Science and Technology in the National Interest Ensuring the Best Presidential and Federal Advisory Committee Science and Technology Appointments (2005) / Chapter Skim
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Presidential Science and Technology Appointments
Presidential Science and Technology Appointments
Pages 17-38
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From page 17... ...
The security, prosperity, health, and environment of Americans depend on senior leadership to sustain our vibrant S&T and to nurture an environment that transforms new knowledge into opportunities for creating high-quality jobs and reaching shared goals. The nation increasingly looks to the scientific and engineer ing communities for solutions to some of its most intractable problems, from chronic disease to missile defense, to transportation woes, to energy security, to ensuring clean air and clean water.
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or presidential appointees with senate confirmation (PAS)
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(PAS) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Director, Defense Research and Engineering (PAS)
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy (PAS) Chairman (PAS)
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The President's Science Adviser Selection of a confidential adviser on S&T immediately after the election, if one is not already in place, is essential to ensure that assistance is available to the incoming president in identifying the best candidates for key S&T appointments and to provide 1The United States Commission on National Security/21st Century, Road Map for National Security: Imperative for Change: The Phase III Report of the U.S. Commission on National Security/21st Century (Washington: 2001)
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We urge that the president appoint an APST so that he has an adviser on S&T issues who has appropriate government-wide stature. Because of the overlap between the functions of the APST and the director of OSTP, the president should seek rapid Senate confirmation of his APST as director of OSTP.
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to provide advice, including suggesting and recruiting other science and technology presidential appointees. After inauguration, the president should promptly both appoint this person as APST and announce the intent to nominate him or her as the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)
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In a 2002 survey of the several hundred principals of the Council for Excellence in Government, for example, 74 percent of these former presidential appointees said that they were very satisfied with their work in government, and an equal percentage said that they would willingly return to govern ment service. They cited numerous reasons to work for the federal government, including patriotism, the chance to be a part of history, and the opportunity to help a President in whom one believes.2 However, the same survey also highlighted some of the personal and financial burdens imposed by a commitment to public service.3 Those burdens include the long and uncertain appointment process, the lack of job security, the interruption of a career path way or research pursuit, costly divesture requirements, and pre employment requirements and postemployment restrictions.
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The process can stretch on for long periods and involve considerable requests for information from nominees and their families for background checks and financial disclosures that ultimately become public knowledge. On the average, it takes more than 8 months to fill key White House Office of Presidential Personnel narrows candidate list, checks references, and makes single recommendation to the President.
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The partisan tone of highly publicized Senate confirmation hearings in recent years (primarily in judiciary appointments) has bled into the confirmation process in general.
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This analysis, originally conducted by Calvin McKenzie, has been updated with estimated data for the George W Bush administration from Paul Light, the Director of the Brookings Institution Presidential Appointee Initiative.
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The Brookings Institution Presidential Appointee Initiative is the most recent and data-intensive analysis of the situation of those considered and nominated for presidential appointments. The recommendations of its nonpartisan commis sion are similar to those of this committee, illustrating that the 28
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SOURCE: Excerpts from The Presidential Appointee Initiative Advisory Board.
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· A president-elect should submit lists of possible candidates for national security positions to begin obtaining security clearances immediately after the election, so that their background investigations can be complete before January 20. · A single federal agency should be responsible for providing and maintaining security clearances, ensuring uniform standards -- including uniform security questionnaires and financial report requirements, and maintaining a single database.
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· Allow nominations to be reported out of the relevant Senate committees (without a hearing) when a majority of commit tee members of each party concur.4 4The Presidential Appointee Initiative Advisory Board.
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A 2002 study of presidential appointee compensation by the Brookings Institution Presidential Appointee Initiative found that over the last several decades, federal executives' salaries have declined both in purchasing power and in comparison with the pay of average workers.5 Figure 3 illustrates this concern by comparing the compen sation levels for major university presidents with those of federal executives. The current OSTP director is a former university president, so the committee believes that this is a valid comparison.
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Such considerations can make it challenging for those at the peak of their careers to even consider presidential appointments. Thus, it is possible that for some potential candidates compensation issues may deter the most competent and talented from serving in government leadership positions.6 In light of the inadequate relocation benefits available, presidential appointees are sometimes asked to pay a steep price to serve their country.
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When scientists and engineers are willing to consider presidential appointments, a key barrier to their willingness to take the next step is the unduly complex preemployment requirements and postemployment restrictions. Appendix J provides an analysis of this topic.
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Some officials are also restricted for a year from representing foreign interests. Officials involved with procure ment activities face particular limits on their work activities for a year after the end of their appointments.7 In general, appointees are also limited in their negotiations for future employment while they are still serving in government office.8 Previous COSEPUP reports, the Brookings Institution Presidential Appointee Initiative, and other analyses have recom mended that the appointment process be streamlined by simplify ing financial-disclosure reporting requirements, requiring OGE to review conflict-of-interest laws, and allowing OPM to provide a full list of appointed positions to each presidential candidate after each political party's convention.9 The intended goal of the recommen dations is to accelerate the appointment process and make it less onerous for nominated persons.
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The Presidential Appointments Improvement Act of 2001 was introduced and reported out by the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs but was not acted on by the full Senate during the 107th Congress.12 It would have revised the financial disclosure process for executive branch personnel covered under the Ethics in Government Act. The bill included a substantial part of legislation that had been drafted by OGE.
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Thus, presidential administrations must ensure that it has mechanisms in place to expand the search to include input from the scientific and engineer ing communities on potential nominees and to continue an active campaign to increase the numbers of women and minority group members appointed to top-level posts. Representation of women and underrepresented minorities is improving in many professions, but progress has been slower in the scientific and engineering workforce.
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To improve the search for qualified S&T appointees and to build a strong pool of candidates with policy experience now and in the future, professional science, engineering, and health societies should suggest emerging leaders in their fields to serve in govern ment positions, including federal advisory committees, and should expand junior and senior internship and fellowship programs that provide their members with government and policy experience. Continuing efforts should be made to identify women and members of underrepresented groups for such positions.
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