Abstract: It is vital to improve the efficiency in basic research by establishing a proper allocation mechanism of government expenditure. Existing studies mainly analyze the allocation structure of China’s science and technology expenditure based on historical evolution, the scale of expenditure and the funding sectors, which lacks attentions on the allocation structure of basic research expenditure within the government agencies. Combined with the convergence theory, it adopts two types of convergence mechanisms: σ convergence and β convergence, to explore the allocation of basic research expenditure within government agencies of China and the U.S. σ convergence mechanism, by measuring the statistical dispersion of basic research expenditure among different agencies, depicts the coordination of different agencies’ positioning and division in a country’s basic research expenditure system. Existence of σ convergence represents that there is a unified budget coordination mechanism for each agency to deploy basic research expenditure. β convergence mechanism characterizes the adjustment rate of a country's basic research expenditure allocation in various agencies by examining the impact of investment in basic research on its expenditure growth rate. Existence of β convergence indicates that more financial support has been given to agencies whose basic research expenditure are lower than average. A higher β convergence rate shows that the allocation of basic research expenditure in different agencies is more conductive to promoting a more balanced growth of basic research expenditure in different agencies. It is found that (1) in the past 10 years, there is σ convergence in the allocation of basic research expenditure within federal government agencies, and the divergence of these agencies is reduced. In China, there is no σ convergence in the allocation of basic research expenditure within government agencies, and the divergence of these agencies has increased. (2) In terms of dynamic trends, there is absolute β convergence in the allocation of basic research expenditure within government agencies of China and the U.S., and the rate of β convergence in China is higher than that in the U.S. This indicates that the governments of China and the U.S. provide more financial support to agencies whose expenditure in basic research are lower than average. Although the allocation of basic research expenditure by the Chinese government is uneven and expanding among agencies, agencies with relatively few funding resources have a faster growth rate, which in the long run helps to achieve a balanced allocation of basic research expenditure among various agencies. Although the uneven allocation of basic research expenditure in agencies of China has increased, the convergence speed of the expenditure among agencies is faster. With the reform of the science and technology management system, as well as the foundation of central science and technology committee and the restructure of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the structure of the central government’s existing R&D expenditure will face a new round of adjustment. The findings provide insights for optimizing the allocation mechanism of basic research funding in government agencies of China and improving the efficiency of basic research expenditure. The following policy implications are obtained: Firstly, improve the balance of basic research funding allocation among agencies. Secondly, enhance the diversification level of basic research funding agencies. Thirdly, increase the proportion of non-competitive funding for basic research.

摘要： 构建合理的政府基础研究经费部门配置机制是提升我国基础研究投入效率的关键。现有研究主要基于历史演变、投入规模、投入结构、投入主体等方面分析我国科技经费的配置结构，缺乏对政府内部各部门基础研究经费配置结构的深入讨论。结合收敛理论，探究中美政府基础研究经费部门配置的收敛机制。研究发现：（1）近10年，美国基础研究经费部门配置存在σ收敛，不同部门经费差异分化程度降低。中国基础研究经费部门配置不存在σ收敛，不同部门经费差异分化程度提升。（2）从动态趋势来看，中美基础研究经费的部门配置均存在绝对β收敛，且中国β收敛速度高于美国。尽管中国基础研究经费在少数部门配置的不均衡程度提升，但各部门经费的收敛速度较快。相关结论对优化我国基础研究经费部门配置机制，建立高效协同的基础研究经费投入格局具有借鉴意义。