The structural problem of appropriately funding mid-scale
infrastructure and cyberinfrastructure for the disciplines supported by
the US National Science Foundation has been a long-recognized challenge
that has become increasingly severe as these disciplines continue to
integrate advanced networking, computing, large scale storage and
related technologies into routine scholarly practice. "Mid-scale" in
the NSF context refers to investments in the tens of millions (as
opposed to "major research equipment and facilities", which covers very
large scale projects).

The National Science Board has recently released a report that looks at
this problem and makes some important recommendations. It specifically
addresses cyberinfrastructure  as well as more traditional research
infrastructure. The report, titled "Bridging the Gap: Building a
Sustained Approach to Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure and
Cyberinfrastructure",  can be found at

https://www.nsf.gov/nsb/publications/2018/NSB-2018-40-Midscale-Research-Infrastructure-Report-to-Congress-Oct2018.pdf

There is a press release with some summary and background to the report
at

https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=296928


Clifford Lynch
Director, CNI