As Congress considers the fiscal 2005 federal budget proposed by President Bush last week, our elected representatives face difficult choices among many competing priorities. One of the most important priorities, essential to ensuring America’s future economic vitality, is sustaining the nation’s commitment to research and development in science and technology.

Federal support for R&D drives a cycle of innovation that fuels the economy. Since World War II, tens of millions of jobs have resulted from government-sponsored scientific breakthroughs that industry developed into world-changing technologies such as today’s personal computers and the Internet. These commercial advances accounted for more than one-third of United States economic growth during the late 1990s, and they continue to stimulate renewed growth today.

In turn, this growth generates additional tax revenue, and America must reinvest a small portion of it to continue the cycle of innovation. Today’s R&D investments -- in fields ranging from biomedicine and nanotechnology to electronics and software -- could spark discoveries and give rise to new industries that create jobs and prosperity for decades to come.

Especially vital is the National Science Foundation, which sponsors discoveries across the frontiers of science, nurtures a technologically savvy workforce and helps build state-of-the-art facilities for pioneering science and engineering. Given many other needs, the Bush administration should be commended for its proposed increase in the NSF budget, and we hope Congress will continue to support the NSF and other government research programs.

Proposed increases in R&D to protect the nation’s critical information infrastructure from cyberattacks are also important. As part of Microsoft’s long-term commitment to innovation, we plan to invest US$6.8 billion in our own R&D this year to enhance security for customers, improve software quality and advance innovations to help people and businesses become more productive and successful.

Policymakers can help promote innovation and economic growth by encouraging private R&D investment. One way is for Congress to extend the current research tax credit, which is set to expire in June.

To ensure that federally sponsored research continues to benefit citizens and the economy, policymakers also can preserve the tradition of allowing wide use of government-created technology in the development of new products and services. Years ago, for example, key Internet protocols were developed with Defense Department funding and then integrated into commercial software, which enabled the Internet’s growth. To encourage such technology transfer in the future, software produced with public money should continue to be licensed to both commercial and noncommercial developers.

With such policies and the continuing support of America’s world-class scientists and engineers, the United States can look forward to even stronger economic growth in the years ahead -- which may make future deliberations over federal budget priorities a little less difficult.