108 



National Resources Cormnittee 



the Bureau of Animal Industry. Five other members 

 "who shall be skilled in laboratory work in its rela- 

 tion to the public health, and not in the regular em- 

 ployment of the Government," are appointed by the 

 Surgeon General of the Public Health Service, with 

 the api^roval of the Secretary of the Treasury. The 

 civilian members serve 5-year staggered terms, and re- 

 ceive an allowance of $10 a day while in conference, 

 in addition to traveling and hotel expenses. With the 

 apjjroval of the Secretary of the Treasury, the Sur- 

 geon General may appoint five additional members 

 representing the public health profession (U. S. C. 

 42:21). 



A similar group known as the National Advisory 

 Cancer Council has been recently created in connection 

 with the National Cancer Institute. The Surgeon 



General is ex-ofBcio chairman of the National Advisory 

 Cancer Council, and has authority to appoint, subject 

 to approval of the Secretary of the Treasury, six other 

 members who are to be "selected from leading medical 

 or scientific authorities who are outstanding in the 

 study, diagnosis, or treatment of cancer in the United 

 States." Appointed members serve 3-year overlapping 

 terms, and may not be reappointed until an interval of 

 12 months has elapsed. In addition to traveling and 

 subsistence expenses, a per diem allowance of $25 while 

 engaged on official business is authorized (U. S. C. 42: 

 137b). The powers of the National Advisoi-y Can- 

 cer Council include review of research projects and 

 of applications for grants-in-aid, and the collection 

 and dissemination of information relative to cancer 

 research in the United States and elsewhere (U. S. C. 

 42: 137c). 



IV. FINANCIAL PROVISIONS 



Congress is responsible for financing governmental 

 research as it is for providing funds for all the other 

 activities of government. Financial provisions affect- 

 ing research activities are of two main types : (1) those 

 laid down in organic acts with respect to the use of 

 whatever funds may be supplied; and (2) those con- 

 tained in appropriation acts which not only make funds 

 available but also determine in large measure the pur- 

 poses for which these funds are to be used. 



Organic Acts 



The organic acts with which this study is concerned 

 are those creating research agencies or establishing new 

 research functions to be performed by existing institu- 

 tions. From the financial point of view, the purpose 

 served by these acts is that of authorizing the appro- 

 priation of funds for carrying into effect tlie various 

 provisions detailed, and specifying the manner in 

 which tliese appropriations are to be used. 



Provisions Generally Applicable 



Aside from the legally established budgetary prc;- 

 cedure, various provisions with respect to funds apply 

 generally to all agencies, and bear more or less directly 

 upon the prosecution of research. Most important of 

 these is the mandate that unless otherwise provided by 

 law, "sums appropriated for the various branches of 

 expenditure in the public service shall be applied solely 

 to the objects for which they are respectively made, 

 and for no others" (U. S. C. 31 : 028). 



In addition to this general provision, the law also re- 

 quires that fees, dues, or travel to meetings of societies 

 or associations are not to be paid unless specifically ap- 

 propriated for (U. S. C. 5: iS3) ; and that "no appro- 



priations other than those made specifically and solely 

 for printing and binding shall be used for such pur- 

 poses in any executive department or other Govern- 

 ment establishment in the District of Columbia. * * *" 

 (U.S. C. 31:588). 



Types of Authorization 



Authorization to appropriate moneys for carrying 

 out the provisions of organic acts appears in various 

 forms. The act setting up the Federal Housing Ad- 

 ministration, for example, authorized the appropria- 

 tion of a lump sum, out of which were to come expenses 

 of conducting research and publishing and disseminat- 

 ing research findings, as well as all other activities 

 (48 Stat. 1246, 1252). The Social Security Act au- 

 thorizes an annual api^ropriation to the Public Health 

 Service "for investigation of disease and problems of 

 sanitation" which includes pay, allowances, and travel 

 of personnel, and printing and binding of research 

 findings (49 Stat. 620, 635) ; and similar annual ap- 

 projariations are authorized under the various experi- 

 ment station acts. The Vocational Rehabilitation Act 

 of 1920 (41 Stat. 735) provided one authorization for 

 administrative expenses and another for research; 

 while the Federal Highway Act provides that not to 

 exceed 2i/2 percent of highway appropriations may be 

 deducted "for administering the provisions of this 

 chapter and for carrying on necessary highway re- 

 search and investigational studies independently or in 

 cooperation with the State highway departments and 

 other research agencies, and for publishing the results 

 thereof * * *" (U. S. C. 23: 21). 



Some organic acts, like the Federal Highway Act 

 just referred to, the Social Security Act, and the acts 



