68-2-b-Weapons production, development, and test installations.. 66-2-d-Environmental test facility, Lawrence Radiation Laboratory, Livermore, Calif. 69-4-a-Hot fuel examination facility, National Reactor Testing Station, 69-4-d-Modifications to reactors.. plants, Project Rover, Los Alamos, Scientific Laboratory and Nevada Test 68-3-c-Modifications to reactors. 67-3-b-Modifications and additions to 66-4-a-Sodium pump test facility.. 61-d-5-Fast reactor core test installation, Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, New Mexico. DEAR MR. EDMISTEN: Please refer to Senator Ervin's letter of February 11, 1971, which informed Chairman Pastore of the hearings to be held by the Subcommittee on Separation of Powers. There is attached, for inclusion in the hearing record, a statement from the Atomic Energy Commission which records examples of impoundment of funds by the Executive Branch. Senator Ervin's invitation is, of course, appreciated. If you need any additional information, please contact me. Sincerely yours, Exhibit 1 EDWARD J. BAUSER, ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION, Washington, D.C., March 15, 1971. MR. EDWARD J. BAUSER, Executive Director, Joint Committee on Atomic Energy, DEAR MR. BAUSER: Enclosed is the information requested in your letter of March 1, 1971, concerning instances in which the appropriated funds for AEC have been withheld by the Office of Management and Budget. Our review of funds held in the Office of Management and Budget reserve dates from FY 1967 through March 10, 1971. During the period covered by this analysis, significant withholdings of funds developed as a result of instances in which reserves were established by the Office of Management and Budget under the President's FY 1968, FY 1969 and FY 1970 cutback programs. These have been identified as "Code 1" items in the enclosed analysis. Needless to say, such actions affected specific programs, but were taken in such manner as to minimize interference with their timely accomplishment. The bases of "Code 1" items follow: (a) Public Law 90-218 enacted December 18, 1967, which provided in part During the fiscal year 1968, no department or agency of the Executive Branch of the Government shall incur obligation in excess of (2) an amount determined by reducing the aggregate budget estimate of obligations for such department or agency in the fiscal year 1968 by (i) 2 percent of the amount included in such estimate for personnel compensation and benefits, plus (ii) 10 percent of the amount included in such estimate for objects other than personnel compensation and benefits." (b) The Revenue and Expenditure Control Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-364), approved on June 28, 1968, which provided among other things, a specific limitation on overall Government outlays (expenditures) for fiscal year 1969. Title V of Public Law 91-305, enacted July 6, 1970, imposed a Government-wide limitation on outlays (expenditures and net lending) for the fiscal year 1971, and was implemented by Office of Management and Budget Bulletin No. 71-2, dated August 14, 1970. (c) Office of Management and Budget Bulletin No. 70-5, Construction Reduction Plan, dated September 12, 1969, providing for a 75% reduction in construction contract awards from September 5, 1969 through June 30, 1970. (This deferral of FY 1970 construction projects was lifted as of July 1, 1970.) Items designated as "Code 2" in the enclosed analysis generally represent instances in which reserves were established by the Office of Management and Budget under the Anti-Deficiency Act. You will note from the information contained in the enclosure that the bulk of these reserve actions represented construction funds which were held in reserve because firm plans for projects had not been formulated for the use of such funds until later in the fiscal year. Such reserve actions were, of course, taken without prejudice. The following "Code 3" items were specifically placed in the Office of Management and Budget reserve as a result of or pending executive decision: 65-5-a, Argonne advanced research reactor, Argonne National Laboratory, Illinois The authorization for this project was rescinded in FY 1969 by P.L. 90-289. The rescission was added to the AEC's proposed bill by the JCAE as "the committee believes that this project is no longer justified on the basis of current national priorities." Subsequently, $18,000,000 of funding for this project was used as an offset against new obligational authority in the Appropriation Act, including the $17,045,000 in OMB reserve. FY 1967 PLOWSHARE PROGRAM-EXCAVATION EXPERIMENTS Because of the temporary postponement of Project CABRIOLET, a nuclear excavation experiment, in FY 1967 it was necessary to reschedule several nuclear excavation experiments. As a result of this rescheduling, $2,365,000 of FY 1967 funds were held in OMB reserve. By letter dated April 18, 1967 from Chairman Seaborg to Senator Pastore, Chairman of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy, AEC requested that these funds be carried over for use in FY 1968. Subsequent action by Congress approved this increase in FY 1968 for the nuclear excavation experiments portion of the budget. 