Former NSF Directors and NSB Chairs warn Congress that proposed budget and staffing cuts would undermine U.S. scientific leadership and urge a major increase in NSF funding to secure America's global competitiveness, innovation, and prosperity.
Dear Chairman Rogers, Ranking Member Meng, Chairman Moran, and Ranking Member Van Hollen:
In March, President Trump laid out a series of challenges in his letter to Michael Kratsios, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Warning that “rivals abroad seek to usurp America’s position as the world’s greatest maker of marvels and producer of knowledge” the President laid out three challenges we must meet to “usher in the Golden Age of American Innovation” and “make America safer, healthier, and more prosperous than ever before:”
(1) We must “secure its position as the unrivaled world leader in critical and emerging technologies,” including by “accelerating research and development”
(2) We must “revitalize America’s science and technology enterprise,” including by attracting top talent and celebrating merit.
(3) Finally, we must “ensure that scientific progress and technological innovation fuel economic growth and better the lives of all Americans”
We believe these challenges can be met, but not with the draconian budget plan and staffing reductions just released by OMB. Such a budget would thwart scientific progress, decimate the research workforce, and take a decade or more to recover. Achieving the President’s vision requires a major enhancement of the NSF budget, ideally a doubling of the FY25 level over the next few years and sufficient staff to execute this vision. In the current political climate, we know this is a bold request. We make it, nonetheless, to say -- if we truly wish to realize this vision, we must commit to a historic investment in fundamental research and education in a manner that leaves no doubt about the United States’ intentions with our international competitors.
We face a fork in the road. Do we want to win or concede the race for new knowledge and a competitive STEM workforce? For 75 years winning that race has been the foundation of American prosperity and national security. Adopting the proposed cuts would fast-track China’s plans for technological dominance. As Senator Todd Young said in his March 25th Washington Post op-ed, “…Our policymakers should lock arms with the science-and-technology dreamers and doers across the country — from Silicon Valley to the Silicon Prairie — and recognize that basic research isn’t a federal handout to help sustain academia. Instead, it is a vital ingredient in our innovation future, economic and geopolitical competitiveness, and national security.”
It is critical for America’s future to make the right choice. We stand ready to assist you and the country in any way possible.