Current-dollar federal obligations for research decreased 9.0%, from $63.7 billion in FY 2010 to $58.0 billion in FY 2011, according to data from the National Science Foundation (NSF).[2] This decline was the result of the last of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus funds being obligated in FY 2010, which accounted for $5.7 billion (8.9%) of research obligations in FY 2010. Research obligations are estimated to remain relatively flat at $58.1 billion in FY 2012, and they are projected to increase by $1.9 billion (3.3%) to $60.0 billion in FY 2013.
In inflation-adjusted terms, federal obligations for research fell 10.7% in FY 2011, following a 0.9% decline in FY 2010. Estimated research obligations continued falling in FY 2012 by 1.8% before edging up by 1.6%, according to FY 2013 projections (table 1).
TABLE 1. Federal obligations for research and development and R&D plant, by character of work: FY 2009–13
Character of work
2009
2010
2011
2012 preliminary
2013 projected
2009
2010
2011
2012 preliminary
2013 projected
Current $millions
Constant 2005 $millions
All R&D and R&D planta
144,758
146,968
139,662
139,159
141,176
131,003
131,786
122,812
120,151
119,905
ARRA
10,081
9,049
na
na
na
9,123
8,114
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
134,677
137,919
139,662
139,159
141,176
121,880
123,672
122,812
120,151
119,905
R&D
141,090
140,355
135,491
134,786
136,472
127,683
125,856
119,144
116,375
115,910
ARRA
8,714
6,621
na
na
na
7,886
5,937
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
132,376
133,734
135,491
134,786
136,472
119,797
119,919
119,144
116,375
115,910
Research
63,692
63,728
58,024
58,050
59,969
57,640
57,145
51,024
50,121
50,933
ARRA
7,727
5,702
na
na
na
6,993
5,113
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
55,965
58,026
58,024
58,050
59,969
50,647
52,032
51,024
50,121
50,933
Basic
32,879
31,795
29,314
29,426
30,066
29,755
28,511
25,777
25,407
25,536
ARRA
5,116
2,667
na
na
na
4,630
2,391
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
27,764
29,128
29,314
29,426
30,066
25,126
26,119
25,777
25,407
25,536
Applied
30,813
31,933
28,710
28,624
29,903
27,885
28,634
25,246
24,714
25,397
ARRA
2,611
3,035
na
na
na
2,363
2,721
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
28,202
28,897
28,710
28,624
29,903
25,522
25,912
25,246
24,714
25,397
Development
77,398
76,627
77,467
76,736
76,502
70,043
68,711
68,121
66,255
64,975
ARRA
987
918
na
na
na
893
823
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
76,411
75,708
77,467
76,736
76,502
69,150
67,887
68,121
66,255
64,975
R&D plant
3,668
6,613
4,171
4,373
4,705
3,319
5,930
3,668
3,776
3,996
ARRA
1,368
2,428
na
na
na
1,238
2,177
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
2,300
4,185
4,171
4,373
4,705
2,081
3,753
3,668
3,776
3,996
na = not applicable.
ARRA = American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
a Beginning in FY 2011, Department of Defense totals include additional classified R&D projects not previously reported by its subagencies.
NOTES: Gross domestic product implicit price deflators for 2005 were used to convert current to constant dollars. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.
SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development.
Figures for FY 2011 are actual amounts, those for FY 2012 are preliminary, and those for FY 2013 are projected. For the remainder of this report, discussions of changes in funding across years are in terms of inflation-adjusted (or constant) dollars unless stated otherwise.
Total Research and Development by Agency
Total federal constant-dollar R&D obligations decreased 5.3% to $119.1 billion between FY 2010 and FY 2011. This decline is primarily due to the last of the ARRA funds ($5.9 billion) having been obligated in FY 2010 (table 1). Even absent the ARRA obligations, R&D decreased by $775 million (0.6%) in FY 2011. R&D obligations were estimated to decrease 2.3% to $116.4 billion in FY 2012 and were projected to decrease 0.4% to $115.9 billion in FY 2013.
In FY 2011, six federal departments and agencies accounted for 96.0% of FY 2011 total federal R&D dollars: the Department of Defense (DOD) (55.5% of total R&D obligations), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (22.8%), the Department of Energy (DOE) (7.3%), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (4.8%), NSF (3.8%), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) (1.7%) (table 2).
