Business View - November 2015 15
nology, Lockheed Martin, all took up the call to ac-
tion to compel the federal government to return to
consistent, sustainable funding for basic research,
and recommit to restoring the United States as a
leader in innovation.
The speakers urged support for the goals and poli-
cies set forth in the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences report, Restoring the Foundation: The
Vital Role of Research in Preserving the American
Dream. That report, in turn, led to the creation of
Innovation: An American Imperative, a call to ac-
tion signed by ten CEOs and chairpersons, plus
more than 300 organizations, colleges and univer-
sities, businesses, and nonprofits from across all
50 states. Each expressed their belief in the impor-
tance of federal funding for basic research to Amer-
ica’s future productivity, prosperity, and strength.
“The U.S. is now in 10th place in R&D investment
among Organization for Economic Co-operation na-
tions as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product,”
said Augustine, who also is co-chair of the Restor-
ing the Foundation commission. “At this pace, Chi-
na will surpass the United States in R&D intensity
in about eight years. Do we really want to watch
that play out?”
Among the policies cited that would help Amer-
ica retain its position of leadership are:
• End sequestration’s deep cuts to federal invest-
ments in R&D
• Make permanent a
strengthened federal R&D
tax credit
• Improve student achieve-
ment in science, technolo-
gy, engineering, and math-
ematics (STEM)
• Reform U.S. visa policy
• Streamline or eliminate
costly and inefficient regu-
lations
• Reaffirm merit-based
peer review
• Stimulate further im-
provements in advanced
manufacturing
The event was sponsored
by the American Academy
of Arts and Sciences, the American Association
for the Advancement of Science, the Association
of American Universities, the Association of Public
and Land-grant Universities, Battelle, the Coalition
for National Science Funding, the Coalition for Na-
tional Security Research, the Council on Competi-
tiveness, the Energy Sciences Coalition, the Task
Force on American Innovation, The Science Coali-
tion, and United for Medical Research.
