budget and supports software and
digital technology pilot programs.21
Many congressional policymakers are particularly interested in DOD S&T program funding,
since these funds support the development of new technologies and the science that underlies
them. Some in the defense community see ensuring adequate support for S&T activities as
imperative to maintaining U.S. military superiority into the future. The knowledge generated at
this stage of development may also contribute to advances in commercial technologies.
The FY2022 request for Title IV S&T funding is $14.685 bil ion, $2.131 bil ion (12.7%) below
the FY2021 estimated level. Within the S&T program, basic research (6.1) receives special
attention, particularly by the nation’s universities, as over half of DOD’s basic research budget is
spent at universities. The Biden Administration is requesting $2.283 bil ion for DOD basic
research for FY2022, $342.9 mil ion (13.1%) below the FY2021 estimated level. The proposed
FY2022 cuts in S&T are spread across a variety of program elements in the Army, Navy, and Air
Force accounts. The Army would see the largest cut in both dollars and percentage ($1.3 bil ion,
33%), followed by the Air Force ($560 mil ion, 18.1%), and the Navy ($309 mil ion, 11.6%).
Among the proposed FY2022 program element cuts are the University Research Initiatives
program elements in the Army ($18 mil ion, 20.9%), Navy ($27 mil ion, 18.5%), and Air Force
($34 mil ion, 17.4%). Increases in S&T funding would be provided to the Space Force ($36
mil ion, 16.4%) and Defense-wide accounts ($29 mil ion, 0.4%).
H.R. 4432, as reported by the House Appropriations Committee, would provide $16.019 bil ion
for Defense S&T, including $2.446 bil ion for basic research. S. 3023, as introduced, would
provide $17.672 bil ion for Defense S&T, including $3.005 bil ion for basic research.
While DOD is not the largest federal funder of basic research, it is a substantial source of federal
funds for university R&D in certain fields, such as aerospace, aeronautical, and astronautical
engineering (65%); electrical, electronic, and communications engineering (58%); industrial and
19 Beginning in FY2022, budget activity 6.6 is no longer counted as research and development funding by OMB.
20 Beginning in FY2018, budget activity 6.7 is no longer counted as research and development funding by OMB.
21 For additional information on the structure of Defense RDT &E, see CRS Report R44711,
Department of Defense
Research, Developm ent, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E): Appropriations Structure , by John F. Sargent Jr.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
manufacturing engineering (58%); mechanical engineering (49%); computer and information
sciences (48%); materials science (44%); and metal urgical and materials engineering (41%).22
Table 8. Department of Defense RDT&E
(total obligational authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
F2022
FY2022
Senate
FY2021
FY2022
H. Cmte.
Draft
FY2022
Budget Account
Estimatea
Request
H.R. 4432
S. 3023
Enacted
Army
14,144.9
12,799.6
13,381.4
13,467.9
Navy
20,138.4
22,639.4
20,694.7
21,546.5
Air Force
36,360.8
39,184.3
39,062.4
40,098.7
Space Force
10,540.1
11,266.4
10,774.3
11,642.6
Defense-wide
26,013.5
25,857.9
26,239.5
29,120.2
Director, Operational Test and
257.1
216.6
216.6
276.6
Evaluation
Total Title IV—By Account
107,454.8
111,964.2
110,368.8
116,152.5
Budget Activity
6.1 Basic Research
2,625.8
2,282.9
2,445.5
3,005.4
6.2 Applied Research
6,436.3
5,508.9
5,917.3
6,531.9
6.3 Advanced Technology
7,754.4
6,893.5
7,655.7
8,134.8
Development
6.4 Advanced Component
27,997.3
31,255.3
30,256.1
32,486.4
Development and Prototypes
6.5 Systems Dev. and
15,748.0
15,760.8
15,121.1
14,865.0
Demonstration
6.6 Management Suppor
tb
7,626.8
7,387.3
7,567.9
8,719.1
6.7 Operational Systems
38,602.8
40,591.5
40,106.9
41,704.7
Developmen
tc
6.8 Software and Digital
663.4
2,284.1
1,320.4
705.2
Technology Pilot Projects
Undistributed Reducions
-22.0
Total Title IV—by Budget
107,454.8
111,964.2
110,368.8
116,152.5
Activity
Title V—Revolving and
Management Funds
National Defense Sealift Fund
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Title VI—Other Defense
Programs
Defense Health Program
2,392.6
630.7
1,838.7
1,849.6
22 CRS analysis of data from NSF,
Higher Education Research and Development Survey, Fiscal Year 2019, T able 13,
January 2021, https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsf21314 .
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
F2022
FY2022
Senate
FY2021
FY2022
H. Cmte.
Draft
FY2022
Budget Account
Estimatea
Request
H.R. 4432
S. 3023
Enacted
Chemical Agents and Munitions
942.5
1,001.2
1001.2
1,094.4
Destruction
Inspector General
1.1
2.4
2.4
2.4
Grand Total, RDT&Ed
110,790.9
113,598.5
113,211.1
119,098.9
Defense S&T (6.1-6.3)
16,816.5
14,685.3
16,018.4
17,672.1
Source: CRS analysis of
Department of Defense Budget, Fiscal Year 2022, RDT&E Programs (R‑
1), May 2021; H.R.
4432; and S. 3023 and explanatory statement accompanying the Senate draft bil at
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/chairman-leahy-relea ses-rema ining-nine-senate-
appropriations-bil s.
Notes: n/a = not available.
Figures for the columns currently blank may become available as action is completed.
Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. According to DOD, “Total Obligation
Authority (TOA) is the sum of (1) al budget authority (BA) granted (or requested) from the Congress in a given
year, (2) amounts authorized to be credited to a specific fund, (3) BA transferred from another appropriation,
and (4) Unobligated balances of BA from previous years which remain available for obligation. In practice, this
term is used primarily in discussing the DOD budget, and most often refers to TOA as the ‘direct program,’
which equates to only (1) and (2) above.” DOD defines “budget authority” as “the authority becoming available
during the year to enter into obligations that result in immediate or future outlays of Government funds.” See
DOD 7000.14-R, “Department of Defense Financial Management Regulation,” http://comptrol er.defense.gov/
fmr.aspx.
a. Includes funding provided in Division C, Title IX and Division J, Title IV of the Consolidated Appropriations
Act, 2021 (P.L. 116-260).
b. Includes funding for Director of Test and Evaluation.
c. Includes funding for Classified Programs.
d. The Grand Total, RDT&E amounts for FY2021 and FY2022 include funding for budget activities 6.6 and 6.7
that OMB no longer counts as R&D. For these and other reasons, these amounts do not align with the
DOD totals i
n Table 1.
Department of Health and Human Services
The mission of the Department of Health and Human Services is “to enhance and protect the
health and wel -being of al Americans ... by providing for effective health and human services
and fostering advances in medicine, public health, and social services.”23 This section focuses on
HHS research and development funded through the National Institutes of Health, an HHS agency
that accounts for nearly 97% of total HHS R&D funding.24 Other HHS agencies that support
R&D include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services (CMS), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Agency for Healthcare
Research and Quality (AHRQ), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and
Administration for Children and Families (ACF); additional R&D funding is attributed to
departmental management.25
23 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “About,” http://www.hhs.gov/about.
24 Unpublished data provided to CRS by the Office of Management and Budget. Email communication, May 28, 2021.
25 Ibid.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
National Institutes of Health26
NIH is the primary agency of the federal government charged with performing and supporting
biomedical and behavioral research. It also has major roles in training biomedical researchers and
disseminating health information. The NIH mission is “to seek fundamental knowledge about the
nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health,
lengthen life, and reduce il ness and disability.”27 The agency consists of the NIH Office of the
Director (OD) and 27 institutes and centers (ICs), 25 of which manage research programs. Each
IC plans and manages its own research programs in coordination with OD. According to NIH,
about 10% of the NIH budget supports intramural research projects conducted by the nearly 6,000
NIH federal scientists, most of whom are located on the NIH campus in Bethesda, MD. Al 25
research ICs have an intramural research program of varying sizes. More than 80% of NIH’s
budget goes to the extramural research community in the form of grants, contracts, and other
awards. This funding supports research performed by more than 300,000 nonfederal scientists and
technical personnel who work at more than 2,500 universities, hospitals, medical schools, and
other research institutions.28
Funding for NIH comes primarily from the annual Labor, HHS, and Education (LHHS)
appropriations act, with an additional amount for Superfund-related activities from the
Interior/Environment appropriations act.29 Those two appropriations acts provide NIH’s
discretionary budget authority. In addition, NIH has received mandatory funding of $150 mil ion
annual y that is provided in Public Health Service Act (PHSA) Section 330B, for the Special
Diabetes Program for type 1 diabetes, most recently extended through FY2023 with an annual
funding level of $150 mil ion by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (P.L. 116-260;
Division BB, Title III). As shown i
n Table 9, separate appropriations are provided to 24 of the 27
ICs, as wel as to OD, the Innovation Account (established by the 21st Century Cures Act in 2016,
P.L. 114-255), and an intramural Buildings and Facilities account. The other three centers, which
perform centralized support services, are funded through transfers from the other ICs. Some
funding is also pursuant to the PHS Evaluation Set-Aside, also known as the PHS Evaluation Tap
transfer authority, under Section 241 of the PHS Act (42 U.S.C. §238j). This provision al ows the
Secretary of HHS, with the approval of appropriators, to redistribute a portion of eligible PHS
agency appropriations across HHS for program evaluation purposes.30 Although the PHS Act
limits the tap to no more than 1% of eligible appropriations, in recent years, annual LHHS
26 T his section was written by Kavya Sekar, Analyst in Health Policy, CRS Domestic Social Policy Division, with
support from Isaac Nicchitta, Research Assistant, CRS Domestic Social Policy Division. For background information
on NIH, see CRS Report R41705,
The National Institutes of Health (NIH): Background and Congressional Issues, by
Judith A. Johnson and Kavya Sekar.
27 HHS, National Institutes of Health, “About NIH, What We Do, Mission and Goals,” http://www.nih.gov/about-nih/
what -we-do/mission-goals.
28 NIH, “What We Do: Budget,” https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/what-we-do/budget.
29 T he Superfund program was created to carry out the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA; P.L. 96-510), which authorized the federal government to prioritize contaminated
sites in the United States for cleanup in coordination with the states in which the sites are located and to make the
“potentially responsible parties” connected to those sites financially liable for the cleanup costs. T he Superfund
program is administered by the Environmental Protection Agency. For more information on the Superfund program,
see CRS Report R41039,
Com prehensive Environm ental Response, Com pensation, and Liability Act: A Sum m ary of
Superfund Cleanup Authorities and Related Provisions of the Act, by David M. Bearden.
30 For more information on the PHS evaluation tap, or PHS Evaluation Set -Aside, see discussion in CRS Report
R44916,
Public Health Service Agencies: Overview and Funding (FY2016 -FY2018), coordinated by C. Stephen
Redhead and Agata Dabrowska.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
appropriations acts have specified a higher amount (2.5% in FY2021, P.L. 116-260, Division
H).31 Those acts also have typical y directed specific amounts of funding from the tap for transfer
to a number of HHS programs, including at NIH—particularly for the National Institute of
General Medical Sciences (NIGMS). Readers should note that funding amounts in this report
show amounts “transferred in” to NIH under the PHS evaluation set-aside, but do not show
amounts “transferred out” under the same authority.
NIH also receives funding through LHHS appropriations that is subject to different budget
enforcement rules than the rest of the NIH funding in the act—appropriations to the NIH
Innovation Account created by the 21st Century Cures Act (“the Cures Act,” P.L. 114-255) to fund
programs authorized by that act. Appropriations of funds in this account are, in effect, not subject
to discretionary spending limits.32 The NIH Director may transfer these amounts from the NIH
Innovation Account to other NIH accounts but only for the purposes specified in the Cures Act. If
the NIH Director determines that the funds for any of the four Innovation Projects are not
necessary, the amounts may be transferred back to the NIH Innovation Account. Al amounts
authorized by the Cures Act have been fully appropriated to the Innovation Account since
FY2017, including $404 mil ion for FY2021. For FY2022, $496 mil ion is authorized to be
appropriated.33
On December 27, 2020, Congress and the President enacted the Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2021 (P.L. 116-260), which included final FY2021 LHHS appropriations in Division H,
Interior/Environment appropriations in Division G, and full year mandatory type 1 diabetes
funding in Division BB. The enacted FY2021 NIH program level is $43.084 bil ion and is made
up of the following:34
$41.356 bil ion in discretionary LHHS budget authority (nontransfer);
$1.272 bil ion pursuant to the PHS program evaluation transfer and a $225
mil ion transfer from the HHS nonrecurring expenses fund (NEF; this amount is
not reflected in the program level total shown above);35
$81.5 mil ion for the Superfund research program and related activities from
Interior/Environment appropriations; and
$150 mil ion in annual funding for the mandatory type 1 diabetes research
program.
31 Specifically, P.L. 116-260, Division H, T itle II, Section 204.
32 See section on 21st Century Cures Act in CRS Report R41705,
The National Institutes of Health (NIH): Background
and Congressional Issues.
33 P.L. 114-255, Section 1001.
34 T his report uses numbers from U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations,
Report Accompanying
Departm ents of Labor, Health and Hum an Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 117th Cong.,
July 19, 2021, H.Rept. 117-96 as amended by H.R. 2502 passed by the House on July 29, 2021. In some cases, there
are discrepancies between the numbers in H.Rept. 117-96 and the FY2021 and FY2022 amounts as enacted in P.L.
116-260, Division H and in NIH FY2022 budget request documents.
35 T he nonrecurring expenses fund (NEF) permits HHS to transfer unobligated balances of expired discretionary funds
from FY2008 and subsequent years into the NEF account. T he uses of funds include capital acquisitions such as
information technology (IT) and facilities infrastructure (42 U.S.C. §3514a). Congress may direct uses of NEF in
appropriations laws.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
President Biden’s FY2022 budget request proposes that NIH be provided with a total program
level of $51.883 bil ion, an increase of $8.799 bil ion (+20%) from FY2021-enacted levels. The
proposed FY2022 program level would be made up of36
$50.378 bil ion in discretionary LHHS budget authority (nontransfer);
$1.272 bil ion pursuant to the PHS program evaluation transfer;
$83.5 mil ion for the Superfund research program and related activities from
Interior/Environment appropriations; and
$150 mil ion in annual funding for the mandatory type 1 diabetes research
program.37
Under the President’s FY2022 request, al existing IC accounts would receive an increase
compared to FY2021 funding levels, except for the OD, which would receive a decrease of $174
mil ion (-7%). In addition, the full amount ($496 mil ion) authorized by the Cures Act for
FY2022 would be appropriated to the Innovation Account. The Buildings and Facilities (B&F)
account would receive an increase of $50 mil ion (+25%) in LHHS discretionary budget
authority, but an overal decrease of $175 mil ion (-41%) when accounting for the additional NEF
transfer of $225 mil ion directed to the B&F account in FY2021 appropriations.38
The FY2022 budget request also proposes the creation of an Advanced Research Projects Agency
for Health (ARPA-H) within NIH. The budget request includes $6.5 bil ion for ARPA-H “to build
platforms and capabilities to deliver cures for cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and other
diseases.”39 The $6.5 bil ion for ARPA-H would account for 74% of the FY2022 budget request’s
$8.799 bil ion increase from FY2021 enacted levels. The creation of a new NIH component may
require amendments to the PHSA, especially Section 401(d), which specifies that “[i]n the
National Institutes of Health, the number of national research institutes and national centers may
not exceed a total of 27.” Further information on the ARPA-H proposal is provided below.
36 NIH,
Congressional Justification: FY2022, May 28, 2021, pp. 89-91, at https://officeofbudget.od.nih.gov/pdfs/FY22/
br/2022%20CJ%20Overview%20Volume%20May%2028.pdf .
37 T he FY2022 NIH budget request shows sequestration of $8.55 million for the $150 million in mandatory
appropriations for FY2022. See “Budget Mechanism T able,” p. 92 in https://officeofbudget.od.nih.gov/pdfs/FY22/br/
2022%20CJ%20Overview%20Supplementary%20Tables.pdf .
38 Accounting for the directed NEF transfer, the Buildings and Facilities account has a total FY2021 funding level of
$425 million.
39 NIH, Congressional Justification: FY2022, May 28, 2021, p . 10, at https://officeofbudget.od.nih.gov/pdfs/FY22/br/
2022%20CJ%20Overview%20Volume%20May%2028.pdf .
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) in the
FY2022 Budget Request
The budget request includes $6.5 bil ion for a new Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) “to
build platforms and capabilities to deliver cures for cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and other diseases.”
Funding was requested for a period of three years to “al ow for both scale-up in FY 2022 and redeployment of
resources in the next two years if projects fail to meet performance milestones.” The vast majority of funding
would support extramural research, with a smal amount of funding reserved for staffing and administrative
functions. Unlike extant NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs), ARPA-H would not have its own intramural research
program.
ARPA-H would be modeled after the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and would have
several “DARPA model” characteristics, including a flat and nimble organizational structure, tenure-limited
program managers with a high degree of autonomy to select and fund projects, and a milestone-based contract
approach. While this organizational structure would be “operational y unique” from NIH ICs, ARPA-H would stil
coordinate research and activities with NIH ICs and other HHS agencies.
The FY2022 budget request describes four broad project areas that ARPA-H would fund:
tackling bold chal enges requiring large scale, sustained, cross-sector coordination;
creating new capabilities (e.g., technologies, data resources, disease models);
supporting high-risk exploration that could establish entirely new paradigms; and
overcoming market failures through critical solutions, including financial incentives.
Most ARPA-H awards would be given to industry, universities, and nonprofit research institutions, and could
involve some agreements with other federal agencies. ARPA-H would make use of some of NIH’s flexible hiring
and funding authorities, such as its Other Transaction Authority mechanisms.40
For further information and analysis regarding ARPA-H, see CRS Report R46901,
Advanced Research Projects Agency
for Health (ARPA-H): Potential Questions for Consideration, by Kavya Sekar and Marcy E. Gal o.
In July 2021, the House passed a consolidated appropriations bil , H.R. 4502, with proposed
FY2022 funding levels for NIH accounts in Division A (LHHS appropriations) and Division E
(Interior/Environment appropriations). House-passed appropriations would provide NIH with a
FY2022 estimated program level of $49.587 bil ion, an increase of $6.503 bil ion (+15%) from
FY2021-enacted levels and a decrease of $2.296 bil ion (-4%) from the FY2022 budget request.
The House-proposed FY2022 program level includes the following amounts:41
$48.082 bil ion in discretionary LHHS budget authority (nontransfer);
$1.272 bil ion pursuant to the PHS program evaluation transfer;
$83.5 mil ion for the Superfund research program and related activities from
Interior/Environment appropriations; and
$150 mil ion in annual funding for the mandatory type 1 diabetes research
program.
