JANUARY 2010
NCI director tries to scale back expectations for FY2011
Cancer research will receive a small boost in funding this year. Just before the winter holidays, President Obama signed a fiscal year 2010 appropriations bill containing $31 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a 2.3 percent increase over last year, and $5.1 billion for the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a 2.8 percent increase over last year.
Finding themselves two months beyond the official start of the 2010 fiscal year and with only five of the 12 regular spending bills approved, legislators quickly wrapped the unfinished spending bills into a single $447 billion omnibus spending package that included funding for health, defense, education, and other programs to send to the White House before the winter recess.
While spending levels for FY2010 were just finalized, the process for setting budgetary priorities for FY2011 is already well underway. Federal agencies are communicating their needs to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which advises the president on policy and budgetary matters. President Obama will submit a budget blueprint to Congress next month highlighting the administration’s priorities which will set the tone for debate in Congress.
Despite the boost in FY2010 funding and President Obama’s expressed support for science, NCI director Dr. John Niederhuber recently attempted to scale back expectations for FY2011. While addressing the National Cancer Advisory Board last month, he noted that there will be tremendous pressures on the FY2011 federal budget and cautioned the cancer community not to expect automatic large increases. He noted that times will continue to be difficult and the NCI will face tough budgetary choices.
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