[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4426 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4426
To rename the Office of Technology Assessment as the Congressional
Office of Technology, to revise the functions and duties of the Office,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 19, 2019
Mr. Takano (for himself and Mr. Foster) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on House Administration
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To rename the Office of Technology Assessment as the Congressional
Office of Technology, to revise the functions and duties of the Office,
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 ``Office of Technology Assessment
Improvement and Enhancement Act''.
SEC. 2. RENAMING OF OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT AS CONGRESSIONAL
OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY.
(a) Renaming.--Section 3(a) of the Technology Assessment Act of
1972 (2 U.S.C. 472(a)) is amended by striking ``the Office of
Technology Assessment'' and inserting ``the Congressional Office of
Technology''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 5(b) of such Act (2 U.S.C.
474(b)) is amended by striking ``Director of the Office of Technology
Assessment'' and inserting ``Director of the Congressional Office of
Technology''.
(c) References in Law.--Any reference in any law, rule, or
regulation to the Office of Technology Assessment shall be deemed to be
a reference to the Congressional Office of Technology.
SEC. 3. REVISION OF FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES OF OFFICE.
(a) Basic Functions and Duties.--Section 3(c) of the Technology
Assessment Act of 1972 (2 U.S.C. 472(c)) is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting
after the first sentence the following: ``This information
should be provided as expeditiously, effectively, and
efficiently as possible while maintaining a forward-looking,
holistic, and rigorous approach to the assessment of the
impacts of technology.'';
(2) in paragraph (6), by striking ``completed analyses''
and inserting ``completed analyses, as well as preliminary
findings of ongoing analyses,'';
(3) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (7);
(4) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (8) and
inserting a semicolon; and
(5) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
``(9) provide information to Members and committees of
Congress in the form of briefings, informal conversations,
documents, and similar formats which may be provided
expeditiously on the basis of existing research and staff
expertise without the need for review by the Board;
``(10) provide technical assistance to Members of Congress
on legislation related to science and technology which may be
provided expeditiously on the basis of existing research and
staff expertise without the need for review by the Board; and
``(11) when requested, provide objective policy options to
Members on how Members may achieve goals with respect to
science and technology policy.''.
(b) Requirements for Initiation of Assessment Activities.--Section
3(d) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 472(d)) is amended to read as follows:
``(d)(1) Assessment activities undertaken by the Office may be
initiated upon the request of--
``(A) subject to paragraph (2), any Member of Congress
(including a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the
Congress), any standing, special, or select committee of either
House of Congress, or any joint committee of Congress;
``(B) the Board; or
``(C) the Director, in consultation with the Board.
``(2) A Member of Congress or committee requesting that the Office
undertake an assessment activity under paragraph (1)(A) shall submit
the request to the Board, which shall review the request. The Office
shall determine whether or not to undertake an assessment activity in
response to such a request in accordance with such policies and
procedures as the Office shall establish, under which--
``(A) the Office may give priority to those requests which,
in the Board's determination, relate to technology issues of
the greatest relevance and importance;
``(B) to the greatest extent practicable, the Office shall
ensure that the number of assessment activities undertaken
during a year in response to requests which are submitted by
members of one political party is equal to the number of
assessment activities undertaken in response to requests which
are submitted by members of another political party; and
``(C) to the greatest extent practicable, the Office shall
provide the Member or committee submitting the request with
information regarding how the Office reached its determination
in response to the request.''.
(c) Public Availability of Findings of Completed Analyses.--Section
3(e) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 472(e)) is amended by inserting after ``may
be made available to the public'' the following: ``(and, in the case of
findings of completed analyses, shall be made available to the
public)''.
(d) Authorizing Appointment of Technical and Professional Personnel
on Leave From Academic, Industrial, or Research Institutions.--Section
6(f) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 475(f)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new sentence: ``The Director may, under the authority
provided by this subsection and in accordance with such policies as the
Board chooses to prescribe, appoint for a limited term, or on a
temporary basis, scientists, engineers, and other technical and
professional personnel on leave of absence from academic, industrial,
or research institutions to work for the Office.''.
(e) Avoiding Unnecessary Duplication of Research Activities With
Other Offices.--
(1) Congressional research service.--Section 8 of such Act
(2 U.S.C. 477) is amended by adding at the end the following
new subsection:
``(e) The Office and the Congressional Research Service shall
coordinate technology assessment activities to avoid unnecessary
duplication or overlapping of research activities.''.
(2) Government accountability office.--Section 9 of such
Act (2 U.S.C. 478) is amended by adding at the end the
following new subsection:
``(e) The Office and the Government Accountability Office shall
coordinate technology assessment activities to avoid unnecessary
duplication or overlapping of research activities.''.
SEC. 4. TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT BOARD.
(a) Appointment of Members of Board by Congressional Leadership.--
Section 4(a) of the Technology Assessment Act of 1972 (2 U.S.C. 473) is
amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``appointed by the
President pro tempore of the Senate'' and inserting ``appointed
jointly by the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader of the
Senate''; and
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``appointed by the
Speaker of the House of Representatives'' and inserting
``appointed jointly by the Speaker and Minority Leader of the
House of Representatives''.
(b) Invitation to Members of Congress To Attend Annual Meeting of
Technology Assessment Board; Annual Report.--Section 4 of such Act (2
U.S.C. 473) is amended by adding at the end the following new
subsections:
``(e) At least once during each calendar year, the Board shall hold
a meeting at which Members of Congress may appear and present
information to the Board regarding any technology assessment activities
the Members may wish the Board to undertake.
``(f) Not later than 90 days after the end of each calendar year,
the Board shall submit to the Subcommittees on the Legislative Branch
of the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and
Senate a report on the activities of the Office during the year, and
shall include in the report a description of the technology assessment
activities undertaken by the Office during the year, including the
number of requests received from Members and committees of Congress
under section 2(d)(1)(A), the number and type of assessment activities
undertaken in response to such requests, and the current status of such
assessment activities.''.
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