An $86 billion House authorization bill for federal scientific research spending ran into trouble May 13, apparently over a punitive measure for federal employees caught viewing pornography with government computers.

The bill, the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 seeks to double authorization funding for federal basic research programs over the next 10 years at the National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Energy Department Office of Science. The bill cleared the House Science and Technology Committee April 28; its primary sponsor is Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.).

Debate over the authorization ended after House members voted 292 to 126 to approve a parliamentary measure introduced by Rep. Ralph Hall (R-Texas), the senior Republican member of the science and technology committee.

The measure, called a motion to recommit, added a section disallowing the payment of salaries with the money authorized by the bill to any individual disciplined for viewing pornography on a government computer. The NSF inspector general has caught (.pdf) employees there accessing it with government computers. The motion also cut the spending authorization down to $38.5 billion by striking out new programs in the bill, eliminating authorization after fiscal 2013 and freezing funding at current levels.

Rather than allow the House to vote on Hall's version, House leadership then withdrew the bill from consideration. Hall had called for a roll call vote on his motion, apparently scaring some Democrats into supporting the motion.

"Everybody raise your hand that's for pornography. Come on, raise your hand," Gordon said (.pdf) on the House floor before the roll call vote.

"Nobody? Nobody is for pornography? Well, I'm shocked. So I guess we need this little bitty provision that means nothing; that's going to gut the entire bill. This is an embarrassment, and if you vote for this, you should be embarrassed," he added.

However, spending, rather than deep concern about porn-viewing feds, appears to be at the heart of Republican opposition. In a statement, Hall said the committee-approved version "spends too much money."

In his post-debate statement, Gordon said he was "disappointed that politics trumped good policy."

The Hill reports that House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said that Democrats will bring the act back to the floor this week.

For more:
- see the THOMAS H.R. 5116 status page (includes links to the bill's text)
- the text of Rep. Hall's motion to recommit (.pdf)
- a transcript of remarks made on the House floor prior to the vote
- Rep. Gordon's statement on the floor action
- Rep. Hall's statement
- the CBO cost estimate on H.R. 5116 (.pdf)

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