80 EFFECTIVENESS OF THE COMMITTEE ON OCEANOGRAPHY 



Mr. Dingell. I want to direct your attention a little bit. The 

 Bureau of Commercial Fisheries requested how much from the 

 Bureau of the Budget for the conduct of general oceanographic 

 research? 



Mr. McKernan. In 1963? 



Mr. Dingell. Yes. 



Mr. McKernan. Mr. Chairman, I have considered a question of 

 this kind to be one that is within the executive department, and I 

 would rather a question of this nature be submitted to my Secretary. 

 You know, our requests to the Executive, to the Bureau of the Budget, 

 are released in a sense — the President's budget comes before you early 

 in January. The departments submit their budget before this time. 



Mr. Dingell. Then, let me make it a little simpler. Let me ask 

 you this: Did you receive for general oceanographic research within 

 the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries the same amount that was re- 

 quested of the Bureau of the Budget in your initial request directed 

 to the Bureau of the Budget? 



Mr. McKernan. Again, Mr. Chairman, I certainly want to be 

 responsive to you, but I wonder if I am accomplishing my job and 

 carrying out my responsibilities by directly revealing that informa- 

 tion. I would suspect that the Secretary might well — the fact is that 

 we didn't get much of an increase. 



Mr. Dingell. The fact of the matter is you received a cut, did you 

 not, for fiscal 1962? 



Mr. McKernan. For fiscal 1963? 



Mr. Dingell. For fiscal 1962, you received a cut, in calendar 1963 

 you also received a cut, did you not? 



Mr. McKernan. No. 



Mr. Dingell. Did you receive any substantial increase? 



Mr. McKernan. No; we did not receive a substantial increase, but 

 we did not receive a cut. 



Mr. Dingell. But the increase was small? 



Mr. McKernan. Over the preceding fiscal year, we did not re- 

 ceive a cut. 



Mr. Dingell. Your increase was very slight? 



Mr. McKernan. Yes. 



Mr. Dingell. Now, the next question I wonder is, do you have a 

 permanent staff assigned to your committee of ICO? 



Mr. McKernan. In a sense, yes, we have organized within the 

 Bureau a group who are handling much of this. We have one par- 

 ticular Branch of Marine Fisheries, headed by Mr. Howard Eckles, 

 who is coordinating the staff work for ICO, and then we brought in 

 Mr. Vernon Brock, a well-known oceanographer, who is heading a 

 group here in Washington. He has several staff members who are 

 attempting to coordinate our efforts in the field of oceanography with 

 those of other Government agencies. 



In other words, we are attempting to staff up to handle this problem 

 as best we can within the funds available. 



Mr. Dingell. Are you telling us, then, that the Bureau of Com- 

 mercial Fisheries is furnishing the staff for this agency? 



Mr. McKernan. Yes, with respect to our responsibilities, the 

 Department's responsibilities in oceanography, we are furnishing the 

 staff. 



Mr. Dingell. How about with regard to the whole responsibility 

 of your subcommittee? Is this all being furnished? Are the staff all 



