ADVANCEMENT OF MARINE SCIENCES 93 



Executive Office of the President, 

 Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, 



Washington, D.C., April 4, 1961. 

 Hon. Warren G. Magnuson, 



Chairman, Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, 

 U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. 



Dear Mr. Chairman: This is in reply to youi' request for a report 

 on S. 901, 87th Congress, a bill which would be called the Marine 

 Science and Research Act of 1961. 



While we favor expanded efforts in the field of oceanography, the 

 enactment of legislation to accomplish this purpose would appear to 

 be unnecessary in view of the coordinated and intensified national 

 program for oceanography^ recommended by the President in recent 

 messages to the Senate and the House. 



The Bureau of the Budget advises that it has no objection to the 

 submission of this report from the standpoint of the administration's 

 program. 



Sincerely, 



Frank B. Ellis, Director. 



National Science Foundation, 



Office of the Director, 

 Washington, D.C, April 27, 1961. 

 Hon. Warren G. Magnuson, 



Chairman, Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, 

 U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. 



My Dear Senator Magnuson: This is in further reply to your 

 recent request for the comments of the National Science Foundation 

 on S. 901, the Marine Sciences and Research Act of 1961. 



We are in complete accord with the objective of S. 901 which is 

 aimed at assuring that the United States has a strong national ocea- 

 nographic program. In this connection, as you know, the President, 

 on March 29, 1961, transmitted to the Congress his recommendations 

 with respect to the appropriation of funds for fiscal year 1962 to carry 

 on the Federal effort in oceanography. The total amount requested 

 for all Federal agencies is approximately $97.5 miUion. Of this 

 amount, nearly $20 million is for the programs of the National Science 

 Foundation. We believe that if the amounts requested by the 

 President for the foundation for fiscal 3'ear 1962 for support of ocea- 

 nographic research activities are provided by the Congress, they will 

 enable the Federal Government to continue to strengthen its ocea- 

 nographic research activities in a sound manner. 



With respect to the National Science Foundation, in addition to 

 authorization of appropriations, S. 901 would direct the establishment 

 of a Division of Marine Sciences in the foundation, with a divisional 

 committee consisting of representatives of various of the Federal 

 agencies engaged in oceanographic research activities, together with 

 six non-Federal scientists designated by the National Academy of 

 Sciences-National Research Council. When the National Science 

 Foundation was established, the Congress wisely provided for divi- 

 sions concerned with general branches of science as, for example, the 

 mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences and the biological 



