Dear Leaders Reid and McConnell:

We write to you as companies and business organizations that understand the challenge Congress faces to reduce federal budget deficits and bring the national debt under control.

We are well aware that every constituency will plead its case to be spared as you make difficult decisions. However, we believe that leaders set priorities that are in the national interest and determine where the federal government’s support is essential for U.S. competitiveness, economic expansion and job growth. The private sector is doing its part to ensure that the U.S. remains the world’s scientific and technological leader. Even in the midst of recessions, when revenues are in decline, U.S. businesses invest in research and development (R&D) because those activities support future sales and market leadership. American business largely preserved its R&D intensity throughout the deep economic downturn of 2008-2009.

The private sector cannot replace, however, the federal support for basic science and engineering research and math and science education that undergirds America’s national economic competitiveness. Because these investments are the key to future productivity growth, they must remain a top national priority, even while deficit spending is reduced.

The National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, headed by Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, said it well:

“Cut and invest to promote economic growth and keep America competitive. We should cut red tape and unproductive government spending that hinders job creation and growth. At the same time, we must invest in education, infrastructure, and high-value research and development to help our economy grow, keep us globally competitive, and make it easier for businesses to create jobs.”

That is why we supported passage of the America COMPETES Act in 2007 and its reauthorization in 2010. COMPETES addressed a serious national problem and began to reverse nearly twenty years of flat funding, as a fraction of national output, for federal innovation investments. We applaud the Senate for engaging in the hard work that was necessary to achieve a bipartisan majority to enact that legislation in the previous Congress.