§ 284a — Advisory Councils

(1) Except as provided in subsection (h), the Secretary shall appoint an advisory council for each national research institute which (A) shall advise, assist, consult with, and make recommendations to the Secretary and the Director of such institute on matters related to the activities carried out by and through the institute and the policies respecting such activities, and (B) shall carry out the special functions prescribed by part C. (2) Each advisory council for a national research institute may recommend to the Secretary acceptance, in accordance with section 238 of this title, of conditional gifts for study, investigation, or research respecting the diseases, disorders, or other aspect of human health with respect to which the institute was established, for the acquisition of grounds, or for the construction, equipping, or maintenance of facilities for the institute. (3) Each advisory council for a national research institute— (i) may on the basis of the materials provided under section 289a(b)(2) of this title respecting research conducted at the institute, make recommendations to the Director of the institute respecting such research, (ii) may review applications for grants and cooperative agreements for research or training and for which advisory council approval is required under section 284(b)(2) of this title and recommend for approval applications for projects which show promise of making valuable contributions to human knowledge, and (iii) may review any grant, contract, or cooperative agreement proposed to be made or entered into by the institute; (B) may collect, by correspondence or by personal investigation, information as to studies which are being carried on in the United States or any other country as to the diseases, disorders, or other aspect of human health with respect to which the institute was established and with the approval of the Director of the institute make available such information through appropriate publications for the benefit of public and private health entities and health professions personnel and scientists and for the information of the general public; and (C) may appoint subcommittees and convene workshops and conferences. (1) Each advisory council shall consist of ex officio members and not more than eighteen members appointed by the Secretary. The ex officio members shall be nonvoting members. (2) The ex officio members of an advisory council shall consist of— (A) the Secretary, the Director of NIH, the Director of the national research institute for which the council is established, the Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs or the Chief Dental Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs (or the designees of such officers), and (B) such additional officers or employees of the United States as the Secretary determines necessary for the advisory council to effectively carry out its functions. (3) The members of an advisory council who are not ex officio members shall be appointed as follows: (A) Two-thirds of the members shall be appointed by the Secretary from among the leading representatives of the health and scientific disciplines (including not less than two individuals who are leaders in the fields of public health and the behavioral or social sciences) relevant to the activities of the national research institute for which the advisory council is established. (B) One-third of the members shall be appointed by the Secretary from the general public and shall include leaders in fields of public policy, law, health policy, economics, and management. (4) Members of an advisory council who are officers or employees of the United States shall not receive any compensation for service on the advisory council. The other members of an advisory council shall receive, for each day (including traveltime) they are engaged in the performance of the functions of the advisory council, compensation at rates not to exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate in effect for grade GS–18 of the General Schedule. (c) The term of office of an appointed member of an advisory council is four years, except that any member appointed to fill a vacancy for an unexpired term shall be appointed for the remainder of such term and the Secretary shall make appointments to an advisory council in such a manner as to ensure that the terms of the members do not all expire in the same year. A member may serve after the expiration of the member’s term for 180 days after the date of such expiration. A member who has been appointed for a term of four years may not be reappointed to an advisory council before two years from the date of expiration of such term of office. If a vacancy occurs in the advisory council among the appointed members, the Secretary shall make an appointment to fill the vacancy within 90 days from the date the vacancy occurs. (d) The chairman of an advisory council shall be selected by the Secretary from among the appointed members, except that the Secretary may select the Director of the national research institute for which the advisory council is established to be the chairman of the advisory council. The term of office of the chairman shall be two years. (e) The advisory council shall meet at the call of the chairman or upon the request of the Director of the national research institute for which it was established, but at least three times each fiscal year. The location of the meetings of each advisory council is subject to the approval of the Director of the national research institute for which the advisory council was established. (f) The Director of the national research institute for which an advisory council is established shall designate a member of the staff of the institute to serve as the executive secretary of the advisory council. The Director of such institute shall make available to the advisory council such staff, information, and other assistance as it may require to carry out its functions. The Director of such institute shall provide orientation and training for new members of the advisory council to provide them with such information and training as may be appropriate for their effective participation in the functions of the advisory council. (g) of this title, (1) comments respecting the activities of the advisory council in the fiscal years respecting which the report is prepared, (2) comments on the progress of the national research institute for which it was established in meeting its objectives, and (3) recommendations respecting the future directions and program and policy emphasis of the institute. Each advisory council may prepare such additional reports as it may determine appropriate. (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), this section does not terminate the membership of any advisory council for a national research institute which was in existence on November 20, 1985. After November 20, 1985— (A) the Secretary shall make appointments to each such advisory council in such a manner as to bring about as soon as practicable the composition for such council prescribed by this section; (B) each advisory council shall organize itself in accordance with this section and exercise the functions prescribed by this section; and (C) the Director of each national research institute shall perform for such advisory council the functions prescribed by this section. (A) The National Cancer Advisory Board shall be the advisory council for the National Cancer Institute. This section applies to the National Cancer Advisory Board, except that— (i) appointments to such Board shall be made by the President; (ii) the term of office of an appointed member shall be 6 years; (iii) of the members appointed to the Board— (I) not less than 5 members shall be individuals knowledgeable in environmental carcinogenesis (including carcinogenesis involving occupational and dietary factors); and (II) not less than one member shall be an individual knowledgeable in pediatric oncology; (iv) the chairman of the Board shall be selected by the President from the appointed members and shall serve as chairman for a term of two years; (v) the ex officio members of the Board shall be nonvoting members and shall be the Secretary, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the Director of NIH, the Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the Secretary of Labor, the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, and the Director of the Office of Science of the Department of Energy (or the designees of such officers); and (vi) the Board shall meet at least four times each fiscal year. (B) This section applies to the advisory council to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, except that the advisory council shall meet at least four times each fiscal year.