House-passed appropriations would provide increases to al existing IC accounts compared to
FY2021 funding levels. Compared to the FY2022 budget request, House-passed appropriations
would provide increases to al existing IC accounts except for the National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development (-$252 mil ion) and the National Institute of Arthritis and
Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (-$1 mil ion). The House also included $3.0 bil ion for
40 NIH,
Congressional Justification: FY2022, May 28, 2021, pp. 10-11, at https://officeofbudget.od.nih.gov/pdfs/FY22/
br/2022%20CJ%20Overview%20Volume%20May%2028.pdf and HHS, “ FY2022 Budget in Brief,” pp. 59 -60, at
https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/fy-2022-budget-in-brief.pdf.
41 H.Rept. 117-96, Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Bill, 2022, July 19, 2021, pp. 475 -477, at https://www.congress.gov/117/crpt/hrpt96/CRPT-
117hrpt96.pdf.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
ARPA-H available through September 30, 2024, a decrease of $3.5 bil ion (-54%) compared to
the FY2022 budget request, and provided that funding would only be available if legislation
specifical y establishing ARPA-H is enacted into law.
On October 18, 2021, the chair of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Senator Patrick
Leahy, released drafts of nine annual appropriations bil s along with draft accompanying
explanatory statements. According to the chair, the purpose of this release is to further
negotiations toward enacting al 12 annual appropriations bil s prior to when the CR expires on
December 3.42 Proposed funding levels for NIH accounts were located in the LHHS and
Interior/Environment bil s.43 The Senate Appropriations Committee majority draft bil would
provide NIH with a FY2022 estimated program level of $48.073 bil ion, an increase of $4.99
bil ion (+12%) from FY2021-enacted levels and a decrease of $3.81 bil ion (-7%) from the
FY2022 budget request. The Senate Appropriations Committee majority draft bil FY2022
program level includes the following amounts:44
$46.624 bil ion in discretionary LHHS budget authority (nontransfer);
$1.215 bil ion pursuant to the PHS program evaluation transfer;
$84.5 mil ion for the Superfund research program and related activities from
Interior/Environment appropriations; and
$150 mil ion in annual funding for the mandatory type 1 diabetes research
program.
The Senate Appropriations Committee majority draft bil would provide increases to al existing
IC accounts compared to FY2021 funding levels. Compared to the FY2022 budget request, the
Senate Appropriations Committee majority draft bil would provide decreases to 16 IC accounts
and increases to 9 accounts and the Office of the Director. Notable decreases compared to the
budget request include the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (-$263
mil ion), the National Institute on Drug Abuse (-$20 mil ion), and the National Institute of
Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (-$5 mil ion). Notable increases include the
Office of the Director (+$301 mil ion), the National Institute on Aging (+$145 mil ion), and the
National Institute of Al ergy and Infectious Diseases (+$97 mil ion). The Senate Appropriations
Committee majority draft bil also included $2.4 bil ion for ARPA-H available through September
30, 2024, a decrease of $4.1 bil ion (-63%) compared to the FY2022 budget request, and provided
that funding would only be available if legislation specifical y establishing ARPA-H is enacted
into law.
42 T he text of the Senate majority draft LHHS bill and accompanying committee report is linked to the press release,
“Chairman Leahy Releases Remaining Nine Senate Appropriations Bills,” October 18, 2021,
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/chairman-leahy-releases-remaining-nine-senate-appropriations-
bills. See also “ Shelby: Democrats’ Partisan Bills T hreaten FY22 Appropriations Process,” October 18, 2021,
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/shelby-democrats-partisan-bills-threaten-fy22-appropriations-process.
43 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations majority staff, “Chairman Leahy Releases Remaining Nine
Senate Appropriations Bills,” press release, October 18, 2021, at https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/
chairman-leahy-releases-remaining-nine-senate-appropriations-bills.
44 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education, and Related Agencies, Explanatory Statement for Labor, Health and Human Services,
Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2022, Summary of Budget Estimates and Committee
Recommendations, 117th Cong., October 18, 2021, pp. 348-349 and U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on
Appropriations, Subcommittee on Department of the Interior, E nvironment, and Related Agencies, Explanatory
Statement for the Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2022, Summary
of Bill, 117th Cong., October 18, 2021, p. 228.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Table 9. National Institutes of Health Funding
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Institutes/Centers
Enacted
Request
House
S. Drafte
Final
Cancer Institute (NCI)
6,560
6,733
6,994
6,772
Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
3,665
3,846
3,867
3,842
Dental/Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
485
516
519
516
Diabetes/Digestive/Kidney (NIDDK
)b
2,132
2,219
2,239
2,217
Neurological Disorders/Stroke (NINDS)
2,513
2,783
2,800
2,786
Al ergy/Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
6,070
6,246
6,558
6,343
General Medical Sciences (NIGMS
)c
1,720
1,825
1,868
1,853
Child Health/Human Development
1,590
1,942
1,690
1,679
(NICHD)
National Eye Institute (NEI)
836
859
877
858
Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS
)d
733
854
858
852
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
3,899
4,036
4,258
4,181
Arthritis/Musculoskeletal/Skin Diseases
634
680
679
675
(NIAMS)
Deafness/Communication Disorders
498
512
523
511
(NIDCD)
National Institute of Mental Health
2,104
2,214
2,223
2,219
(NIMH)
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
1,480
1,853
1,860
1,833
Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism (NIAAA)
555
570
582
570
Nursing Research (NINR)
175
200
201
200
Human Genome Research Institute
616
633
646
635
(NHGRI)
Biomedical Imaging/Bioengineering (NIBIB)
411
422
431
422
Minority Health/Health Disparities
391
652
662
651
(NIMHD)
Complementary/Integrative Health
154
184
185
184
(NCCIH)
Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)
855
879
898
878
Fogarty International Center (FIC)
84
96
97
96
National Library of Medicine (NLM)
464
475
487
476
Office of Director (OD
)e
2,424
2,250
2,680
2,551
Innovation Accoun
tf
109
150
150
150
Buildings and Facilities (B&F
)g
200
250
250
275
Advanced Research Projects Agency for
—
6,500
3,000
2,400
Health (ARPA-H)
Subtotal, NIH (LHHS
41,356
50,378
48,082
46,624
Discretionary BA)
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Institutes/Centers
Enacted
Request
House
S. Drafte
Final
PHS Program Evaluation (provided to
1,272
1,272
1,272
1,215
NIGMS)
Superfund (Interior approp. to NIEHS
)h
82
84
84
85
Nonrecurring Expenses Fund (NEF)
225
—
—
—
Transfer (to Buildings and Facilities
)i
Mandatory type 1 diabetes funds (to
150
150k
150
150
NIDDK
)j
NIH Program Level
43,084
51,883
49,587
48,073
Sources: FY2021 Enacted, FY2022 Budget Request, and FY2022 House is from U.S. Congress, House
Committee on Appropriations,
Report Accompanying Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education,
and Related Agencies Appropriations Bil , 117th Congress, July 19, 2021, H.Rept. 117-96. The FY2022 House
numbers incorporate the budgetary effects of the amendments to H.R. 2502 that were adopted by the House on
July 29, 2021. FY2022 Senate Majority is from the majority draft bil s, majority draft explanatory statements, and
majority bil summaries for Senate LHHS and Interior/Environment Subcommittees, linked at
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/chairman-leahy-relea ses-rema ining-nine-senate-
appropriations-bil s; and Summary of Budget Estimates and Committee Recommendations, 117 th Congress,
October 18, 2021, pp. 348-349; except where noted below.
Notes: Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for the columns currently
blank may become available as action is completed. Amounts in table may differ from actuals in many cases. By
convention, budget tables such a
s Table 9 do not subtract the amount of transfers to the evaluation tap from
the agencies’ appropriation. In general, amounts provided to NIH for emergency requirements are excluded
from these totals (e.g., the FY2021 column does not include the amounts provided for COVID response in
Division M of P.L. 116-260).
a. The LHHS and Interior/Environment appropriations bil s have not been reported by the Senate
Appropriations Committee, but were released by the Senate Majority Leader as a basis for discussions and
negotiation with the House (see the press release, “Chairman Leahy Releases Remaining Nine Senate
Appropriations Bil s,” October 18, 2021, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/chairman-
leahy-releases-remaining-nine-senate-appropriations-bil s. See also “Shelby: Democrats’ Partisan Bil s
Threaten FY22 Appropriations Process,” October 18, 2021, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/
shelby-democrats-partisan-bil s-threaten-fy22-appropriations-process.)
b. Amounts for the NIDDK do not include mandatory funding for type 1 diabetes research (see note i).
c. Amounts for NIGMS do not include funds from PHS Evaluation Set-Aside (§241 of the PHS Act).
d. Amounts for NIEHS do not include Interior/Environment Appropriations amount for Superfund research
(see note g).
e. Includes $12.6 mil ion transfer from the Pediatric Research Initiative Fund (PRIF) as auth orized by the
Gabriel a Mil er Kids First Research Act.
f.
The amount shown for the NIH Innovation Account in each column represents only a portion of the total
appropriation to the account ($404 mil ion for the FY2021; $496 mil ion for FY2022). The remainin g funds
for this account are reflected, where applicable, in the totals for other ICs. For FY2022, this includes $194
to NCI for cancer research and $76 mil ion to each of NINDS and NIMH for the BRAIN Initiative ($152
mil ion total).
g. FY2021 amount for Buildings and Facilities does not reflect directed nonrecurring expenses fund transfer in
FY2021 appropriations. See note h.
h. This is a separate account in the Interior/Environment appropriations for National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) research activities related to Superfund research.
i.
The nonrecurring expenses fund permits HHS to transfer unobligated balances of expired discretionary
funds from FY2008 and subsequent years into the NEF account. Congress and the President authorized use
of the funds for capital acquisitions including information technology (IT) and facilities infrastructure (42
U.S.C. §3514a). Recent LHHS appropriations, including FY2021 appropriations, have directed that specific
NEF funding amounts be transferred to the NIH Buildings and Facilities account.
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j.
Mandatory funds are available to NIDDK for type 1 diabetes research under PHSA Sec. 330B, which was
most recently extended through FY2023 by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 ( P.L. 116-260,
Division BB, Title III).
k. FY2022 budget request documents show the FY2022 amount for the type I diabetes research program
($141 mil ion) as lower than enacted funding level for FY2022 ($150 mil ion). According to the budget
request, the FY2022 amount reflects sequestration of $8.55 mil ion. See “Budget Mechanism Table,” p. 92 in
https://officeofbudget.od.nih.gov/pdfs/FY22/br/2022%20CJ%20Overview%20Supplementary%20Tables.pdf.
Department of Energy45
The Department of Energy was established in 1977 by the Department of Energy Organization
Act (P.L. 95-91), which combined energy-related programs from a variety of agencies,
particularly defense-related nuclear programs that dated back to the Manhattan Project. Today,
DOE conducts basic scientific research in fields ranging from nuclear physics to the biological
and environmental sciences; basic and applied R&D relating to energy production and use; and
R&D on nuclear weapons, nuclear nonproliferation, and defense nuclear reactors. The department
has a system of 17 national laboratories around the country, mostly operated by contractors, that
together account for about 40% of al DOE expenditures.
The Administration’s FY2022 budget request for DOE includes about $20.518 bil ion for R&D
and related activities, including programs in three broad categories: science, national security, and
energy. This request is about 16.1% more than the comparable enacted FY2021 amount of
$17.677 bil ion. The House bil would provide about $19.376 bil ion. The Senate bil would
provide about $19.574 bil ion. (Se
e Table 10 for details.)
The request for the DOE Office of Science is $7.440 bil ion, an increase of 5.9% from the
FY2021 appropriation of $7.026 bil ion. Funding would increase for al six of the office’s major
research programs. In the largest program, Basic Energy Sciences, requested increases of $109
mil ion for research and $30 mil ion for operations and equipment at scientific user facilities
would be partial y offset by a requested decrease of $85 mil ion for facility construction. In
Biological and Environmental Research, funding for the Earth and Environmental Systems
Sciences subprogram would increase by $71 mil ion (20.3%), with a focus on Earth system
modeling. In Fusion Energy Sciences, the U.S. contribution to construction of the International
Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), a fusion energy demonstration and research facility
in France, would be $221 mil ion (down from $242 mil ion in FY2021). Following a
reorganization of the Office of Science in FY2020, a new program in Isotope R&D and
Production ($90 mil ion requested) would support activities previously funded in Nuclear Physics
($75 mil ion in FY2021), while a new program in Accelerator R&D and Production ($24 mil ion
requested) would support activities previously funded in High Energy Physics ($17 mil ion in
FY2021).
The House bil would provide $7.320 bil ion for the Office of Science, while the Senate bil
would provide $7.490 bil ion. In the House bil , the High Energy Physics and Fusion Energy
Sciences programs would receive more than requested, while the other major programs would
receive less (although al but Nuclear Physics would receive more than in FY2021). In the Senate
bil , al but one of the major programs would receive the requested amount or more, while Fusion
Energy Sciences would receive less. Within Fusion Energy Sciences, the U.S. contribution to
ITER would be $242 mil ion in the House bil and the requested amount in the Senate bil .
45 T his section was written by Daniel Morgan, Specialist in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources, Science,
and Industry Division.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
The request for DOE national security R&D is $5.252 bil ion, an increase of 1.5% from $5.175
bil ion in FY2021. In the Weapons Activities account, funding for Stockpile Research,
Technology, and Engineering would decrease by 4.4%. The bulk of this decrease would be for
Assessment Science ($690 mil ion, down from $769 mil ion in FY2021) and Inertial
Confinement Fusion ($529 mil ion, down from $575 mil ion in FY2021). Funding for Naval
Reactors would increase by $177 mil ion (10.5%), including increases for operations and
infrastructure (up $63 mil ion), development (up $73 mil ion) and construction (up $61 mil ion).
The House bil would provide $5.398 bil ion for national security R&D, while the Senate bil
would provide $5.339 bil ion. In Weapons Activities, both bil s would provide the FY2021
amount for Assessment Science and $5 mil ion more than the FY2021 amount for Inertial
Confinement Fusion. Naval Reactors would receive $6 mil ion (0.3%) more than the
Administration request in the House bil and $20 mil ion (1%) less than the request in the Senate
bil . Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation R&D would receive $43 mil ion (6.3%) more than the
request in the House bil and the requested amount in the Senate bil .
The request for DOE energy R&D is $7.826 bil ion, an increase of 42.9% from $5.477 bil ion in
FY2021. Funding for energy efficiency and renewable energy R&D would increase by 57.9%,
with increases in al major research areas and a priority on reducing emissions in the near term (in
contrast to Trump Administration budgets, which proposed a focus on early-stage R&D). An
18.7% increase for the Fossil Energy and Carbon Management account (formerly Fossil Energy
R&D) would be focused on climate-centric activities such as carbon capture, utilization, and
storage (up $117 mil ion, 62.0%) and environmental- and emissions-related natural gas
technologies (up $73 mil ion, 128.1%). Funding for nuclear energy R&D would increase by $343
mil ion (22.7%), including increases of $120 mil ion (48.1%) for advanced reactor demonstration
and $100 mil ion (222.2%) for the Versatile Test Reactor project. The Advanced Research
Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E), which is intended to advance high-impact energy
technologies that have too much technical and financial uncertainty to attract near-term private-
sector investment, would receive $500 mil ion (up 17.1%), while a proposed new Advanced
Research Projects Agency–Climate (ARPA-C) would receive $200 mil ion.
The House bil would provide $6.658 bil ion for energy R&D, while the Senate bil would
provide $6.745 bil ion. In both bil s, most programs in this category would receive more than in
FY2021 but less than the Administration request for FY2022. In Nuclear Energy, neither bil
would fund the Versatile Test Reactor project. ARPA-E would receive $100 mil ion (20.0%) more
than the request in the House bil and the requested amount in the Senate bil . ARPA-C, however,
would not be funded in either bil . The House committee report directs DOE to fund the work
proposed for ARPA-C through ARPA-E. The Senate committee report notes that establishing
ARPA-C would require legislation and “encourages ARPA-E to consider proposed activities
under ARPA-C that are consistent with ARPA-E’s mission and authorization.”
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Table 10. Department of Energy R&D and Related Activities
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Enacted Request
House
S. Cmte.
Enacted
Science
7,026
7,440
7,320
7,490
Basic Energy Sciences
2,245
2,300
2,293
2,323
High Energy Physics
1,046
1,061
1,078
1,079
Biological and Environmental Research
753
828
805
828
Nuclear Physics
713
720
665
744
Advanced Scientific Computing Research
1,015
1,040
1,025
1,040
Fusion Energy Sciences
672
675
698
660
Isotope R&D and Production
—
90
82
90
Accelerator R&D and Production
—
24
18
24
Other
582
702
656
702
National Security
5,175
5,252
5,398
5,339
Weapons Activities Stockpile RT&E
2,814
2,691
2,788
2,793
Naval Reactors
1,684
1,861
1,867
1,841
Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation R&
Da
642
673
715
673
Def. Environmental Cleanup Technol. Devel.
35
28
28
33
Energy
5,477
7,826
6,658
6,745
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energ
yb
2,484
3,924
3,188
3,389
Fossil Energy and Carbon Managemen
tc
750
890
816
850
Nuclear Energy
1,508
1,851
1,675
1,591
Electricity
212
327
267
303
Cybersec., En. Secy., and Emerg. Respon. R&D
96
135
112
112
Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy
427
500
600
500
Advanced Research Projects Agency–Climate
—
200
0
0
DOE, Total
17,677
20,518
19,376
19,574
Sources: FY2021 enacted from P.L. 116-260 and explanatory statement,
Congressional Record, December 21,
2020, Book IV. FY2022 request from DOE FY2022 congressional budget justification, https://www.energy.gov/
cfo/articles/fy-2022-budget-justification. FY2022 House from H.R. 4502 as passed by the House and H.Rept. 117-
98 (on H.R. 4549). FY2022 Senate committee from S. 2605 as reported and S.Rept. 117-36.
Notes: Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for the columns currently
blank may become available as action is completed.
a. Including National Technical Nuclear Forensics R&D.
b. Excluding Weatherization and Intergovernmental Activities.
c. Fossil Energy R&D in FY2021.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
National Aeronautics and Space Administration46
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration was created in 1958 by the National
Aeronautics and Space Act (P.L. 85-568) to conduct civilian space and aeronautics activities.
NASA has research programs in planetary science, Earth science, heliophysics, astrophysics, and
aeronautics, as wel as development programs for future human spacecraft and for multipurpose
space technology such as advanced propulsion systems. In addition, NASA operates the
International Space Station (ISS) as a facility for R&D and other purposes.
The Administration has requested about $21.751 bil ion for NASA R&D in FY2022. This would
be 7.0% more than the FY2021 level of about $20.324 bil ion. The House bil would provide
about $21.996 bil ion. The Senate draft bil would provide about $21.789 bil ion. For a
breakdown of these amounts, se
e Table 11. NASA R&D funding comes through five accounts:
Science; Aeronautics; Space Technology; Exploration (cal ed Deep Space Exploration Systems in
the Administration’s budget request); and the ISS, Commercial Crew, and Commercial Low Earth
Orbit (LEO) Development portions of Space Operations.
