The Trump administration is back in Washington, D.C., for a second term and aims to make significant changes across the federal budget, including considerable reductions to science agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and National Institutes of Health (NIH). In contrast, the House and the Senate have not been so ready to suggest such significant cuts, with Senate appropriators seeking nearlevel funding for many science agencies.
At the time this article was finalized in early December 2025, the U.S. government had just reopened after the longest shutdown in U.S. history (43 days). This reopening is only temporary, however, and the current short-term continuing resolution will expire on Jan. 30, 2026, unless the full fiscal year 2026 budget is passed by that date.
A few highlights from the proposals:
*Data from the American Institute of Physics FYI “Federal Science Budget Tracker.”
Department of Defense
The DOD’s research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) accounts dropped to $143 billion in 2025, a decrease of nearly 6% from 2024. This year, the White House, House, and Senate appropriators are requesting a 0.4% decrease, a 4% increase, and a 1% decrease, respectively.
While the White House provided a specific aggregate number for the Science and Technology portfolio in its budget request—$19.2 billion, or 10% below the enacted fiscal year 2025 level of $21.3 billion—neither the House nor Senate version did. That is because funding related to Budget Activity 6.3, Advanced Technology Development, was not reported as an aggregate number this year but rather piecemeal through specific programs to be funded through this budget code. For example, House appropriators requested approximately $13 billion for missile defense and space programs to augment and integrate in support of the Golden Dome effort and more than $2.6 billion for hypersonics programs.
As of November 2025, Senate appropriators still had not passed their version of the DOD Appropriations Act, though they did pass the related National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorizes spending levels and policy outlines for the DOD. The Senate version of NDAA does not include the SAFE Research Act, however, a measure in the House version that would prohibit awarding federal funds to researchers affiliated with a “hostile foreign entity.”
National Science Foundation
After requesting a 12% increase to the National Science Foundation in 2025, the White House is now requesting a 57% decrease in funding for 2026, with House and Senate appropriators recommending 23% and 1% decreases, respectively. In March 2025, the Trump administration announced their intent to eliminate $234 million from NSF’s Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction budget, which represents a 2.6% decrease to NSF’s 2024 topline fiscal year budget of $9 billion, if successful. This decrease, combined with the White House’s significant request of cutting the overall NSF budget to $3.9 billion, would move NSF in the opposite direction of doubling its $9 billion budget to $18.9 billion by 2027—an authorization set by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.
On the other hand, the near-level request by Senate appropriators reflects their interest in protecting certain programs related to women and underrepresented minorities in NSF’s STEM Education Directorate. However, the White House is requesting to reallocate the STEM Education Directorate to NSF’s Research and Related Activities account, which would likely result in less funding for STEM education overall because it places the funding into a larger pot without guaranteed provisions for specific programs.
Both House and Senate appropriators expressed interest in having NSF continue to advance the U.S. as a leader in artificial intelligence, with House appropriators commending NSF on their National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource Pilot Program, a two-year initiative that launched in 2024.
Department of Energy
The White House requested $45.1 billion for the DOE, which is a decrease of 10% from 2025’s enacted amount. House appropriators requested $48.7 billion, which is higher than the White House but still less than the enacted amount of $50.1 billion. At the time this article was finalized, Senate appropriators had not finalized their proposed budget for the DOE.
Office of Science
The White House requested a decrease of 14% to the Office of Science while House appropriators requested a slight increase of 2%.They called this funding a “high priority,” stating that the private sector is unlikely to fund noncommercial research.
Applied energy
The White House requested only $888 million (a 74% decrease) for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and includes eliminating funding for solar and wind initiatives. House appropriators proposed nearly a 50% decrease in funding for the Office as well.
Along with these proposed cuts, the Trump administration recently renamed the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to the National Laboratory of the Rockies. A December 2025 press release about the change claims this decision “reflects the Trump Administration’s broader vision for the lab’s applied energy research.”
Regarding the Office of Nuclear Energy, the White House requested $1.370 billion, or a 19% decrease from the enacted total of $1.685 billion in 2025, with the stated aim of reducing “nonessential research.” House appropriators requested $1.9 billion for this Office.
National Nuclear Security Administration
House appropriators requested $25.3 billion in funding for the NNSA, while the White House requested $30 billion, as well as $4.8 billion in mandatory funding to be provided to NNSA through the congressional budget reconciliation process. The White House’s request would be a 24.5% increase from the 2025 enacted amount of $24.1 billion.
National Institute of Standards and Technology
NIST is slated to experience a decrease in funding again, with the White House requesting a 28% decrease and House appropriators requesting a 13% decrease. On the other hand, Senate appropriators requested a 4% increase. The White House and House appropriators are both requesting a 17% decrease to NIST research programs specifically, while Senate appropriators propose a flat rate (excluding earmarks).
Also of note is President Trump’s request to reduce or eliminate laboratory programs on atomic spectroscopy and biophysics, do away with “low-priority” workforce development initiatives in exploratory measurement science, and put an end to the greenhouse gas measurements program. The White House and House appropriators both propose a flat rate for NIST facility construction while Senate appropriators propose a 46% increase.
Contrary to years prior, NIST did not receive any funds for earmarked projects on top of its annual budget in 2025; however, House and Senate appropriators are requesting an additional $273 million and $149 million, respectively, under NIST’s Scientific and Technical Research and Service programs for fiscal year 2026. Senate appropriators also earmarked $258 million under NIST research facilities.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
The White House proposed a steep cut of 47% to NASA’s Science Mission Directorate budget, with House appropriators requesting an 18% decrease and Senate appropriators requesting a near flat level. These proposals reflect a redirection in funding allocated toward human space exploration, which received requests for an increase across all three entities.
The overall significant decrease in NASA funding will lead to the cancellation of 40 or more missions, including the Mars Sample Return Mission, of which funding was a point of contention between the House and Senate in 2024.
Senate Democrats in the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee also published a report in October 2025 stating that NASA was directed to start spending their fiscal year 2026 budget over the summer by White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought. While NASA leadership denied the claim, Senate Democrats still cited safety concerns due to the significant budget cuts.
National Institutes of Health
The White House requested a 40% decrease to the NIH, but both Senate and House appropriators rejected this deep cut by requesting near-level funding. Senate appropriators requested no change from the 2025 enacted levels for the Advanced Projects Agency for Health, but the White House and House both requested a decrease of 37%.
The Trump administration also requested the restructuring of NIH into eight institutes, consolidating at least five current institutes into one. Both the Senate and House proposals rejected this request, with the Senate proposal including a reminder that 24 of NIH’s 27 institutes and centers were established with statute and that “ample notice” should be communicated to the House and Senate before significant changes are made.
For more information on the federal budget, visit the American Institute of Physics FYI “Federal Science Budget Tracker” at https://ww2.aip.org/fyi/budget-tracker.
