NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC PROGRAM LEGISLATION 253 



or not it could best be done by the autliority wliich by ]e<4islative 

 authority which would place iu the Departmeiit of Commerce and in 

 the Department of tlie Interior the two focal points of the development 

 of both the description and the definition and the exploration and 

 seeking the other objective? 



Dr. HoLL0]\[ox. I think I should answer this question in this way, 

 Mr. Chairman : If your committee feels that these responsibilities and 

 appropriate authority for appropriations are not clearly defined, I 

 think you should follow the second course. If you feel that the time 

 is not right to so define it, and you need some additional study and 

 advice, I think you should follow the first course. 



Mr. Lennon. Now, Mr. Secretary, your agency was the only one of 

 the numerous who commented on the bill, H.R. 2218, and I might say 

 that that bill was drafted after consensus with all the agencies, depart- 

 ments, about 15 months ago, but your counsel suggested an amendment 

 to that bill, and you recommended, that is, Mr. Giles, the general 

 counsel, on April 15, 1965, you suggested an amendment as follows: 



We recommend that page 5, lines 2 and 3, be amended to read "hydrograpliic 

 and coastal suryey, and geophysical data, and those aspects of marine meteorology 

 directly related to oceanography." 



Then you go on to say, "It is felt that climatology and most 

 meteorology do not pertain to oceanography." 



Dr. HoLLOMON. Yes, sir. 



Mr. Lennon. Now, you did not comment at all today on your 

 suggested changes. 



Dr. PIoLLOMON. No, sir; I did not. 



Mr. Lennon. But I noted that earlier in reading this. I wondered 

 if you want to give us briefly your reasons for the suggestion that this 

 bill ought to be amended. 



Dr. HoLLOMAN". Yes, sir. The reason for that is that meteorology, 

 while it relates to the ocean as such, likewise has a vast number of 

 coordinating activities. More specifically, it has the direction that 

 there be a Federal meteorological coordinator for meteorology. That 

 coordination does exist. We present a Federal plan for meteorology, 

 and meteorology is really a big thing that is quite separate from 

 oceanography. 



The total expenditures in meteorology in the Federal Government 

 exceed $300 million. It is a big program. It includes all the weather 

 services, all the upper atmosphere soundings, and I believe it would 

 just create an extraordinary amount of overcoordination if one 

 included that in the definition of oceanography. I feel the same thing 

 about climatology. Climatology is nothing but long-term meteor- 

 ology, what happens over 100 years or 10 years. 



So what I am really saying is, let's for heaven's sakes, don't have 

 another coordination mechanism which coordinates meteorology and 

 climatology, which is really one thing, and oceanograph3^ It will 

 just overwhelm every oceanographic ac'tivity. It will again produce 

 this inability to focus on the single problem which is oceanography. 



Mr. Lennon. Now, does the Department of Commerce, under this — 

 has it delegated to ESSA the authority to make oceanwide surveys at 

 one time — I think that the Coast Survey has the authority ? 



Dr. HoLLOMON. Yes. The Coast Survey is a part of ESSA, and 

 ESSA now has that responsibility ; yes, sir. 



