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.
[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2233 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
108th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2233
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.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 25, 2004
Mr. Voinovich (for himself and Mr. Carper) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment
and Public Works
_______________________________________________________________________
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.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
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.''.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S3184)
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works. (text of measure as introduced: CR S3184-3185)
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