The House and Senate continue to advance spending bills for the coming fiscal year. Thus far, research and student aid agencies/programs have fared relatively well in the FY19 appropriations process. For the second straight year, appropriators on the Hill have largely rejected cuts proposed by the Trump administration. Of particular note, House and Senate funding committees have recommended increases for the National Science Foundation of 4% and 5% respectively. Department of Defense research programs were largely level-funded on the House side, despite significant proposed cuts from the administration. The committees recommended roughly a 6% increase for the Department of Energy Office of Science, despite the administration's proposal to reduce funding by 14%. Further, both panels have recommended preserving the Advance Research Projects Agency-Energy despite the administration's proposal to eliminate -as it also did unsuccessfully last year. The chart below captures recommended appropriations for agencies/programs. The chart will be updated as new information becomes available.

The FY19 appropriations process will continue to move forward over the summer. However, it's uncertain whether any of the bills will become law prior to the midterm elections in November. As in years past, a stopgap funding measure may be necessary at the start of the new fiscal year on October 1.