NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC PROGRAM LEGISLATION 17 



The proposed legislation contains three principal provisions: 

 (a) The President is directed to establish a comprehensive Federal 

 program of oceanographic activities and to fix responsibility for its 

 conduct; (b) the President is authorized to appoint an Advisory 

 Committee for Oceanography; (c) The President is directed to report 

 annually on specific aspects of the program to the Congress. 



The Bureau of the Budget commented on a predecessor bill, H.R. 

 13, in a letter to your committee on May 6, 1963. Subsequently, 

 we made suggestions for improvement of the bill which have been 

 reflected in the drafting of H.R. 2218. 



The provision in the bill for development of a coordinated national 

 program in oceanography conforms with the objectives of this admini- 

 stration. Similarly, the Office of Science and Technology, the 

 Federal Council for Science and Technology, and the Bureau of the 

 Budget have been seeking to improve the process of reporting to the 

 Congress on the status and future plans for the field. Consequently, 

 the reporting procedures in the bill are welcomed as useful guide- 

 lines in keeping the Congress informed of developments in the fast 

 moving field of oceanography. 



The Bureau of the Budget recommends enactment of H.E.. 2218. 

 Sincerely yours, 



Phillip S. Hughes, 

 Assistant Director for Legislative Reference. 



General Counsel of the 

 Department of Commerce, 

 Washington, D.C., April 15, 1965. 

 Hon. Herbert C. Bonner, 



Chairman, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, 

 House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. 



Dear Mr. Chairman: This is in further reply to your request for 

 the views of this Department with respect to H.R. 2218, a bill to 

 provide for a comprehensive, long-range, and coordinated national 

 program in oceanography, and for other purposes. 



This bill would require the President to issue a statement of national 

 goals with respect to oceanography^, to survey the oceanographic 

 activities of all Federal agencies, to develop a comprehensive Federal 

 program in oceanography, to fix responsibility for the direction of 

 oceanographic activities, and to resolve differences among the Federal 

 agencies with regard to these activities. The President would also be 

 authorized to appoint an advisory committee and would be required 

 to furnish the Congress with a detailed annual report. This Depart- 

 ment recommends enactment of this legislation, if amended as set 

 forth below. 



The national interest requires effective planning and coordination 

 of the oceanographic effort, and this bill will establish the mechanism 

 whereby this can be accomplished. It should be noted that with the 

 exception of the required annual report to the Congress, the provisions 

 of this bill are now being carried out in effect by the Interagency Com- 

 mittee on Oceanography of the Federal Council for Science and 

 Technology. The bUl would provide for the continuation of the 

 executive responsibilities which that committee was established to 

 meet and would ensure that oceanography, an important aspect of 



