1012 HISTORY OF Till COMMUTE] ON SCIENCE AND 1 1 ( HNOLOGY 



Office of Science and Technology Policy and OMB — the Senate and 

 public input. He was given broad supervision over the committee rules, 

 jurisdictional relationships within the committee and with other 

 House committees, and general inquiries which involved committee 

 policy. He also coordinated relationships with the legislative service 

 organizations— GAO, OTA, CBO and CRS. 



When Yeager became general counsel in 1979, his new job was 

 denned in much different form than the old position of deputy director 

 which Colonel Gould had held from 1975 to 1979. The general counsel 

 performed advisory rather than administrative duties, and by personal 

 preference Yeager stayed clear of such issues as personnel and staff 

 relationships. He was well-equipped to undertake new initiatives in 

 the area of "foresight" for the committee, a function which had been 

 somewhat overshadowed by the emphasis on "oversight." For ex- 

 ample, in the summer of 1979, Yeager undertook a study of those 

 subjects of emerging importance on which the committee might 

 concentrate its efforts in the nonenergy held. 



Summary of Chapters 



From the days in 1958 when the Select Committee on Astronautics 

 and Space Exploration created the Committee on Science and Astro- 

 nautics and also the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 

 the character and influence of the Science Committee have changed 

 markedly. Starting out as a committee which was set up to respond 

 to the launching of the Soviet Sputnik, at the beginning it was looked 

 upon by some as a repository of far out concepts. The committee 

 quickly established a reputation for breadth of vision and responsi- 

 bility by moving into areas such as the relation of space to military 

 weapons development, and the need to invest in advanced research and 

 the education and training of scientific and engineering talent to 

 enhance the future strength of the Nation. 



Chapter I 



In the first year of its existence, the committee in 1959 began to 

 forge links with the scientific community through the Panel on Science 

 and Technology. These were later materially strengthened under the 

 Subcommittee on Science, Research and Development chaired by 

 Congressman Daddario. For the first time in history, Congress afforded 

 to science and technology an open door for consultation and mutual 

 interchange of ideas. Despite the headline-hunting pressures of the 

 space race with the Soviet Union, this relationship stimulated the 

 consideration of future issues and mature advanced planning beyond 

 the next budget. 



