46 HISTORY OF THF COMMITTEE ON' SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 



tenure. The sequel to the story is that when George Miller moved up 

 to the chairmanship of the Science and Astronautics Committee, he 

 did not sanction any activity in the field of oceanography either. 



ESTABLISHMENT OF SUBCOMMITTEES 



On January 26, 1959, a few days after the organization of the 

 committee. Chairman Brooks sent out memos to all members asking 

 their personal preferences on which of four subcommittees they would 

 like to serve: 



Scientific Training and Facilities, No. 1. 



Scientific Research and Development, No. 2. 



International Cooperation and Security, No. 3. 



Space Problems and Life Sciences, No. 4. 



The replies of the members had barely started to come in when 

 Chairman Brooks started an intensive series of morning and afternoon 

 hearings of the full committee which summoned NASA, National 

 Science Foundation, the military services, Department of Agriculture, 

 National Bureau of Standards, private industry, and many other 

 witnesses. These full committee hearings made it impossible for the 

 subcommittees to operate. 



Brooks tapped the four senior committee members to head the 

 respective subcommittees, as follows: 



No. 1, Representative George P. Miller, California. 



No. 2, Representative Olin E. Teague, Texas. 



No. 3, Representative Victor L. Anfuso, New York. 



No. 4, Representative B. F. Sisk, California. 



Chairman Brooks also set up a Special Investigations Subcommit- 

 tee, making himself chairman. George Miller was made chairman of 

 another subcommittee to make recommendations on and exercise over- 

 sight over the National Bureau of Standards. Toward the close of the 

 summer, Chairman Brooks also made himself chairman of a Sub- 

 committee on Earth Sciences. Finally, he formed a Special Subcommit- 

 tee on Patents and Scientific Inventions, which did not begin work 

 until August 1959, and was chaired by Representative Erwin Mitchell 

 of Georgia. 



The four chairmen of the numbered, permanent subcommittees 

 soon discovered that it was impossible for them to organize and 

 operate with any independence and responsibility. For 2 months, they 

 protested the fact that Brooks was arrogating to himself all the power, 

 and delegating none of the responsibility. As the protests mounted, 

 Brooks would hand out new assignments- as, for example, the special 

 subcommittee to investigate whether the Soviet Lunik was a hoax. 

 Congressman Anfuso was assigned to chair a special ad hoc sub- 

 committee on the subject. 



