APPROPRIATIONS UPDATE
The FY 27 Presidential Budget Request was released last week, and we now have additional details related to the request for the Department of Defense and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The President’s FY 27 budget requests $1.5 trillion for DOD, including $1.1 trillion in discretionary funding and $350 billion in mandatory funding to be provided retroactively through last year's budget reconciliation process. Based on available information, total Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) funding would rise to $218.3 billion, an increase of nearly 50 percent. However, funding for basic research accounts would be cut by nearly 10 percent, with several programs, including the Navy’s University Research Initiatives Program, proposed for elimination.
For the EPA, the request totals $4.2 billion, a 52 percent decrease from the FY 26 enacted level. The Science and Technology program would receive a proposed 32 percent cut.
The table below outlines the latest numbers for higher education funding priorities.
In other appropriations news, the House and the Senate return from recess on Monday and are expected to once again take up the work of attempting to reach an agreement and fund the Department of Homeland Security. Though there is currently no concrete schedule in place for that process, as always, the Office of Government Relations (OGR) will provide updates as needed.
