Feb. 2, 2005 — Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. George Allen, R-Va., sent a letter today to President Bush urging him to fund nanoscale science and engineering at the highest levels authorized by the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act in the fiscal year 2006 budget being prepared.
The president’s budget submission to Congress is required by Monday, Feb. 7. In tonight’s State of the Union address, the president is expected to describe a tight budget. His submission will “call for a near-freeze in the overall growth of government spending,” according to a Reuters report.
The Nanotech R&D Act, passed into law in December 2003, authorizes funding for nanoscale science and engineering. Each year’s budget determines how much money is actually appropriated for nanotechnology in individual agency’s budgets.
For fiscal year 2006, the act authorizes the following appropriations:
- $424 million for the National Science Foundation
- $347 million for the Department of Energy
- $37.5 million for National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- $75 million for the National Institute of Standards and Technology
- $6.05 million for the Environmental Protection Agency
The senators said they strongly supported “budget amounts at this level.”
“Foreign countries, companies, and scientists are heavily investing in nanotechnology research, predicting that it will be the leading technology of the 21st century. … Nanotechnology can be a primary driver of economic growth and the United States cannot afford to fall behind our competitors if we want to maintain our economic strength,” the letter read.
– David Forman