Congress May Miss CHIPS And Science Research Targets by Billions This December
Earlier this year Congress passed the筹码与科学法: a once-in-a-generation piece of legislation to secure U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, enhance U.S. science investment, and foster the next generation of STEM talent.
但是，该立法的核心是国家科学基金会（NSF），能源部科学办公室（DOE SC）和国家标准技术研究所（NIST）的积极支出目标。这些目标是所有这些机构都以持续的长期增长，但Congress has to provide actual dollarsto make it happen. Now, amid a迫在眉睫的资金截止日期December 16, Congress is running the risk of falling substantially short of its own bipartisan aspirations.
To tally up the current shortfalls between current appropriations and aspirational CHIPS targets, FAS has produced ashort report breaking down key programs and provisionsby agency. Read below for a summary of major takeaways, or现在下载for the full report.
什么是筹码和科学？
《筹码与科学法》具有其原始根源calls almost three years agoto create a new technology directorate at NSF, ramp up federal science funding, and create regional tech hubs around the country. These investments are still at the final law’s core, along with policies to achieve additional goals like achieving energy security and fostering STEM talent. Collective program changes in the law offer the potential to boost domestic manufacturing, tackle supply-chain vulnerabilities, and power the workforce of the future in emerging industries.
芯片和科学的一个关键方面是在10个关键技术领域（包括AI，Quantum Science，Robotics，Biotech等）列表的第10387节中包含了一个，以及5个社会挑战领域（例如国家安全，工业生产力和气候改变）。这些优先事项旨在指导新的NSF技术局的投资，并告知其他活动long-term strategy development。
同样，芯片和科学的关键组成部分是增加支出目标，或者authorizations, from the current fiscal year (FY 2023) through FY 2027. In the first year, NSF, DOE SC, and NIST are slated for a 28% year-over-year increase to kick off a long-term rise (see graph below). But that’s just a target, and not a guarantee that actual funding will arrive.
Enter Appropriations
These agencies are funded through annual appropriations bills, typically marked up by Congress in summer and finalized each fall. To date,房子已经完成工作on six out of twelve annual spending bills, while Senate Democrats have released around of proposals尚未收到必要的两党行动。
筹码中包含的三个研究机构的情况如何塑造？尽管这三个机构的2023财年拨款将至少提供适度的同比增长，但它们也比迄今为止设定的理想目标大大不足。在聚集，as we show in our report, appropriations for the NSF, DOE SC, and NIST are currently $2.4 billion or 11% short of the bipartisan CHIPS targets in the Senate, and $3.2 billion or 15% short in the House, as of November 2022.
立法者仍将有机会在最终的综合会议上弥补这一基础，这应该很快到达。科学倡导者，包括大学，公司和科学社会，最近几个月一直在工作要求强大的拨款。靠近芯片目标的强大资金最终将使美国的科学家和公司在全球舞台上具有新兴技术的领域竞争和获胜。
Agency Specifics
The appropriations shortfalls are fairly broad-based for NSF and DOE SC, while more narrow for NIST. Here’s a quick recap of the state of appropriations for each; for more,see the full report。
National Science Foundation: NSF forms a cornerstone of federal R&D and is the leading funder for non-medical research at U.S Universities. It’s particularly prominent in research and STEM education in disciplines like chemistry that undergird excellence in the technology priorities identified in Section 10387.
目前，众议院和参议院的拨款分别为23亿美元和16亿美元，分别少于筹码和科学授权，这是短缺的some experts warncould sink U.S. competitive ambitions. This includes a shortfall of at least $738 million for the primary NSF research account, funding for which is important for ensuring NSF has sufficient resources to boost existing programsand允许新技术局进入跑步开始国会的意图。此外，STEM教育拨款占房子的7亿美元，参议院的6.23亿美元。可以进行充值的许多领域中的一些包括：
- Mid-Scale Infrastructure.拨款人分配了一些资金，但是筹码将额外的5500万美元用于大学基础设施项目的额外资金，成本在2000万至1亿美元之间，代表了服务欠缺的科学基础设施投资。现有的计划大大超额认购。
- 企业家研究金。The new directorate was directed to establish a fellowship program that provides scientists with entrepreneurial training (not unlike thisDay One Project proposal), authorized at $125 million over five years. Funding would award fellowships to scientists and engineers with promising ideas capable of forging connections between academia, industry, government, and other end-users.
