President George W. Bush's first budget plans include some aid for United States higher education and science, including a doubling of the allocation for the National Institutes of Health.
Although he will not submit a detailed budget until April, he has announced an 11.5 per cent increase for education, more than for any other department.
Officials have indicated that there will be a rise in the typical amount available per student in the largest government financial aid programme for university tuition, the Pell Grant Program.
In an address to both houses of Congress, Mr Bush suggested that his proposed tax cut would help families save for their children’s university education. More Americans will be able to deduct their charitable contributions, including those to universities, from their taxes.
Mr Bush also called for a limit to the growth of the space agency, Nasa, and a freeze on federal spending on the arts and humanities.