| Office of Science and Technology Policy | |
|---|---|
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | May 11, 1976 |
| Preceding agency | Office of Science and Technology |
| Headquarters | 725 17th Street, Washington, D.C. |
| Employees | 45 |
| Agency executive | Dr. John Holdren, Director |
| Parent agency | Executive Office of the President |
| Website | |
| Office of Science and Technology Policy | |
The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is an office in the Executive Office of the President (EOP), established by Congress on May 11, 1976, with a broad mandate to advise the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs.
The director of this office is colloquially known as the President's Science Advisor. Dr. John Holdren, Director, nominated in December 2008, serves as Science Advisor to President Barack Obama[1]. Dr. John Holdren also co-chairs the President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) and supports the President's National Science and Technology Council (NSTC)[2][3].
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The current OSTP grew out of the Office of Science and Technology which was formed in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to provide advice and recommendation in response to the growing importance of space exploration and the accelerating Space Race that was taking place with the USSR.
The United States Congress established the OSTP in 1976 with a broad mandate to advise the President and others within the Executive Office of the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs. The 1976 Act also authorizes OSTP to lead inter-agency efforts to develop and to implement sound science and technology policies and budgets and to work with the private sector, state and local governments, the science and higher education communities, and other nations toward this end.
In October 2011 a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded that meetings hosted in May by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy with the Chinese government broke federal law that had been enacted in April 2011. Although not denying that the section in question of the Department of Defense appropriations bill had been broken the White House Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) instead asserted that this law did not "constitutionally apply to the OSTP's diplomatic activities."[4] Justice Department has declared that the White House has the constitutional power to override a Congress statute forbidding members of the White House Office such as the OSTP from engaging in diplomatic activities with foreign officials.[5]
The OSTP's mission is set out in the National Science and Technology Policy, Organization, and Priorities Act of 1976 (Pub. L. 94-282). The act calls for the OSTP to serve as a source of scientific and technological analysis and judgment for the President with respect to major policies, plans, and programs of the federal government.
It further authorizes the OSTP to:
The OSTP handles a broad range of scientific and technological issues within the Executive Office of the President. It participates in a multitude of White House Policy Coordinating Committees (PCC) that are tasked with developing policies for the federal government and are populated by senior officials from cabinet and independent agencies. The OSTP has approximately 45 staff members, most of whom are experienced scientists functioning as assistant directors or policy analysts.
| President | Name | Term |
|---|---|---|
| Franklin D. Roosevelt | Vannevar Bush | 1939–1951 |
| Harry S. Truman | Oliver E. Buckley | 1951–1952 |
| Harry S. Truman | Lee A. DuBridge | 1952–1953 |
| Dwight Eisenhower | Lee A. DuBridge | 1953–1956 |
| Dwight Eisenhower | Isadore I. Rabi | 1956–1957 |
| Dwight Eisenhower | James Killian | 1957–1959 |
| Dwight Eisenhower | George Kistiakowsky | 1959–1961 |
| John F. Kennedy | Jerome B. Wiesner | 1961–1963 |
| Lyndon B. Johnson | Jerome B. Wiesner | 1963–1964 |
| Lyndon B. Johnson | Donald F. Hornig | 1964–1969 |
| Richard Nixon | Lee A. DuBridge | 1969–1970 |
| Richard Nixon | Edward E. David Jr. | 1970–1973 |
| Gerald Ford | H. Guyford Stever | 1973–1977 |
| Jimmy Carter | Frank Press | 1977–1981 |
| Ronald Reagan | Benjamin Huberman (acting) | 1981 |
| Ronald Reagan | George A. Keyworth, II | 1981–1985 |
| Ronald Reagan | John P. McTague (acting) | 1986 |
| Ronald Reagan | Richard G. Johnson (acting) | 1986 |
| Ronald Reagan | William Robert Graham | 1986–1989 |
| Ronald Reagan | Thomas P. Rona (acting) | 1989 |
| George H. W. Bush | D. Allan Bromley | 1989–1993 |
| Bill Clinton | John H. Gibbons | 1993–1998 |
| Bill Clinton | Kerri-Ann Jones (acting) | 1998 |
| Bill Clinton | Neal F. Lane | 1998–2001 |
| George W. Bush | Rosina Bierbaum (acting) | 2001 |
| George W. Bush | Clifford Gabriel (acting) | 2001 |
| George W. Bush | John H. Marburger III | 2001–2009 |
| Barack Obama | John Holdren | 2009–present |
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