Lewis-Burke Associates has just released its analysis of the President’s proposed 2018 budget. It includes $6.653 billion for NSF, $819 million or 11% below the FY 2017 enacted budget, and 11.2% below the FY 2016 budget. Some of the details are given below.
Highlights of the proposed NSF budget:
- NSF funded 8,800 research grants in 2016. That is expected to be reduced to 8,000. There would also be a slight decrease in award sizes from 2016.
- Funding to the Division of Mathematical and Physical Sciences would be decreased from $1,348.78 million in FY 2016 to $1,219.43 million, a 9.6% decrease.
- Funding to Education and Human Resources would be decreased from $884.10 million in FY 2016 to $760.55 million, a 14% decrease.
- There would be a $242 million or 14% decrease in CAREER awards for FY 2018.
- The number of new graduate research fellowships would be cut from the 2,000 that have been funded every year since 2011 down to 1,000 per year.
- NSF Research Traineeships (NRT) would be reduced by 28%.
- Advancement of Women in Academic Research and Teaching Careers (ADVANCE) would be cut by 67%.
- Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) would be cut by 24%.
- Robert Noyce Scholarships (NOYCE) would be cut by 16%.
- Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) would be cut by 8%.
- Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners that have been Underrepresented for Diversity in Engineering and Science (INCLUDES), would be the only NSF-wide investment to be increased over FY 2016 levels, up by 6.5%. The proposed budget also includes increases in high performance computing.
Lewis-Burke notes that while NSF has many champions in Congress who will try to save it from deep cuts, its funding is almost certain to be squeezed.