Implementation of the National Minerals and Materials Policy Needs Better Coordination and Focus
RCED-84-63
Published: Mar 20, 1984. Publicly Released: Apr 02, 1984.
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Highlights
In response to a congressional request, GAO monitored and reviewed the administration's implementation of the National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act, which was passed to: (1) coordinate and implement a coherent national materials and minerals policy and program through the Executive Office of the President and the Cabinet; (2) promote an adequate and stable supply of minerals and materials necessary to maintain national security, economic well-being, and industrial production; and (3) assign reporting requirements to several agencies.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Office of Science and Technology Policy | The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy should prepare a required assessment of national materials needs related to scientific and technological changes over the next 5 years. This should be used together with any recommended redirection resulting from the Committee on Material's inventory of federal minerals and materials research and development programs to evaluate the Department of Energy's proposed new initiative in materials sciences and coordinate the initiative through the Cabinet Council on Natural Resources and the Environment. |
Closed – Not Implemented
In response to the issues developed in the report and past inaction by the administration, Congress recently established the National Critical Materials Council. The actions recommended to the Office of Science and Technology Policy are now the primary responsibility of the new Council.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should make its report assessing critical materials needs related to national security available to Congress as required by the act. The report should address the magnitude or degree of U.S. vulnerability in materials markets critical to national security and the appropriateness of the federal role proposed. |
Closed – Not Implemented
The subject DOD report was completed and sent to OMB for coordination and release on August 8, 1984. However, OMB disagreed with the report and it was never released to Congress. As far as DOD is concerned, the issued is now dead.
|
| Department of the Interior | If the administration continues to coordinate national nonfuel minerals and materials policy and programs through the Cabinet Council on Natural Resources and the Environment, the Secretary of the Interior, as Chairman pro tem of the Cabinet Council, should establish a process to provide for decision and policy coordination and high-level consideration of important mineral- and material-related issues on a timely basis. This is consistent with requirements of the act and program plan. This process should include a formal procedure for sub-Cabinet agencies having major minerals or materials responsibilities and programs, but not represented on the Cabinet Council, to bring their mineral- and material-related issues to the Council's attention. |
Closed – Not Implemented
In response to the issues developed in the report and past inaction by the administration, Congress recently established the National Materials Council. The actions recommended to the Department of the Interior are now the primary responsibility of the new Council.
|
| Department of the Interior | The Secretary of the Interior, as Chairman pro tem of the Cabinet Council on Natural Resources and the Environment, should expand the President's April 5, 1982, program plan to: (1) address the broad issue of adequate materials availability, including an approach that considers all the components of materials systems such as extraction, production, processing, use, recycling, and disposal as well as mineral-related industrial infrastructure issues affecting the act's goals of economic well-being and industrial production; (2) develop an approach to measure the magnitude or degree of U.S. vulnerability to supply disruptions or sharp price increases in given strategic and critical minerals or materials markets; and (3) address what the proper federal role should be in a given minerals or materials market, including the appropriate future role of high technology materials research and development. The expanded program plan should be resubmitted to Congress. |
Closed – Not Implemented
In response to the issues developed in the report and past inaction by the administration, Congress recently established the National Critical Materials Council. The actions recommended to the Department of the Interior are now the primary responsibility of the new Council.
|
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Agency missionsExecutive powersInteragency relationsMineral resourcesNational defense operationsPlanningMaterials researchStrategic materialsNatural resourcesCopper