Science Appropriations Act, 2008

The Science Appropriations Act, 2008 (H.R. 3093) was a bill in the 110th Congress "making appropriations for the Departments of Commerce and Justice, and Science, and Related Agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2008, and for other purposes." (Official title.)

Current status


Bill summary

 * Prohibits the use of funds in this bill to purchase first class or premium airline seats under most circumstances (Sec. 537).


 * $9.36 billion for the Department of Commerce, including $4.22 billion for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, $1.92 billion for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and $1.24 billion for the Bureau of the Census.


 * $24.12 billion for the Department of Justice, including $6.58 billion for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), $5.65 billion for the Federal Prison System, $1.85 billion for the Drug Enforcement Administration, $622.50 million for the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program, and $7.85 million for the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety program.


 * $25.02 billion for sciences, including $18.46 billion for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and $6.55 billion for the National Science Foundation.


 * $899.70 million for related agencies, including $390.00 million for the Legal Services Corporation, $378.00 million for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and $68.4 million for the International Trade Commission.

Amendments
Among the amendments the House considered were the following:


 * An amendment by Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) that "sought to prohibit use of funds for the EEOC may be used for litigation expenses incurred in connection with cases commenced after the date of the enactment of this Act against employers on the grounds that such employers require employees to speak English." It failed to pass by a vote of 212-202.




 * An amendment by Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) that "prohibits funds in the bill from being used by the Department of Justice to enforce the criminal penalties provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002." It passed by a vote of 215-205.





Passage
On July 26, 2007, the House passed H.R. 3093 by a vote of 281-142.



Senate
The Senate passed an amended version of H.R. 3093 on October 16, 2007 by a vote of 75-19.



However, the Senate and House were unable to come to an agreement in the conference committee and on December 12, 2007 the House laid H.R. 3093 on the table.

External resources

 * THOMAS bill page for H.R.3093.