Business, scientific, higher education groups laud President Obama's commitment ...( WASHINGTON D.C. - In a letter recent...)

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In a letter recently sent to President Obama, more than 200 organizations, representing the nation's business, scientific and higher education communities, lauded the President for his outstanding leadership in advancing scientific research, innovation, and science and math education. Read the letter below.

Dear Mr. President:

On behalf of the nation's business, scientific, and higher education communities, we wish to commend you and your Administration for the extraordinary leadership you have shown in advancing the nation's investment in basic research, particularly research in the physical sciences and engineering. Working with a Congress that shares this priority, you have taken critical steps that will build long-term economic growth, address the nation's most significant challenges, and maintain our nation's global edge in technology and innovation.

We are especially pleased with the attention to research, as well as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, in the two appropriations measures you have already signed into law - the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Omnibus Appropriations Act for FY09. The Recovery Act makes significant one-time investments in the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), as well as other vital research agencies, that will create jobs over the next two years, assist our efforts to address our energy and climate challenges, and lay the foundation for our nation's long-term innovation, global competitiveness, and economic growth. The FY09 bill also includes significant resources for these and other agencies, an important step toward our mutual goal of significant, sustainable, and predictable annual increases for basic research funding.

While we await the details of your FY10 budget, we are pleased that the outline you anno
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