The Task Force on American Innovation – a coalition of industry, universities, and scientific societies that advocates for sustained federal investments in research in the physical sciences – is pleased that the FY14 omnibus appropriations bill passed both chambers of Congress with bipartisan majorities.

The bill restores at least a portion of, and in some cases more than, the funds cut under sequestration in FY13 for key federal science agencies. The legislation is also the product of something we have seen far too infrequently in recent years: bipartisan and bicameral negotiations and compromise. We hope the spirit of cooperation will continue through the coming year.

As Congress embarks on the FY15 appropriations process, we urge appropriators not merely to sustain but to enhance the investments they make in scientific research, particularly at the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy’s Office of Science and ARPA-E, Department of Defense basic research, NASA research, and NIST research labs.

During the last three years our nation’s science enterprise has lost significant ground to our international competitors. This is creating an innovation deficit, the difference between how much we are investing in scientific research and how much we need to be supporting this work at a time when other nations are funding innovation at such a fervent pace. It is crucial that we maintain our innovation leadership by making the investments that enable new technologies, strengthen national security, facilitate energy self-sufficiency, and improve the nation’s health. Science and technology, as a number of economists have noted, are the major drivers of the economic growth that is essential to our long-term fiscal stability.

We hope the traditional bipartisan appreciation of the return on investment for federal support of science will once again prevail in the coming year and in the years to come.