The OMB figures presented i
n Table 1 indicate a substantial y smal er amount for NASA R&D
than the figures presented in this section. To al ow consistent tracking as Congress acts on
FY2022 appropriations legislation, this section treats the entirety of the Exploration account as
R&D. As systems being developed under that account move from R&D to testing and ultimately
operations, the share of the account spent on R&D has decreased. OMB considers about half of
the Exploration account to be non-R&D.
The FY2022 request for Science is $7.931 bil ion, an increase of 8.6% from FY2021. The request
for Earth Science includes funding for the Pre-Aerosol, Clouds, and Ocean Ecosystem (PACE)
and Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory (CLARREO) Pathfinder missions
($119 mil ion and $19 mil ion, respectively). It also includes funding to initiate the development
of a system of future satel ites known as the Earth System Observatory. The request for
Astrophysics includes $502 mil ion for the Roman Space Telescope (formerly the Wide Field
Infrared Space Telescope, WFIRST) but no funds for the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared
Astronomy (SOFIA, $85 mil ion in FY2021). PACE, CLARREO Pathfinder, WFIRST, and
SOFIA were al proposed for termination in previous budgets. A requested reduction in funding
for the James Webb Space Telescope in FY2022 reflects that mission’s planned launch in
November 2021. The Planetary Science request includes $653 mil ion (up from $246 mil ion in
FY2021) for a Mars sample return mission and $472 mil ion (up from $435 mil ion in FY2021)
for a mission to orbit Jupiter’s moon Europa.
The House bil would provide $38 mil ion more than the request for Science, while the draft
Senate bil would provide $30 mil ion less. Both bil s would provide the requested funding for
PACE, CLARREO Pathfinder, and the Roman Space Telescope. The House bil would fund
SOFIA at the FY2021 level; the draft Senate bil does not mention SOFIA. In Planetary Science,
the House bil would provide $35 mil ion more than the request for a Mars sample return mission
and the requested amount for a Europa mission, with guidance as in past years regarding the
launch vehicle for the Europa mission. The draft Senate bil would provide the requested amount
for Mars sample return and does not mention Europa.
The FY2022 request for Aeronautics is $915 mil ion, an increase of 10.4% from $829 mil ion in
FY2021. The budget proposes to initiate a Sustainable Flight National Partnership, including the
46 T his section was written by Daniel Morgan, Specialist in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources, Science,
and Industry Division.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
development of a full-scale demonstrator aircraft with an electrified powertrain ($91 mil ion in
FY2022). The House bil would provide $935 mil ion, including $10 mil ion more than the
request for hypersonics technology and $10 mil ion more than the request for the Integrated
Aviation Systems Program. The draft Senate bil would provide $940 mil ion, including $7
mil ion more than the request for university-led aeronautics materials research and $32 mil ion
for the High-Rate Composite Aircraft Manufacturing (HiCAM) project.
The FY2022 request for Space Technology is $1.425 bil ion, an increase of 29.5% from $1.100
bil ion in FY2021. The bulk of the requested increase would be for the Technology Maturation
program ($491 mil ion, up from $227 mil ion). No funds are requested for nuclear propulsion, but
the request for Technology Demonstration includes $34 mil ion for nuclear surface power
systems for the Moon and Mars. The combined RESTORE/SPIDER mission to demonstrate in-
space satel ite servicing and robotic manufacturing (also known as On-orbit Servicing, Assembly,
and Manufacturing 1, or OSAM-1) would receive $227 mil ion, the same as in FY2021. In recent
years, appropriations report language has directed NASA to focus Space Technology on broad
technology goals that can serve al of NASA, not just its human exploration activities. The
FY2022 budget justification states, “The Space Technology portfolio is broadening to develop
technologies that can benefit other NASA Directorates, the commercial space sector and other
government agencies, as appropriate.” The House bil would provide $1.280 billion, while the
draft Senate bil would provide $1.250 bil ion. Both bil s would provide $110 mil ion, the
FY2021 amount, for nuclear thermal propulsion, and the requested amount for OSAM-1. The
House committee report “reaffirms [the committee’s] support for the independence of the Space
Technology Mission Directorate” and “directs NASA to preserve the Directorate’s focus across
NASA and in support of each of the mission directorates.”
The FY2022 request for Deep Space Exploration Systems (currently Exploration) is $6.880
bil ion, an increase of 5.6% from $6.517 in FY2021. Within this account, the request for
Exploration Systems Development includes $1.407 bil ion for the Orion crew capsule (up from
$1.404 bil ion in FY2021) and $2.487 bil ion for the Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket
(SLS, down from $2.561 bil ion). The proposed 21.5% increase for Exploration R&D reflects a
request for $1.195 bil ion (up from $928 mil ion) for development of a Human Landing System
(HLS) for lunar exploration. NASA’s decision to award a single HLS contract on the grounds of
limited funding was protested by the unselected vendors and remains controversial in Congress.
NASA has suggested that additional funds (beyond those requested in the budget) might be
needed to enable selection of a second HLS contractor.
The House bil would provide $399 mil ion more than the request for Exploration, including
increases of $149 mil ion for the Space Launch System, $100 mil ion for Exploration Ground
Systems, and $150 mil ion for the HLS. Regarding HLS, the House committee report “urges
NASA to bolster competition in lander development and production.” The draft Senate bil would
provide $80 mil ion more than the request for Exploration, including increases of $20 mil ion for
Orion, $100 mil ion for Exploration Ground Systems, and $100 mil ion for the HLS. At NASA’s
request, subsequent to the original budget request, the draft Senate bil would also fund the
Human Research Program ($130 mil ion) in the Space Operations account rather than in
Exploration. Regarding HLS, the draft Senate report cal s on NASA to “ensure redundancy and
competition, including robust support for ... no fewer than two HLS teams.” It also criticizes
“NASA’s rhetoric of blaming Congress and this Committee for the lack of resources needed to
support two HLS teams.”
In the Space Operations account, the request includes $1.328 bil ion for the ISS in FY2022 (up
from $1.322 in FY2021); $155 mil ion for the Commercial Crew program (down from $300
mil ion); and $101 mil ion for Commercial LEO Development (up from $17 mil ion).
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Commercial crew activities are transitioning from development to operations (which is funded
separately). SpaceX launched its first post-certification crewed flight to the ISS in November
2020; certification of Boeing’s competing commercial crew system is anticipated in 2022. The
Commercial LEO Development program, intended to stimulate a commercial space economy in
low Earth orbit, was initiated in the FY2019 budget. The Trump Administration requested $150
mil ion for it each year from then through FY2021; Congress has so far appropriated a total of
$72 mil ion. The House and Senate committee reports do not specify how much of their
recommended Space Operations funding should be al ocated to the ISS or Commercial Crew. The
House bil would provide $45 mil ion for Commercial LEO Development, while the draft Senate
bil would provide the requested $101 mil ion.
Table 11. National Aeronautics and Space Administration R&D
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Op. Plan
Request
H. Cmte.
S. Draft
Enacted
Science
7,301
7,931
7,970
7,901
Earth Science
2,000
2,250
2,250
2,230
Planetary Science
2,700
3,200
3,235
3,161
Astrophysics
1,356
1,400
1,446
1,400
James Webb Space Telescope
415
175
175
175
Heliophysics
751
797
773
826
Biological and Physical Sciences
79
109
90
109
Aeronautics
829
915
935
940
Space Technology
1,100
1,425
1,280
1,250
Exploration / Deep Space Expl. Systems
6,517
6,880
7,279
6,960
Exploration Systems Development
4,545
4,484
4,733
4,604
Exploration R&D
1,973
2,397
2,547
2,357
Space Operationsa
1,638
1,583
n/s
n/s
International Space Station
1,322
1,328
n/s
n/s
Commercial Crew
300
155
n/s
n/s
Commercial LEO Development
17
101
45
101
Subtotal R&D
17,385
18,735
18,991e
18,758e
Non-R&D Program
sc
2,521
2,627
2,62
7e
2,61
5e
Safety, Security, and Mission Services
2,937
3,049
3,030
3,064
Associated with R&D d
2,565
2,674
2,662
2,689
Construction & Environmental C&R
429
390
390
390
—e
Associated with R&D d
374
342
343
343
NASA, Total (R&D)
20,324
21,751
21,996e
21,789e
NASA, Total
23,271
24,801
25,038
24,827
Sources: FY2021 operating plan and FY2022 request from NASA FY2022 congressional budget justification,
http://www.nasa.gov/news/budget/. FY2022 House committee from H.R. 4505 as reported and H.Rept. 117-97.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
FY2022 Senate draft from draft bil and report released by the Senate Appropriations Committee on October
18, 2021.
Notes: FY2021 operating plan amounts reflect enacted appropriations adjusted for transfers and
reprogramming. Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. n/s = not specified. LEO =
Low Earth Orbit. C&R = Compliance and Remediation. Figures for the columns currently blank may become
available as action is completed.
a. Excluding non-R&D activities: Space and Flight Support and Space Transportation other than Commercial
Crew.
b. Includes CRS estimate of unspecified amounts in Space Operations in order to al ow calculation of a total.
c. Non-R&D activities in Space Operations (see note a); STEM Engagement; and Inspector General.
d. CRS estimates the al ocation between R&D and non-R&D in proportion to the underlying program amounts
in order to al ow calculation of a total for R&D.
e. Not shown in table: supplemental $321 mil ion for hurricane repairs provided in P.L. 117-43.
National Science Foundation47
The National Science Foundation supports basic research and education in the nonmedical
sciences and engineering. Congress established the foundation as an independent federal agency
in 1950 to “promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and
welfare; to secure the national defense; and for other purposes.”48 The NSF is a major source of
federal support for U.S. university research, especial y in the social sciences, mathematics, and
computer science. It is also responsible for significant shares of the federal science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education program portfolio and federal STEM student
aid and support.
NSF has six appropriations accounts: Research and Related Activities (RRA, the main research
account), Education and Human Resources (EHR, the main education account), Major Research
Equipment and Facilities Construction (MREFC), Agency Operations and Award Management
(AOAM), the National Science Board (NSB), and the Office of Inspector General (OIG).
Appropriations are general y provided at the account level, while program-specific direction may
be included in appropriations acts, or accompanying conference reports or explanatory
statements.
Funding for R&D is included in the RRA, EHR, and MREFC accounts. (The RRA and EHR
accounts also include non-R&D funding.) Together, these three accounts comprise over 95% of
the total requested funding for NSF. Actual R&D obligations for each account are known after
NSF al ocates funding appropriations to specific activities and reports those figures.49 The budget
request specifies R&D funding for the conduct of research, including basic and applied research,
and for physical assets, including R&D facilities and major equipment. Funding amounts for
FY2021 enacted (or estimated, for subaccount and R&D amounts as noted) and FY2022
requested levels are reported by account, including amounts for R&D conduct and physical assets
where applicable, i
n Table 12.
47 T his section was written by Laurie Harris, Analyst in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources, Science, and
Industry Division.
48 T he National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (P.L. 81 -507).
49 R&D actual (FY2020), estimated (FY2021), and requested (FY2022) amounts are reported in the “Quantitative Data
T ables” section of the NSF
FY2022 Budget Request to Congress, May 28, 2021, pp. QDT -1 – QDT -7.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Funding for NSF for FY2021 was enacted on December 27, 2020.50 Additional y, NSF received
$600 mil ion in supplemental two-year appropriations in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
(P.L. 117-2) “to fund or extend new and existing research grants, cooperative agreements,
scholarships, fel owships, and apprenticeships, and related administrative expenses to prevent,
prepare for, and respond to coronavirus.”51 Funding details below the account level were not
available at the time the FY2022 budget request was prepared. Therefore, at the account level, the
FY2022 request amounts are compared to the FY2021 enacted amounts in this analysis; below
the account level, the FY2022 request amounts are compared to FY2021 estimated amounts for
subaccounts and R&D amounts. FY2021 enacted/estimated and FY2022 requested amounts are
reported by account and for R&D conduct and facilities and equipment i
n Table 12. Overall. The Administration is requesting $10.2 bil ion for the NSF in FY2022, $1.68 bil ion
(19.8%) more than the FY2021 enacted amount. The request would increase budget authority in
al three of the R&D accounts relative to the FY2021 enacted level: RRA by $1.23 bil ion
(17.8%), EHR by $319 mil ion (33.0%), and MREFC by $8.0 mil ion (3.3%). Overal , NSF
estimates that, under the FY2022 request, agency-wide funding rates for competitive awards (i.e.,
the percentage of submitted proposals that are successfully awarded funding after competitive
review) would increase slightly from 27% to 29%, with an estimated 13,800 awards.
For FY2022, $8.17 bil ion is requested for R&D activities, a $1.29 bil ion increase from FY2021
estimated funding for R&D. R&D activities account for approximately 80% of NSF’s total
funding. The total request for R&D activities includes $7.58 bil ion (93%) for the conduct of
R&D, and $595 mil ion (7%) for R&D facilities and major equipment. Of funding requested for
the conduct of R&D, 86% is requested for basic research, and 14% for applied research. Overal
funding for R&D facilities and major equipment supports not only the construction and
acquisition phases, funded through MREFC ($249 mil ion requested), but also planning, design,
and post-construction operations and maintenance, funded through RRA ($346 mil ion
requested).
As reported by the House Committee on Appropriations on July 19, 2021, H.R. 4505, the
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2022, would provide $9.6
bil ion in total discretionary funding for NSF, $535 mil ion (5.3%) below the FY2022 request and
$1.1 bil ion (13.5%) above the FY2021 enacted amount. As released by the Senate Committee on
Appropriations on October 18, 2021, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Appropriations, 2022, committee print would provide $9.5 bil ion in total discretionary funding
for NSF, $682 mil ion (6.7%) below the FY2022 request and $1.0 bil ion (11.8%) above the
FY2021 enacted amount.52
Research. The Administration seeks $8.14 bil ion for RRA in FY2022, a $1.23 bil ion (17.8%)
increase compared to the FY2021 enacted funding. Within the RRA account, the FY2022 request
includes $7.30 bil ion for R&D, an increase of $1.13 bil ion (18.3%) compared to the FY2021
50 T he Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (P.L. 116-260); and Explanatory Statement, Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2021, Division B (Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2021),
Congressional Record, vol. 166, no. 218—Book III (December 21, 2021), pp. H7947-H7948.
51 T hese funds are not included in the FY2021 enacted/estimated funding amounts because they are two -year funds that
will not be fully allocated in FY2021; for further information, see NSF
FY2022 Budget Request to Congress, p.
Performance and Management -12.
52 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement for the Commerce, Justice, Science,
and Related Agencies Appropriations, 2022 (com m ittee print) , 117th Cong., 1st sess., October 18, 2021, p. 162,
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/download/cjsrept_final.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
estimated amount. Of this amount, the majority ($6.96 bil ion, 95%) is requested for the conduct
of research, including $6.30 bil ion for basic research and $659 mil ion for applied research.
Compared to the FY2021 estimated levels, the FY2022 request includes increases for al 11 RRA
subaccounts.53 This includes a request of $865 mil ion for a proposed new Directorate for
Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (TIP), meant to support crosscutting programs and
activities, accelerate the translation of research to market, and catalyze partnerships across
academia, industry, government, investors, and civil society.54 The FY2022 request also includes
$240 mil ion for the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) program,
a $39.6 mil ion (19.8%) increase compared to FY2021 estimated funding.
As reported by the House Committee on Appropriations on July 19, 2021, H.R. 4505 would
provide $7.7 bil ion for RRA, $444 mil ion (5.5%) below the FY2022 request and $786 mil ion
(11.4%) above the FY2021 enacted amount. As released by the Senate Committee on
Appropriations on October 18, 2021, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Appropriations, 2022, committee print would provide $7.7 bil ion for RRA, $473 mil ion (5.8%)
below the FY2022 request and $757 mil ion (11.0%) above the FY2021 enacted amount.55
Education. The FY2022 request for the EHR account is $1.29 bil ion, $319 mil ion (33%) more
than the FY2021 enacted amount. By program division, in terms of both dollars and percent, the
Division of Human Resource Development would receive the largest increase, $92.5 mil ion
(43%) over the FY2021 estimated level. EHR programs of particular interest to congressional
policymakers include the Graduate Research Fel owship Program (GRFP) and National Research
Traineeship (NRT) programs. The FY2022 request for GRFP is $318 mil ion, an increase of $34.0
mil ion (12%) from the FY2021 estimated level.56 The FY2022 request for NRT is $58 mil ion,
equal to the FY2021 estimated level.
Within EHR, requested funding for R&D is $620 mil ion, which is $154 mil ion (33%) more than
the FY2021 estimated funding amount and accounts for approximately 7.6% of the agency’s total
R&D request. Nearly al of the requested funding would support the conduct of R&D, including
$232 mil ion for basic research and $388 mil ion for applied research.
As reported by the House Committee on Appropriations on July 19, 2021, H.R. 4505 would
provide $1.3 bil ion for EHR, $13.0 mil ion (1.0%) below the FY2022 request and $306 mil ion
(31.6%) above the FY2021 enacted amount. As released by the Senate Committee on
Appropriations on October 18, 2021, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Appropriations, 2022, committee print would provide $1.1 bil ion for EHR, $187 mil ion (14.5%)
below the FY2022 request and $132 mil ion (13.6%) above the FY2022 enacted amount.57
Construction. The MREFC account supports large construction projects and larger mid-scale
research infrastructure, with al of the funding supporting R&D facilities. The construction phases
53 T he RRA funding table in the budget request seems to show a decrease for the IA subaccount. As noted in the IA
summary funding table, this is because two programs previously in the IA subaccount are moved to other accounts: the
Graduate Research Fellowship program is consolidated into the EHR account, and the Convergence Accelerator
(discussed below) is moved to the T IP subaccount; NSF
FY2022 Budget Request to Congress, p. IA-1.
54 For more information on the T IP Directorate, see NSF,
FY2022 Budget Request to Congress, pp. T IP-1 – T IP-8,
https://www.nsf.gov/about/budget/fy2022/pdf/52_fy2022.pdf.
55 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement for the Commerce, Justice, Science,
and Related Agencies Appropriations, 2022 (com m ittee print) , 117th Cong., 1st sess., October 18, 2021, p. 163.
56 T he subset of GRFP funds provided through RRA in prior years would be consolidated into EHR in FY2022.
57 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement for the Commerce, Justice, Science,
and Related Agencies Appropriations, 2022 (com m ittee print), 117th Cong., 1st sess., October 18, 2021, p. 170.
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of such large-scale projects tend to span multiple years; therefore, NSF provides out-year
estimates of funding for major facilities for the duration of the anticipated timeline, which are
updated annual y. This section of the analysis includes comparisons to FY2021 estimated
funding, based on these projections. The Administration is seeking $249 mil ion for MREFC in
FY2022, $8.0 mil ion (3.3%) more than the FY2021 enacted amount.
