738 



HISTORY OF THE COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 



issue of whether to establish a seventh Subcommittee on Investigations 

 and Oversight. The chief proponent of this concept was Ottinger, who 

 had unsuccessfully attempted to put the idea across at the opening of 

 the prior Congress in 1977. In 1977, the new subcommittee had been 

 voted down for two reasons: Some members were simply voting against 

 giving Ottinger a subcommittee, which he could have claimed in 1977 

 had a new one been established; and also in 1977 the memory of the 

 failure of Dillaway's operation was fresh in everyone's mind. 



By 1979, the climate had changed. By seniority, Ottinger was 

 slated for a different and probably more important subcommittee in 

 any case. In a memorandum distributed to all members, he had argued 

 that the other subcommittees did not have the time or staff to investi- 

 gate fully the manner in which the committee authorized billions of 

 dollars, the implementation of procurement policies, and compliance 

 with the intent of the Congress. Ottinger also attached to his motion 

 a proviso drawn from the House Public Works Committee rules, that 

 no investigation could be undertaken without consultation with the 

 subcommittee chairman whose jurisdiction was involved, and also 

 requiring the approval of the chairman of the full committee. Scheuer 

 strongly endorsed the Ottinger motion, citing the success of the Inves- 

 tigations Subcommittee in the Commerce Committee, and underlining 

 the opportunities which such a subcommittee offered to junior com- 

 mittee members to make their mark. 



While noting the unfortunate past experience with an oversight 

 subcommittee, Fuqua stressed the importance of effective oversight. 

 He concluded: "It may work. It may not." Lloyd and Ambro, either 

 of whom seemed to have an opportunity to become chairman of the 

 new subcommittee if it were established, both spoke in favor of its 

 creation. On a rollcall, Ottinger's motion prevailed, 17 to 2. Lloyd then 

 faced a dilemma. 



When it was Lloyd's turn to single out which subcommittee he 

 preferred to chair, the environment and investigations subcommittees 

 were the only two left. Naturally disappointed that he did not get a 

 chance to head up the subcommittee handling his first love — aeronau- 

 tics and aviation — Lloyd made the decision that the investigations 

 subcommittee might afford him an opportunity to launch some broader 

 inquiries of interest. He ended the uncertainty quickly by opting to 

 take over the Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight. 



