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WASHINGTON -- A budget compromise for fiscal year 2012 expected to be approved later this week would increase funding for the National Science Foundation and other federal scientific research efforts. The Senate and House have agreed on a "mini-bus" bill with funding for five cabinet-level departments: Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Housing and Urban Development, and Transportation, as well as for science and other related agencies. Their budget would increase NSF funding to $7 billion, $173 million more than in 2011 and more than was proposed by either the House or Senate appropriations subcommittees, although significantly less than the $907 million increase President Obama requested in February.
NASA would face a budget cut of $648 million, mostly in space exploration, but funding for NASA's science programs would increase by $155 million. The National Institute for Standards and Technology would see a $33 million increase to $751 million -- also below the president's request.
The package also includes a continuing resolution that would avert a government shutdown in December.
