Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, my name is Dr. Paul Hill and I am the Executive Director of West Virginia’s EPSCoR program. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today regarding the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). For Fiscal Year 2008, we respectfully request $125 million for the NSF EPSCoR and $15 million for the NASA EPSCoR programs, which will help the 27 EPSCoR jurisdictions contribute to the innovation and competitiveness initiatives and other efforts to ensure our nation’s research base continues to be the world’s leader in scientific and technological development.
My message is direct and simple:
As you are aware from your discussions with the authors of the Rising Above the Gathering Storm report and other studies, research and technology development are essential to our nation’s security and economic prosperity. For decades, the United States preeminence in science went unchallenged, but today’s world is very different and we face growing competition from around the globe.
Research is the source of the innovation and competitiveness activities that will protect our nation in the future and provide opportunities for young scientists. We know from many sources that fewer U.S. students are pursuing advanced degrees in science and engineering. We also know that the trend in foreign students studying in the U.S. is decreasing. We need to develop the country’s research infrastructure and provide opportunities for students in all our states to become first-rate scientists and engineers. This is particularly true in our EPSCoR states, where we educate thousands of engineers each year and where we have a wealth of secondary school talent that has often scored quite well on standardized math tests.
All of this has particular relevance for NSF’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). As you probably know, this program seeks to develop research infrastructure in the 25 states and two territories that, altogether, receive only about 10 percent of NSF funding.
Yet these states have a vast reservoir of talent and capacity. As the June, 2006 EPSCoR 2020 Workshop Report noted, seven EPSCoR states, including West Virginia, are among the top 10 net energy exporting states. Coal, natural gas and oil lie within a number of EPSCoR states; others are poised to develop alternative fuels from agriculture and forestry products. Rhode Island, South Carolina, Delaware and Maine are coastal states, with research varying from ocean currents and patterns, to flooding and weather issues. Other EPSCoR states such as Louisiana, Nebraska and Oklahoma deal with hurricanes, tornadoes, drought, and other climate conditions. Montana, Vermont, Wyoming and Idaho are focused on protection of natural resources, including vast national parks and public lands. Kansas and the Dakotas have major agricultural research activities, including emphasis on infectious diseases that can be related to bioterrorism. More people pass through one EPSCoR state, Hawaii, each day than through any other location around the world, and Alaska’s Anchorage airport is one of the world’s great cargo transportation hubs. Mississippi and Nevada have military installations, some with special requirements in materials, communications technologies, and scientific testing and evaluation. Most EPSCoR states are building new capabilities in the physical sciences and engineering. All are seeking high-performance computing and networking capabilities. The potential for major collaborations between academic research institutions and the various entities engaged in these activities is huge and should not be ignored as our nation expands its science and technology base.
We are pleased with the recent NSF support for the EPSCoR states. Last June, NSF funded a workshop through the University of South Carolina to examine the EPSCoR program and make recommendations for the future. The workshop recommended that the program be transferred to the Office of Integrative Activities. I am pleased to announce that this has been completed and new leadership is being brought in. The workshop also recommended that research infrastructure grants be extended to five years, more in line with similar NSF grant periods, and that infrastructure awards be increased in size to reflect the cost of research in a more sophisticated research environment. This is also being studied. The workshop asked that new attention be given to cyberinfrastructure needs of the EPSCoR states since geography is a constraint for many of us. NSF has indicated that they will try to address this through co-funding. The workshop suggested that additional outreach take place both within NSF and outside, and there is movement in these areas. Finally, the NSF has requested the first real increase for EPSCoR funding in many years.
We appreciate these actions taken by NSF and we appreciate the support of this Subcommittee and the Congress over the years to keep the program moving ahead. Without your help and continuing support, the program would have faltered. We need your continuing assistance with funding. For FY 2008, we are requesting an appropriation of $125 million for NSF. While we understand that extending and enlarging research infrastructure improvement (RII) awards may take time, these awards remains the EPSCoR community’s top priority. We also believe that additional funding can be used for co-funding. As the NSF budget increases in general, we assume there will be additional opportunities for co-funding, targeted co-funding and, as NSF has recognized, advanced computing and networking. We also hope NSF will expand its outreach and support activities designed to more fully integrate our states into the regular research programs.
We fully support the President’s 8.7 percent increase for NSF in FY 2008, which will benefit research and development in the United States and believe an even larger appropriation could be wisely used. However, in order for the U.S. to continue its leadership in science and technology, we must make sure all states participate in this effort. Again, we appreciate your efforts and those reflected in the Senate’s version of the Budget Resolution on the need to “ensure a more equitable distribution of funding and the development of research infrastructure throughout the nation.”
