Congress sets national priorities and NIST isn't one of them

Manufacturing & Technology News, Dec 5, 2003

The U.S. Congress does not care much about government programs aimed at improving the U.S technological industrial infrastructure. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is one of the only federal agencies whose budget will decline as a result of congressional appropriations bills completed behind closed doors in late November.

NIST's overall budget will tumble by 12 percent or $81 million in 2004 to $624.4 million, down from $707.5 million in 2003. Its scientific and technical laboratories will experience a budget cut of 4.3 percent ($15.2 million) to $352 million, far less than the $382 million requested by the Bush administration.

Congress provides the Advanced Technology Program with $178 million for next year, but with strings attached. It directs NIST to spend $50 million of the $61 million intended for new projects on homeland security technologies.

NIST's Manufacturing Extension Partnership's budget is slashed by 63 percent, from $106 million to $39.5 million.

NIST employees were thunderstruck. "We're in shock," says one program manager. If manufacturing, technology and innovation are so important to the U.S. economy, "then why would you cut NIST's budget?" asks one employee at the agency. Another said the budget is "inexplicable" and is worse than reported due to inflation and the mounting cost of acquiring and building metrology equipment. This new generation of technology needs to be an order-of-magnitude more precise due to the rapid increase in demand for nano-scale standards and measurements that must be made in real time as materials are being produced. Every industrial sector of the economy will be requiring such equipment and standards in the near future if they want to stay globally competetive and generate new wealth for the United States, say technologists at the agency. They also note that appropriators are starting to infuse NIST's budget with more "earmarks"--pork projects for selected members of Congress.

"The country is facing the most intense industrial challenge in its history and we are engaged in a wholesale disassembly of our industrial infrastructure," says another NIST laboratory manager, who asked that he not be named.

Others at NIST say the agency is in trouble partly because Republican Rep. Connie Morella lost her reelection bid last year. NIST was located in her district and, given her seniority, she pulled weight at budget time. Blame is also being placed on the political team at the Commerce Department. Secretary Don Evans is "more busy raising money for his 'First Friend' than he is in worrying about the nation's commerce," said one frustrated insider.

Virtually every other agency in the category in which NIST competes for funds in the Commerce, State and Justice appropriation experienced substantial budget increases. The FBI's budget of $4.64 billion is $423 million higher than in 2003, a one-year increase alone that is almost $100 million more than NIST's entire laboratory budget. The Drug Enforcement Agency's budget will increase by $237 million in 2004 to $2.16 billion. The Federal Judiciary will receive $4.86 million, $240 million more than in 2003. "It is apparent that our mission is not a priority," says one NIST manager.

Within the foreign assistance account, which also competes with NIST, the U.S. Agency for International Development's budget will increase by $297 million to $4.8 billion. Israel receives $2.2 billion for foreign military assistance and $480 million in economic assistance. Egypt receives $1.3 billion in military financing and $575 million in economic assistance. The independent states of the former Soviet Union will receive $587 million in U.S. taxpayer help. Ireland receives $19 million. And Iraq?

Moreover, the consolidated appropriation report that contains NIST's budget is chock full of thousands of earmarks--pork barrel projects that total hundreds of millions of dollars and are used by incumbents as a means to keep themselves employed.

Elsewhere in the final budget agreement, the National Science Foundation's budget will increase by $268 million next year to $5.6 billion, a 5 percent increase over 2003. It is the largest budget ever for NSE NASA's budget will increase by $80 million over last year's amount to $15.5 billion. Total highway spending will increase by $6.1 billion over 2003, to $33.8 billion. The Federal Aviation Administration will receive $14 billion, $460 million more than in 2003.

Meanwhile, the Enterprise Integration Act, an authorization bill passed by Congress and signed by President Bush on Nov. 5, 2002, was not funded. The fouryear, $47-million program was intended to create standards for the electronic exchange of data among manufacturers, assemblers, suppliers and customers.

The conference agreement includes $75 million for a nationwide sex abstinence education program. Within the Commerce Department, the International Trade Administration receives $395 million. Conferees says the ITA has "failed to meet its mission" of upholding trade agreements. "The conferees understand the difficulties in attempting to balance the positive and the negative effects of a free trade agenda," they write. "The U.S. government must uphold its responsibility to enforce trade laws, particularly with China."