TABLE 2. Federal obligations for research and development, by agency in FY 2011 rank order: FY 2009–13
Agency
2009
2010
2011
2012 preliminary
2013 projected
2009
2010
2011
2012 preliminary
2013 projected
Current $millions
Constant 2005 $millions
All agenciesa
141,090
140,355
135,491
134,786
136,472
127,683
125,856
119,144
116,375
115,910
ARRA
8,714
6,621
na
na
na
7,886
5,937
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
132,376
133,734
135,491
134,786
136,472
119,797
119,919
119,144
116,375
115,910
DODa
75,857
73,471
75,157
74,504
73,725
68,649
65,881
66,090
64,327
62,617
ARRA
184
120
na
na
na
167
108
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
75,672
73,351
75,157
74,504
73,725
68,481
65,774
66,090
64,327
62,617
HHS
35,584
35,935
30,849
30,916
30,853
32,203
32,223
27,127
26,693
26,204
ARRA
4,889
4,696
na
na
na
4,424
4,211
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
30,695
31,238
30,849
30,916
30,853
27,778
28,011
27,127
26,693
26,204
DOE
9,890
10,686
9,946
9,592
10,683
8,950
9,582
8,746
8,282
9,073
ARRA
1,393
1,217
na
na
na
1,261
1,091
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
8,496
9,469
9,946
9,592
10,683
7,689
8,491
8,746
8,282
9,073
NASA
5,937
7,121
6,571
6,612
6,972
5,373
6,385
5,778
5,709
5,922
ARRA
315
385
na
na
na
285
345
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
5,622
6,736
6,571
6,612
6,972
5,088
6,040
5,778
5,709
5,922
NSF
6,095
5,016
5,146
5,177
5,423
5,516
4,498
4,525
4,470
4,606
ARRA
1,808
38
na
na
na
1,636
34
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
4,288
4,978
5,146
5,177
5,423
3,881
4,464
4,525
4,470
4,606
USDA
2,267
2,364
2,341
2,460
2,269
2,052
2,120
2,059
2,124
1,927
ARRA
0
0
na
na
na
0
0
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
2,267
2,364
2,341
2,460
2,269
2,052
2,120
2,059
2,124
1,927
Other
5,460
5,762
5,482
5,525
6,546
4,941
5,167
4,821
4,770
5,560
ARRA
125
164
na
na
na
113
147
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
5,335
5,598
5,482
5,525
6,546
4,828
5,020
4,821
4,770
5,560
na = not applicable.
ARRA = American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; DOD = Department of Defense; DOE = Department of Energy; HHS = Department of Health and Human Services; NASA = National Aeronautics and Space Administration; NSF = National Science Foundation; USDA = U.S. Department of Agriculture.
a Beginning in FY 2011, DOD totals include additional classified R&D projects not previously reported by its subagencies.
NOTES: Gross domestic product implicit price deflators for 2005 were used to convert current to constant dollars. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.
SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development.
The six departments and agencies that accounted for most federal R&D dollars in FY 2011 also accounted for most (92.3%) of FY 2011 total federal research dollars. However, their research shares differed considerably from their R&D shares, reflecting the emphasis their varying missions place on research versus development: HHS (53.0% of total research obligations), DOE (12.7%), DOD (11.4%), NSF (8.9%), USDA (3.7%), and NASA (2.7%) (table 3).
TABLE 3. Federal obligations for research, by agency in FY 2011 rank order: FY 2009–13
Agency
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
Current $millions
Constant 2005 $millions
All agencies
63,692
63,728
58,024
58,050
59,969
57,640
57,145
51,024
50,121
50,933
ARRA
7,727
5,702
na
na
na
6,993
5,113
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
55,965
58,026
58,024
58,050
59,969
50,647
52,032
51,024
50,121
50,933
HHS
35,490
35,797
30,771
30,845
30,785
32,118
32,099
27,059
26,632
26,147
ARRA
4,888
4,694
na
na
na
4,424
4,209
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
30,601
31,104
30,771
30,845
30,785
27,693
27,891
27,059
26,632
26,147
DOE
7,188
7,598
7,350
7,086
7,989
6,505
6,813
6,463
6,118
6,785
ARRA
843
652
na
na
na
763
585
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
6,346
6,946
7,350
7,086
7,989
5,743
6,228
6,463
6,118
6,785
DOD
6,792
7,065
6,596
6,619
6,769
6,147
6,335
5,800
5,715
5,749
ARRA
38
45
na
na
na
34
40
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
6,753
7,021
6,596
6,619
6,769
6,111
6,296
5,800
5,715
5,749
NSF
6,095
5,016
5,146
5,177
5,423
5,516
4,498
4,525
4,470
4,606
ARRA
1,808
38
na
na
na
1,636
34
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
4,288
4,977
5,146
5,177
5,423
3,881
4,463
4,525
4,470
4,606
USDA
2,076
2,141
2,125
2,246
2,065
1,879
1,920
1,869
1,939
1,754
ARRA
0
0
na
na
na
0
0
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
2,076
2,141
2,125
2,246
2,065
1,879
1,920
1,869
1,939
1,754
NASA
1,703
1,503
1,575
1,637
1,867
1,541
1,348
1,385
1,413
1,586
ARRA
25
110
na
na
na
23
99
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
1,678
1,393
1,575
1,637
1,867
1,519
1,249
1,385
1,413
1,586
Other
4,348
4,607
4,462
4,440
5,071
3,935
4,131
3,924
3,834
4,307
ARRA
124
163
na
na
na
112
146
na
na
na
Non-ARRA
4,223
4,444
4,462
4,440
5,071
3,822
3,985
3,924
3,834
4,307
na = not applicable.
ARRA = American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; DOD = Department of Defense; DOE = Department of Energy; HHS = Department of Health and Human Services; NASA = National Aeronautics and Space Administration; NSF = National Science Foundation; USDA = U.S. Department of Agriculture.
