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Full Description
The elimination of the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) in 1995 came during a storm of budget cutting and partisan conflict. Operationally, it left Congress without an institutional arrangement to bring expert scientific and technological advice into the process of legislative decisionmaking. This deficiency has become increasingly critical, as more and more of the decisions faced by Congress and society require judgments based on highly specialized technical information. Offering perspectives from scholars and scientists with diverse academic backgrounds and extensive experience within the policy process, Science and Technology Advice for Congress breaks from the politics of the OTA and its contentious aftermath. Granger Morgan and Jon Peha begin with an overview of the use of technical information in framing policy issues, crafting legislation, and the overall process of governing. They note how, as nonexperts, legislators must make decisions in the face of scientific uncertainty and competing scientific claims from stakeholders. The contributors continue with a discussion of why OTA was created. They draw lessons from OTA's demise, and compare the use of science and technological information in Europe with the United States. The second part of the book responds to requests from congressional leaders for practical solutions. Among the options discussed are expanded functions within existing agencies such as the General Accounting or Congressional Budget Offices; an independent, NGO- administrated analysis group; and a dedicated successor to OTA within Congress. The models emphasize flexibility--and the need to make political feasibility a core component of design.
Contents
Preface Contributors Part I: The Issue1. Analysis, Governance, and the Need for Better Institutional Arrangements M. Granger Morgan and Jon M. PehaPart II: Background2. Technical Advice for Congress: Past Trends and Present Obstacles Bruce L.R. Smith and Jeffrey K. Stine3. The Origins, Accomplishments, and Demise of the Office of Technology AssessmentRobert M. Margolis and David H. Guston4. Insights from the Office of Technology Assessment and Other Assessment Experiences David H. Guston5. The European Experience Norman J. VigContentsPart III: Possible Institutional Models6. Thinking about Alternative Models M. Granger Morgan and Jon M. Peha7. An Expanded Analytical Capability in the Congressional Research Service, the General Accounting Office, or the Congressional Budget Office Christopher T. Hill8. Expanded Use of the National Academies John Ahearne and Peter Blair9. Expanding the Role of the Congressional Science and Engineering Fellowship Program Albert H. Teich and Stephen J. Lita10. A Lean, Distributed Organization To Serve Congress M. Granger Morgan, Jon M. Peha, and Daniel E. Hastings11. A Dedicated Organization in Congress Gerald L. Epstein and Ashton B. Carter12. An Independent Analysis Group That Works Exclusively for Congress, Operated by a Nongovernmental OrganizationCaroline S. Wagner and William A. Stiles Jr.Part IV: Moving toward Solution13. Where Do We Go from Here? M. Granger Morgan and Jon M. PehaAppendix 1: The Technology Assessment Act of 1972Appendix 2: Details on the National Academies Complex Appendix 3: An External Evaluation of the GAO's First PilotTechnology Assessment IndexAbout the Editors
