Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2018
Abstract
President Trump's budget request for FY2018 includes $117.697 billion for research and development (R and D). This represents a $30.605 billion (20.6 percent) decrease from the FY2016 actual level of $148.302 billion (FY2017 enacted levels were not available at the time of publication). Adjusted for inflation, the President's FY2018 R and D request represents a constant dollar decrease of 23.6 percent from the FY2016 actual level. However, in 2016 the Office of Management and Budget changed the definition used for "development" to "experimental development." This new definition was used in calculating R and D in the FY2018 budget, but no adjustments were made to data reported for FY2016 or FY2017 data to reflect the new definition. OMB asserts that the definitional change results in the exclusion of $33.547 billion from FY2018 requested R and D funding (DOD and NASA) that would have been included in previous years. According to OMB, these funds are being requested in the FY2018 budget, but no longer classified as R and D. Thus, applying the prior definition for R and D, aggregate federal R and D in the Trump Administration's budget for FY2018 would represent a $2.942 billion (2.0 percent) increase over FY2016; in constant dollars, federal R and D would be down $2.837 billion, or 1.9 percent. The DOD and VA would receive increased R and D funding for FY2018. The other major federal R and D funding agencies would see their R and D budgets reduced under the President's budget.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 25, 2018
- Accession Number
- AD1169989
Entities
People
- Daniel Morgan
- Harold F. Upton
- Jim D. Monke
- John F. Sargent
- Judith A. Johnson
- Laurie A. Harris
- Marcy E. Gallo
- Robert Esworthy
Organizations
- Library of Congress