[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 125 (Friday, June 29, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35708-35709]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-12510]


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OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY


Alignment of the Interagency Committee on Ocean Science and 
Resource Management Integration (ICOSRMI) and the National Ocean 
Research Leadership Council (NORLC)

AGENCY: Office of Science and Technology Policy.

ACTION: Notice of Action.

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SUMMARY: At the April 27, 2007 joint meeting of the Interagency 
Committee on Ocean Science and Resource Management Integration 
(ICOSRMI) and the National Ocean Research Leadership Council (NORLC), 
the principals of both bodies formally voted and unanimously approved 
that the Interagency Committee on Ocean Science and Resource Management 
Integration (ICOSRMI) established by the U.S.

[[Page 35709]]

Ocean Action Plan (OAP), shall also serve as the National Ocean 
Research Leadership Council (NORLC) established by the National 
Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP); and all actions taken by the 
ICOSRMI related to the NOPP shall be deemed actions of the NORLC, 
unless otherwise expressly stated by the ICOSRMI in writing. The intent 
of this action is to maintain the interagency progress made through 
NOPP, thus building on a decade of experience made possible through the 
program, while avoiding duplication of effort with the new governance 
structure of the OAP. NORLC and the other NOPP committees are now 
conducting business as their functionally equivalent OAP bodies. This 
action will align, simplify and strengthen the Federal ocean governance 
structures.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information regarding this notice, 
please contact Dr. Dan Walker, Office of Science and Technology Policy, 
725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20502. Telephone: (202) 456-6137. 
E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

National Ocean Research Leadership Council

    The FY 1997 Defense Authorization Act (Public Law 104-201) directed 
the Secretary of the Navy to establish the National Oceanographic 
Partnership Program (NOPP, http://www.nopp.org). Supplemental 
legislation for appointments to the NOPP oversight body, the National 
Ocean Research Leadership Council (NORLC), and to the Ocean Research 
Advisory Panel is contained in Public Law 105-85, the FY 1998 Defense 
Authorization Act. The NOPP promotes the goals of assuring national 
security, advancing economic development, protecting quality of life, 
and strengthening science education and communication through improved 
knowledge of the ocean. The NORLC, comprising leaders of fifteen 
Federal agencies, guides NOPP in identifying and carrying out 
partnerships among Federal agencies, industry, and other members of the 
ocean sciences community in support of those goals.

The Ocean Action Plan Ocean Governance Structure

    In September 2004, the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy (USCOP) 
completed its report, ``An Ocean Blueprint for the 21st Century.'' In 
December 2004, the President submitted to Congress his formal response, 
the U.S. Ocean Action Plan (OAP) (http://ocean.ceq.gov/actionplan.pdf), 
which outlines a new ocean governance structure to: (1) Coordinate the 
activities of executive departments and agencies regarding ocean-
related matters in an integrated and effective manner to advance the 
environmental, economic, and security interests of present and future 
generations of Americans; and (2) Facilitate, as appropriate, 
coordination and consultation regarding ocean-related matters among 
Federal, State, Tribal, and local governments, the private sector, 
foreign governments, and international organizations.
    On December 17, 2004, President Bush established by Executive Order 
13366 a Cabinet-level Committee on Ocean Policy to coordinate the 
activities of executive branch departments and agencies regarding 
ocean-related matters in an integrated and effective manner to advance 
the environmental and economic interests of present and future 
generations of Americans.
    As detailed in the U.S. Ocean Action Plan, to help support its 
work, the Committee on Ocean Policy established the Interagency 
Committee on Ocean Science and Resource Management Integration 
(ICOSRMI) co-chaired by the Office of Science and Technology Policy 
(OSTP) Associate Director for Science and the Council on Environmental 
Quality (CEQ) Chief of Staff, who report directly to the Chair of the 
Committee on Ocean Policy. The members consist of Under/Assistant 
Secretaries or their equivalents from the Executive branch agencies and 
departments of the Committee on Ocean Policy. The functions of ICOSRMI 
include: (1) Facilitate and coordinate the work of existing ocean and 
coastal interagency groups focused on the management of living and 
nonliving marine resources; (2) recommend the creation of new topical 
task forces as needed; (3) coordinate with government-wide 
environmental and natural resource efforts that have important ocean 
components; (4) identify opportunities for improvements in the 
application of science for ecosystem-based management of ocean 
resources; (5) identify priority research needs that can enhance 
management capabilities; (6) facilitate use of ocean science and 
technology, including ocean observations, in the implementation of 
ocean and coastal management and policies; (7) recommend assessments 
and analyses of Federal ocean resource management initiatives; (8) 
identify opportunities and articulate priorities for enhancing ocean 
education, outreach, and capacity building; and (9) identify 
opportunities for the promotion of international collaboration in ocean 
resource management. ICOSRMI incorporates the National Ocean Research 
Leadership Council's (NORLC) current mandate within its broader mandate 
that includes ocean resource management. (http://ocean.ceq.gov/about/icosrmi.html).
    Since January 2005, the Administration has worked actively with 
Federal agencies to establish the new ocean governance structure and 
link existing groups with new entities. The functions of NORLC have 
transitioned to this new OAP structure in order to align, simplify and 
strengthen the Federal ocean governance.

M. David Hodge,
Operations Manager.
 [FR Doc. E7-12510 Filed 6-28-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3170-W7-P