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Question: Dr. Ostenso, as you know, in the 102nd Congress, the 

 House passed H.R. 3247, the National Undersea Research Program. 

 I would appreciate if you would conunent on some of the specifics 

 of this legislation. 



To begin with, as you know, the purpose of NURP is to fund 

 and conduct research within a number of priority research areas. 

 In an effort to ensure that this is the case, there was a 

 provision included in H.R. 3247 that directs the Under Secretary 

 to appoint a Program Director to oversee the Office of Undersea 

 Research and to administer NURP. Do you feel that a Program 

 Director will serve to both enhance the NURP program as well as 

 provide better coordination between the research centers? 



Answer: Yes. The leadership of a Program Director is required 

 to identify and manage the research efforts of the program. The 

 director provides the regional centers with overall guidance as 

 to NOAA goals and provides the focus for coordination of the 

 research priorities at the centers. 



Question: How adequately do you feel that the Program Director 

 of the NURP program would work with the National Science 

 Foundation and the Office of Naval Research in the development of 

 multi-agency research proposals? Do you feel that this is 

 necessary? 



Answer: The NURP program Director would be expected to continue 

 the excellent cooperative working relationship with the National 

 Science Foundation and other agencies that exists at present. 



Question: Secondly, as you may recall, this legislation also 

 directs the Under Secretary to appoint a non- federally employed 

 Science Advisor for a two-year term to advise the Program 

 Director on the scientific needs of the Program. Do you see a 

 need for such an advisor? Do you feel an advisor should be a 

 non-federally employed scientist? If not, then why should an 

 advisor be a federal scientist? 



Answer: No, a Science Advisor is not needed. The National 

 Office has adequate professional staff and review process to 

 ensure that the research done with NURP is of high quality and 

 addresses national and NOAA goals. The cost of a Science Advisor 

 would be better spent on supporting research or at sea 

 operations . 



Question: Thirdly, this legislation also directed the Under 

 Secretary to establish an independent steering committee to 

 advise the Under Secretary and the Program Director on the 

 operation of NURP; the need to revise the priority research 

 areas; and the designation and operation of the National Undersea 



