I

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 5195

To provide for the establishment of the position of Deputy Administrator

for Science and Technology of the Environmental Protection Agency,

and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SEPTEMBER 18, 2000

Mr. EHLERS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Science

A BILL

To provide for the establishment of the position of Deputy

Administrator for Science and Technology of the Environmental Protection Agency, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. DEPUTY ADMINISTRATORS.

4 (a) DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR FOR SCIENCE AND

5 TECHNOLOGY.—

6 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The President shall ap7 point, by and with the advice and consent of the

8 Senate, a Deputy Administrator for Science and

9 Technology of the Environmental Protection Agency.
2

•HR 5195 IH

1 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Deputy Adminis2 trator for Science and Technology shall have overall

3 responsibility for the scientific and technical founda4 tion of Environmental Protection Agency decisions,

5 including being responsible for—

6 (A) identifying and defining the important

7 scientific issues facing the Environmental Pro8 tection Agency, including those embedded in

9 major policy or regulatory proposals;

10 (B) developing and overseeing an inte11 grated agencywide strategy for acquiring, dis12 seminating, and applying information;

13 (C) ensuring that the complex scientific

14 outreach and communication needs of the Envi15 ronmental Protection Agency are met, including

16 the need to reach throughout the Agency for

17 credible science in support of the regulatory of18 fices, regions, and Agency-wide policy delibera19 tions, as well as the need to reach out to the

20 broader domestic and international scientific

21 community for scientific knowledge that is rel22 evant to an Agency policy or regulatory issue;

23 (D) coordinating and overseeing scientific

24 quality assurance and peer review practices
3

•HR 5195 IH

1 throughout the Environmental Protection Agen2 cy; and

3 (E) developing processes to ensure that ap4 propriate scientific information is used in deci5 sionmaking throughout the Environmental Pro6 tection Agency, and ensuring that the scientific

7 and technical information underlying each Envi8 ronmental Protection Agency regulatory deci9 sion is valid, appropriately characterized in

10 terms of scientific uncertainty and cross-media

11 issues, and appropriately applied.

12 (3) QUALIFICATIONS.—An individual appointed

13 under paragraph (1) shall have an outstanding tech14 nical background, including research accomplish15 ments, scientific reputation, and experience in public

16 forums.

17 (4) CONSULTATION.—Before appointing an in18 dividual under paragraph (1), the President shall

19 consult with the National Academy of Sciences, the

20 National Academy of Engineering, the Science Advi21 sory Board of the Environmental Protection Agency,

22 and other appropriate scientific organizations.

23 (5) COMPENSATION.—The Deputy Adminis24 trator for Science and Technology shall be com25 pensated at the rate provided for level III of the Ex-
4

•HR 5195 IH

1 ecutive Schedule pursuant to section 5314 of title 5,

2 United States Code.

3 (b) DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR FOR POLICY AND MAN4 AGEMENT.—The position of Deputy Administrator of the

5 Environmental Protection Agency shall be redesignated as

6 the Deputy Administrator for Policy and Management,

7 and the individual serving in that position as of the date

8 of the enactment of this Act shall assume such title.

9 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5314 of

10 title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking the

11 item relating to the Deputy Administrator of the Environ12 mental Protection Agency and inserting the following:

13 ‘‘Deputy Administrator for Policy and Manage14 ment of the Environmental Protection Agency.

15 ‘‘Deputy Administrator for Science and Tech16 nology of the Environmental Protection Agency.’’.

17 SEC. 2. ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR RESEARCH AND

18 DEVELOPMENT.

19 (a) TITLE AND TERM.—One of the Assistant Admin20 istrators of the Environmental Protection Agency shall be

21 designated as the Assistant Administrator for Research

22 and Development, and shall also have the title of Chief

23 Scientist of the Environmental Protection Agency. Ap24 pointments to such position made after the date of the

25 enactment of this Act shall be for a term of 6 years.
5

•HR 5195 IH

1 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—An individual appointed

2 under subsection (a) shall have an outstanding technical

3 background, including research accomplishments, sci4 entific reputation, and experience in leading a research

5 and development organization.

6 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING OTHER ACTIVI7 TIES OF OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND DEVEL8 OPMENT.

9 It is the sense of Congress that—

10 (1) the Office of Research and Development

11 should—

12 (A) make a concerted effort to give re13 search managers of the Office a high degree of

14 flexibility and accountability, including empow15 ering the research managers to make decisions

16 at the lowest appropriate management level

17 consistent with the policy of the Environmental

18 Protection Agency and the strategic goals and

19 budget priorities of the Office;

20 (B) maintain approximately an even bal21 ance between core research and problem-driven

22 research;

23 (C) develop and implement a structured

24 strategy for encouraging, and acquiring and ap25 plying the results of, research conducted or
6

•HR 5195 IH

1 sponsored by other Federal and State agencies,

2 universities, and industry, both in the United

3 States and in foreign countries; and

4 (D) substantially improve the documenta5 tion and transparency of the decisionmaking

6 processes of the Office for—

7 (i) establishing research and tech8 nical-assistance priorities;

9 (ii) making intramural and extra10 mural assignments; and

11 (iii) allocating funds; and

12 (2) the Administrator of the Environmental

13 Protection Agency should—

14 (A) substantially increase the efforts of the

15 Agency—

16 (i) to disseminate actively the research

17 products and ongoing projects of the Office

18 of Research and Development;

19 (ii) to explain the significance of the

20 research products and projects; and

21 (iii) to assist other persons and enti22 ties inside and outside the Agency in ap23 plying the results of the research products

24 and projects;
7

•HR 5195 IH

1 (B)(i) direct the Deputy Administrator for

2 Science and Technology to expand on the

3 science inventory of the Agency by conducting,

4 documenting, and publishing a more com5 prehensive and detailed inventory of all sci6 entific activities conducted by Agency units out7 side the Office, which inventory should include

8 information such as—

9 (I) project goals, milestones, and

10 schedules;

11 (II) principal investigators and project

12 managers; and

13 (III) allocations of staff and financial

14 resources; and

15 (ii) use the results of the inventory to en16 sure that activities described in clause (i) are

17 properly coordinated through the Agency-wide

18 science planning and budgeting process and are

19 appropriately peer reviewed; and

20 (C) change the peer-review policy of the

21 Agency to more strictly separate the manage22 ment of the development of a work product

23 from the management of the peer review of that

24 work product, thereby ensuring greater inde25 pendence of peer reviews from the control of
8

•HR 5195 IH

1 program managers, or the potential appearance

2 of control by program managers, throughout

3 the Agency.

Æ