Requested MREFC funding would support continued construction of the Vera C. Rubin
Observatory ($40.8 mil ion requested, equal to the FY2021 estimate)—previously cal ed the
Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST)—and the Antarctic Infrastructure Recapitalization
program (AIR, $90.0 mil ion requested, equal to the FY2021 estimate).58 The request includes
$36.0 mil ion for upgrades to the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland, which would represent
the third year of a five-year project. Additional y, $76.2 mil ion is requested for Mid-scale
Research Infrastructure projects (those projects with funding amounts in the $20 mil ion to $100
mil ion range); this was a new funding line-item in the MREFC account as of FY2020, meant to
manage support for upgrades to major facilities and stand-alone projects in this range as a
portfolio.
As reported by the House Committee on Appropriations on July 19, 2021, H.R. 4505 would
provide $249 mil ion for MREFC, equal to the FY2022 request and $8.0 mil ion (3.3%) below
the FY2021 enacted amount. As released by the Senate Committee on Appropriations on October
18, 2021, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations, 2022,
committee print would also provide $249 mil ion for MREFC.59
Other Initiatives. The FY2022 NSF budget request includes funding for multiple agency-wide
investments, including the Big Ideas and Convergence Accelerator (CA), as wel as three
multiagency initiatives. This funding is included in multiple NSF appropriations accounts, and
R&D amounts are not separately provided.
For FY2022, NSF requests funding for eight Big Ideas, including five Research and three
Enabling Big Ideas. The Big Ideas were first proposed in 2016 as an “endeavor to break down the
silos of conventional scientific research … to define and push the frontiers of global science and
engineering leadership and to invest in fundamental research.”60 Requested funding amounts for
each of the Big Ideas compared to the FY2021 estimated amounts include the following:61
Harnessing the Data Revolution for 21st-Century Science and Engineering
(HDR): $180 mil ion requested, up $5.8 mil ion (3.3%) from FY2021.
The Future of Work at the Human Technology Frontier (FW-HTF): $173 mil ion
requested, up $11 mil ion (6.8%) from FY2021.
Navigating the New Arctic (NNA): $37.2 mil ion requested, up $1.0 mil ion
(2.8%) from FY2021.
Understanding the Rules of Life (URoL): Predicting Phenotype: $113 mil ion
requested, up $30 mil ion (36%) from FY2021.
58 T he FY2022 funding for AIR is requested as part of re-baselining of the Antarctic Infrastructure Modernization for
Science (AIMS) program, which encountered significant disruptions and delays due to COVID-19 restrictions as field
work and on-ice construction work was in the early stages; NSF,
FY2022 Budget Request to Congress, pp. MREFC-8 –
MREFC-13.
59 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement for the Commerce, Justice, Science,
and Related Agencies Appropriations, 2022 (com m ittee print) , 117th Cong., 1st sess., October 18, 2021, p. 169.
60 NSF,
FY2021 Budget Request to Congress, February 10, 202, pp. Overview-9 – Overview-10.
61 Starting in FY2021, activities of the Quantum Leap Big Idea are to be managed within NSF’s broader Quantum
Information Science (QIS) portfolio.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Windows on the Universe (WoU): $66.8 mil ion requested, up $2.6 mil ion
(4.1%) from FY2021.
Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented
Discoverers in Engineering and Science (NSF INCLUDES): $46.5 mil ion
requested, up $26.5 mil ion (132%) from FY2021.
Growing Convergence Research at NSF (GCR): $24.2 mil ion requested, up $8.2
mil ion (51%) from FY2021.
Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure: $126 mil ion requested, up $17.3 mil ion
(16%) from FY2021.62
The Convergence Accelerator
is an organizational framework that stands separately from the NSF research directorates,
with its own budget, staff, and initiatives. Each CA research track will be a time-limited
entity focused on specific research topics and themes. Therefore, CA research tracks wil
evolve over time and will be informed by external stakeholder input. The CA will reward
high-risk, innovative thinking by multidisciplinary teams of researchers who want to
accelerate discovery and innovation. The CA is a way of achieving rapid lab -to-market or
research outcomes.63
While the initial CA research tracks focused on a subset of the Big Ideas, the FY2022 request is
intended to support new research tracks informed by responses to a Request for Information,
current national priorities, and other external stakeholder input. NSF has requested $70 mil ion
for the CA in FY2022, equal to the FY2021 estimated amount.
The budget request also includes three multi-agency initiatives. The National Nanotechnology
Initiative would receive $471 mil ion, $29.0 mil ion (6.6%) more than the FY2021 estimate. The
Networking and Information Technology Research and Development program would receive
$2.07 bil ion, an increase of $484 mil ion (31%). The U.S. Global Change Research Program
would receive $762 mil ion, $241 mil ion (46%) more than the FY2021 estimate.64 These figures
represent funding within agency budgets for those agencies involved in these interagency
activities. The coordination offices for these initiatives have much smal er budgets.
Table 12. National Science Foundation Funding
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
Enacted/
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Account
Estimateda
Request
H. Cmte.e
S. Drafte
Enacted
Research and Related
6,909.8
8,139.7
7,695.7
7,667.1
Activities (RRA)
R&D, RRA Total
6,174.7
7,304.7
n/a
n/a
Conduct of R&D
5,882.3
6,958.9
n/a
n/a
R&D Facilities and Major Equipment
292.4
345.9
n/a
n/a
Education and Human
968.0
1,287.3
1,274.3
1,100.0
Resources (EHR)
62 T his total includes Mid-scale Research Infrastructure-1, funded through RRA, for projects costing $6 million-$20
million, as well as Mid-scale Research Infrastructure-2, funded through MREFC, for projects costing $20 million -$100
million.
63 NSF,
FY2021 Budget Request to Congress, February 10, 2020, p. Overview-10.
64 For additional information on these initiatives, see “NSF-Wide Investments.”
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
FY2021
Enacted/
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Account
Estimateda
Request
H. Cmte.e
S. Drafte
Enacted
R&D, EHR Total
465.9
619.6
n/a
n/a
Conduct of R&D
465.8
619.5
n/a
n/a
R&D Facilities and Major Equipment
0.1
0.1
n/a
n/a
Major Research Equipment
241.0
249.0
249.0
249.0
and Facilities Construction
(MREFC)
R&D, MREFC Total
241.0
249.0
n/a
n/a
Conduct of R&D
0.0
0.0
n/a
n/a
R&D Facilities and Major Equipment
241.0
249.0
n/a
n/a
Agency Operations and
345.6
468.3
390.0
445.6
Award Management
(AOAM)b
Office of the Inspector
17.9
20.4
20.4
20.4
General (OIG)b
National Science Board
4.5
4.6
4.6
4.6
(NSB)b
NSF, Total Discretionary0
8,486.8
10,169.3
9,634.0
9,486.8
R&D, NSF Total
6,881.6
8,173.3
n/a
n/a
Total, Conduct of R&D
6,348.2
7,578.4
n/a
n/a
Total, R&D Facilities & Major
533.4
595.0
n/a
n/a
Equipment
Sources: Data in the columns titled “FY2021 Enacted/Estimated” and “FY2022 Request” are from P.L. 116-260
and the NSF
FY2022 Budget Request to Congress. Data in the “FY2022 House” column are from H.Rept. 117-97.
Data in the “FY2022 Senate” column are from the Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement
for the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations, 2022 (committee print), 117th Congress, 1st
session, released on October 18, 2021, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/download/cjsrept_final.
Notes: n/a = not available. Appropriations accounts are in bold. NSF total may differ from the sum of the
accounts due to rounding. Nonbold R&D funding amounts are a subset of funding for the specified accounts.
Figures for the columns currently blank may become available as action is completed.
a. FY2021 account funding amounts (bold) are as enacted (P.L. 116-260); FY2021 R&D funding amounts
(nonbold) are as estimated by NSF. These amounts do not include $600 mil ion in two-year appropriations
for NSF as enacted in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2) “to fund or extend new and
existing research grants, cooperative agreements, scholarships, fel owships, and apprenticeships, and related
administrative expenses to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus.”
b. The AOAM, NSB, and OIG accounts have no reported R&D funding.
c. In addition to discretionary funding, NSF reports mandatory funding from H-1B visa and donation sources,
which are not included in this total.
d. Data are from H.R. 4505, as reported by the House Committee on Appropriations on July 19, 2021, and
the accompanying explanatory report, H.Rept. 117-97.
e. Data are from the
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations, 2022 (committee print), as
released by the Senate Committee on Appropriations on October 18, 2021, available at
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/download/cjsfy2022_final.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Department of Agriculture65
The U.S. Department of Agriculture was created in 1862 to support agricultural research in an
expanding, agricultural y dependent country. Today, USDA conducts intramural research at
federal facilities with federal y employed scientists, and supports extramural research at
universities and other facilities through competitive grants and capacity (formula-based) funding.
The breadth of contemporary USDA research spans traditional agricultural production practices,
as wel as organic and sustainable agriculture, bioenergy, nutritional needs and food composition,
food safety, animal and plant health, pest and disease management, economic decisionmaking,
and other social sciences affecting consumers, farmers, and rural communities.
The four agencies of USDA’s Research, Education, and Economics (REE) mission area carry out
the Department’s research and education activities.66 These agencies are the Agricultural
Research Service (ARS), the principal intramural research agency; the National Institute of Food
and Agriculture (NIFA), the principal extramural research agency; the National Agricultural
Statistics Service (NASS), which undertakes a variety of surveys to capture data about agriculture
and food production; and the Economic Research Service (ERS), which applies economic
analysis to a wide range of topics related to food and agriculture. In addition to the four REE
agencies, the Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS), a staff office within the Office of the Under
Secretary of REE, coordinates science activities across the department.
On August 4, 2021, the Senate Committee on Appropriations reported the
Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2022 (S.
2599). This bil would provide $3,659.7 mil ion in discretionary spending for the REE agencies
for FY2022,67 an 8.7% increase ($292.8 mil ion) from the FY2021 amount ($3,366.9 mil ion)
enacted in P.L. 116-260,68 and 11.5% ($475.4 mil ion) less than the FY2022 amount requested by
the Administration ($4,135.1 mil ion). The House-passed FY2022 appropriations bil (H.R. 4502)
would provide a total of $3,699.1 mil ion in discretionary spending,69 an increase of 9.9% ($332.2
mil ion) above the FY2021 amount. The Senate-reported bil , the House-passed bil , and the
Administration’s FY2022 request are discussed below for the REE agencies and the Office of the
Under Secretary of REE
. Table 13 presents funding amounts.
Certain appropriations for the REE agencies and OCS are not presented i
n Table 13, and are
discussed separately below. These include appropriations made in the General Provisions of P.L.
116-260, P.L. 117-2, and appropriations that would be provided in H.R. 4502 and S. 2599. Within
65 T his section was written by Genevieve K. Croft, Analyst in Agricultural Policy, CRS Resources, Science, and
Industry Division.
66 For additional information, see CRS Report R40819,
Agricultural Research: Background and Issues, by Genevieve
K. Croft .
67 T he committee report for the Senate-reported FY2022 appropriations bill for agriculture is S.Rept. 117-34.
68 FY2021 enacted appropriations and related congressional directives presented in this report section derive from P.L.
116-260; the accompanying
Explanatory Statement, Division A—Agriculture, Rural Developm ent, Food and Drug
Adm inistration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2021 ; H.Rept. 116-446 (to accompany the House FY2021
agriculture appropriations bill, H.R. 7610, 116th Congress); and the Senate explanatory statement to accompany the
Senate FY2021 agriculture appropriations draft bill, both available at https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/
committee-releases-fy21-bills-in-effort -to-advance-process-produce-bipartisan-results. For P.L. 116-260, Division A,
T itle I (Agricultural Programs), provides regular appropriations for USDA, including the REE agencies and OCS. In
this report section, unless otherwise noted, funds provided outside of this division and title are discussed separately
from FY2021 discretionary funding totals.
69 T he committee report for the House-passed FY2022 appropriations bill for agriculture (H.R. 4502, Division B) is
H.Rept. 117-82. T his report remains associated with the original bill reported for agriculture ( H.R. 4356). T he
committee report associated with H.R. 4502 (H.Rept. 117-96) does not address agriculture.
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the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Division A, Title VII (General Provisions) provided
an additional $31.7 mil ion, and Division M (Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental
Appropriations Act, 2021) provided $140.5 mil ion of supplementary discretionary funding and
$20 mil ion of annual mandatory funding. Separately, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
(P.L. 117-2) provided additional appropriations for USDA, some of which may be administered
through REE, though implemented amounts and specific programming are not yet known. In
addition to discretionary appropriations, agricultural research is funded by certain mandatory
funding authorized by the 2018 farm bil (P.L. 115-334P.L. 116-260, as wel as state matching
contributions and private donations or grants.
Agricultural Research Service
ARS is USDA’s in-house basic and applied research agency, and has major responsibilities for
conducting and leading the national agricultural research effort. ARS operates approximately 90
laboratories, with about 5,000 permanent employees, including approximately 2,000 research
scientists. ARS laboratories include a focus on efficient and sustainable food and fiber
production, development of new products and uses for agricultural commodities, development of
effective controls for pest management, and support of USDA regulatory and technical assistance
programs. ARS also operates the National Agricultural Library (NAL). NAL is the world’s largest
agricultural research library, and is a primary information repository for food, agriculture, and
natural resource sciences.
For FY2022, S. 2599 would provide $1,675.0 mil ion for ARS salaries and expenses, a 12.3%
increase over the FY2021 appropriation ($1,491.8 mil ion), and 9.4% less than the
Administration’s FY2022 request ($1,849.6 mil ion). For ARS buildings and facilities, the
Senate-reported bil would provide $45.4 mil ion, the same amount requested by the
Administration for FY2022, and a 27.2% increase from the FY2021 appropriation ($35.7 mil ion,
Table 13). The House-passed bil would provide $126.5 mil ion for ARS buildings and facilities,
a total that includes $46.7 mil ion in community project funding70 for six ARS facilities. The
Senate-reported bil would provide $39.7 mil ion in congressional y directed spending for a
university-based ARS Plant Germplasm Research Facility.
Among Administration requests for ARS are (1) $92 mil ion for climate science, (2) $5 mil ion
for the USDA climate hubs, and (3) $95 mil ion for an agreement with the Department of Energy
for the Administration’s proposed Advanced Research Projects Agency–Climate (ARPA-C). The
Senate-reported bil does not specifical y address the Administration proposals. S. 2599 supports
the USDA climate hubs with $5 mil ion for ARS research teams and $5 mil ion for a fel owship
program. It also provides $2.5 mil ion for research on climate change and agricultural pathogens,
and $4 mil ion for climate science research at NAL. The House-passed bil includes $50 mil ion
to support some of the Administration proposals, including $10 mil ion for the USDA climate
hubs. The House-passed bil does not provide ARS funding for ARPA-C because “the budget
request lacks an adequate justification of ARS’s role.”71
70
Community project funding, also referred to as
earmarks, provides appropriations for specific projects at the request
of Members of Congress. T he House Appropriations Committee announced it would accept such appropriations
requests for FY2022. For additional information, see House Committee on Appropriations, “ DeLauro Announces
Community Project Funding in Fiscal Year 2022,” February 26, 2021, https://appropriations.house.gov/news/press-
releases/delauro-announces-community-project -funding-in-fiscal-year-2022.
71 H.Rept. 117-82, p. 16.
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ARS continues to coordinate with the Department of Homeland Security on the new National Bio
and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF), which DHS is constructing to replace the outdated Plum
Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC).72 In January 2019, USDA and DHS signed a
Memorandum of Agreement to govern the transition of NBAF from DHS to USDA, with
ownership to transfer upon its completion and commissioning.73 USDA projects the transfer of
operations from PIADC to NBAF wil be completed by December 2023.74 The Administration
requests a total of $118.7 mil ion for NBAF in ARS salaries and expenses, and an increase of
$10.6 mil ion in ARS buildings and facilities funds. The Senate-reported bil would provide $49.0
mil ion in ARS salaries and expenses, and does not provide buildings and facilities funds for
NBAF.
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
The National Institute of Food and Agriculture is USDA’s principal extramural research agency.
It provides federal funding for research, education, and extension projects conducted in
partnership with land-grant colleges and universities (LGUs), State Agricultural Experiment
Stations, the Cooperative Extension System, other research and education institutions, private
organizations, and individuals. NIFA partnerships include the three types of LGUs—1862
(original) Institutions, 1890 (historical y Black) Institutions, and 1994 (tribal) Institutions—as
wel as other higher education institutions.75 Federal funds awarded through NIFA capacity
(formula-based) and competitive grants enhance research capacity at these institutions.76 While
NIFA is headquartered in Washington, DC, USDA relocated the majority of NIFA staff positions
to Kansas City, MO, in 2019.77
The Senate-reported bil and the House-passed bil recommend the same total of $1,656.8 mil ion
in discretionary spending for NIFA activities in FY2022, albeit with different emphases. This is
$86.8 mil ion more (5.5%) than was enacted in FY2021 ($1,570.0 mil ion) and $299.0 mil ion
less (-15.3%) than the Administration request ($1,955.8 mil ion,
Table 13).
The Administration’s FY2022 budget request proposes a change in appropriations language that
would combine three separate NIFA funding accounts—for research and education, extension,
and integrated activities—into one agency account that includes al programs.78 The
Administration argues that consolidating the accounts would “mirror the organization as a
72 For additional information, see CRS In Focus IF11492,
National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility: Purpose and Status,
by Genevieve K. Croft .
73 USDA and DHS,
Memorandum of Agreement Between the U.S. Department of Agriculture Marketing and
Regulatory Program s, the U.S. Departm ent of Agriculture Research, Education, and Econom ics, and the Departm ent
of Hom eland Security Science and Technology Directorate, June 20, 2019, at https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/
documents/usda-dhs-moa.pdf.
74 USDA, “USDA and DHS S&T Revise NBAF Project T imeline,” Press Release, December 15, 2020,
https://www.usda.gov/nbaf/media/press-releases/2020/usda-dhs-st-revise-nbaf-project -timeline.
75 1862, 1890, and 1994 refer to the years of enactment of the laws that created these institutional classifications. For
more information on LGUs and other NIFA-funded institutions, see CRS Report R45897,
The U.S. Land-Grant
University System : An Overview, by Genevieve K. Croft , and CRS In Focus IF11847,
1890 Land-Grant Universities:
Background and Selected Issues, by Genevieve K. Croft .
76 T he National Agricultural Research, Extension, and T eaching Policy Act of 1977 designated USDA as the lead
federal agency for higher education in the food and agricultural sciences.
77 For further information, see CRS In Focus IF11527,
Relocation of the USDA Research Agencies: NIFA and ERS , by
Genevieve K. Croft .
78 Similar consolidations in NIFA were also proposed by the Obama and T rump Administrations, but were not adopted
by Congress.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
National Institute with a unified mission and offer opportunities to streamline administration of
funds.”79 The House and Senate bil s do not comment on or adopt this recommendation.
