NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC PROGRAM LEGISLATION 113 



mental organization to administer the national oceanographic program 

 should be enacted." 



Our views have not changed Avith the passage by the Senate of S. 

 944. We imderstand, however, that during the present hearings before 

 your committee a proposal has been made to provide standby authority 

 for the establislunent, in the discretion of the President, of a self-liq- 

 uidating commission, such as proposed in S. 944. We think that this 

 proposal merits serious consideration. If your committee adopts this 

 approach, we would like the opportunity to offer suggestions on the 

 provisions of the legislation. 



The Bureau of the Budget has advised that there is no objection to 

 the presentation of this report from the standpoint of the administra- 

 tion's program. 



Sincerely yours, 



Stanley A. Cain, 

 Assistcmt jSecretaoy of the Interior. 



Executive Oefice of the President, 



Office of Science and Technology, 



Washington, D.C., August 36, 1965. 

 Hon. Herbert C. Bonner, 



Chaimvan, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of 

 Representatives, Washington, D.G. 

 Dear Mr. Chairman : This is further reply to your letter of August 

 10, 1965, requesting comments on S. 944, to establish a National Coun- 

 cil on Marine Resources and Engineering Development and a Com- 

 mission on Marine Science, Engineering, and Resources, and for other 

 purposes. 



Although I am in accord with the purpose of the bill, I do not recog- 

 nize the need for a National Council and believe it would be unwise 

 to create one. Most of the functions of the Council are being per- 

 formed by the Federal Council for Science and Technology. The 

 creation of another Council to foster a particular major field of science 

 raises in principle the desirability of a series of national councils in 

 successive major areas of science. It seems unlikely that the Cabinet 

 officers designated to serve on such a Council would, in fact, be able 

 to devote much attention to its work since they already have major- 

 responsibility. For these reasons I cannot recommend the enactment 

 of S. 944. 



It seems to me that what is needed at this time is a bill that would 

 blend the best features of S. 944 with those of H.R. 2218, which has 

 won administration support. We are now preparing such a bill 

 which I would be pleased to discuss wdth you in the near future. 

 Sincerely yours, 



Donald F. Hornig, Director. 



Mr. Lennon. The authors of these bills have all sincerely sought 

 effective answers to the numerous problems involved in our well 

 established need for an oceanographic program to overcome our past 

 neglect in the understanding and conquering of the oceanographie 

 environment, which are so essential to the development of our civiliza- 