68-3-b, Isotopic space systems facility, Sandia Base, New Mexico This project is proposed for recission in the FY 1972 authorization bill. Funding of $2,000,000 is used to offset new obligational requirements in FY 1972. As a result of changes within the Space Electric Power Development program, this facility will no longer be required at Sandia. Consequently, there has been no adverse programmatic effect of holding these funds ($1,823,000) in OMB reserve. 70-4-b, Research and development test plants, Project Rover, Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, New Mexico and Nevada Test Site, Nevada. Due to the slowdown in the pace of the Reactor Propulsion Development program, the program director has not selected subprojects. Therefore, no programmatic effect can be attributed to placing these funds in reserve. There is $1,000,000 in OMB reserve currently. Project 71-1-e, Gaseous diffusion production support facilities (AE only) Project 71-1-f, Process equipment modifications, gaseous diffusion plants.... $9, 700, 000 6, 400, 000 Total___ 16, 100, 000 The above projects are generally referred to as the Cascade Improvement Program for the gaseous diffusion plants. Out of $21,100,000 appropriated, $16,100,000 is being held in OMB reserve on a contingency basis. A review is underway in AEC at this time to determine the most effective use of the $16,100,000 to bridge the gap between the $5,000,000 apportioned by OMB (now being used for design of the production support facilities) and the ultimate assembly and installation of the improved stages under the process equipment modification project. 71-5-a, Addition to physics building (human radiobiology facility), Argonne National Laboratory, Illinois The $500,000 provided for this project is now being proposed for use as an offset to new obligational requirements by FY 1972. This project was added to the FY 1971 authorization bill by the JCAE and funds were subsequently appropriated for "planning the addition to the physics building." However, because priorities did not allow funding of the balance of the total estimated cost of $2,000,000 in FY 1972, it was decided to defer the entire project. 71-6-a, National Nuclear Science Information Center (AE only), Oak Ridge, Tennessee This project covered partial design services to develop drawings, layouts, specifications and definite cost estimate for the National Nuclear Science Information Center. The total cost of the project is estimated at about $15,500,000 including the $600,000 for partial AE work. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) initially reserved, without prejudice, the $600,000 included in AEC's appropriation act for FY 1971 to initiate design of this facility. Subsequently, OMB applied this amount to reduce the AEC Plant and Capital Equipment request for FY 1972 budget authority to the Congress. The effect of this withholding of funds will delay initiation of design for this project. Please let me know if additional information is desired. R. E. HOLLINGSWORTH, Exhibit 2 General Manager. U. S. ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION ANALYSIS OF OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET RESERVE 1. Asterisks identify amounts reserved at the time of initial apportionment. 2. The "Reserve Code" column designations identify information in the following categories: Code 1-Instances in which reserves were established by the Office of Management and Budget under the President's FY 1968, FY 1969 and FY 1970 cutback programs. Code 2-Instances in which reserves were established by the Office of Management and Budget under the Anti-Deficiency Act, pending formulation of firm plans for use of such funds. Code 3-Items specifically placed in reserve as a result of or pending exe utive decision. Office of the Controller, provements, Savannah River, S.C..... 67-2-b-Weapons production, development, and test installations..... 66-2-d-Environmental test facility, 67-3-c-Research and development test 66-4-a-Sodium pump test facility... 61-d-5-Fast reactor core test installa- 58-111-Cooperative power reactor demonstration program.. 66-5-b-Bubble chamber and experimental area, Argonne National Laboratory, Illinois.. 66-5-e-Alternating gradient synchrotron conversion, Brookhaven National Laboratory, New York.. 66-6-d-Electron linear accelerator facility, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts.... 65-5-a-Argonne advanced research reactor, Argonne National Laboratory, Illinois... 64-g-4-Tandem Van de Graaff facility Brookhaven National Laboratory, New York.... 67-5-a-Biology laboratory, Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Richland, Wash. 67-6-a-Alpha fuels environmental test facility, Mound Laboratory, Miamisburg, Ohio.. 67-8 Construction planning and design. 66-10-Construction planning and design. Capital equipment not related to construction: Special nuclear materials.. Weapons program............. Reactor development.. Administrative............. See footnote at end of table. |