On September 19, Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-SC), chair of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, favorably reported bill S. 2817 to effectively double National Science Foundation the NSF budget from near $5 billion to near $10 billion by FY 2007. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee had reported the bill September 5. The House also passed a similar version of this legislation June 5, differing markedly only in that the Senate bill would make the Math and Science Partnership (MSP) Program a formula block, not a competitive grant program, in FY 2006. The House-Senate staff hopes to meet and resolve this difference before the bill comes to the Senate floor. The bill still faces staunch opposition from the Bush Administration, which may veto the bill.