68 



8.6 percent of the NSF budget in 1972, and that RANN's share rose 

 to 13 percent in 1974. 44 But these figures were somewhat mislead- 

 ing. Although RANN did enlarge the Foundation's support of ap- 

 plied research through funds distributed by its three subdivisions — 

 Social Systems and Human Resources, Advanced Technology Appli- 

 cations, and Environmental Systems and Resources — the NSF re- 

 mained firmly committed to the fostering of basic research. In fact, 

 the very name RANN was chosen deliberately because of its use of 

 the phrase "research applied," as distinct from "applied re- 

 search." 45 Moreover, nearly 40 percent of RANN's budget was 

 eventually allocated to the pursuit of new scientific knowledge. 46 



Science Policy Under President Ford 



When Gerald Ford became President upon Nixon's resignation 

 from office in August 1974, several changes were made in the na- 

 tion's science policy. 47 For one thing, the Ford Administration was 

 sympathetic to restoring the Presidential science advisory machin- 

 ery, and there was a fair amount of cooperation between the White 

 House staff, Congress, and the National Science Foundation on this 

 issue. On 21 December 1974, Vice President Nelson Rockefeller was 

 officially assigned the task of investigating the advisability of rees- 

 tablishing the science advisory system within the White House. 



Because Ford wanted the science office established by Congres- 

 sional legislation rather than by Presidential order, both the House 

 and Senate worked on legislation to create such an office. Rockefel- 

 ler and his staff conferred closely with Congress and the National 

 Science Foundation. His report on this issue was presented on 5 

 February 1975. On 9 June 1975 the Administration introduced its 

 bill to create an office of science and technology policy within the 

 Executive Office. After numerous hearings and Congressional 

 debate, on 11 May 1976, President Ford signed into law the Nation- 

 al Science and Technology Policy, Organization, and Priorities 

 Act. 48 



This legislation was the outcome of dozens of hearings and re- 

 ports, and of compromises between the Administration and Con- 

 gress. The new law provided a statement of national policy for sci- 

 ence and technology. It also established the Office of Science and 

 Technology Policy (OSTP) within the Executive Office of the Presi- 

 dent. Although a formal President's Science Advisory Committee 

 was not established, the director of the OSTP was to serve as the 

 President's science adviser. The OSTP director also chaired the 

 Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and Tech- 

 nology that replaced the Federal Council for Science and Technolo- 

 gy founded in 1959. President Ford nominated NSF Director H. 



44 By 1976, however, RANN's proportion of the NSF budget dropped to 10 percent. Two years 

 later, RANN was abolished as a program within the NSF. See Ibid., p. 34; and Jarleth Ronayne, 

 Science in Government (London: Edward Arnold, 1984), pp. 119-124. 



45 See Lomask, A Minor Miracle, p. 244. 



46 Ibid. 



47 For a brief overview of science policy issues during the Ford Administration, see Claude E. 

 Barfield, Science Policy from Ford to Reagan: Change and Continuity (Washington: American 

 Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 1982), pp. 1-9. 



48 Public Law 94-282. For an analysis of the Congressional hearings leading up to this act- 

 notably for an analysis of the testimonies of the scientists at these hearings— see Fries, "The 

 Ideology of Science during the Nixon Years," pp. 323-341. 



