Congress wraps up FY2024 spending with mixed results for STEM education

by Della Cronin, principal of the Bose Public Affairs Group.

The 118th Congress recently completed the fiscal year 2024 budget and appropriations process via the enactment of two packages of spending bills. The two massive measures each included six spending bills. The first invests $467.5 billion in various federal agencies and programs, including the National Science Foundation and various other research agencies. The second—and much larger—measure spends $1.2 trillion on the Department of Education, the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Defense, and the National Institutes of Health, among many others.

The news for afterschool supporters and STEM education advocates was mixed. Because lawmakers were constrained by the spending caps imposed by the Fiscal Responsibility Act, there was not much money available for program increases. The Department of Education saw a cut of $500 million, but the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program was level-funded at $1.329 billion for FY2024. Title I funding, which is sent to states via a formula, increased slightly. The Title I program, which states and district leaders use flexibly for varied efforts, including STEM education and afterschool, will see an investment of $18.4 billion—a $20 million increase. While the increase is modest, it is notable in what was a tight budgetary environment. The Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grant program (also known as Title IV, Part A) is also level-funded for the year at $1.38 billion. These funds support locally-driven investments in various activities, including afterschool STEM activities.  

Scientific societies and research advocates were disappointed, however, in what they considered to be inadequate investments in programs that support the goals of the CHIPS and Science Act. The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) budget was cut by 8 percent to just over $9 billion. The NSF Directorate for STEM Education is subject to a cut of $200 million in the spending bill. The Federation of American Scientists asserts that the directorate has lost over 8 percent of its purchasing power since FY2021 and remains $1.3 billion below its CHIPS target. Advocates will be watching how the spending bill and its cuts are implemented at the foundation. In particular, afterschool advocates will be paying attention to how the spending bill affects the implementation of the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program. NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan called the bill “a missed opportunity.”  

Looking ahead, STEM education and afterschool advocates have work to do. With spending caps in place again for FY2025, there is not much hope for significant increases. Further, STEM education has a very low profile in the White House’s FY2025 budget request. It is only mentioned as a K-12 investment in the description of the Education, Innovation, and Research program, which has been investing in STEM and computer science education for a number of years. As the FY2025 spending process gets going, advocates will once again be telling policymakers about the ongoing needs of the STEM workforce, the support that is needed to fulfill the promise of the CHIPS and Science Act, and the importance of supporting safe, enriching STEM experiences in the hours outside of the regular school day.