A bill to amend the Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Authorization Act of 1979 to establish in the Environmental Protection Agency the position of Deputy Administrator for Science and Technology..

Summary: Environmental Research Enhancement Act - Amends the Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Authorization Act of 1979 to establish in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the position of Deputy Administrator for Science and Technology, who shall be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. Gives the Deputy Administrator responsibility for: (1) oversight of the Office of Research and Development, the Office of Environmental Information, the Science Advisory Board, the Science Policy Council, and scientific and technical activities in the regulatory program and regional offices of the EPA; and (2) functions related to identification of scientific issues and dissemination of scientific information. Sets the term for the Assistant Administrator for Research and Development. Requires the head of the Office of Research and Development (the Office) to establish a program to make senior research appointments. Specifies the activities of the Office. Requires the EPA Administrator to: (1) substantially increase EPA efforts to disseminate, explain the significance of, and apply the results of research products and projects of the Office; (2) direct the Deputy Administrator for Science and Technology to comprehensively inventory EPA scientific activities conducted outside of the Office and to ensure proper agency-wide coordination of such activities; and (3) revise the agency's peer-review policy. Redesignates the position of EPA Deputy Administrator as Deputy Administrator for Policy and Management.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Environmental Research Enhancement 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY RESEARCH ACTIVITIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 6 of the Environmental Research, 
Development, and Demonstration Authorization Act of 1979 (42 U.S.C. 
4361c) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Deputy Administrator for Science and Technology.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--There is established in the 
        Environmental Protection Agency (referred to in this section as 
        the `Agency') the position of Deputy Administrator for Science 
        and Technology.
            ``(2) Appointment.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Deputy Administrator for 
                Science and Technology shall be appointed by the 
                President, by and with the advice and consent of the 
                Senate.
                    ``(B) Consideration of recommendations.--In making 
                an appointment under subparagraph (A), the President 
                shall consider recommendations submitted by--
                            ``(i) the National Academy of Sciences;
                            ``(ii) the National Academy of Engineering; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) the Science Advisory Board 
                        established by section 8 of the Environmental 
                        Research, Development, and Demonstration 
                        Authorization Act of 1978 (42 U.S.C. 4365).
            ``(3) Responsibilities.--
                    ``(A) Oversight.--The Deputy Administrator for 
                Science and Technology shall coordinate and oversee--
                            ``(i) the Office of Research and 
                        Development of the Agency (referred to in this 
                        section as the `Office');
                            ``(ii) the Office of Environmental 
                        Information of the Agency;
                            ``(iii) the Science Advisory Board;
                            ``(iv) the Science Policy Council of the 
                        Agency; and
                            ``(v) scientific and technical activities 
                        in the regulatory program and regional offices 
                        of the Agency.
                    ``(B) Other responsibilities.--The Deputy 
                Administrator for Science and Technology shall--
                            ``(i) ensure that the most important 
                        scientific issues facing the Agency are 
                        identified and defined, including those issues 
                        embedded in major policy or regulatory 
                        proposals;
                            ``(ii) develop and oversee an Agency-wide 
                        strategy to acquire and disseminate necessary 
                        scientific information through intramural 
                        efforts or through extramural programs 
                        involving academia, other government agencies, 
                        and the private sector in the United States and 
                        in foreign countries;
                            ``(iii) ensure that the complex scientific 
                        outreach and communication needs of the Agency 
                        are met, including the needs--
                                    ``(I) to reach throughout the 
                                Agency for credible science in support 
                                of regulatory office, regional office, 
                                and Agency-wide policy deliberations; 
                                and
                                    ``(II) to reach out to the broader 
                                United States and international 
                                scientific community for scientific 
                                knowledge that is relevant to Agency 
                                policy or regulatory issues;
                            ``(iv) coordinate and oversee scientific 
                        quality-assurance and peer-review activities 
                        throughout the Agency, including activities in 
                        support of the regulatory and regional offices;
                            ``(v) develop processes to ensure that 
                        appropriate scientific information is used in 
                        decisionmaking at all levels in the Agency; and
                            ``(vi) ensure, and certify to the 
                        Administrator of the Agency, that the 
                        scientific and technical information used in 
                        each Agency regulatory decision and policy is--
                                    ``(I) valid;
                                    ``(II) appropriately characterized 
                                in terms of scientific uncertainty and 
                                cross-media issues; and
                                    ``(III) appropriately applied.
    ``(f) Assistant Administrator for Research and Development.--
            ``(1) Term of appointment.--Notwithstanding any other 
        provision of law, the Assistant Administrator for Research and 
        Development of the Agency shall be appointed for a term of 6 
        years.