For NASA EPSCoR in FY 2008 we are requesting an appropriation of $15 million.
Recently, NASA has changed its eligibility criteria so that 25 states plus Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands now qualify for NASA EPSCoR funding. Adding seven new jurisdictions will place a real burden upon a program that is already small, since seven new jurisdictions can qualify for an administrative grant.
In the last few years, NASA has funded 37 research projects in the 20 jurisdictions that participated in NASA EPSCoR. These projects have yielded significant accomplishments and support for many of NASA’s research activities. In the future, however, NASA plans to change its funding mechanism and require that a three-year research program be fully funded in the first year rather than spread over the life of the award. The immediate impact will be fewer awards in FY08. In fact, most EPSCoR states are unlikely to receive a research award in FY08 as a result of this change.
Now, let me turn to West Virginia.
West Virginia was one of five charter EPSCoR states when the program began. Our state has benefited tremendously from its participation in EPSCoR, and I would like to provide a brief overview of the role EPSCoR has played in West Virginia’s efforts to carve a niche in the new, knowledge-driven economy.
For example, in 2001, West Virginia EPSCoR received a $9 million grant from the National Science Foundation. Using this grant as a catalyst, we were able to expand our state’s research capacity. As a result, West Virginia University and Marshall University have made a cultural change within the university research arena. Research is now in the forefront of institutional priorities and focused on important scientific thrusts. With the grant, academic leaders were hired to attract high-quality research faculty. Between 2002 and 2005, nine new faculty members were hired and are clearly emerging as research leaders on their respective campuses.
In addition, successful applications to federal grant programs have shown a steady increase. In just four years, between 2001 and 2005, competitive federal awards in West Virginia rose from a little over $35 million to more than $60 million. And that upward trend is continuing.
Last May, West Virginia EPSCoR was awarded a new three-year research infrastructure grant, allowing us to build on the capacity established by the 2001 grant and providing additional research faculty at our two primary research universities.
Perhaps just an importantly, however, the success of the research initiatives enabled by the EPSCoR grant has been the impetus for policymakers at the state level to increase the state’s investment in research. In 2004, they voted to dedicate one-half percent of the state’s racetrack video lottery revenue—approximately $4 million each year—to the Research Challenge Fund, which is overseen by the West Virginia EPSCoR office. This investment of state funds for research represented a major step forward for West Virginia. We recognized the investments other states were making in research and education, and realized we needed to play catch-up.
Over the past five years, West Virginia’s Research Challenge Fund has invested $8.4 million in competitive research grants. The state’s investment in this grant program has leveraged more than $18 million in corporate and federal grants and more than $2.3 million in venture capital. These state grants have supported six major research projects that have, in turn, generated more than a dozen patent applications and patents. Two university research centers with industry partners have been formed and one production facility is under development. These are the kind of results that help policymakers justify a continued investment in research.
And, I’m pleased to report that we are continuing to build on that momentum. Governor Joe Manchin and the state legislature worked together to provide a new line item in the state’s budget for next fiscal year. They set aside $10 million in additional funds to help build the research programs at West Virginia University and Marshall University. Again, this represents an unprecedented state investment in research infrastructure, due in large part to the successes of the EPSCoR program. Grants from this new fund will be linked to economic development outcomes to ensure steady progress in our efforts to reinvent West Virginia’s future; and, because of our track record of stimulating competitive research; the fund will be administered by the West Virginia EPSCoR office.
Finally, the EPSCoR program empowered us to develop a long-term strategic plan that will guide our policy and budgetary actions and lead to sustained economic growth. Vision 2015: The West Virginia Science and Technology Strategic Plan calls for the state to invest $250 million over 10 years to recruit scientists and engineers, build state-of-the-art research facilities, increase the production of West Virginia scientists and engineers with advanced degrees, and develop new technology-based businesses. The returns on this investment are projected to be a cumulative economic impact of $3.3 billion and 33,000 new jobs.
Naturally, West Virginia’s EPSCoR experience differs from the experiences of other states. The good news is that in all states, we can point to best practices and success stories that produce positive results. Our collective challenge is to harness the power of researchers in every state and put that power to work for the good of the nation.
Every state, their students and their citizens have important contributions to make to the nation’s competitiveness. The 25 states and two jurisdictions that make up EPSCoR represent 20 percent of the U.S. population, 25 percent of the research and doctoral universities, and 18 percent of the nation’s scientists and engineers. We believe in the value and power of EPSCoR—both as a catalyst for improvement within our respective states and as a contributor to America’s increased competitiveness in the global economy.
I want to thank you for the opportunity to address the Subcommittee today. Thank you.