The Society for Science at User Research Facilities joined the Energy Sciences Coalition (ESC) as a co-signer to this statement to the House and Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittees, Chairman Fleischmann and Ranking Members Kaptur, as well as House Science and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committees.
The ESC is a broad-based coalition of organizations representing scientists, engineers and mathematicians in universities, industry and national laboratories who are committed to supporting and advancing the scientific research programs of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and in particular, the DOE Office of Science.
July 26, 2023
As the House advances the fiscal year (FY) 2024 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill (H.R. 4394), the Energy Sciences Coalition (ESC) has prepared an impact assessment on the House mark of $8.1 billion for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science. ESC appreciates efforts to prioritize funding for DOE Office of Science given budget caps imposed by the Fiscal Responsibility Act and additional House-imposed funding cuts on non-defense spending. However, while the $8.1 billion for DOE Office of Science is the same as the FY 2023 enacted funding level, it would have significant negative impacts on DOE Office of Science research, operations, and infrastructure programs. ESC continues to urge Congress to increase discretionary funding allocations and appropriate at least $8.8 billion in FY 2024 for DOE Office of Science, consistent with the FY 2024 President’s budget request and the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act.
The United States cannot risk losing its leadership in science and technology, which is vital to national prosperity, economic growth, and national security. DOE Office of Science has a leading role in maintaining U.S. competitiveness and flat and declining budgets will set back efforts to reclaim that leadership. The CHIPS and Science Act recognized that the only way for the U.S. to win the science and technology race was to outspend and outcompete our competitors. The DOE Office of Science had a central role in that legislation because Congress recognized it is the nation’s largest funder of the physical sciences supporting groundbreaking scientific discoveries, builds and maintains the nation’s largest collection of world-class scientific facilities, advances key emerging technologies such as quantum and artificial intelligence, is mission-focused on advancing energy technologies needed for the nation to meet net-zero carbon emissions, and helps maintain the U.S. pipeline of science and engineering talent. The Office of Science is also unique among federal science agencies by supporting the network of 17 DOE national laboratories—a competitive advantage for the nation’s research and innovation ecosystem—and directly stewards 10 of them.
The FY 2024 House Energy and Water bill proposes flat funding for DOE Office of Science. ESC appreciates efforts to advance the construction of most world-class research facilities, unique scientific instruments, and national lab modernization infrastructure projects, consistent with the FY 2024 budget request. The proposed levels of funding in the House bill are critical to keep projects on time and on budget and stay ahead of international competition. ESC also appreciates efforts to minimize disruptions to operations of existing facilities and major scientific experiments as well as maintain support for key areas of research.
Read the full statement: PDF download