- 罗伯特·诺伊斯（Robert Noyce）老师奖学金。The fellowship provides stipends, scholarships, and programmatic support to prepare and recruit highly skilled STEM professionals to become K-12 teachers in high-need districts, and is at least $60 million below target in both chambers.
科学办公室：DOE SC is the largest funder of the physical sciences, and pursues several crosscutting research initiatives directly aligned with CHIPS technology priorities, including in microelectronics, quantum science, critical materials, and other areas. This work is spread over the Office’s six major research programs, appropriations for most of which are well below the CHIPS targets (see graph above). Overall, House and Senate appropriations are currently $902 million and $802 million short of the authorizations established in CHIPS, respectively.
- Fusion science资金是2.57亿美元以下芯片在level and $282 million below in the Senate. Among CHIPS priorities are an authorization of $35 million in FY 2023 for designs and technology roadmaps for a pilot fusion plant. It also authorizes a research program and innovation center in high-performance computing for fusion.
- The Basic Energy Sciences计划是1.9亿美元的房子,$145 million in the Senate. The largest research program supports fundamental science disciplines for several CHIPS And Science technology areas. Among other things the law authorized research in energy storage ($120 million authorized in FY 2023) and $50 million per year for carbon materials and storage research in coal-rich U.S. regions.
- Advanced Scientific Computing Researchis at least $50 million below CHIPS targets in appropriations so far. CHIPS authorized a program in quantum network infrastructure at $100 million in FY 2023 and a program to expand quantum hardware and research cloud access at $30 million in FY 2023.
nist。该机构的研发活动涵盖了几项芯片和科学技术的优先事项，包括网络安全，高级通信，AI，量子科学和生物技术。NIST还拥有在所有50个州和波多黎各的制造扩展中心的广泛制造系统，该系统可帮助数千个美国制造商每年成长和创新。迄今为止，Topline NIST拨款已经接近众议院的筹码目标，并且远远超过了参议院提案中的目标，尽管这主要是由建筑项目指定驱动的。尽管如此，到目前为止，NIST的主要实验室研究帐户的拨款与芯片和科学目标不远。
On the other hand,NIST manufacturing programs落后于芯片目标的滞后，包括Hollings制造扩展合作伙伴关系of $63 million in the House and $75 million in the Senate; and a $79 million shortfall in the House forManufacturing USAfunding.
下一步
For Congress to move from the current status of appropriations to a final deal (hopefully) closer to CHIPS, a few things have to happen. First, leadership has to agree on an overall spending topline or what’s known as a “302(a)” allocation, with robust increases for nondefense spending in particular: all three of NSF, DOE SC, and NIST are funded via the nondefense budget, and a good nondefense number is necessary to create room for budget boosts to fulfill the CHIPS vision.
其次，国会将不得不为筹码 - 重要的支出账单提供足够的增加，特别是商业司法科学法案（对于NSF和NIST，以及其他筹码优先事项，例如Tech Hubs）和Energy＆Water Fill（用于The Tech Hubs）（用于DOE程序），通过所谓的“ 302（b）”分配。在每项法案中，竞争利益和优先事项对纳税人的美元提出要求，其授予领导者的责任确保支出账单足够大，以提供筹码竞争力增长的空间。
Finally, legislators and staff will have to make final decisions on agency and programmatic spending levels. There’s a golden opportunity to top up those key programs for U.S. technology leadership authorized in CHIPS – but the clock is ticking.
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