Enhancing the Role of the President’s Science Advisor

The Carnegie Commission on Science, Technology, and Government was established by Carnegie Corporation of New York in 1988 and operated at a high level of activity through 1993. The Commission’s initial efforts focused on assessing (and ultimately improving) the mechanisms used by the federal government and the states to incorporate scientific and technological knowledge into policy and administrative decision making. From this seemingly straightforward set of goals sprang over twenty reports aimed at major institutions of government and areas of public policy. Members of the Commission included prominent scientists, educators, journalists, attorneys and political and business leaders.  During the five years of its operation, the Commission completed a series of studies that evaluated an extraordinary range of sweeping issues, from “Science and Technology and the President,” to “Enabling the Future: Linking Science and Technology to Societal Goals.” Today, the Commission’s impact—and its recommendation that the role of the president’s science advisor be enhanced and upgraded—can be seen in the work of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, which has a threefold mission: first, to provide the President and his senior staff with accurate, relevant, and timely scientific and technical advice on all matters of consequence; second, to ensure that the policies of the Executive Branch are informed by sound science; and third, to ensure that the scientific and technical work of the Executive Branch is properly coordinated so as to provide the greatest benefit to society.