[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 58 (Thursday, May 5, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H3045]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIPLING THE INNOVATION BUDGET OVER THE NEXT DECADE
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, earlier this week, I wrote President Bush
urging him to boldly triple the innovation budget--federal basic
research and development--over the next decade.
America today finds herself at a crossroads when it comes to leading
the world in science and innovation. We can continue down the current
path, as other nations continue to narrow the gap, or we can take bold,
dramatic steps to ensure U.S. economic leadership in the 21st century
and a rising standard of living for all Americans.
Our current levels of investment in innovative research and
development are not enough to keep us at the forefront. Countries such
as China and India are quickly gaining ground on the United States and
few people realize it.
The United States faces stiff competition in sheer volume because our
population is a fraction of that of China and India.
In 2000, Asian universities accounted for almost 1.2 million of the
world's science and engineering degrees and European universities
accounted for 850,000. North American universities accounted for only
about 500,000.
Additionally, according to the National Science Foundation, the
United States has a smaller share of the worldwide total of science and
engineering doctoral degrees awarded than either Asia or Europe.
This is most alarming when you consider that since 1980, the number
of science and engineering positions in the United States have grown at
five times the rate of positions in the civilian workforce as a whole.
This trend should be setting off alarm bells, especially as more high-
tech products, and the high-tech jobs behind them, are located
elsewhere.
America has a proud history of rising to the occasion. We need to be
mobilized as we were after the former Soviet Union launched Sputnik,
when we made a commitment in the late 1950s to build our space program
and greatly enhance our educational system in the name of national
defense through the passage of the National Defense Education Act.
Recently we fulfilled the commitment to double the National
Institutes of Health budget to jump-start work on medical research to
help find cures to debilitating and fatal diseases. Our nation must
make a similar bold commitment to invest in the future of our country
by tripling the innovation budget--federal basic research and
development--over the next decade.
I believe that a bold initiative like this is necessary to ensure for
future generations that America continues to be the innovation leader
of the world.
I know my colleagues share my concern about the future
competitiveness of American industry and are committed to improving job
opportunities for all Americans. Your attention will send a clear
message about the gravity of this situation.
Congress of the United States,
Washington, DC, May 3, 2005.
Hon. George W. Bush,
The President, the White House,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. President: America today finds herself at a
crossroads when it comes to leading the world in science and
innovation. We can continue down the current path, as other
nations continue to narrow the gap, or we can take bold,
dramatic steps to ensure U.S. economic leadership in the 21st
century and a rising standard of living for all Americans.
I know you share my concern about the future
competitiveness of American industry and are committed to
improving job opportunities for all Americans. However, our
current levels of investment in innovative research and
development are not enough to keep us at the forefront.
Countries such as China and India are quickly gaining ground
on the United States and few people realize it. This trend
should be setting off alarm bells, especially as more high-
tech products, and the high-tech jobs behind them, are
located elsewhere.
The United States faces stiff competition in sheer volume
because our population is a fraction of that of China and
India. In 2000, Asian universities accounted for almost 1.2
million of the world's science and engineering degrees and
European universities accounted for 850,000. North American
universities accounted for only about 500,000. Additionally,
according to the National Science Foundation, the United
States has a smaller share of the worldwide total of science
and engineering doctoral degrees awarded than either Asia or
Europe. This is most alarming when you consider that since
1980, the number of science and engineering positions in the
United States have grown at five times the rate of positions
in the civilian workforce as a whole.
Foreign advances in basic science also now often rival or
even exceed America's, and published research by Americans is
lagging. Physical Review, a series of top physics journals,
last year tracked a reversal in which American scientific
papers, in two decades, dropped from the most published to
minority status. In 2004--the most recent year statistics are
available--the total number of American papers published was
just 29 percent, down from 61 percent in 1983.
America also is losing ground in the area of patents. The
percentage of U.S. patents has been steadily declining as
foreign nations, especially in Asia, have become more active
and in some fields have seized the innovation lead. The U.S.
share of its own industrial patents now stands at only 52
percent. Another measuring stick is number of Nobel prizes
won. From the 1960s through the 1990s, American scientists
dominated. Now, the rest of the world has caught up as our
scientists only win about half of the Nobel prizes with the
rest going to Britain, Japan, Russia, Germany, Sweden,
Switzerland, and New Zealand.
Federal research support serves two essential purposes.
First, it supports the research required to fuel continued
innovation and economic growth. Second, because much of it
takes place at the nation's colleges and universities, it
plays a critical role in training our next generation of
scientists, engineers, mathematicians and others who will
comprise the future scientific and technological workforce. I
am concerned that with the current levels of federal
investment in research and technology our country will fall
victim to the fierce manpower competition we face from
developing countries.
America has a proud history of rising to the occasion. We
need to be mobilized as we were after the former Soviet Union
launched Sputnik, when we made a commitment in the late 1950s
to build our space program and greatly enhance our
educational system in the name of national defense through
the passage of the National Defense Education Act. Most
recently we fulfilled the commitment to double the National
Institutes of Health budget to jump-start work on medical
research to help find cures to debilitating and fatal
diseases.
Our nation must make a similar bold commitment to invest in
the future of our country by tripling the innovation budget--
federal basic research and development--over the next decade.
We need to inspire young people to study math and science. As
chairman of the Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations
subcommittee, I understand the difficult budget environment
the nation is facing. But bold leadership from the White
House will help establish this as a national priority in your
next budget request to the Congress.
We must ensure for future generations that America
continues to be the innovation leader of the world. Investing
in research and development is a critical part of optimizing
our nation for innovation, a process that will require strong
leadership and involvement from government, industry,
academia and labor. We must choose whether to innovate or
abdicate.
I urge you to seize this opportunity to rally our nation to
the cause of innovation and stand ready to assist you in this
21st century challenge. I hope you will work with Congress,
with manufacturers and other producers and services
providers, and with the academic and scientific communities
to develop the necessary consensus that will ensure America
will remain the world's leader in innovation. The competitive
and economic future of America is at stake.
Best wishes.
Sincerely,
Frank R. Wolf,
Member of Congress.
____________________