Research and Education. Hatch Act and Evans-Al en Act funds support capacity grants for
research and education activities at 1862 and 1890 Institutions, respectively. For Hatch Act
programs, S. 2599 would provide $275.0 mil ion, which is $54.4 mil ion less (-16.5%) than the
Administration request ($329.4 mil ion) and $16.0 mil ion more than the FY2021 enacted amount
($259.0 mil ion). H.R. 4502 would provide $265.0 mil ion. For Evans-Al en programs, S. 2599
would provide $73.0 mil ion, the same as the FY2021 enacted amount and $19.8 mil ion less than
both the Administration request and the amount that H.R. 4502 would provide ($92.8 mil ion).
The McIntire-Stennis program provides capacity funds for forestry research at LGUs and state
colleges of forestry. For FY2022, S. 2599 would provide $40.0 mil ion, $4.0 mil ion more than
the FY2021 enacted amount ($36.0 mil ion) and $5.8 mil ion less than the Administration request
for FY2022 ($45.8 mil ion). H.R. 4502 would provide $38.0 mil ion for this program.
The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) is USDA’s flagship competitive research
grants program, and currently represents about 28.0% of NIFA’s total discretionary budget. The
Senate-reported bill would provide $445 mil ion for AFRI. This is $10.0 mil ion more (2.3%)
than the FY2021 enacted amount. The Administration is requesting $700.0 mil ion—the full
amount authorized by the 2018 farm bil —a 60.9% increase over FY2021. The House-passed bil
would provide $450.0 mil ion for AFRI for FY2022. NIFA also funds the Sustainable Agriculture
Research and Education (SARE) program. For FY2021, P.L. 116-260 provides $40.0 mil ion for
SARE. For FY2022, S. 2599 would provide $45.0 mil ion, H.R. 4502 would provide $50.0
mil ion, and the Administration requests $60.0 mil ion.
Extension. Smith-Lever Act 3(b) and 3(c) programs provide capacity grants to 1862 Institutions
to support cooperative extension. The Senate-reported bil recommends $330.0 mil ion for
FY2022, $15.0 mil ion more than both the enacted FY2021 amount and the Administration’s
FY2022 request ($315.0 mil ion). The House-passed bil recommends $320.0 mil ion.
Smith-Lever Act 3(d) programs provide competitive grants to LGUs to support cooperative
extension. These programs include grants for food and nutrition education; new technologies for
agricultural extension; federal y recognized tribes; children, youth, and families at risk; and farm
safety education. For Smith-Lever 3(d) programs in FY2022, S. 2599 recommends $90.7 mil ion,
H.R. 4502 recommends $88.1 mil ion, and the Administration is requesting $89.6 million. For al
three FY2022 proposals, $70.0 mil ion of the Smith-Lever 3(d) funds would support the
Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP).
Integrated Activities. Integrated activities are those activities that include some combination of
teaching, education, and research. For integrated activities in FY2022, both S. 2599 and H.R.
4502 propose $40.0 mil ion. The Administration requests $39.0 mil ion—the same as the FY2021
appropriation.
Other appropriations. Congress may also provide funding—in addition to those sums discussed
above—for certain NIFA programs and activities, in the general provisions of annual
appropriations acts. The President’s budget request for FY2022 includes funding requests for a
NIFA pilot program to enhance farming and ranching activities for military veterans ($5.0
mil ion), the 1890 Centers of Excel ence ($10.0 mil ion), and establishing a business innovation
center at an 1890 Institution ($2.0 mil ion). The Senate-reported bil would provide the requested
funding for the 1890 Centers of Excel ence in NIFA’s research and appropriations account, and
79 USDA, “National Institute of Food and Agriculture,”
2022 USDA Budget Explanatory Notes for Committee on
Appropriations, 2021, p. 21-27.
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the requested funding for the military veterans pilot program through Title VII, General
Provisions. The House-passed bil would provide the requested funding for the military veterans
pilot program and the 1890 Centers of Excel ence through Title VII, General Provisions. Neither
bil would provide funds for the business innovation center.
In addition to P.L. 116-260, other appropriations provide FY2021 funding for NIFA. The
Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act includes $140.5 mil ion for
NIFA programs in FY2021, including $75.0 mil ion for the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive
Program, $37.5 mil ion for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, and $28.0
mil ion for the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network. NIFA may also administer some
portion of the $1.01 bil ion provided to USDA for social y disadvantaged farmers and ranchers
through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2, §1006).80 Some community project
funding in both the House-passed and Senate-reported agriculture appropriations bil s, as wel as
language in proposed infrastructure bil s, would support university research programs and
facilities.
National Agricultural Statistics Service
The National Agricultural Statistics Service conducts the quinquennial Census of Agriculture and
provides official statistics on agricultural production and farm sector indicators. It is one of the 13
principal statistical agencies of the U.S. Federal Statistical System.
The Senate-reported bil recommends $191.7 mil ion for NASS for FY2022, $2.5 mil ion more
than the House-passed bil ($189.2 mil ion), and $2.0 mil ion less than the Administration’s
request ($193.7 mil ion). These proposed amounts compare with an enacted appropriation of
$183.9 mil ion for FY2021. Both bil s and the Administration’s request recommend that $46.9
mil ion of the NASS appropriation would support the Census of Agriculture. The Senate-reported
bil directs NASS to issue a report within 120 days of enactment on how the agency can improve
report accuracy through the use of technology, improved coordination with partners, and other
approaches. The House-passed bil directs NASS to plan a study of agritourism in FY2022, and to
continue stakeholder outreach on how to improve data collection on urban, indoor, and emerging
agricultural production.
Economic Research Service
The Economic Research Service supports economic and social science analysis about agriculture,
rural development, food, commodity markets, and the environment. It also collects and
disseminates data concerning USDA programs and policies. Like NASS, ERS is one of the
principal statistical agencies of the U.S. Federal Statistical System. While ERS is headquartered
in Washington, DC, USDA relocated the majority of ERS staff positions to Kansas City, MO, in
2019.81
For FY2022, S. 2599 recommends $90.8 mil ion for ERS, an increase of 6.2% ($5.3 mil ion) over
FY2021 enacted appropriations ($85.5 mil ion), and 2.5% ($2.2 mil ion) more than H.R. 4502,
which would provide $88.6 mil ion. The Administration requests $90.6 mil ion of FY2022. The
Senate-passed bil directs ERS to issue a report within one year on “incentive programs for
encouraging the voluntary adoption of various agricultural management practices that increase
80 As of the submission of this report, USDA has not announced how it plans to spend this funding.
81 See CRS In Focus IF11527,
Relocation of the USDA Research Agencies: NIFA and ERS , by Genevieve K. Croft .
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
carbon sequestration in soil.”82 The House-passed bil includes $2.0 mil ion for ERS to expand its
data modeling capabilities with respect to climate change and its impact on production and the
farm economy.
Office of the REE Under Secretary and Office of the Chief Scientist
Congress created the Office of the Chief Scientist in 2008 when it established the dual role of the
Under Secretary for REE as the USDA Chief Scientist (7 U.S.C. §6971). OCS coordinates
research programs and activities across USDA. Administratively, it is a component of the Office
of the Under Secretary of REE.
In recent years, congressional appropriations for the Office of the Under Secretary of REE have
included funds for the Under Secretary and a partial staff.83 Congress has not provided direct
appropriations for OCS operations since its establishment. As such, OCS has been funded via
interagency agreement among the REE agencies. The President’s budget request for FY2021
included for the first time a separate request for OCS; however FY2021 enacted appropriations
did not provide the requested funds.
For FY2022, the Administration request, the House-passed bil , and the Senate-reported bil al
include funds for the Office of the Under Secretary of REE but do not include funds for OCS
operations. The Administration request and the House-passed bil do propose funding for a pilot
program within OCS: the Agriculture Advanced Research and Development Authority
(AGARDA). The 2018 farm bil (P.L. 115-334, §7132) establishes AGARDA as a pilot project
within OCS to target long-term and high-risk research and development that private industry
would be unlikely to undertake. The 2018 farm bill authorized $50 mil ion in annual
appropriations through FY2023 and required OCS to issue an AGARDA strategic plan by
December 2019. To date, AGARDA has not received appropriations, USDA has not established
the pilot program, and USDA has not publicly issued a strategic plan.
For FY2022, S. 2599 would provide $1.3 mil ion for the Office of the Under Secretary for REE,
and the bil would not provide funds for OCS operations or programs. The House-passed bil
would provide $4.3 mil ion for the Office of the Under Secretary of REE, $2.0 mil ion less
(-31.6%) than the President’s budget request ($6.3 mil ion). Of the amounts proposed for this
office, the House-passed bil would al ocate $2.0 mil ion for OCS, and the President’s budget
request would al ocate $5.0 mil ion. In both cases, the OCS funds would be for AGARDA.
Both S. 2599 and H.R. 4502 would provide OCS with an additional $400,000, through General
Provisions, for pollinator research coordination—the same amount as provided in FY2021
enacted appropriations.
82 S.Rept. 117-34, p. 16.
83 For example, T able OSEC-5 of USDA’s FY2021 explanatory notes identifies $800,000 and three staff years for the
Office of the Under Secretary for REE. USDA, “ Office of the Secretary,”
2021 USDA Budget Explanatory Notes for
Com m ittee on Appropriations, 2020, p. 1-9.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Table 13. U.S. Department of Agriculture R&D
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Agency or Major Program
Enacted
Request
House
S. Cmte.
Enacted
Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
Salaries and Expenses
1,491.8
1,849.6
1,638.0
1,675.0
Buildings and Facilities
35.7
45.4
126.5
45.4
Subtotal, ARS
1,527.5
1,895.0
1,764.6
1,720.4
National Institute of Food and
Agriculture (NIFA)
Research and Education
AFRI (competitive grants)
435.0
700.0
450.0
445.0
Hatch Act (1862 Institutions)
259.0
329.4
265.0
275.0
Evans-Al en (1890 Institutions)
73.0
92.8
92.8
73.0
McIntire-Stennis (forestry)
36.0
45.8
38.0
40.0
Other
189.6
210.4
217.
5a
224.4
Subtotal, Research and Education
992.6
1,378.4
1,063.3a
1,057.4
Extension
Smith-Lever 3(b) and 3(c)
315.0
315.0
320.0
330.0
Smith-Lever 3(d)
90.1
89.6
88.1
90.7
1890 Extension Activities
62.0
62.0
67.0
62.0
1994 Extension Activities
8.5
8.5
9.5
10.0
Other
62.8
63.3
68.9
66.7
Subtotal, Extension
538.4
538.4
553.5
559.4
Integrated Activities
39.0
39.0
40.0
40.0
Subtotal, NIFA
1,570.0
1,955.8
1,656.8a
1,656.8
National Agricultural Statistics
183.9
193.7
189.2
191.7
Service (NASS)
Economic Research Service (ERS)
85.5
90.6
88.6
90.8
Total, USDA Research, Education,
3,366.9
4,135.1
3,699.1a
3,659.7
and Economics Agencies
Office of the Under Secretary of REE
0.8
6.3
4.3
1.3
Office of the Chief Scientist
-
5.0
2.0
-
Sources: CRS, compiled from P.L. 116-260
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, FY2021 Explanatory Statement,
Division A; FY2022 USDA Budget Justification Notes; H.R. 4502; H.Rept. 117-82; S. 2599; and S.Rept. 117-34.
Notes: Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for the column currently
blank may become available as action is completed. Amounts do not include appropriations included in General
Provisions or mandatory funding. FY2021 enacted amounts do not include $160.5 mil ion provided through P.L.
116-260, Division M (Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021), or funds
provided in Section 1006 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2). Section 1006 provides $1.01
bil ion, of which not less than 5% is intended to supplement agricultural research, education, and extension. As of
the writing of this report, USDA has not announced how it intends to al ocate these funds.
a. This amount is $2 mil ion higher than in H.Rept. 117-82 due to amendments included in H.R. 4502.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Department of Commerce
Two agencies of the Department of Commerce have major R&D programs: the National Institute
of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA).
National Institute of Standards and Technology84
The mission of the National Institute of Standards and Technology is “to promote U.S. innovation
and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology in
ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life.”85 NIST research provides
measurement, calibration, and quality assurance methods and techniques that support U.S.
commerce, technological progress, product reliability, manufacturing processes, and public safety.
NIST’s responsibilities include the development, maintenance, and custodial retention of the
national standards of measurement; providing the means and methods for making measurements
consistent with those standards; and ensuring the compatibility of U.S. national measurement
standards with those of other nations.86
Regular appropriations for NIST are provided through the annual Commerce, Justice, Science,
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act (CJS Act). President Biden is requesting $1,497.2
mil ion for NIST in FY2022, an increase of $462.7 mil ion (44.7%) from the FY2021 enacted
appropriation of $1,034.5 mil ion. (Se
e Table 14.)
NIST discretionary funding is provided through three accounts: Scientific and Technical Research
and Services (STRS), Industrial Technology Services (ITS), and Construction of Research
Facilities (CRF).
The President’s FY2022 request includes $915.6 mil ion for laboratory R&D programs, corporate
services, and standards coordination and special programs in the STRS account, an increase of
$127.6 mil ion (16.2%) from the FY2021 enacted level.87 Program increases include
Climate and Energy Measurements, Tools, and Testbeds, $54.8 mil ion (up $18.0
mil ion);88
Quantum Information Science, Engineering, and Metrology, $61.8 mil ion (up
$15.0 mil ion);89
Partnerships, Research, and Standards to Advance Trustworthy Artificial
Intel igence, $45.4 mil ion (up $15.0 mil ion);90
84 T his section was written by John F. Sargent Jr., Specialist in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources,
Science, and Industry Division.
85 NIST website, “General Information,” http://nist.gov/public_affairs/general_information.cfm.
86 15 U.S.C. §272.
87 CRS analysis of data from U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and T echnology, National
Institute of Standards and T echnology/National Technical Information Service, Fiscal Year 2022 Budget Submission to
Congress, p. NIST -3, https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2021-06/
fy2022_nist_congressional_budget_justification.pdf.
88 Ibid., p. NIST -64.
89 Ibid., p. NIST -37.
90 Ibid., p. NIST -42.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Supporting the American Bioeconomy, $34.3 mil ion (up $13.8 mil ion);91
Advanced Communications Research and Standards, $36.4 mil ion (up $11.5
mil ion);92
Next-Generation Semiconductor Research and Standards, $34.5 mil ion (up
$10.0 mil ion);93
Measurements and Data to Enable the Circular Economy, $13.5 mil ion (up $5.0
mil ion);94 and
Strengthening Equity and Diversity in the Standards Workforce, $13.6 mil ion
(up $2.1 mil ion).95
The FY2022 request would provide $441.6 mil ion for the ITS account, up $275.1 mil ion
(165.2%) from the FY2021 enacted level.96 Within the ITS account, the request would provide
$275.0 mil ion for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) program, an increase of
$125.0 mil ion (83.3%) from the FY2021 enacted level, and $166.6 mil ion for Manufacturing
USA, $150.1 mil ion (909.7%) higher than the FY2021 enacted level of $16.5 mil ion.97
According to NIST, the funding requested for MEP would, among other things, strengthen the
performance of the existing network, assist growth oriented smal - and medium-sized enterprises’
abilities to respond to critical national needs, and provide additional services to more companies
in critical supply chains and workforce development.98
Of the funds for Manufacturing USA, $10.0 mil ion would support NIST’s first Manufacturing
USA institute, the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals
(NIIMBL); $150.0 mil ion would be for the establishment of two additional institutes; $5.0
mil ion would be for support of the Manufacturing USA network; and $1.7 mil ion would be for
grants to develop industrial technology roadmaps.99
The President is requesting $140.0 mil ion for the CRF account for FY2022, up $60.0 mil ion
(75.0%) from the FY2021 enacted level. This funding would support repair and revitalization of
facilities to address NIST’s major utility infrastructure maintenance backlog and to modernize its
IT networking infrastructure; no funding is requested for construction and major renovations.100
On July 15, 2021, the House Committee on Appropriations reported the Commerce, Justice,
Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2022 (H.R. 4505). The act would provide
NIST with $1.369 bil ion, an increase of $334.6 mil ion (32.3%) above the FY2021 enacted level
and $128.1 mil ion (8.6%) below the request. Of the total, the act would provide $937.6 mil ion
for the STRS account, $149.6 mil ion (19.0%) above the FY2021 enacted level and $22.0 mil ion
(2.4%) above the request; $331.5 mil ion for the ITS account, $165.0 mil ion (99.1%) above the
FY2021 level and $110.1 mil ion (24.9%) below the request; and $100 mil ion for the CRF
91 Ibid., p. NIST -52.
92 Ibid., p. NIST -47.
93 Ibid., p. NIST -56.
94 Ibid., p. NIST -61.
95 Ibid., p. NIST -69.
96 Ibid., p. NIST -3.
97 Ibid., p. NIST -105.
98 Ibid., p. NIST -112.
99 Ibid., pp. NIST -119 – NIST -120.
100 Ibid., pp. NIST -3, NIST -138, NIST -147, NIST -149.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
account, $20.0 mil ion (25%) above the FY2021 enacted level and $40.0 mil ion (28.6%) below
the request.
On October 18, 2021, the Senate Appropriations Committee majority released nine draft
appropriations acts for FY2022. One of these acts was the Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2022, later introduced as S. 3042. S. 3042 would provide
$1.394 bil ion for NIST, $359.6 mil ion (34.8%) above the FY2021 level, $103.1 mil ion (6.9%)
below the request, and $25.1 mil ion (1.8%) above the House-reported bil . Of the total, the act
would provide $913.1 mil ion for the STRS account, $125.1 mil ion (15.9%) above the FY2021
enacted level, $2.5 mil ion (0.3%) below the request, and $24.5 mil ion (2.6%) below the House-
reported bil ; $213.0 mil ion for the ITS account, $46.5 mil ion (27.9%) above the FY2021
enacted level, $228.6 mil ion (51.8%) below the request, and $118.5 mil ion (35.7%) below the
House-reported level; and $268.1 mil ion for the CRF account, $188.1 mil ion (235.1%) above
the FY2021 enacted level, $128.1 mil ion (91.5%) above the request, and $168.1 mil ion
(168.1%) above the House-reported level. S. 3042 includes $37.6 mil ion for congressional y-
directed external projects and $125.6 mil ion for congressional y-directed extramural construction
projects.
Table 14. National Institute of Standards and Technology Funding
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2022
FY2021
FY2022
H. Cmte.
FY2022
FY2022
Enacted
Request
H.R. 4505
S. 3042
Enacted
Scientific and Technical Research and
788.0
915.6
937.6
913.1
Services
Laboratory Programs
687.1
806.0
n/s
n/s
Corporate Services
17.5
18.1
n/s
n/s
Standards Coordination and Special Programs
83.4
91.5
n/s
n/s
Congressional y-directed External Projects
0.0
0.0
0.0
37.6
Industrial Technology Services
166.5
441.6
331.5
213.0
Manufacturing Extension Partnership
150.0
275.0
275.0
175.0
Manufacturing USA
16.5
166.6
56.5
38.0
Construction of Research Facilities
80.0
140.0
100.0
268.1
Construction & Major Renovations
6.1
0.0
n/s
n/s
Safety, Capacity, Maintenance and Major Repairs
73.9
140.0
n/s
n/s
Congressional y-directed Extramural Construction
0.0
0.0
0.0
125.6
NIST, Totala
1,034.5
1,497.2
1,369.1
1,394.1
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology, National Institute of
Standards and Technology/National Technical Information Service, Fiscal Year 2022 Budget Submission to
Congress, 2021, https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2021-06/
fy2022_nist_congressional_budget_justification.pdf; H.R. 4432; and S. 3042.
