Estimated available appropriations, 1951, and budget estimates, 1952 1951 figures include all supplemental appropriations to date, exclude reductions pursuant to sec. 1214 of the General Appropriation Act, 1951, and are adjusted for comparability with the appropriation struc ture proposed in the 1952 budget estimates. Financed in fiscal year 1951 by transfer from the appropriation made by sec. 12 (a) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, approved May 12, 1933. Excludes estimate of $32,700,000 to reimburse Commodity Credit Corporation for funds advanced in 1950 for control and eradication of foot-and-mouth and other contagious diseases of animals. Dr. CARDON. I think, Mr. Chairman, in my statement this morning I covered the essential or a great many activities of the Office of Administrator. Our estimates this year are without change over last year, and I have no further general statement to make. FUNCTIONS AND ORGANIZATION OF OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATOR Mr. WHITTEN. I agree with you thoroughly that your general statement did cover this activity. However, I would like to know briefly how your office is set up, how many people you have here, how many folks you have in the field, and things of that sort. Just how is your office run, Doctor? Dr. CARDON. I can make a statement on that in general. If it comes down to details of actual personnel I will ask Mr. Struttmann to follow through. We have in the office besides the Administrator and Deputy Administrator an assistant administrator on program, and then working with him particularly on the natural sciences, a special assistant who works with the assistant for program, and we have another one working on the marketing angle. We have what we call research coordinators who have multiple responsibilities. First, they work with the Assistant Administrator on programing, and project structure and project program analysis. They also serve as executive secretaries for the respective commodity and functional advisory committees. On the program-coordinating aspects, they are expected to consider proposals for research in relationship to going activities, and also with respect to interbureau and State-wide relationship to the proposals. That material having been reviewed and having been brought to a stage of completion finds its way into our project files, our project inventory. We have a small two-man crew working on program analysis. Out of their work came largely the chart material which I presented this morning. DUTIES OF EXECUTIVE SECRETARIES TO ADVISORY COMMITTEES The task of working with the advisory committees falls largely upon about six of our coordinators and the responsibilities with the twentyodd committees are divided among those men, and their service to the committees consists of the formulation, with the chairman of the committee, the tentative agenda for the meetings. They work also with members of the committees in transmitting to them information which is pertinent to the commodity, or the function with which the committee is concerned in advance of the committee meeting. They also make arrangements for the meeting as to time and place in conformity with the express desires of the committee. In the convening of the committee the executive secretary sits with the chairman, who is a member of the committee and elected by the committee, in considering the tentative agenda, arriving at any suggestions, additions, revisions, or amendments to the agenda and when finally adopted the agenda serves as the basis for the committee meeting. The executive secretary then makes whatever arrangements are required for contacting, inviting into the committee any member of our staff who has something to contribute to whatever points on the agenda their attention may be invited. The executive secretary keeps these persons alerted to respond to the interests of the committee. He keeps a record of the deliberations of the committee, makes particular note of the recommendations of the committee, calls those recommendations to my attention and to the attention of other staff members and then during the interim between meetings keeps in touch with the committee, submits them reports of progress in relationship to the work with which they are interested. OTHER ACTIVITIES OF THE ADMINISTRATOR'S STAFF In addition to these persons who work with the committees and on the coordinating program development and analysis, we have one man who works on a liaison assignment as between my office and other agencies of Government, particularly in fields where research is of concern. We have a great deal also to do from a technical standpoint with such agencies as FAO, OFAR, and other organizations interested in technical assistance outside of this country, as well as advice and guidance with respect to visitors and trainees and contact persons coming into this country under their respective governmental programs. In addition, we have the fiscal matters pertinent not only to our offices but to all of the bureaus in the organization, which is headed up under an Assistant Administrator who works with the fiscal operational people of the different organizations, or different agencies. We have, of course, supporting that budget and personnel relationships general over-all policy relationships. We have also in our offices as an Assistant Administrator, the Chief of Office of Experiment Stations, who sits with us in relationship to general policy determinations. As to contact with the bureaus of the organization, we have, first, what I call this program board, which consists of the chiefs of the bureaus of ARA, plus the Assistant Administrators. In addition to that we have meetings once a month of what I will call my research council, which consists not only of the chiefs of bureaus of ARA, but also the responsible heads of research in forestry, BAE, PMADr. SHAW. And SCS. Dr. CARDON. And SCS; yes. That, Mr. Chairman, is a brief outline of the type of organization. PERSONNEL IN OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATOR Mr. WHITTEN. That was very thorough. With reference to personnel, how many people do you have now in your whole organization and how many do you contemplate? I presume about the same number for the coming year? Mr. STRUTTMANN. It is probably best to work from the greensheet material in the budget. This shows 67.9 average annual positions in 1951 and 65.7 average annual positions in 1952. That is under both salaries and expenses, and the allotment from title II. Mr. WHITTEN. Mr. Stigler? WORKING CAPITAL FUND AND REPLACEMENT OF GRANARY BUILDING Mr. WHITTEN. There are two or three other items of interest here. At the center in Beltsville, we had to replace a building which burned a year or two ago, and we also made a change last year in your operation by giving you a working-capital fund. How has that worked out? Mr. CARDON. I think Mr. Struttmann can respond to that, Mr. Chairman. Mr. STRUTTMANN. I understand the working-capital fund is operating very satisfactorily. It provides a much more convenient mechanism for financing reimbursement operations at the Center. Prior to this working-capital fund, it was necessary to bill the bureaus in advance at the beginning of the year for those items that could be forecast. That necessitated numerous adjustments, both within appropriations and projects, as the year went on. The new workingcapital fund provides that it is unnecessary to bill anything in advance. In other words, the amount to be billed is definite at the time the bill is rendered. It is a much more businesslike way of operating. Mr. WHITTEN. Have you replaced the buildings that were destroyed by fire about a year ago? Mr. STRUTTMANN. Yes, sir. That work has been completed. out of the $150,000 allotted. Mr. WHITTEN. Any questions, Mr. Anderson? Mr. ANDERSON. No questions at this time, Mr. Chairman. Mr. WHITTEN. If there are no questions, then we will proceed to the next item, which is research in agricultural problems of Alaska. Mr. CARDON. I should like, Mr. Chairman, to have Dr. Fracker handle that, if he will, please. RESEARCH ON AGRICULTURAL PROBLEMS OF ALASKA WITNESSES DR. P. V. CARDON, RESEARCH ADMINISTRATOR DR. S. B. FRACKER, ASSISTANT TO ADMINISTRATOR, AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION DR. H. C. KNOBLAUCH, ASSISTANT CHIEF, OFFICE OF EXPERIMENT STATIONS E. L. STRUTTMANN, BUDGETARY AND FISCAL OFFICER, AGRI CULTURAL RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION RALPH S. ROBERTS, DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND BUDGET OFFICER, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Mr. WHITTEN. I would like to have page 78 of the justifications inserted in the record at this point. (The statement referred to follows:) Mr. WHITTEN. Dr. Fracker, we will be glad to hear from you now. Dr. FRACKER. This item relates to the Federal share of the agricultural research program that is carried on jointly by the United States Department of Agriculture and by the University of Alaska, a Territorial institution. |