FASEB SUBMITS TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF INCREASED FUNDING FOR SCIENCE AGENCIES Created by on 4/22/2011 12:00:00 AM
The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) recently submitted written testimony to several House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees. The statements presented FASEB’s recommendations
for fiscal year (FY) 2012 funding increases for four key federal science agencies.
to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies requested an FY 2012 budget of $35 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Illustrating the enormous impact NIH has had on efforts to improve health and combat disease, the testimony cited NIH-funded studies leading to effective cancer therapies and automated tuberculosis detection as examples of recent scientific advances. The statement also described the competitive funding environment researchers currently face, and explained that failure to provide sustainable, predictable investment in NIH would terminate promising research, discourage young scientists, and limit the nation’s capacity for innovation.
submitted by FASEB to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies requested an FY 2012 budget of $7.80 billion for the National Science Foundation (NSF) and highlighted the agency’s critical role in supporting research and education initiatives across all fields of science and engineering. Examples of NSF-funded projects that have had implications for medicine were also provided, including advances in magnetic resonance imaging, synthetic biology research to improve production of therapeutics, and robotics research to revolutionize surgical procedures.