Notes: Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for the columns currently
blank may become available as action is completed. n/s=not specified.
a. The NIST Public Safety Communications Research Fund (not included in the table) was established to help
develop wireless technologies for public safety users, as part of the National Wireless Initiative (WIN)
included in the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (P.L. 112-96). The act provided
mandatory funds for NIST from spectrum auction proceeds to help industry and public safety organizations
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
conduct research and develop new standards, technologies, and applications to advance public safety
communications in support of the initiative’s efforts to build an interoperable nationwide broadband
network for first responders. The NIST FY2022 budget justification notes, “The [NIST Public Safety
Communications Research Fund’s] availability extends through 2022 and began to execute in FY 2015;
$92.7 mil ion was transferred to NIST in FY 2015, $7.3 mil ion was released from sequester in FY 2016, an
additional $186.4 mil ion was transferred in FY 2016, and $13.6 mil ion was released from sequester in FY
2017. Currently, WIN has $108.7 mil ion in total resources with $71.9 mil ion available for obligation in
FY2021 and $36.8 mil ion to be available in FY 2022. Additional transfers to NIST from NTIA are possible
as proceeds from the spectrum auctions become available.”
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration101
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration conducts scientific research in areas such
as ecosystems, atmosphere, global climate change, weather, and oceans; collects and disseminates
data on the oceans and atmosphere; and manages coastal and marine species and environments.
NOAA was created in 1970 by Reorganization Plan No. 4.102
NOAA’s administrative structure is organized into six line offices: the National Environmental
Satel ite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS); National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS);
National Ocean Service (NOS); National Weather Service (NWS); Office of Oceanic and
Atmospheric Research (OAR); and the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO). The
line offices are supported by an additional office, Mission Support, which provides cross-cutting
administrative functions related to education, planning, information technology, human resources,
and infrastructure. Congress provides most of the discretionary funding for the line offices and
Mission Support through two accounts: (1) Operations, Research, and Facilities, and (2)
Procurement, Acquisition, and Construction.
In 2010, NOAA published its
Next Generation Strategic Plan.103 The strategic plan is organized
into four categories of long-term goals: (1) climate adaptation and mitigation, (2) a weather-ready
nation, (3) healthy oceans, and (4) resilient coastal communities and economies.104 The strategic
plan also lists three groups of enterprise objectives related to (1) stakeholder engagement, (2) data
and observations, and (3) integrated environmental modeling.105 The strategic plan serves as a
guide for NOAA’s R&D plan. The most recent R&D plan was published in June 2020, and
identifies R&D priorities within three vision areas: (1) reducing societal impacts from hazardous
weather and other environmental phenomena, (2) sustainable use and stewardship of ocean and
coastal resources, and (3) a robust and effective research, development, and transition
enterprise.106
For FY2022, President Biden requested $1.512 bil ion in direct obligations for NOAA R&D
funding, including R&D-related equipment and facilities, $486.9 mil ion (47.5%) above the
101 T his section was written by Eva Lipiec, Analyst in Natural Resources Policy, CRS Resources, Science, and Industry
Division.
102 “Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1970,” 35
Federal Register 15627-15630, October 6, 1970.
103 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
NOAA’s Next-Generation Strategic Plan, Silver
Spring, MD, December 2010, at https://www.performance.noaa.gov/wp-content/uploads/NOAA_NGSP.pdf.
Hereinafter NOAA,
Strategic Plan, 2010.
104 According to NOAA, a weather-ready nation is envisioned as a society that is prepared for and responds to weather -
related events.
105 NOAA defines the enterprise objectives as “ cross-cutting requirements for addressing NOAA’s strategic goals as a
whole” (NOAA,
Strategic Plan, 2010, p. 32).
106 NOAA,
NOAA Research and Development Vision Areas: 2020 -2026, June 2020, at https://nrc.noaa.gov/
LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=z4iHSl3P4KY%3d&portalid=0.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
FY2021 enacted level of $1.025 bil ion.107 The proposed House bil (H.R. 4505) would provide
$1.371 bil ion for NOAA R&D, $345.8 mil ion (33.7%) above the FY2021 enacted level, while
the proposed Senate bil (S. 3042) would provide $1.283 bil ion, $258.1 mil ion (25.2%) above
the FY2021 enacted level. According to Congress, direct obligations include annual
appropriations, transfers, and recoveries from prior-year obligations.108 The President’s budget
request and NOAA’s estimate of R&D funding amounts in the FY2021 appropriations act (P.L.
116-260) and proposed House and Senate bil s include discretionary direct obligations and a
relatively smal amount of mandatory and other direct obligations.
109 Table 15 provides R&D
amounts enacted in FY2021, requested by the Administration for FY2022, and proposed in the
House and Senate bil s.
The President’s FY2022 request for NOAA R&D was 20.8% of the requested FY2022 NOAA
total direct obligations of $7.258 bil ion.110 The FY2022 request includes $832.7 mil ion for
research (55.1% of the total requested for NOAA R&D), $198.1 mil ion for development
(13.1%), and $481.0 mil ion (31.8%) for R&D equipment and facilities.111 Of the total proposed
bil amounts, the House bil would provide $774.0 mil ion for research (56.5%), $175.4 mil ion
for development (12.8%), and $421.3 mil ion for equipment and facilities (30.7%), while the
Senate bil would provide $777.5 mil ion (60.6%), $177.8 mil ion (13.9%), and $327.7 mil ion
(25.5%) for research, development, and equipment and facilities, respectively.112
OAR accounts for the majority of NOAA R&D requests and appropriations in most years,
including FY2022. The Administration requested $756.7 mil ion for OAR R&D in FY2022,
which is $184.1 mil ion (32.2%) above the FY2021 enacted funding level of $572.6 mil ion.113
The House bil would provide $702.2 mil ion, while the Senate bil would provide $697.4 mil ion
to OAR R&D in FY2022.114 OAR conducts research in three major areas: (1) weather and air
chemistry; (2) climate; and (3) oceans, coasts, and the Great Lakes. A significant portion of these
efforts is implemented through OAR’s laboratories and cooperative research institutes. The
President requested $231.7 mil ion for OAR labs and cooperative institutes in FY2022, $34.2
mil ion (17.3%) more than the FY2021 enacted amount of $197.5 mil ion.115 The House would
provide $245.0 mil ion and the Senate would provide $232.6 mil ion to OAR labs and
cooperative institutes, respectively.116
107 Email correspondence with the NOAA Budget Office, June 9, 2021 and June 22, 2021.
108 For further descriptions of what types of obligations are direct versus reimbursable, see Office of Management and
Budget,
Circular No. A-11,
Preparation, Subm ission, and Execution of the Budget, July 2020, p. 3 of Section 83, at
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/a11.pdf.
109 R&D funding amounts are estimated by NOAA because neither the legislative text nor the explanatory statement
provide a breakout of R&D funding and only include discretionary direct obligations. T elephone conve rsation with
NOAA Budget Office, September 3, 2020.
110 NOAA,
Budget Estimates Fiscal Year 2022, 2021, p. Control T able-15, at https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/
2021-06/NOAA%20FY22%20CJ.pdf. Hereinafter NOAA,
Budget Estim ates Fiscal Year 2022.
111 Email correspondence with the NOAA Budget Office, June 9, 2021.
112 Email correspondence with the NOAA Budget Office, January 10, 2022.
113 Email correspondence with the NOAA Budget Office, June 9, 2021, and June 22, 2021.
114 Email correspondence with the NOAA Budget Office, January 10, 2022.
115 NOAA,
Budget Estimates Fiscal Year 2022, and U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations,
Committee
Print on H.R. 133/P.L. 116-260, Legislative Text and Explanatory Statem ent, Book 1 of 2, Divisions A -F, committee
print, 117th Cong., 1st sess., March 2021, p. 222. Hereinafter
Com m ittee Print on H.R. 133.
116 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations,
Report Together with Minority Views to Accompany H.R.
4505, 117th Cong., 1st sess., July 19, 2021, H.Rept. 117-97, pp. 38-39 (hereinafter H.Rept. 117-97) and Senate
Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statem ent for Com m erce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
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Another OAR program, the National Sea Grant College Program (NSGCP), is composed of 33
university-based state programs and supports scientific research and stakeholder engagement to
identify and solve problems faced by coastal communities. For FY2022, the Administration
requested $115.7 mil ion for NSGCP, an increase of $40.7 mil ion (54.3%) from the FY2021
enacted amount, and $13.1 mil ion for its related Aquaculture Research program, an increase of
$0.1 mil ion (1.0%) from FY2021.117 The House bil would provide $85.0 mil ion to NSGCP and
$14.5 mil ion for its aquaculture research program, while the Senate bil would provide $90.0
mil ion to NSGCP and $15.0 mil ion for its aquaculture research program.118
Table 15. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration R&D
(direct obligations, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Enacted
Request
House
Senate
Enacted
National Environmental Satel ite,
28.9
50.2
47.5
41.7
Data, and Information Service
(NESDIS)
National Marine Fisheries Service
75.8
75.4
74.3
78.0
(NMFS)
National Ocean Service (NOS)
102.9
138.5
114.1
120.3
National Weather Service (NWS)
24.2
36.8
36.0
36.0
Office of Marine and Aviation
205.6
416.3
396.6
287.6
Operations (OMAO
)a
Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric
572.6
756.7
702.2
697.4
Research (OAR)
Mission Support
15.0
38.0
0.0
22.0
Total R&D
1,024.9
1,511.8
1,370.7
1,283.0
NOAA Total Direct Obligations,
5,649.5
7,258.0
6,687.5
6,509.7
Total R&D and Non-R&D
Sources: Line office amounts provided by the NOAA Budget Office via email correspondence on June 9, 2021,
June 22, 2021, and January 10, 2022. CRS calculated NOAA Total R&D and non -R&D using amounts in P.L. 116-
260, NOAA,
Budget Estimates Fiscal Year 2022, 2021, p. Control Table-15, at https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/
files/2021-06/NOAA%20FY22%20CJ.pdf, H.R. 4505, and S. 3042.
Notes: Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for the columns currently
blank may become available as action is completed. Direct obligations include annual appropriations, transfers,
and recoveries from prior-year obligations. Congress and NOAA use several different budgetary terms, such as
direct obligations, budget authority, and appropriations. For more information, see CRS In Focus IF11914,
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) FY2022 Budget Request and Appropriations, by Eva Lipiec.
NOAA’s estimate of R&D funding in the FY2022 President’s budget request and the FY2021 enacted amount
include discretionary direct obligations and a relatively smal amount of mandatory and other direct obligations.
a. Al Office of Marine Aviation Operations funding is for equipment related to R&D.
Appropriations Bill, 2022, October 18, 2021, p. 46, at https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/
CJSRept_Final.PDF (hereinafter
Senate Explanatory Statem ent, October 2021).
117
Committee Print on H.R. 133, p. 222, and NOAA,
Budget Estimates Fiscal Year 2022.
118 H.Rept. 117-97, p. 39, and
Senate Explanatory Statement, October 2021, p. 46.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Department of Veterans Affairs119
The Department of Veterans Affairs operates and maintains a national health care delivery system
to provide eligible veterans with medical care, benefits, and social support. As part of the
agency’s mission, it seeks to advance medical R&D in areas most relevant to the diseases and
conditions that affect the health care needs of veterans.120
The President is requesting $1.631 bil ion for VA R&D in FY2022, an increase of $159 mil ion
(11%) from FY2021 enacted levels. (Se
e Table 16.) According to the President’s request,
FY2022 strategic priorities for VA R&D include increasing the access of veterans to clinical
trials; increasing the transfer and translation of VA R&D; and the effective use of VA data for
veterans. Additional y, crosscutting priorities for VA R&D include efforts to treat veterans at risk
of suicide and research to address chronic pain and opioid addiction, posttraumatic stress
disorder, traumatic brain injury, precision oncology, and Gulf War il ness and military
exposures.121
VA R&D is funded through two accounts—the Medical and Prosthetic Research account and the
Medical Care Support account. The Medical Care Support account also includes non-R&D
funding, and the amount of funding that wil be al ocated to support R&D through appropriations
legislation is unclear unless Congress provides funding at the precise level of the request. In
general, R&D funding levels from the Medical Care Support account are known only after the VA
al ocates its appropriations to specific activities and reports those figures.
The FY2022 request includes $882 mil ion for VA’s Medical and Prosthetic Research account, an
increase of $87 mil ion (11%) compared to FY2021 enacted levels. The request includes $750
mil ion in funding for research supported by the agency’s Medical Care Support account, an
increase of $81 mil ion (12%) compared to FY2021. The Medical Care Support account provides
administrative and other support for VA researchers and R&D projects, including infrastructure
maintenance.
The Medical and Prosthetics R&D program is an intramural program managed by the Veterans
Health Administration’s Office of Research and Development (ORD) and conducted at VA
Medical Centers and VA-approved sites nationwide. According to ORD, the mission of VA R&D
includes “improv[ing] Veterans’ health and wel -being via basic, translational, clinical, health
services, and rehabilitative research and apply[ing] scientific knowledge to develop effective
individualized care solutions for Veterans.”122 ORD consists of four main research services, each
headed by a director:
Biomedical Laboratory R&D conducts preclinical research to understand life
processes at the molecular, genomic, and physiological levels.
Clinical Science R&D supports clinical trials and other human subjects research
to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of new treatments such as drugs,
119 T his section was written by Marcy E. Gallo, Analyst in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources, Science,
and Industry Division.
120 Department of Veterans Affairs,
FY2018-2024 Strategic Plan, May, 31, 2019, p. 5, https://www.va.gov/oei/docs/
VA2018-2024strategicPlan.pdf.
121 Department of Veterans Affairs,
Volume II: Medical Programs and Information Technology Programs,
Congressional Subm ission, FY2022, p. VHA-542.
122 Department of Veterans Affairs, “Office of Research and Development,” https://www.research.va.gov/about/
default.cfm.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
therapies, or devices; compare existing therapies; and improve clinical care and
practice.
Health Services R&D conducts studies to identify and promote effective and
efficient strategies to improve the quality and accessibility of the VA health
system and patient outcomes, and to minimize health care costs.
Rehabilitation R&D conducts research and develops novel approaches to
improving the quality of life of impaired and disabled veterans.
In addition to intramural support, VA researchers are eligible to obtain funding for their research
from extramural sources, including other federal agencies, private foundations and health
organizations, and commercial entities. According to the President’s FY2022 budget request,
these additional R&D resources are estimated at $540 mil ion in FY2022. However, unlike other
federal agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense, VA
does not have the authority to support extramural R&D by providing research grants to colleges,
universities, or other non-VA entities.
On July 29, 2021, the House passed the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education,
Agriculture, Rural Development, Energy and Water Development, Financial Services and General
Government, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, Transportation, and
Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2022 (H.R. 4502). Division F would
provide $902 mil ion for the Medical and Prosthetic Research account. This would represent an
increase of $107 mil ion (13%) above the FY2021 enacted level and $20 mil ion (2%) above the
request.
On August 4, 2021, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed the Military Construction,
Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2022 (S. 2604). S. 2604 would
provide $882 mil ion for the Medical and Prosthetic Research account. This would represent an
increase of $87 mil ion (11%) above the FY2021 enacted level and would be the same as the
request.
Table 16 summarizes R&D program funding for VA in the Medical and Prosthetic Research and
the Medical Care Support accounts
. Table 17 details amounts to be spent in Designated Research
Areas (DRAs), which VA describes as “areas of importance to our veteran patient population.”123
Funding for research projects that span multiple areas may be included in several DRAs; thus, the
amounts i
n Table 17 total to more than the appropriation or request for VA R&D.
Table 16. Department of Veterans Affairs R&D
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Account
Enacted
Request
House
S. Cmte.
Enacted
Medical and Prosthetic Research
795.
0a
882.0
902.0
882.0
Veterans Medical Care and Health Fund
9.
0b
n/a
c
c
Medical Care Support
668.9
749.7
c
c
Veterans Affairs, Total R&D
$
1,473.0
$1,631.7
c
c
123 Department of Veterans Affairs,
Volume II: Medical Programs and Information Technology Programs,
Congressional Subm ission, FY2022, p. VHA-585.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Source: Department of Veterans Affairs,
Volume II: Medical Programs and Information Technology Programs,
Congressional Submission, FY2022, p. VHA-541, https://www.va.gov/budget/docs/summary/
fy2022VAbudgetVolumeIImedicalProgramsAndInformationTechnology.pdf.
Notes: Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for the columns currently
blank may become available as action is completed. n/a = not applicable. VA researchers also receive grants from
other federal and nonfederal resources, including the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense,
and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; these resources are estimated at $540 mil ion in FY2021
and $540 mil ion in FY2022. Additional y, the VA estimates reimbursements associated with agency R&D at $81
mil ion in FY2021 and $61 mil ion in FY2022, increasing the total amount of R&D performed at VA to $2.09
bil ion in FY2021 and $2.23 bil ion in the FY2022 request.
a. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (P.L. 116-26) included a rescission of $20 mil ion from the
Medical and Prosthetic Research account; the enacted amount was $815 mil ion.
b. The American Rescue Plan Act (P.L. 117-2, Section 8002) included $14.482 bil ion for medical care and
health needs; VA plans to use $9 mil ion of the provided funding for research under a new budget account,
the Veterans Medical Care and Health Fund.
c. Cannot be determined, as R&D is included in accounts with non-R&D funding.
Table 17. Department of Veterans Affairs R&D by Designated Research Area
(in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
Designated Research Area
Estimate
Request
Acute and Traumatic Injury
26.0
26.0
Aging
147.7
147.7
Autoimmune, Al ergic, and Hematopoietic Disorders
38.9
38.9
Cancer
64.3
69.3
Central Nervous System Injury and Associated
107.1
127.1
Disorders
Degenerative Diseases of Bones and Joints
41.1
41.1
Dementia and Neuronal Degeneration
41.6
41.6
Diabetes and Major Complications
47.1
47.1
Digestive Diseases
26.1
26.1
Emerging Pathogens/Bio-Terrorism
3.0
3.0
Gulf War Veterans Il ness
15.5
15.5
Health Systems
69.9
69.9
Heart Disease/Cardiovascular Health
71.6
71.6
Infectious Disease
47.1
57.1
Kidney Disorders
18.2
18.2
Lung Disorders
27.9
27.9
Mental Il ness
121.6
121.6
Military Occupations and Environmental Exposures
23.4
30.4
Other Chronic Diseases
7.6
7.6
Prosthetics
25.5
25.5
Sensory Loss
23.2
23.2
Special Populations
42.8
42.8
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
FY2021
FY2022
Designated Research Area
Estimate
Request
Substance Abuse
29.9
29.9
Source: Department of Veterans Affairs,
Volume II: Medical Programs and Information Technology Programs,
Congressional Submission, FY2022, pp. VHA-586-VHA-587, https://www.va.gov/budget/docs/summary/
fy2022VAbudgetVolumeIImedicalProgramsAndInformationTechnology.pdf.
