[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3096 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3096

      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 16, 2003

  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.

    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 ``Strengthening Science at the 
Environmental Protection Agency Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act--
            (1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of 
        the Agency;
            (2) the term ``Agency'' means the Environmental Protection 
        Agency;
            (3) the term ``Deputy'' means the Deputy Administrator for 
        Science and Technology appointed under section 4; and
            (4) the term ``research'' means research, development, and 
        demonstration.

SEC. 3. RESEARCH MISSION OF AGENCY.

    Conducting, sponsoring, and evaluating environmental science and 
technology research shall be a central mission of the Agency. The 
results of such research shall be used to help initiate, formulate, and 
carry out the Agency's agenda, and the Agency shall seek to increase 
the public's understanding of environmental science and technology by 
making those research results available to the public.

SEC. 4. DEPUTY.

    (a) Appointment.--The President shall appoint, by and with the 
advice and consent of the Senate, a Deputy Administrator for Science 
and Technology, who shall coordinate and oversee the science and 
technology activities of the Agency and ensure that Agency decisions 
are informed by the results of appropriate and relevant research.
    (b) Responsibilities.--The Deputy shall--
            (1) provide advice to the Administrator regarding science 
        and technology issues and their relationship to Agency 
        policies, procedures, and decisions;
            (2) participate in developing the Agency's strategic plans 
        and policies and review the science and technology aspects of 
        those plans and policies;
            (3) coordinate the acquisition and compilation of relevant 
        science and technology information available from academic 
        sources, government agencies, and the private sector;
            (4) develop and oversee guidelines for the dissemination of 
        research results conducted, sponsored, or cited by the Agency 
        to the public, including historically black colleges and 
        universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, minority 
        communities, and rural communities; and
            (5) develop and oversee guidelines for peer review of 
        science and technology research.
    (c) Qualifications.--An individual appointed under subsection (a) 
shall be a person who has an outstanding science and technology 
background, including research accomplishments, scientific reputation, 
and public policy experience.
    (d) Consultation.--Before appointing an individual under subsection 
(a), the President shall consult with the National Academy of Sciences, 
the National Academy of Engineering, the Science Advisory Board of the 
Agency, and other appropriate scientific organizations.
    (e) Compensation.--The Deputy shall be compensated at the rate 
provided for level III of the Executive Schedule pursuant to section 
5314 of title 5, United States Code.
    (f) Conforming Amendment.--Section 5314 of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
        ``Deputy Administrator for Science and Technology of the 
        Environmental Protection Agency.''.

SEC. 5. ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

    (a) Title and Term.--There shall be an Assistant Administrator for 
Research and Development of the Agency, who shall also have the title 
of Chief Scientist of the Agency. Appointments to such position made 
after the date of the enactment of this Act shall be for a term of 5 
years unless sooner removed by the President.
    (b) Qualifications.--An individual appointed under subsection (a) 
shall be a person who has an outstanding science and technology 
background, including research accomplishments, scientific reputation, 
and experience in leading a research and development organization.
                                 <all>