BUREAU OF THE BIOLOGICAL SURVEY 



reason for the increase or decrease in each item. By May i 

 these estimates have been compiled by the Budget Clerk and 

 submitted to the Chief of the Bureau, who in a series of con- 

 ferences with the division chiefs considers each request in 

 turn. 



By May 20 the revised estimates are returned to the Clerk 

 who puts them on a printed form of the Department of 

 Agriculture and sends them to the Budget Officer for the 

 Department. Conferences then will follow between the 

 Budget Officer and the Chief of the Bureau, and sometimes 

 in case of serious dispute between them with the Secretary 

 himself. 49 Finally, the estimates are agreed upon and the 

 Department during the latter part of June advises the 

 Bureau as to the amounts it can request. 



The Budget Clerk then enters the estimates on printed 

 forms perpared by the Bureau of the Budget which are the 

 same for all branches of the federal government. A great 

 mass of supporting data is required by the Bureau of the 

 Budget, explaining each increase or decrease in requests, 

 accompanied by a narrative statement explaining the reason 

 for each sub-appropriation and for each project under each 

 sub-appropriation. 



The Budget Bureau then holds hearings during Septem- 

 ber and October which are attended by the Bureau Chief, 

 his immediate assistants, the Department Budget Officer, 

 and often by members of the staff divisions of the Secre- 

 tary's office, especially by the Director of Scientific Work 

 whose duty it is to coordinate all scientific work carried on 

 by the Department. Sometime during the latter part of 

 October the Bureau of the Budget notifies the Biological 

 Survey of the increases and decreases made in the estimates 

 and then the Survey must bring its figures into line. This 



* 9 Note that the Department Budget Officer has real discretionary 

 power while the Bureau Budget Clerk is only compiling agent. 