Notes: Projects that span multiple areas may be included in several Designated Research Areas (DRAs);
therefore, the amounts depicted in this table total to more than the FY2021 amount and the FY2022 request for
Medical and Prosthetic Research. Columns for “FY2022 House,” “FY2022 Senate,” and “FY2022 Enacted” are
not included in this table as these figures wil only be available after Congress completes the appropriations
process and VA determines how much of the appropriated funds wil be al ocated to each DRA.
Department of Transportation124
The Department of Transportation was established by the Department of Transportation Act (P.L.
89-670) on October 15, 1966. The primary purposes of DOT research and development activities
as defined by Section 6019 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (P.L. 114-94) are
improving mobility of people and goods; reducing congestion; promoting safety; improving the
durability and extending the life of transportation infrastructure; preserving the environment; and
preserving the existing transportation system.
Funding for DOT R&D is general y included in appropriations line items that also include non-
R&D activities. The amount of funding provided by appropriations legislation that is al ocated to
R&D is unclear unless funding is provided at the precise level of the request. In general, R&D
funding levels are known only after DOT agencies al ocate their final appropriations to specific
activities and report those figures.
In FY2022, the Administration is requesting a total of $1.203 bil ion for DOT R&D activities and
facilities at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Federal Highway Administration
(FHWA), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), the Office of the Secretary (OST), and the Federal
Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) (se
e Table 18). In FY2021, three DOT
agencies—FAA, FHWA, and NHTSA—accounted for nearly 90% of DOT R&D funding.
Federal Aviation Administration
The President’s FY2022 request of $547.4 mil ion for R&D activities and facilities at FAA would
be an increase of $68.8 mil ion (14.4%) from the FY2021 enacted amount. The request includes
$258.5 mil ion for the agency’s Research, Engineering, and Development (RE&D) account, an
increase of $60.5 mil ion (30.6%) from FY2021. Funding within the RE&D account seeks to
improve aircraft safety through research in fields such as fire safety, advanced materials,
propulsion systems, aircraft icing, and continued airworthiness, in addition to safety research
related to unmanned aircraft systems and the integration of commercial space operations into the
national airspace. The RE&D account also supports research to reduce the environmental impacts
of aviation (i.e., noise and emissions). Much of the proposed increase to the RE&D account ($50
mil ion) would support a Climate Aviation Program with the goal of enhancing and accelerating
124 T his section was written by Marcy E. Gallo, Analyst in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources, Science,
and Industry Division.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
research in the areas of sustainable aviation fuels for jet engines; unleaded fuel alternatives for
piston-engine aircraft; and alternate aircraft technologies, including electric propulsion.
Federal Highway Administration
According to the President’s budget request
FHWA’s contributions to researching and implementing transformative innovations and
technologies are changing the way roads, bridges, and other facilities are planned,
designed, built, managed, and maintained across the country to be more responsive to
current and future needs.125
The President’s request of $420 mil ion for R&D activities and facilities at FHWA would be an
increase of $43.8 mil ion (11.6%) from the FY2021 enacted amount. The request includes $125
mil ion for FHWA’s Highway Research and Development program, which seeks to improve
safety, foster innovation, accelerate projects, enhance the design and construction of
transportation infrastructure, provide data and analysis for decisionmaking, and reduce
congestion. The request also includes $100 mil ion for the deployment of technology to enhance
the safety, efficiency, and convenience of surface transportation under the agency’s Intel igent
Transportation Systems program.
On July 29, 2021, the House passed the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education,
Agriculture, Rural Development, Energy and Water Development, Financial Services and General
Government, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, Transportation, and
Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2022 (H.R. 4502). Division G would
provide $260.5 mil ion for FAA’s R&D account. This would represent an increase of $62.5
mil ion (32%) above the FY2021 enacted level and $2 mil ion (1%) above the request.
On October 18, 2021, the Senate Appropriations Committee majority released nine draft
appropriations acts for FY2022, including draft language for the Departments of Transportation,
and Housing and Urban Development, and related agencies. The Senate majority draft bil would
provide $258.5 mil ion for FAA’s R&D account. This would represent an increase of $60.5
mil ion (31%) above the FY2021 enacted level and would be the same as the request.126
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
The President is requesting $66.0 mil ion in R&D and R&D facilities funding in FY2022 for
NHTSA, $16.0 mil ion (32.1%) above the FY2021 enacted amount. NHTSA R&D focuses on
automation and the study of human machine interfaces, advanced vehicle safety technology,
improving vehicle crashworthiness and crash avoidance, and reducing unsafe driving behaviors.
Other DOT Components
R&D activities are also supported by several other DOT components or agencies (se
e Table 18).
The President’s FY2022 request includes DOT R&D activities and facilities funding for
125 Department of T ransportation, Federal Highway Administration,
FHWA FY2022 Budget, p. I-4,
https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/2021-06/fhwa-fy-2022_budget_508.pdf.
126 T he draft text and explanatory statement for the Departments of T ransportation, and Housing and Urban
Development, and related agencies FY2022 appropriations act can be found at https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/
news/majority/chairman-leahy-releases-remaining-nine-senate-appropriations-bills.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
the Federal Railroad Administration, totaling $58.8 mil ion, $17.8 mil ion
(43.5%) above the FY2021 enacted level of $41.0 mil ion;
the Federal Transit Administration, totaling $30 mil ion, the same amount as
FY2021;
the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, totaling $24.5
mil ion, $5.5 mil ion (29%) above the FY2021 enacted level of $19.0 mil ion;
the Office of the Secretary, totaling $47.4 mil ion, $21.6 mil ion (83.5%) above
the FY2021enacted level of $25.8 mil ion; and
the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, totaling $9.1 mil ion, the same
amount as FY2021.
Table 18. Department of Transportation R&D Activities and Facilities
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Enacted
Request
House
S. Draftb
Enacted
Federal Aviation Administration
478.6
547.4
a
a
Research, Engineering, and
198.0
258.5
260.5
258.5
Development
Federal Highway Administration
376.2
420.0
a
a
Highway Research and
111.1
125.0
a
a
Development
Intel igent Transportation Systems
89.9
100.0
a
a
National Highway Traffic Safety
50.0
66.0
a
a
Administration
Federal Railroad Administration
41.0
58.8
53.8
41.0
Federal Transit Administration
30.0
30.0
a
a
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
19.0
24.5
a
a
Safety Administration
Office of the Secretary
25.8
47.4
57.0
48.4
Federal Motor Carrier Safety
9.1
9.1
a
a
Administration
DOT, R&D Total
$1,029.6
$1,203.1
a
a
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation,
Fiscal Year 2022 Budget Estimates, https://www.transportation.gov/
mission/budget/fiscal-year-2022-budget-estimates.
Notes: Amounts include R&D and R&D facilities. Components may not add to total due to rounding. Lines in
italics are components of the agency lines above them and are not counted separately in the total. Figures for the
columns currently blank may become available as action is completed.
a. Cannot be determined, as R&D is included in accounts with non-R&D funding.
b. On October 18, 2021, the Senate Appropriations Committee majority released nine draft appropriations
acts for FY2022, including draft language for the Departments of Transportation, and Housing and Urban
Development, and related agencies. The draft text and explanatory statement can be found at
https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/chairman-leahy-relea ses-rema ining-nine-senate-
appropriations-bil s.
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Department of the Interior127
The Department of the Interior was created to conserve and manage the nation’s natural resources
and cultural heritage, to provide scientific and other information about those resources, and to
uphold “the nation’s trust responsibilities or special commitments to American Indians, Alaska
Natives, and affiliated island communities to help them prosper.” DOI has a wide range of
responsibilities, including, among other things, mapping; geological, hydrological, and biological
science; migratory bird, wildlife, and endangered species conservation; surface-mined lands
protection and restoration; and historic preservation.128 The Administration is requesting $17.4
bil ion in net discretionary funding for DOI in FY2022.129 Of that amount, $1.34 bil ion is
proposed for R&D, $315 mil ion (31%) above the FY2021 estimated level of $1.02 bil ion.130
Funding for DOI R&D is general y included in appropriations line items that also include non-
R&D activities. How much of the funding provided in appropriations legislation is al ocated to
R&D specifical y is unclear unless funding is provided at the precise level of the request. In
general, R&D funding levels are known only after DOI components al ocate their appropriations
to specific activities and report those figures.
As passed by the House on July 29, 2021, the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education,
Agriculture, Rural Development, Energy and Water Development, Financial Services and General
Government, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, Transportation, and
Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2022 (H.R. 4502) would provide a total of
$15.6 bil ion in discretionary funding for DOI, $250 mil ion (1.6%) below the FY2022 request
and $2.29 bil ion (17.1%) above the FY2021 enacted level.131 As released by the Senate
Committee on Appropriations on October 18, 2021, the Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies, 2022, committee print would provide $15.7 bil ion in discretionary funding for DOI,
$558 mil ion (4.1%) below the FY2022 request and $2.0 bil ion (14.6%) above the FY2021
enacted level.132 These amounts include both R&D and non-R&D funding.
U.S. Geological Survey
The U.S. Geological Survey accounts for more than two-thirds of al DOI R&D funding. A single
appropriations account, Surveys, Investigations, and Research (SIR), provides al USGS funding.
USGS R&D is conducted under seven SIR activity/program areas: Ecosystems; Energy and
127 T his section was written by Laurie Harris, Analyst in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources, Science, and
Industry Division.
128 Department of the Interior,
Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2018-2022 and
Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2014-
2018, available at https://www.doi.gov/performance/strategic-planning.
129 Department of the Interior,
Fiscal Year 2022: The Interior Budget in Brief, May 2021, p. DH-3.
130 EOP, OMB,
Analytical Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2022, Research and
Developm ent, May 28, 2021, p. 178, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/
ap_14_research_fy22.pdf.
131 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations,
Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies Appropriation Bill, 2022, explanatory report, 117th Cong., 1st sess., H.Rept. 117-83 (Washington, DC: GPO,
2021), p. 283, as incorporated by reference in H.R. 4502.
132 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement for the Department of the Interior,
Environm ent, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2022 (com mittee print), 117th Cong., 1st sess., released
October 18, 2021, p. 216, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/download/intrept_final.
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Mineral Resources; Natural Hazards; Water Resources; Core Science Systems; Science Support;
and Facilities.
The President’s total FY2022 budget request for USGS is $1.6 bil ion, up $327 mil ion (26%)
from the FY2021 enacted level.133 Of the proposed FY2022 total, $947 mil ion would be for
R&D, an increase of $256 mil ion (37%) from the FY2021 estimated level of $691 mil ion.134
As passed by the House, H.R. 4502 would provide $1.6 bil ion for USGS, equal to the FY2022
requested amount.135 As released by the Senate Committee on Appropriations, the Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies, 2022, committee print would provide $1.5 bil ion for USGS,
$149 mil ion less than the FY2022 requested amount.136 These amounts include both R&D and
non-R&D funding.
Other DOI Components
The President’s FY2022 request also includes R&D funding for the following DOI
components:137
Bureau of Reclamation (BOR): $122 mil ion for FY2022, down $11 mil ion
(8.3%) from the FY2021 estimate.
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM): $112 mil ion for FY2022, up
$30 mil ion (37%) from the FY2021 estimate.
Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS): $57 mil ion for FY2022, up $24 mil ion (73%)
from the FY2021 estimate.
National Park Service (NPS): $34 mil ion for FY2022, up $6 mil ion (21%) from
the FY2021 estimate.
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE): $32 mil ion for
FY2022, up $5 mil ion (19%) from the FY2021 estimate.
Bureau of Land Management (BLM): $21 mil ion for FY2022, equal to the
FY2021 estimate.
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA): $5 mil ion for FY2022, equal to the FY2021
estimate.
Wildland Fire Management (WFM): $8 mil ion for FY2022, up $5 mil ion
(167%) from the FY2021 estimate.138
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE): $1 mil ion
for FY2022, equal to the FY2021 estimate.
Table 19 summarizes FY2021 estimated R&D funding and the President’s FY2022 R&D funding
request for DOI components.
133 Department of the Interior,
Fiscal Year 2022: The Interior Budget in Brief, May 2021, p. BH-59.
134 Email communications between CRS and OMB, May 26, 2021.
135 H.Rept. 117-83, p. 266.
136 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement for the Department of the Interior,
Environm ent, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2022 (com mittee print) , 117th Cong., 1st sess., released
October 18, 2021, p. 205, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/download/intrept_final.
137 Ibid.
138 Ibid.
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Table 19. Department of the Interior R&D
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Estimate
Request
House
S. Draft.
Enacted
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
691
947
n/s
n/s
Bureau of Reclamation (BOR)
133
122
n/s
n/s
Bureau of Ocean Energy
82
112
n/s
n/s
Management (BOEM)
Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)
33
57
n/s
n/s
National Park Service (NPS)
28
34
n/s
n/s
Bureau of Safety and Environmental
27
32
n/s
n/s
Enforcement (BSEE)
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
21
21
n/s
n/s
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
5
5
n/s
n/s
Wildland Fire Management (WFM)
3
8
n/s
n/s
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation
1
1
n/s
n/s
and Enforcement (OSMRE)
Department of the Interior,
1,024
1,339
n/s
n/s
R&D Total
Sources: EOP, OMB,
Analytical Perspectives, Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2022, Research and
Development, May 28, 2021, p. 178; and email communications between CRS and OMB, May 26, 2021.
Notes: Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for the columns currently
blank may become available as action is completed. n/s = not specified.
Department of Homeland Security139
The Department of Homeland Security has identified five core missions: to prevent terrorism and
enhance security, to secure and manage the borders, to enforce and administer immigration laws,
to safeguard and secure cyberspace, and to ensure resilience to disasters. New technology
resulting from research and development can contribute to achieving al these goals. The
Directorate of Science and Technology (S&T) has primary responsibility for establishing,
administering, and coordinating DHS R&D activities. Other components, such as the Countering
Weapons of Mass Destruction Office and the Transportation Security Administration, conduct
R&D relating to their specific missions.
The President’s FY2022 budget request for DHS includes $618 mil ion for activities identified as
R&D. This would be an increase of 8.4% from $570 mil ion in FY2021. The total includes
$503 mil ion for the R&D account in the S&T Directorate and smal er amounts for five other
DHS components. The House bil would provide a total of $629 mil ion, including $511 mil ion
in the S&T Directorate. The draft Senate bil would provide $651 mil ion, including $530 mil ion
in the S&T Directorate. Se
e Table 20.
The S&T Directorate performs R&D in several laboratories of its own and funds R&D performed
by the DOE national laboratories, industry, universities, and others. It also conducts testing and
139 T his section was written by Daniel Morgan, Specialist in Science and T echnology Policy, CRS Resources, Science,
and Industry Division.
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other technology-related activities in support of acquisitions by other DHS components. The
Administration’s FY2022 request of $503 mil ion for the S&T Directorate R&D account would
be an increase of 13.4% from $444 mil ion in FY2021. Within the R&D account, the Research,
Development, and Innovation budget line would increase by $53 mil ion, including increases for
Cyber Security/Information Analysis (up $29 mil ion); First Response/Disaster Resilience (up
$21 mil ion); and Counter Terrorist (up $13 mil ion); and a decrease for Border Security (down
$11 mil ion). In the University Programs budget line, the request for university centers of
excel ence is $46 mil ion, up from $39 mil ion in FY2021. The requested increase for centers of
excel ence would support increased funding for continuing centers as wel as the planned
selection of two new centers.
The House bil would provide $5 mil ion more than the request for Research, Development, and
Innovation and $2.5 mil ion more than the request for University Programs. The additional
funding for University Programs would be directed to the Minority Serving Institutions program.
The draft Senate bil would provide $10 mil ion more than the request for Research,
Development, and Innovation and $17 mil ion more than the request for University Programs.
The additional funding for University Programs would be directed to an independent assessment
of the current state of border security ($10 mil ion) and the development, with U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP), of “analytic capabilities to assess the impact of DHS and CBP actions
and investments on world-wide forced labor levels and how those investments impact U.S.
businesses” ($5 mil ion).
In addition to its R&D account, the S&T Directorate receives funding for laboratory facilities and
other R&D-related expenses through two other accounts (not shown in the table). The total
request for the directorate is $823 mil ion, an increase of 7.5% from $766 mil ion in FY2021. The
directorate’s Procurement, Construction, and Improvements account would receive $9 mil ion
under the Administration’s request (versus $19 mil ion in FY2021) for closure of the Plum Island
Animal Disease Center—which is being replaced by the National Bio and Agro-Defense
Facility—and for preparation of Plum Island itself for sale.140 Total funding for the directorate
would be $830 mil ion in the House bil and $869 mil ion in the draft Senate bil . The House bil
would provide the requested funds for Procurement, Construction, and Improvements; the draft
Senate bil would provide an additional $4 mil ion. The draft Senate bil would also provide $15
mil ion more than the request in the directorate’s Operations and Support account to expand and
evolve models, developed with CBP, of migrant flow to the Southwest border.
140 T he S&T Directorate is building NBAF using previously appropriated funds and is to transfer the facility to the
USDA once it becomes operational. For more information, see CRS In Focus IF11492,
National Bio and Agro-Defense
Facility: Purpose and Status, by Genevieve K. Croft .
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Table 20. Department of Homeland Security R&D Accounts
(budget authority, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
Enacted
Request
H. Cmte.
S. Draft
Enacted
Science and Technology Directorate
444
503
511
530
Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction
65
66
66
66
Office
Transportation Security Administration
30
36
36
36
U.S. Coast Guard
10
7
7
7
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security
9
4
7
10
Agency
U.S. Secret Service
12
2
2
2
Total, DHS R&D
570
618
629
651
Sources: FY2021 enacted from P.L. 116-260. FY2022 request from DHS congressional budget justification,
https://www.dhs.gov/publication/congressional-budget-justification-fy-2022. FY2022 House committee from H.R.
4431 as reported and H.Rept. 117-87. FY2022 Senate draft from draft bil and report released by the Senate
Appropriations Committee on October 18, 2021.
Notes: Table includes accounts titled “Research and Development” in each DHS component. Some other
accounts may also fund R&D-related activities. Some amounts may not add to totals due to rounding. Figures for
the column currently blank may become available as action is completed.
