372 OCEANOGRAPHY 1961 — PHASE 3 



University of Miami, 

 The Marine Laboratory, 



Miami, Fla., April 5, 1961. 

 Hon. Geor&e p. Miller, 



Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representatives, House 

 Office Building, Washington, D.C. 

 Dear Mr. Miller : In answer to your request for comments on bill H.R. 4276, 

 whicli you have introduced in the House of Representatives, I am glad to comply 

 by outlining a few of my thoughts. My general opinion is that the complex struc- 

 ture of the organization of oceanography in the United States makes it necessary 

 that the funding be guided by a unified point of view. As a member of the Com- 

 mittee on Oceanography, I was very much concerned about the way such unifica- 

 tion could be achieved. One of the proposed solutions to this problem was the 

 establishment of a National Institute for Oceanography, which is a similar idea 

 to the National Oceanographic Council. Another possibility was the enactment 

 of detailed legislation on general procedures for funding, giving all agencies a 

 guideline, but avoiding a centralization. Each of these points of view has many 

 pros and cons. Experience in other large countries, however, has demonstrated 

 that a national institute can become a heavy and diflScult to organize body; 

 therefore, the Committee on Oceanography has decided not to propound this step. 

 I want to emphasize that I was one of the few in favor of a national institute, 

 but I became convinced of the diflSculties involved. The Interdepartment Com- 

 mittee on Oceanography (ICO), on the other hand, was acting in some respects 

 as the centralizing agency and has, in my opinion, done an excellent job. It 

 may, therefore, be logical that this committee may be established as the National 

 Oceanographic Council. 



There are a few points that I would like to bring to your attention. I believe, 

 in addition to the six mentioned Departments and Agencies, there should be a 

 representative of the State Department and the Department of Public Health, 

 Education, and Welfare. The first one because of the international nature of 

 oceanography and the second one because of the importance of the ocean to public 

 health and welfare. 



Furthermore, I believe that, in effect, the Council will not be represented by 

 the Secretaries of the Department and the Directors of the Agencies, but that 

 each one will delegate one of his administrative assistants to represent him. 

 For this reason, I would prefer that the responsible scientific administrators in 

 the different Agencies should constitute the Council. 



As a representative of a university institution, I was interested in the fact 

 that the bill contained no acknowledgement of nor provision for the research 

 and engineering work developed and carried out by universities in the field of 

 oceanography. Up to now the universities have carried out the principal part of 

 the research, and I am of the opinion that they should continue to do so in the 

 future, since the basic research must be the backbone of all advancement in 

 science. In addition, the university is the place where young scientists are edu- 

 cated. I do not see, at the present time, how the proper position of the univer- 

 sities' participation in the nationwide oceanographic program can be outlined 

 in this bill. I would have liked it to be emphasized that the universities and 

 institutions are the best source of new scientists interested in the ocean. 



Further, 1 hope that the Smithsonian Institution will be willing to carry out the 

 direction given in the bill. I completely agree that the Smithsonian Institution 

 must get better facilities, and especially a larger staff, in order to serve as the 

 central disposition place and the center for taxonomic work in marine biology. 



Please be assured that all efforts made by the House of Representatives are 

 appreciated, as long as these measures guarantee a continuous support of marine 

 sciences and contribute to the coordination of diversified programs. 

 Very truly yours, 



F. F. KoczY, 

 Chairman, Physical Science Division. 



