[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 247 (Wednesday, December 26, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76000-76001]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30884]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Science 
Advisory Board

[Docket Number: 121129666-2666-01]
RIN 0648-XC378


Notice of Availability of Draft Report of the NOAA Research and 
Development Portfolio Review Task Force and Request for Comments

AGENCY: Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce 
(DOC).

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for public comment.

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    Authority: 5 U.S.C. App.

SUMMARY: NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) 
publishes this notice on behalf of the NOAA Science Advisory Board 
(SAB) to announce the availability of the draft report of the SAB 
Research and Development Portfolio Review Task Force (PRTF) for public 
comment.

DATES: Comments on this draft report must be received by 5:00 p.m. on 
January 23, 2013.

ADDRESSES: The Draft Report of the PRTF will be available on the NOAA 
Science Advisory Board Web site at: http://www.sab.noaa.gov/Reports/prtf.html.
    The public is encouraged to submit comments electronically to 
[email protected]. For individuals who do not have access to 
the Internet, comments may be submitted in writing to: NOAA Science 
Advisory Board (SAB) c/o Dr. Cynthia Decker, 1315 East-West Highway-R/
SAB, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Cynthia Decker, Executive 
Director, Science Advisory Board, NOAA, 1315 East-West Highway-R/SAB, 
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910. (Phone: 301-734-1156, Fax: 301-734-1459) 
during normal business hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday 
through Friday, or visit the NOAA SAB Web site at http://www.sab.noaa.gov.
    For general information about the PRTF please visit the SAB Web 
site: http://www.sab.noaa.gov/Working_Groups/current/SAB%20R&D%20PRTF%20Terms%20of%20Reference%20Final%2005-09-12.pdf.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The SAB is chartered under the Federal 
Advisory Committee Act and is the only Federal Advisory Committee with 
the responsibility to advise the Under Secretary of NOAA on long- and 
short-term strategies for research, education, and application of 
science to resource management and environmental assessment and 
prediction. The PRTF is a subcommittee of the SAB. The PRTF is charged 
with providing recommendations on NOAA's current and future scientific 
research; this draft report was prepared in response to a NOAA request 
in November 2011 for the SAB to conduct a needs-based review and 
prioritization of NOAA's research and development (R&D) portfolio. The 
PRTF's review was to include identification of gaps and areas 
appropriate for consolidation with on-going efforts strongly linked to 
NOAA's current Strategic Plan. NOAA, the SAB, and the PRTF recognize 
the high likelihood of constrained financial resources in the coming 
years and believe the PRTF's review will provide

[[Page 76001]]

information that can be used to assist NOAA in timely planning. The SAB 
was also asked to provide advice on an appropriate organizational 
approach, within NOAA, for support of this R&D portfolio.
    NOAA welcomes all comments on the content of the draft report. We 
also request comments on any perceived inconsistencies within the 
report, and possible omissions of important topics or issues. For any 
shortcoming noted within the report, please propose specific remedies. 
Suggested changes will be incorporated where appropriate, and a final 
report will be posted on the SAB Web site prior to the February 2013 
SAB teleconference meeting. This draft report is being issued for 
comment only and is not intended for interim use.
    Complying with the following instructions will facilitate the 
processing of comments and assure that all comments are appropriately 
considered. (1) Identify the person providing the comments by name and 
organization. (2) Overview comments should be provided first and should 
be numbered. (3) Comments that are specific to particular pages, 
paragraphs or lines of the section should follow any overview comments 
and should identify the page and line numbers to which they apply. (4) 
Please number each page of your comments.

    Dated: December 17, 2012.
Jason Donaldson,
Chief Financial Officer, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 2012-30884 Filed 12-21-12; 8:45 am]
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