CHAIRWOMAN MIKULSKI COMMENDS RISING ABOVE THE GATHERING STORM, REVISITED.

WASHINGTON -- The following information was released by Maryland Senator Barbara A. Mikulski:

Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS) Appropriations Subcommittee Chairwoman Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) commends the National Research Council's (NRC) release of Rising Above the Gathering Storm, Revisited, a follow-up to their 2005 report that sounded the alarm about America's competitiveness.

In the report, released 5 years after the original Gathering Storm report, the NRC found that the United States' competitive outlook has "worsened," and our ability to respond by improving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and investing in basic scientific research is threatened by our growing debt.

"This report commends the substantial progress we've made in investing in the RandD that can strengthen America's innovation economy but reminds us we have more to do to sustain that investment and to continue to improve STEM education, so our national research programs keep America competitive in the global arena and so American manufacturers can leverage new technology to create new jobs for communities in Maryland and throughout the United States." Chairwoman Mikulski stated.

"We are creating the building blocks that we need for a smarter America. Our nation is in an amazing race - the race for discovery and new knowledge, the race to remain competitive. I will continue to work for a federal investment to support the innovation that has the power to save lives and create prosperity."

An original co-sponsor of the 2007 America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education and Science (COMPETES) Act, Chairwoman Mikulski made sure that funding for science programs in the Committee-reported CJS bill increased by at least 7% over last year's levels, including

$6.1 billion for NSF research and research facilities and $892 million for education and training programs , focusing on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields to help build our next generation of innovators.

$941 million for NIST , which is $22 million above the President's budget request, and will support highly leveraged, basic research that will contribute to the development of new innovative products and processes.

$2.3 billion for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office , providing PTO with full access to fees to make intellectual-property protection more timely, predictable, and effective.

Senator Mikulski also fought for $4.7 billion for Department of Commerce's Broadband Technology Opportunities Program in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act helping to ensure broadband Internet access reaches the entire Nation. Maryland received a $115 million competitive grant from this program, improving broadband access in every county in the state.

In June 2009, Senator Mikulski joined three congressional leaders in writing a request to the National Academies to form a distinguished panel to assess the competitive position of the nation's research universities. The three other members of Congress who signed the letter to the Academies were: Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), a former U.S. Secretary of Education and Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, and U.S. Representatives Bart Gordon (D-TN) and Ralph Hall (R-TX), the respective Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Committee on Science and Technology.

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