NOTES: Gross domestic product implicit price deflators for 2005 were used to convert current to constant dollars. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.
SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development.
Basic research obligations decreased 9.6% to $25.8 billion between FY 2010 and FY 2011. ARRA funds accounted for $2.4 billion of FY 2010's $28.5 billion basic research total. Even without the ARRA funds, basic research obligations decreased by 1.3% in FY 2011. Basic research obligations were estimated to decrease 1.4%, to $25.4 billion in FY 2012 and were projected to increase by 0.5% in FY 2013 to $25.5 billion. Basic research obligations accounted for 21.0% of total R&D and R&D plant in FY 2011 (table 1).
Applied Research
Federal obligations for applied research decreased 11.8% to $25.2 billion between FY 2010 and FY 2011. Even without the FY 2010 ARRA funds, applied research decreased by 2.6% in FY 2011. Applied research obligations were estimated to decrease 2.1% between FY 2011 and FY 2012 to $24.7 billion and were projected to increase 2.8% in FY 2013 to $25.4 billion. Applied research obligations accounted for 20.6% of total R&D and R&D plant in FY 2011 (table 1).
Research by Broad Field of Science and Engineering
Six of the broad fields of science and engineering experienced decreased federal research funding between FY 2010 and FY 2011. The two fields experiencing the largest decreases were life sciences (down $4.5 billion, or 14.9%) and engineering (down $1.1 billion, or 11.0%). Two broad fields saw increased federal research funding between FY 2010 and FY 2011: social sciences (rose $37 million, or 3.4%) and other sciences not elsewhere classified (rose $0.5 billion, or 20.7%).[3]
In FY 2011, three broad fields of science and engineering received 77.4% of FY 2011 total federal research dollars: life sciences (50.7% of total research obligations), engineering (17.3%), and physical sciences (9.4%) (table 4).
TABLE 4. Federal obligations for research, by broad field of science and engineering: FY 2009–13
Character of work
2009
2010
2011
2012 preliminary
2013 projected
2009
2010
2011
2012 preliminary
2013 projected
Current $millions
Constant 2005 $millions
All fields
63,692
63,728
58,024
58,050
59,969
57,640
57,145
51,024
50,121
50,933
Computer sciences and mathematics
3,612
3,412
3,374
3,451
3,751
3,269
3,060
2,967
2,980
3,186
Engineering
10,285
11,081
10,057
9,873
10,743
9,308
9,936
8,844
8,524
9,124
Environmental sciences
3,751
3,339
3,207
3,079
3,140
3,395
2,994
2,820
2,658
2,667
Life sciences
33,267
33,909
29,409
29,061
29,152
30,106
30,406
25,861
25,092
24,760
Physical sciences
5,821
5,871
5,427
5,574
5,950
5,268
5,265
4,772
4,813
5,054
Psychology
2,086
2,156
1,887
1,914
1,923
1,888
1,933
1,659
1,653
1,633
Social sciences
1,157
1,197
1,262
1,203
1,253
1,047
1,073
1,110
1,039
1,064
Other sciences, nec
3,713
2,763
3,401
3,894
4,058
3,360
2,478
2,991
3,362
3,447
nec = not elsewhere classified.
NOTES: Gross domestic product implicit price deflators for 2005 were used to convert current to constant dollars. Detail may not sum to total due to rounding.
SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development.
The data presented here are from the NSF Survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development for FYs 2011–13. The 27 federal agencies that report R&D obligations to the survey submitted actual obligations for FY 2011, preliminary data for FY 2012, and projected data for FY 2013. Data were requested from agencies beginning in March 2012. Agencies later revise the preliminary data based on actual changes in the funding levels of R&D programs. Further, agencies may provide changes in prior-year data to reflect program reclassifications or other data corrections.
In order to enable reporting from the Department of Defense's subagencies engaged in classified R&D projects, starting with the FY 2011–13 survey cycle the DOD subagencies are reported as an aggregate total under Other defense agencies.
Definitions of research, development, and R&D plant as used in this InfoBrief are provided in the technical notes that accompany the detailed statistical tables report for this survey. For the prior-year report, see http://nsf.gov/statistics/nsf13326/.
The full set of detailed tables from this survey will be available in the report Federal Funds for Research and Development: Fiscal Years 2011–13 at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/fedfunds/. Individual detailed tables from the FY 2011–13 survey may be available in advance of the full report. For more information, contact the author.
Notes
[1] Michael Yamaner, Research and Development Statistics Program, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 965, Arlington, VA 22230 (myamaner@nsf.gov; 703-292-7815).
[2]Obligations represent the amounts for orders placed, contracts awarded, services received, and similar transactions during a given period, regardless of when the funds were appropriated and when future payment of money is required.
[3] "Other sciences not elsewhere classified" is used for multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary projects that cannot be classified within one of the broad fields of science.
National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics Federal Funding for Research Drops by 9% in FY 2011
Arlington, VA (NSF 13-336) [September 2013]