            ``(2) Applicability.--Paragraph (1) applies to each 
        appointment that is made on or after the date of enactment of 
        this subsection.
    ``(g) Senior Research Appointments in Office of Research and 
Development Laboratories.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--The head of the Office, in 
        consultation with the Science Advisory Board and the Board of 
        Scientific Counselors of the Office, shall establish a program 
        to recruit and appoint to the laboratories of the Office senior 
        researchers who have made distinguished achievements in 
        environmental research.
            ``(2) Awards.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The head of the Office shall 
                make awards to the senior researchers appointed under 
                paragraph (1)--
                            ``(i) to support research in areas that are 
                        rapidly advancing and are related to the 
                        mission of the Agency; and
                            ``(ii) to train junior researchers who 
                        demonstrate exceptional promise to conduct 
                        research in such areas.
                    ``(B) Selection procedures.--The head of the Office 
                shall establish procedures for the selection of the 
                recipients of awards under this paragraph, including 
                procedures for consultation with the Science Advisory 
                Board and the Board of Scientific Counselors of the 
                Office.
                    ``(C) Duration of awards.--Awards under this 
                paragraph shall be made for a 5-year period and may be 
                renewed.
            ``(3) Placement of researchers.--Each laboratory of the 
        Office shall have not fewer than 1 senior researcher appointed 
        under the program established under paragraph (1).
            ``(4) Authorization of appropriations.--There are 
        authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to 
        carry out this subsection.
    ``(h) Other Activities of Office of Research and Development.--
            ``(1) Activities of the office.--The Office shall--
                    ``(A) make a concerted effort to give research 
                managers of the Office a high degree of flexibility and 
                accountability, including empowering the research 
                managers to make decisions at the lowest appropriate 
                management level consistent with the policy of the 
                Agency and the strategic goals and budget priorities of 
                the Office;
                    ``(B) maintain, to the maximum extent practicable, 
                an even balance between core research and problem-
                driven research;
                    ``(C) develop and implement a structured strategy 
                for encouraging, and acquiring and applying the results 
                of, research conducted or sponsored by other Federal 
                and State agencies, universities, and industry, both in 
                the United States and in foreign countries; and
                    ``(D) substantially improve the documentation and 
                transparency of the decisionmaking processes of the 
                Office for--
                            ``(i) establishing research and technical-
                        assistance priorities;
                            ``(ii) making intramural and extramural 
                        assignments; and
                            ``(iii) allocating funds.
            ``(2) Activities of the administrator.--The Administrator 
        of the Agency shall--
                    ``(A) substantially increase the efforts of the 
                Agency--
                            ``(i) to disseminate actively the research 
                        products and ongoing projects of the Office;
                            ``(ii) to explain the significance of the 
                        research products and projects; and
                            ``(iii) to assist other persons and 
                        entities inside and outside the Agency in 
                        applying the results of the research products 
                        and projects;
                    ``(B)(i) direct the Deputy Administrator for 
                Science and Technology to expand the science inventory 
                of the Agency by conducting, documenting, and 
                publishing a more comprehensive and detailed inventory 
                of all scientific activities conducted by Agency units 
                outside the Office, which inventory should include 
                information such as--
                            ``(I) project goals, milestones, and 
                        schedules;
                            ``(II) principal investigators and project 
                        managers; and
                            ``(III) allocations of staff and financial 
                        resources; and
                    ``(ii) use the results of the inventory to ensure 
                that activities described in clause (i) are properly 
                coordinated through the Agency-wide science planning 
                and budgeting process and are appropriately peer 
                reviewed; and
                    ``(C) change the peer-review policy of the Agency 
                to more strictly separate the management of the 
                development of a work product from the management of 
                the peer review of that work product, thereby ensuring 
                greater independence of peer reviews from the control 
                of program managers, or the potential appearance of 
                control by program managers, throughout the Agency.''.
    (b) Deputy Administrator for Policy and Management.--
            (1) In general.--The position of Deputy Administrator of 
        the Environmental Protection Agency is redesignated as the 
        position of ``Deputy Administrator for Policy and Management of 
        the Environmental Protection Agency''.
            (2) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
        document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
        Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
        shall be deemed to be a reference to the Deputy Administrator 
        for Policy and Management of the Environmental Protection 
        Agency.
    (c) Executive Schedule Level III.--Section 5314 of title 5, United 
States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to the Deputy 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and inserting the 
following:
            ``Deputy Administrator for Policy and Management of the 
        Environmental Protection Agency.
            ``Deputy Administrator for Science and Technology of the 
        Environmental Protection Agency.''.