When Federal science stopped
Mervis, J.; Marshall, E.
Science 271(5246): 136-137
1996
ISSN/ISBN: 0036-8075 PMID: 8539608 Document Number: 467007
For some science programs, the impact of the 3-week shutdown of much of the federal government could last for months. Affected agencies are now faced with sorting through accumulated mail and delayed grant awards and attempting to get tightly choreographed planning meetings and review-panel sessions back on schedule. Many agencies still do not know how much money they will be permitted to spend in the 1996 fiscal year. Even if Congress and the White House come up with a plan that will keep the federal government operating for the remainder of the fiscal year, some federal officials believe that the events of the past month have irreversibly damaged U.S. science. The National Institutes of Health was surprised to emerge from the budget dispute with an increase of 5.7 percent in its 1996 budget.