43 



SPACE COMMITTEES ESTABLISHED 



In correspondence with the creation of NASA, Congress re- 

 aligned itself by forming new committees in the House and Senate 

 to deal with space and science issues. This was a natural develop- 

 ment, as Congressional committees traditionally paralleled the ju- 

 risdictions of the executive agencies with which they dealt. The 

 creation of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy in 1946, for ex- 

 ample, paralleled the establishment of the Atomic Energy Commis- 

 sion in the same year. The formation of NASA called for a similar 

 response. The Special Committee on Space and Astronautics was a 

 temporary committee created by the Senate on 6 February 1958. 

 Senator Lyndon B. Johnson, Democrat of Texas, was made chair- 

 man. The House also created a temporary committee: the Select 

 Committee on Astronautics and Space Exploration established on 5 

 March 1958, with Massachusetts Democrat John W. McCormack 

 appointed chairman. 



Although efforts to establish a Joint Committee on Aeronautics 

 and Outer Space were not successful, permanent standing commit- 

 tees were created in both houses to deal with space. On 21 July 

 1958, the House created the Committee on Science and Astronau- 

 tics, 6 while the Senate established the Committee on Aeronautical 

 and Space Science on 24 July 1958. The Senate committee limited 

 its jurisdiction to NASA and issues relating to aeronautics and 

 space. The House committee's jurisdiction, on the other hand, ex- 

 tended over both the space program and the nation's general sci- 

 ence policy, including oversight of the National Science Founda- 

 tion. 



This Congressional reorganization had important ramifications 

 for the formation of Federal science policy. Prior to Sputnik, Con- 

 gress lacked the organization necessary to review the Govern- 

 ment's overall research program. It was divided into committees 

 (and the Appropriations Committees divided into subcommittees) 

 which paralleled the jurisdictional divisions among the various ex- 

 ecutive agencies. As a result, Congress did not have a focal point 

 where it could provide a unified, systematic approach to solving the 

 nation's scientific research problems or setting a national science 

 policy. Moreover, Congress lacked a professional staff with the 

 technical and scientific training necessary to deal fully with these 

 issues. The creation of the new space committees — especially the 

 more broadly-defined House committee — was therefore an impor- 

 tant step in providing Congress with the ability to assess fully the 

 nation's overall research program. 



NATIONAL DEFENSE EDUCATION ACT 



Congressional concern with the strength of the nation's system of 

 education — especially in the sciences and mathematics — remained 

 high throughout the years immediately following the launch of 

 Sputnik. The National Defense Education Act of 1958 was a major 

 attempt to bolster American education at all levels. Because of its 



6 Changed to House Committee on Science and Technology in 1975. For a detailed history of 

 the Committee, see Ken Hechler, Toward the Endless Frontier: History of the Committee on Sci- 

 ence and Technology, 1959-79 (Washington: GPO, 1980). 



