Jay Rockefeller: “I am delighted that Congress passed the National Science Foundation Doubling Act last week. I have been working for…”

“I am delighted that Congress passed the National Science Foundation Doubling Act last week. I have been working for quite some time to increase basic research funding at the National Science Foundation. Passing this bill at such a critical time for our economy is extremely important, since investing in science and technology is one of the best ways to ensure long-term growth. I am particularly pleased at the inclusion of two programs I authored, the Math and Science Partnership Program and the Robert Noyce Scholarship Program, that I separately proposed in freestanding legislation. Each program is an investment designed to strengthen and improve math and science education at elementary and secondary schools. The Math and Science Partnership Program has strong bipartisan support, and President Bush requested and received funding in last year's appropriation bill to jump start this important program. The Math and Science Partnership program's inclusion in the reauthorization bill is important to provide both policy guidance and a long-term commitment to the program. This legislation provides increasing funding for math and science partnerships for five years, with a specific recommendation of $900 million for the first 3 years.”