There is no single source or account for federal R&D funds, and neither Congress nor the Presidents sets a specific target dollar number for all federal research support. Instead, R&D is funded and supported across individual federal agencies and in support of their individual agency missions. Nearly three-quarters of all federal R&D is carried out through the Departments of Defense and Health and Human Services (the National Institutes of Health comprises nearly 97% of HHS R&D).

Note: The federal government incurs an obligation when it enters into a legally binding financial agreement (through contracts, loans, grants, etc.), usually over a specified time period of one to three years (Congressional Budget Office, 2021).

Source: : National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development, FYs 2023–24.