Estelle Gwinn reports despite budget cuts the University of Idaho has maintained sufficient funding for research, which National Science Board members said is crucial to the state economy.

The board recently ranked the country’s public research universities by their funding cuts. University of Idaho received the 19th biggest decline in state funding with a 24 percent cut between 2002 and 2010.

“The National Science Board has a responsibility to be concerned about the health of science research in our nation,” said Ray Bowen, a member of the board that oversees the National Science Foundation. “If you look at the long-term impact of diminished funding, it’s something policy makers should be concerned about.”