On Thursday after a month of consideration, the Senate approved the $64.9 billion Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) appropriations bill by a 71-28 vote. The Senate initially began considering the bill on October 5th, but tabled the debate after failing to invoke cloture on October 13th.
Included in the bill are the following appropriations for federal science and engineering agencies:
- $6.9 billion for the National Science Foundation (NSF), a $426 million increase over FY 2009 and $128 million below the President's request.
- $878.8 million for the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST), a $59.8 million increase over FY 2009 and $32.7 million increase over the President's request;
- $18.69 billion for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in FY 2010, a $903 million increase above the FY 2009 and equal to the President's request.
More information about the Senate-approved CJS bill, including the bill summary and report text, can be found at:
http://appropriations.senate.gov/news.cfm?method=news.view&id=502767f4-4244-4d2
Additional information about the NSF, NIST, and NASA FY 2010 appropriations bills can be found in the July 2, 2009 and July 10, 2009 editions of Capitol Update.
In the coming weeks, a conference committee will be convened to resolve the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.
Melissa Carl handles public policy-related issues related to NSF for ASME. She can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
