Congress has approved and the President has signed into law (Public Law 109-103) appropriations for the National Science Foundation in the Commerce-Justice-Science Fiscal Year 2006 spending bill.

The law reflects agreements reached by House and Senate Conferees determining spending for Fiscal Year 2006 for the National Science Foundation. The conference agreement included Senate language for plant genome research. This boosts plant genome research support to $100 million ($99. 72 million with current overall 0.28 percent reduction), compared to $94 million in Fiscal Year 2005.

Although no longer chair of the appropriations subcommittee with spending jurisdiction over NSF (Commerce, Justice and Science Subcommittee), Senator Kit Bond (R-MO), the Senate champion of the plant genome research program, remains an influential member of the subcommittee. Bond worked with Senate Subcommittee Chair Richard Shelby (R-AL), and Ranking Democrat Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) who led negotiations with House Subcommittee Chair Frank Wolf (R-VA) and Ranking Democrat Alan Mollohan (D-WV). Shelby, Mikulski, Wolf and Mollohan joined Bond and their colleagues in agreeing to $100 million for plant genome research.

Not counting the overall 0.28 percent reduction, following are appropriations for NSF:

NSF: $5,653.37 million --3.3% above 2005 amount and nearly one percent above the President's request.

NSF Research & Related Activities: $4,387.52 million -- 4% above 2005 amount and 1.2% above the President's request.

NSF Education & Human Resources: $807 million -- 9.5% above the President's request and equal to the House-passed number. The Math and Science Partnership is $4 million
above the President's request.

NSF Major Research Equipment & Facilities Construction: $193.35 million -- equal to the House and Senate passed versions -- providing full funding to all ongoing projects.

NSF Salaries & Expenses: $250 million -- 12% above 2005, but 7% below the President's request, and equal to the House-passed number.