Environmental Protection Agency141
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers multiple environmental pollution
control laws, many of which are carried out under a delegated framework with states and tribes
(and local governments for certain authorities). To carry out this mission, EPA funds a broad
range of R&D activities intended to provide scientific tools and knowledge that inform decisions
relating to preventing, regulating, and abating environmental pollution. Since FY2006, Congress
has funded EPA’s discretionary budget through the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
annual appropriations acts.
Appropriations for EPA R&D are general y included in programs and activities that also include
non-R&D functions. Annual appropriations bil s and the accompanying committee reports do not
identify precisely how much funding is al ocated to EPA R&D alone. EPA determines R&D
funding levels for its operations by al ocating the agency’s appropriations for authorized activities
and reporting those amounts.
The agency’s Science and Technology (S&T) appropriations account142 funds much of EPA’s
scientific research activities, which include R&D conducted by the agency at its own laboratories
141 T his section was written by Jerry H. Yen, Analyst in Environmental Policy, CRS Resources, Science, and Industry
Division. For an overview of FY2022 appropriations for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, which includes
EPA, see CRS Report R46908,
Interior, Environm ent, and Related Agencies: Overview of FY2022 Appropriations, by
Carol Hardy Vincent .
142 In 1995, Congress established eight statutory accounts for EPA, including the S&T account. T he S&T account
incorporates elements of the former EPA Research and Development account, as well as portions of the former Salaries
and Expenses and Program Operations accounts, which were in place until FY1996. Currently, discretionary funding is
annually appropriated to EPA among 10 statutory accounts established by Congress over time in annual appropriations
acts. Because of the differences in the scope of the activities included in these accounts, a comparable breakout of
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
and facilities, and R&D and related scientific research conducted by universities, foundations,
and other nonfederal entities that receive EPA grants. The S&T account general y receives a base
appropriation and a transfer from the Hazardous Substance Superfund (Superfund) account for
research on more effective methods for remediating contaminated sites.143
EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD) is the primary manager of R&D at EPA
headquarters and laboratories around the country, as wel as EPA-supported R&D external to the
agency. A large portion of the S&T account funds EPA R&D activities managed by ORD,
including research grants. Programs implemented by other offices within EPA also may have a
research component, but the research component is not necessarily the primary focus of the
particular program.
As passed by the House on July 29, 2021, Division E of H.R. 4502 includes the Department of
the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bil for FY2022. Division E of
H.R. 4502 incorporates H.R. 4372 (H.Rept. 117-83), which was reported by the House
Committee on Appropriations on July 6, 2021. As part of floor action on H.R. 4502, the House
adopted two amendments to EPA’s S&T account. One amendment would increase funding to the
account by $2.0 mil ion for research on polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and toxins resulting
from harmful algal blooms.144 Another amendment would al ocate $1.0 mil ion of the total
funding amount to research on 6PPD-quinone and its potential risks to coho salmon and other fish
species in the Pacific Northwest.145 Including these amendments and a $33.0 mil ion transfer from
the Superfund account, the House-passed bil would provide $842.2 mil ion for EPA’s S&T
account. The House-passed funding level for EPA’s S&T account is a proposed increase of $82.1
mil ion (10.8%) over the enacted FY2021 appropriation of $760.1 mil ion, which includes a
$30.8 mil ion transfer from the Superfund account.146 Also, the House-passed funding level for
EPA’s S&T account is $18.7 mil ion (2.2%) less than the President’s request of $861.0 mil ion,
which includes a proposed $31.0 mil ion transfer from the Superfund account.147 Proposed
increases in funding for the “Clean Air” and “Research: Air and Energy” program areas combined
make up 80.8% of the President’s requested increase in funding to EPA’s S&T account compared
with FY2021 enacted appropriations.
funding for these same activities before FY1996 is not readily available.
143 See footnot
e 29 for more information on Superfund.
144 See “Amendment No. 184” in U.S. Congress, House Committee on Rules,
Providing for Consideration of the Bill
(H.R. 4502
) Making Appropriations or the Departm ents of Labor, Health, and Hum an Services, and Education, and
Related Agencies for the Fiscal Year Ending Septem ber 30, 2022, and for Other Purposes; and for Other Purposes,
report to accompany H.Res. 555, 117th Cong., 1st sess., H.Rept. 117-109 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2021), pp. 24 and 57;
“Amendments En Bloc No. 5 Offered by Ms. DeLauro of Connecticut,”
Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 131 (July
27, 2021), pp. H4075-H4076; and “ Amendments En Bloc No. 5, as Modified, Offered by Ms. DeLauro of
Connecticut,”
Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 133 (July 29, 2021), pp. H4260-H4261.
145 See “Amendment No. 182” in U.S. Congress, House Committee on Rules,
Providing for Consideration of the Bill
(H.R. 4502
) Making Appropriations or the Departm ents of Labor, Health, and Hum an Services, and Education, and
Related Agencies for the Fiscal Year Ending Septem ber 30, 2022, and for Other Purposes; and for Other Purposes ,
report to accompany H.Res. 555, 117th Cong., 1st sess., H.Rept. 117-109 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2021), pp. 24 and 58;
“Amendments En Bloc No. 6 Offered by Ms. DeLauro of Connecticut,”
Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 131 (July
27, 2021), pp. H4079-H4080; and “ Amendments En Bloc No. 6 Offered by Ms. DeLauro of Connectict,”
Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 133 (July 29, 2021), pp. H4261 -H4262.
146 For FY2021 enacted appropriations for program areas and activities funded within the E PA S&T account, see
Congressional Record, vol. 166, no. 218—Book IV (December 21, 2020), pp. H8592 -H8593 (funding tables).
147 EPA,
Fiscal Year 2022 Justification of Appropriation Estimates for the Committee on Appropriations, EPA-190-R-
21-002, May 2021, https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2022-justification-appropriation-estimates-committee-
appropriations, pp. 3, 7-9, and 459 (pp. 22, 27-29, and 483 of the PDF).
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
On October 18, 2021, the Senate Committee on Appropriations majority released nine FY2022
appropriations bil s, including the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations
bil , for consideration.148 The Senate committee majority draft would provide $834.2 mil ion for
EPA’s S&T account, including a $31.0 mil ion transfer from the Superfund account.149 The
proposed funding level for EPA’s S&T account in the Senate committee majority draft is a
proposed increase of $74.1 mil ion (9.7%) over the enacted FY2021 appropriation of $760.1
mil ion, which includes a $30.8 mil ion transfer from the Superfund account.150 Also, the
proposed funding level for EPA’s S&T account in the Senate committee majority draft is $26.8
mil ion (3.1%) less than the President’s request of $861.0 mil ion, which includes a proposed
$31.0 mil ion transfer from the Superfund account.151
Table 21 presents a comparison of the FY2021 enacted appropriations, the President’s FY2022
request, and the FY2022 appropriations proposed in House-passed H.R. 4502 and the Senate
committee majority draft for program areas and activities funded within EPA’s S&T account. The
program areas and activities listed i
n Table 21 are only those identified in funding tables
presented in explanatory statements accompanying annual appropriations bil s that fund EPA. The
explanatory statements include additional breakouts of funding and directive language for certain
activities within these broader program areas. EPA’s annual budget justification also identifies
specific amounts of funding for various subprogram activities not listed in these explanatory
statements.
Table 21. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Science and Technology Account
(appropriations, in mil ions of dol ars)
FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
S&T Program Areas and Activities
Enacted
Request
House
S. Draft
Enacted
Clean Ai
ra
118.6
139.2
139.2
139.2
Atmospheric Protection Programb
7.9
10.0
10.0
10.0
Enforcement
14.0
14.1
14.1
14.1
Homeland Security
35.7
40.4
40.4
40.4
Indoor Air and Radiation
5.1
6.7
6.7
6.7
Information Technology/Data
Management/Security
3.1
3.1
3.1
3.1
Operations and Administration
67.5
68.5
68.5
68.5
Pesticide Licensing
5.9
6.0
6.0
6.0
Research: Air and Energ
yc
95.3
156.2
125.0
114.5
148 For the Senate committee majority draft appropriations bills and explanatory statements, see U.S. Congress, Senate
Committee on Appropriations, “Chairman Leahy Releases Remaining Nine Senate Appropriations Bills,” October 18,
2021, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/chairman-leahy-releases-remaining-nine-senate-
appropriations-bills.
149 U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations,
Explanatory Statement for the Department of Interior,
Environm ent, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2022, accompanying draft committee print released October
18, 2021, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/INT Rept_FINAL.PDF.
150 For FY2021 enacted appropriations for program areas and activities funded within the EPA S&T account, see
Congressional Record, vol. 166, no. 218—Book IV (December 21, 2020), pp. H8592 -H8593 (funding tables).
151 EPA,
Fiscal Year 2022 Justification of Appropriation Estimates for the Committee on Appropriations, EPA-190-R-
21-002, May 2021, https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2022-justification-appropriation-estimates-committee-
appropriations, pp. 3, 7-9, and 459 (pp. 22, 27-29, and 483 of the PDF).
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FY2021
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
FY2022
S&T Program Areas and Activities
Enacted
Request
House
S. Draft
Enacted
Research: Chemical Safety and Sustainability
127.0
135.2
135.2
137.7
Research: Computational Toxicology
21.4
22.2
22.2
22.2
Research: Endocrine Disruptor
16.3
16.9
16.9
16.9
Research: National Priorities
d
7.5
0.0
8.5
12.4
Research: Safe and Sustainable Water Resources
112.3
116.6
116.6
116.6
Research: Sustainable and Healthy Communities
133.0
137.4
137.4
137.4
Water: Human Health Protection
4.4
6.4
6.4
6.4
House Floor Amendments
n/a
n/a
2.0
n/a
Subtotal Base S&T Account
729.3
830.0
809.3
803.2
Transfer from Hazardous Substance
Superfund Account to the S&T Account
30.8
31.0
33.0
31.0
Total, S&T Account (Net Appropriations)
760.1
861.0
842.2
834.2
Sources: Prepared by CRS. Amounts in the table are general y as presented in P.L. 116-260; the explanatory
statement accompanying H.R. 133 (P.L. 116-260) as printed in the
Congressional Record, vol. 166, no. 218—Book
IV (December 21, 2020), pp. H8592-H8593 (funding tables); EPA,
Fiscal Year 2022 Justification of Appropriation
Estimates for the Committee on Appropriations, EPA-190-R-21-002, May 2021, https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/
fy-2022-justification-appropriation-estimates-committee-appropriations, pp. 3, 7-9, and 459 (pp. 22, 27- 29, and
483 of the PDF); H.R. 4502, Division E, Title II; U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations,
Department
of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bil , 2022, report together with minority views to
accompany H.R. 4372, 117th Congress, 1st session, H.Rept. 117-83, (Washington, DC: GPO, 2021), pp. 79-85,
and 283-284; and “Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, 2022, Bil Text,” pp. 78, 81, and 82, and
“Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, 2022, Explanatory Statement,” pp. 78 -82, 93, 217, and 220, at U.S.
Congress, Senate Committee on Appropriations, “Chairman Leahy Releases Remaining Nine Senate
Appropriations Bil s,” October 18, 2021, https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/news/majority/chairman-leahy-
releases-remaining-nine-senate-appropriations-bil s.
Notes: n/a = not applicable. Totals may differ from the sum of the components due to rounding. Figures for
columns currently blank may become available as action is completed.
a. EPA’s FY2022 budget justification refers to this program area as “Clean Air and Climate.” Recent EPA
budget justifications have referred to this program area in a way that is consistent with funding tables
prepared by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
b. EPA’s FY2022 budget justification refers to this program area as “Climate Protection.” Recent EPA budget
justifications have referred to this program area in a way that is consistent with funding tables prepared by
the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
c. EPA’s FY2022 budget justification refers to this program area as “Research: Air, Climate, and Energy.”
Recent EPA budget justifications have referred to this program area in a way that is con sistent with funding
tables prepared by the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
d. The President’s annual budget request typical y does not include funding for “Research: Congressional
Priorities.” The House and Senate refer to this program area as “Research: National Priorities” for which
the House or Senate al ocates funding for specific research activities.
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Appendix A. Acronyms and Abbreviations
Acronym/
Abbreviation
Organization/Term
ACF
Administration for Children and Families
AFRI
Agriculture and Food Research Initiative
AGARDA
Agriculture Advanced Research and Development Authority
AHRQ
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
AI
Artificial Intel igence
AIMS
Arctic Infrastructure Modernization for Science
AOAM
Agency Operations and Award Management
ARPA-C
Advanced Research Projects Agency-Climate
ARPA-E
Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy
ARPA-H
Advanced Research Projects Agency-Health
ARS
Agricultural Research Service
B&F
Buildings and Facilities
BA
Budget Authority
BIA
Bureau of Indian Affairs
BLM
Bureau of Land Management
BOEM
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
BOR
Bureau of Reclamation
BSEE
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
CA
Convergence Accelerator
CDC
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
CJS
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
CLARREO
Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory
CMS
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
CR
Continuing Resolution
CRF
Construction of Research Facilities
DARPA
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
DHP
Defense Health Program
DHS
Department of Homeland Security
DOC
Department of Commerce
DOD
Department of Defense
DOE
Department of Energy
DOI
Department of the Interior
DOT
Department of Transportation
DRA
Designated Research Area
EFNEP
Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program
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Acronym/
Abbreviation
Organization/Term
EHR
Education and Human Resources
EOP
Executive Office of the President
EPA
Environmental Protection Agency
EPSCoR
Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research
ERS
Economic Research Service
FAA
Federal Aviation Administration
FDA
Food and Drug Administration
FHWA
Federal Highway Administration
FIC
Fogarty International Center
FMCSA
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
FRA
Federal Railroad Administration
FTA
Federal Transit Administration
FW-HTF
Future of Work at the Human Technology Frontier
FWS
Fish and Wildlife Service
FY
Fiscal Year
GCR
Growing Convergence Research
GCRA
Global Change Research Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-606)
GDP
Gross Domestic Product
GRFP
Graduate Research Fel owship Program
GWOT
Global War on Terror
HBCU
Historical y Black Col eges and Universities
HDR
Harnessing the Data Revolution (for 21st-Century Science and Engineering)
HHS
Department of Health and Human Services
HLS
Human Landing System
HRSA
Health Resources and Services Administration
ICs
Institutes and Centers
INCLUDES
Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers
in Engineering and Science
ISS
International Space Station
IT
Information technology
ITER
International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor
ITS
Industrial Technology Services
LEO
Low Earth Orbit
LGUs
Land-Grant Col eges and Universities
LHHS
Labor, HHS, and Education
LSST
Large Synoptic Survey Telescope
MEP
Manufacturing Extension Partnership
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Acronym/
Abbreviation
Organization/Term
MREFC
Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction
MSI
Minority Serving Institutions
NAL
National Agricultural Library
NASA
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NASS
National Agricultural Statistics Service
NBAF
National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility
NCATS
National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
NCI
National Cancer Institute
NCO
National Coordinating Office (NITRD)
NEF
Nonrecurring Expenses Fund
NEI
National Eye Institute
NESDIS
National Environmental Satel ite, Data, and Information Service
NHGRI
National Human Genome Research Institute
NHLBI
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
NHTSA
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NIA
National Institute on Aging
NIAAA
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
NIAID
National Institute of Al ergy and Infectious Diseases
NIAMS
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
NIBIB
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
NICHD
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
NIDA
National Institute on Drug Abuse
NIDCD
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
NIDCR
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
NIDDK
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
NIEHS
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
NIFA
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
NIGMS
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
NIH
National Institutes of Health
NIIMBL
National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals
NIMH
National Institute of Mental Health
NIMHD
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
NINDS
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
NINR
National Institute of Nursing Research
NIST
National Institute of Standards and Technology
NITRD
Networking and Information Technology Research and Development
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Acronym/
Abbreviation
Organization/Term
NLM
National Library of Medicine
NMFS
National Marine Fisheries Service
NNA
Navigating the New Arctic
NNI
National Nanotechnology Initiative
NOAA
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NOS
National Ocean Service
NPS
National Park Service
NRT
National Research Traineeship
NSB
National Science Board
NSET
Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSTC Subcommittee)
NSF
National Science Foundation
NSTC
National Science and Technology Council
NWS
National Weather Service
OAR
Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
OCO
Overseas Contingency Operations
OCS
Office of the Chief Scientist (USDA)
OD
NIH Office of the Director
OIG
Office of the Inspector General
OMAO
Office of Marine and Aviation Operations
OMB
Office of Management and Budget
ORD
Office of Research and Development
OSMRE
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
OST
Office of the Secretary of Transportation
OSTP
Office of Science and Technology Policy
PACE
Pre-Aerosol, Clouds, and Ocean Ecosystem
PE
Program Element
PHMSA
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
PHSA
Public Health Service Act
PIADC
Plum Island Animal Disease Center
PRIF
Pediatric Research Initiative Fund
QIS
Quantum Information Science
R&D
Research and Development
RDT&E
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation
RE&D
Research, Engineering, and Development
REE
Research, Education, and Economics
RRA
Research and Related Activities
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Acronym/
Abbreviation
Organization/Term
SARE
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education
S&T
Science and Technology
SIR
Surveys, Investigations, and Research
SLS
Space Launch System
SOFIA
Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy
STEM
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
STRS
Scientific and Technical Research and Services
TIP
Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (NSF Directorate)
TOA
Total Obligational Authority
URoL
Understanding the Rules of Life
USDA
Department of Agriculture
USGCRP
U.S. Global Change Research Program
USGS
U.S. Geological Survey
VA
Department of Veterans Affairs
WFIRST
Wide Field Infrared Space Telescope
WFM
Wildland Fire Management
WoU
Windows on the Universe
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Appendix B. CRS Contacts for Agency R&D
The following table lists the primary CRS experts on R&D funding for the agencies covered in
this report.
Agency
CRS Contact
Department of Agriculture
Genevieve K. Croft
Analyst in Agricultural Policy
Department of Commerce
National Institute of Standards and Technology
John F. Sargent Jr.
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Eva Lipiec
Analyst in Natural Resources Policy
Department of Defense
John F. Sargent Jr.
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
Department of Energy
Daniel Morgan
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
Department of Health and Human Services
Kavya Sekar
National Institutes of Health
Analyst in Health Policy
Department of Homeland Security
Daniel Morgan
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
Department of the Interior
Laurie A. Harris
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy
Department of Transportation
Marcy E. Gal o
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy
Department of Veterans Affairs
Marcy E. Gal o
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy
Environmental Protection Agency
Jerry Yen
Analyst in Environmental Policy
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Daniel Morgan
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
National Science Foundation
Laurie A. Harris
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy
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Federal Research and Development (R&D) Funding: FY2022
Author Information
John F. Sargent Jr., Coordinator
Eva Lipiec
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
Analyst in Natural Resources Policy
Genevieve K. Croft
Daniel Morgan
Specialist in Agricultural Policy
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy
Marcy E. Gallo
Kavya Sekar
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy
Analyst in Health Policy
Laurie A. Harris
Jerry H. Yen
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy
Analyst in Environmental Policy
Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan
shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and
under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should n ot be relied upon for purposes other
than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in
connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not
subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in
its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or
material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to
copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.
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