Fight over porn could kill six science and tech programs

“At a time when we are experiencing over trillion dollar deficits, it makes sense to keep the reauthorization at the 2010 appropriated level and remove new and duplicative programs,” the congressman explained.

Supporters of the bill said the six programs would encourage
innovation and create jobs.

The proposals that would be killed under Broun’s amendment include: 

A program to award a total of $12 million in cash prizes to innovators who work in areas of research under the National Science Foundation’s mandate. According to a spokesman for Rep. Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.), the National Acdemies have “strongly endorsed establishing innovation prizes at the NSF,” including those that Lipinski and Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) have since proposed.

A proposal to help the National Institute of Standards and Technologies (NIST) in their work assisting small- and medium-sized manufacturers in reducing energy use and waste;

A bioscience research proposal that would have granted millions of dollars to NIST to study “standard references materials and measurements to advance biological drug research and development,” among other things, according to Broun’s office, which said the president’s 2011 budget request includes this authorization;



A Department of Commerce loan program, which Broun’s office said duplicated one that already exists at the federal level;



A Department of Commerce “Regional Innovation Clusters Program” that would have granted about $1 billion over five years to manufacturers for the point of developing and marketing those product and services. The congressman felt the program would prove ineffective and overshot the legislation’s mandate;



A similar program at the Department of Energy, which Broun also described as unnecessary.