[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 147 (Friday, July 31, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45643-45644]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-18781]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Establishment of the Advisory Committee for the Sustained 
National Climate Assessment and Solicitation for Nominations for 
Membership

AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of establishment of the Advisory Committee for the 
Sustained National Climate Assessment and solicitation for nominations 
for membership.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Secretary of Commerce has 
determined that the establishment of the Advisory Committee for the 
Sustained National Climate Assessment (Committee) is necessary and in 
the public interest. Accordingly, NOAA has chartered the Advisory 
Committee for the Sustained National Climate Assessment. NOAA is also 
soliciting nominations for membership on the Committee.
    The Committee's mission is to provide advice on sustained National 
Climate Assessment activities and products to the Under Secretary of 
Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere (Under Secretary) who will forward 
the advice to the Director of the Office of Science and Technology 
Policy (OSTP). The Committee's scope is--as requested by the Under 
Secretary--to advise on the engagement of stakeholders and on sustained 
assessment activities and the quadrennial National Climate Assessment 
report.
    Points of View: Individuals are sought with expertise in 
communications, engagement, and education; risk management and risk 
assessment; economics and social sciences; technology, tools, and data 
systems; and other disciplines relevant to the sustained National 
Climate Assessment process. In addition, individuals are sought with 
expertise in climate change and variability, spanning the range from 
climate science (physical, biological, chemical) to impacts and 
societal responses. Individuals with experience in the private sector, 
academia, public sector, non-governmental organizations,

[[Page 45644]]

and others will all be given consideration.
    Nominations: Interested persons may nominate themselves or third 
parties.
    Applications: An application is required to be considered for 
membership, regardless of whether a person is nominated by a third 
party or self-nominated. The application package must include: (1) The 
nominee's full name, title, institutional affiliation, and contact 
information; (2) the nominee's area(s) of expertise; (3) a short 
description of his/her qualifications relative to the kinds of advice 
being solicited by NOAA in this Notice; and (4) a current resume 
(maximum length four pages). Information obtained as a result of this 
request may be used by the government for program planning on a non-
attribution basis. Do not include any information that might be 
considered proprietary or confidential.
    If selected, members will be appointed as special government 
employees (SGEs) and will be subject to the ethical standards 
applicable to SGEs. They will also be asked to certify that they are 
not required to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, and 
that they are not Federally-registered lobbyists.

DATES: Nominations should be submitted via the web address specified 
below and must be received by forty-five (45) days after this notice is 
published.

ADDRESSES: Applications should be submitted electronically via http://globalchange.gov/notices.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Therese Cloyd, NCA Public 
Participation and Engagement Coordinator, U.S. Global Change Research 
Program Office, Telephone (202) 223-6262, Fax (202) 223-3064, Email 
[email protected]. For more information on the NCA process, please 
visit http://assessment.globalchange.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. Global Change Research Program 
(USGCRP), the principal program responsible for coordinating and 
integrating U.S. federal research on climate change. Under the Global 
Change Research Act of 1990, the USGCRP is responsible for producing 
the National Climate Assessment, the last iteration of which was 
published in May 2014. The USGCRP is now building a process to ensure 
all future assessments are responsive to stakeholder needs, 
scientifically credible and conducted in an efficient manner, 
coordinating the efforts of partners both inside and outside of the 
government. It is the goal of the USGCRP to create a sustainable 
assessment process that involves networks of participants in regions 
and sectors across the country in addition to engaging federal 
scientists in multiple agencies. This will enable assessment activities 
and products to address national, regional, sectoral, and topical needs 
over time and to serve important policy and science objectives. 
Establishing an ongoing, consistent, and replicable approach to 
assessment of current and projected climate impacts and climate-related 
risk will help identify opportunities as well as hazards associated 
with changes in climate conditions. It will also support U.S. 
contributions to international assessment, adaptation and mitigation 
programs. This information can be used to prioritize federal activities 
that support adaptation and mitigation decisions in the federal 
government as well as within states, regions, and sectors and to 
continuously reassess priorities for federal science investments.
    The Committee will consist of non-government experts who will 
advise on the engagement of stakeholders and on sustained assessment 
activities and the quadrennial National Climate Assessment report. 
Within the scope of its mission, the Committee's specific objective is 
to provide advice on a sustained National Climate Assessment process 
that:
    1. Integrates, evaluates, and interprets the findings of the U.S. 
Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) and discusses the scientific 
uncertainties with such findings;
    2. Analyzes the effects of current and projected climate change 
upon ecosystems and biological diversity, agriculture, energy 
production and use, land and water resources, transportation, human 
health and welfare, and social systems, including in a regional 
context;
    3. Analyzes current trends in global change, both human-induced and 
natural, and projects major trends for the subsequent 25 to 100 years;
    4. Is a continuing, inclusive National process that synthesizes 
relevant science and information about changes in the Earth system as 
they affect the Nation's climate, and about how such changes relate to 
and interact with changes in social, economic, ecological, and 
technological systems;
    5. Addresses risk-based vulnerabilities for business and industry 
as related to the impacts of weather and climate variations and 
changes; and
    6. Supports climate-related decisions by providing information in 
formats that are useful to decision support.
    To assure a balanced representation of views among preeminent 
scientists, engineers, educators, and other experts reflecting the full 
scope of issues addressed in the National Climate Assessment and/or 
relevant to the sustained national assessment process, the Committee 
will consist of fifteen (15) non-Federal members. The Under Secretary, 
in consultation with the Director of OSTP, shall select and appoint 
members.
    Members will be selected for appointment on a clear and 
standardized basis in accordance with Department of Commerce guidance. 
Each member shall be appointed for a term of one, two, or three years 
and shall serve at the discretion of the Under Secretary. Thereafter, 
members may be reappointed for successive terms of two years. To the 
extent possible, not more than one-third of the total membership shall 
change in any one year. Members will be appointed as special government 
employees (SGEs) and will be subject to the ethical standards 
applicable to SGEs. Members are reimbursed for actual and reasonable 
travel and per diem expenses incurred in performing such duties, but 
will not be reimbursed for their time. As a Federal Advisory Committee, 
the Committee's membership is required to be balanced in terms of 
viewpoints represented and the functions to be performed as well as the 
interests of geographic regions of the country and the diverse sectors 
of U.S. society.
    The Committee is expected to meet in person at least once each 
year, plus additional teleconferences or subgroup meetings. Committee 
members must be willing to serve as liaisons to Committee subgroups 
and/or participate in reviews and activities as requested by the Under 
Secretary.
    The Advisory Committee for the Sustained National Climate 
Assessment will function solely as an advisory body and in compliance 
with provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Copies of the 
charter will be filed with the appropriate Committees of the Congress 
and with the Library of Congress.

    Dated: July 27, 2015.
Christine Blackburn,
Deputy Chief of Staff, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 2015-18781 Filed 7-30-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P