Laws: Cases and Codes : U.S. Code : Title 15 : Section 278


   
U.S. Code as of: 01/19/04
Section 278. Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology

    (a) Establishment; appointment; membership and composition; review
      and recommendations
      There is established within the Institute a Visiting Committee on
    Advanced Technology (hereafter in this chapter referred to as the
    "Committee"). The Committee shall consist of 15 members appointed
    by the Director, at least 10 of whom shall be from United States
    industry. The Director shall appoint as original members of the
    Committee any final members of the National Bureau of Standards
    Visiting Committee who wish to serve in such capacity. In addition
    to any powers and functions otherwise granted to it by this
    chapter, the Committee shall review and make recommendations
    regarding general policy for the Institute, its organization, its
    budget, and its programs within the framework of applicable
    national policies as set forth by the President and the Congress.
    (b) Qualifications; recommendations for appointment
      The persons appointed as members of the Committee - 
        (1) shall be eminent in fields such as business, research, new
      product development, engineering, labor, education, management
      consulting, environment, and international relations;
        (2) shall be selected solely on the basis of established
      records of distinguished service;
        (3) shall not be employees of the Federal Government; and
        (4) shall be so selected as to provide representation of a
      cross-section of the traditional and emerging United States
      industries.

    The Director is requested, in making appointments of persons as
    members of the Committee, to give due consideration to any
    recommendations which may be submitted to the Director by the
    National Academies, professional societies, business associations,
    labor associations, and other appropriate organizations.
    (c) Terms of office; eligibility
      (1) The term of office of each member of the Committee, other
    than the original members, shall be 3 years; except that any member
    appointed to fill a vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of
    the term for which his predecessor was appointed shall be appointed
    for the remainder of such term. Any person who has completed two
    consecutive full terms of service on the Committee shall thereafter
    be ineligible for appointment during the one-year period following
    the expiration of the second such term.
      (2) The original members of the Committee shall be elected to
    three classes of three members each; one class shall have a term of
    one year, one a term of two years, and the other a term of three
    years.
    (d) Meetings; quorum; notice
      The Committee shall meet at least quarterly at the call of the
    Chairman or whenever one-third of the members so request in
    writing. A majority of the members of the Committee not having a
    conflict of interest in the matter being considered by the
    Committee shall constitute a quorum. Each member shall be given
    appropriate notice, whenever possible, not less than 15 days prior
    to any meeting, of the call of such meeting.
    (e) Appointment by Committee of executive and other committees
      The Committee shall have an executive committee, and may delegate
    to it or to the Secretary such of the powers and functions granted
    to the Committee by this chapter as it deems appropriate. The
    Committee is authorized to appoint from among its members such
    other committees as it deems necessary, and to assign to committees
    so appointed such survey and advisory functions as the Committee
    deems appropriate to assist it in exercising its powers and
    functions under this chapter.
    (f) Chairman; Vice Chairman
      The election of the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Committee
    shall take place at each annual meeting occurring in an
    even-numbered year. The Vice Chairman shall perform the duties of
    the Chairman in his absence. In case a vacancy occurs in the
    chairmanship or vice chairmanship, the Committee shall elect a
    member to fill such vacancy.
    (g) Professional and clerical staff
      The Committee may, with the concurrence of a majority of its
    members, permit the appointment of a staff consisting of not more
    than four professional staff members and such clerical staff
    members as may be necessary. Such staff shall be appointed by the
    Director, after consultation with the Chairman of the Committee,
    and assigned at the direction of the Committee. The professional
    members of such staff may be appointed without regard to the
    provisions of title 5 governing appointments in the competitive
    service and the provisions of chapter 51 of title 5 relating to
    classification, and compensated at a rate not exceeding the
    appropriate rate provided for individuals in grade GS-18 of the
    General Schedule under section 5332 of title 5, as may be necessary
    to provide for the performance of such duties as may be prescribed
    by the Committee in connection with the exercise of its powers and
    functions under this chapter.
    (h) Annual and other reports to Secretary and Congress
      (1) The Committee shall render an annual report to the Secretary
    for submission to the Congress on or before January 31 in each
    year. Such report shall deal essentially, though not necessarily
    exclusively, with policy issues or matters which affect the
    Institute, including the Program established under section 278n of
    this title, or with which the Committee in its official role as the
    private sector policy advisor of the Institute is concerned. Each
    such report shall identify areas of research and research
    techniques of the Institute of potential importance to the
    long-term competitiveness of United States industry, in which the
    Institute possesses special competence, which could be used to
    assist United States enterprises and United States industrial joint
    research and development ventures.
      (2) The Committee shall render to the Secretary and the Congress
    such additional reports on specific policy matters as it deems
    appropriate.



Previous [Notes] Next

Related Resources

Commercial Law Guide

Antitrust and Trade Regulation Guide

FindLaw Business News

Commercial Law Discussion

Ads by FindLaw