NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC PROGRAM LEGISLATION 55 



for a comprehensive, long-range, and coordinated national program in 

 oceanography, and for other pm-poses. 



H.R. 6457 would set forth national objectives for oceanographic and 

 marine activities and would establish a National Oceanographic 

 Council composed principally of Cabinet department representatives. 

 The Council would advise and assist the President by surveying 

 present oceanographic activities, developing an oceanographic pro- 

 gram, coordinating the agencies' oceanographic activities and annually 

 comparing Federal oceanographic accomplishments against the 

 Council's oceanographic program. The Council would be authorized 

 to employ an executive secretary and staff. H.R. 6457 also includes 

 detailed requirements for an annual report from the President to 

 Congress on his oceanographic program and on present accomplishments. 



The Department strongly supports improvement in and greater 

 emphasis for the national oceanographic program. However, we 

 doubt that H.R,. 6457 would have enough beneficial effect upon 

 oceanographic activities to offset the limiting effect it would have 

 upon the administration of Federal activities in oceanography as 

 a whole. 



The Interagency Committee on Oceanography has had considerable 

 success in coordinating and stimulating Federal oceanographic activi- 

 ties, and we are therefore not aware of overriding reasons for replacing 

 it. The proposed National Oceanographic Council would not change 

 the realities involved in setting priorities and apportioning limited 

 funds among less limited demands within the agencies. There is no 

 reason to believe that Council review of the national oceanographic 

 program before its submission to the agencies would keep any agency 

 from balancing its oceanographic program needs against the needs 

 of its other programs. On the other hand, creation of the proposed 

 Council would add to the proliferation of councils and committees 

 which the President is now seeking to reduce. 



If the intent of H.R. 6457 is to replace the Interagency Committee 

 on Oceanography with the proposed Council, then little practical 

 change from the present arrangement for coordination would occur. 

 However, we believe it is undesirable to establish the Council by 

 statute as the means for coordination of Federal programs. We 

 think it is better to leave flexibility in the executive for coordinating-^ 

 programs, which, like the program in oceanography, are still develop- 

 ing. Moreover, if the Council and the Interagency Committee on 

 Oceanography are both to exist, enactment of H.R. 6457 would cause 

 substantial duplication of effort and possibly conflict of proposed 

 programs. 



For these reasons, while the Department favors the objectives of 

 the bUl, we oppose the establishment of a statutory Council to ac- 

 complish these objectives. We would have no objection to the biU if 

 it were amended to permit the President to establish such mechanisms 

 as he believes necessary to accomplish these objectives. 



We have been advised! by the Bureau of the Budget that there 

 would be no objection to the submission of our report from the stand- 

 point of the administration's program. 

 Sincerely yours, 



Burt W. Roper 

 (For Robert E. Giles). 



