03/03/05 Formula fund dilemna, Finale

Presidents of land grant schools and Deans of Colleges of Agriculture across the Northwest and the nation speculate as to why the Bush Administration's proposed fiscal year 2006 budget reduces the amount of formula funds used to fund agriculture research, and calls for their elimination by fiscal year 2007. HAMMEL: Part of what Bush has recommended is they reduce these fundings, but they increase the fundings in the competitive grant area both in the U.S.D.A. National Research Initiative and then also, increase the competitive grants for the area for our agricultural experimental stations. But John Hammel, Dean of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences at the University of Idaho, says that principle may have a long term benefit somewhere, but not necessarily for ag research programs. For one, the logistics to switch to a competitive grant based system would be difficult at best. HAMMEL: Normally, it takes time to ramp up. If you're going to build up to do some work, then it can take a year or so to get scientists and everything in place to do it, so it would definitely, probably reduce your competitiveness. Another thing about competitive grants, normally with formula funding, they have a kind of whether in ag research, kind of a discretionary base where you put them to solve and work on local problems in agriculture. With competitive grants, normally those come with some type of tag, whatever the call is for and where they would like research done. And if reductions and eventually elimination of formula funds come through, the lack of competitiveness will be magnified in this regard. Lack of formula funds means reduced staff, both from the research and extension end. Less staff means less bodies and less time to apply for competitive grants. Less competitive grants going into the land grant schools and ag research facilities means less money to do research and pay salaries and project equipment. And in addition, since the competitive grants live up to their name in that there are applications and grant awards within a regular time interval, that means money to help ag research facilities survive will be inconsistent at best. But it is not just the threat of survival of ag research programs that is connected with formula fund reductions, Hammel and other Deans believe that also applies to the future ability of growers, ranchers, and foresters to compete economically in the global marketplace.