Briefing on Data Access

Panel on the Proposed Revision of Circular A-110

Milton Goldberg
Council on Governmental Relations

Good morning. This briefing is jointly sponsored by AAAS and by Federal Focus, Inc., and it will deal with the proposed revision of OMB Circular A-110. That is a revision that stems from legislation which passed as part of the Fiscal Year 1999 Omnibus Appropriation last year, Public Law 105-277. The law directs OMB to revise Circular A-110 to ensure that data produced under grants will be made available to the public through procedures established under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The legislation can be found in the Federal Register of February 4.

Unlike its sister circular, A-21, A-110 has been revised only twice since its inception in 1976. Here is a bound copy from '76; I happen to have it because I was instrumental in its development, along with the federal agencies and the university community. This Circular, for all of its existence, has been deemed as relatively benign. It deals with managing federal grants at colleges and universities and other nonprofit organizations, except for State and local governments. However, State universities are covered by this Circular, as are their private colleagues. Again, the law itself appears relatively benign. Why would anyone possibly object to releasing publicly funded research data? I am reminded of my colleague who is now retired, Bob Rosensweig, former President of the Association of American Universities. Bob constantly reminded me that simple solutions to complex problems are almost always wrong. Today we hope to learn why the law and the proposed rule are causing so much consternation in the academic science community. Some actually think this legislation implicitly amends the FOIA and further treats federal grantees as surrogates of the federal government.

In the spirit of full disclosure, let me proceed to introduce our six panelists.

PANEL INTRODUCTIONS

Our first panelist is Ms. Kathy Casey. Ms. Casey is the legislative director for U.S. Senator Richard Shelby. She is responsible for formulating, coordinating, and directing all aspects of the Senator's legislative agenda, with a particular focus on appropriations and government oversight. Ms. Casey earned her J.D. from George Mason University and her B.A. from Pennsylvania State University.

Our second panelist is Dr. Jean Fruci. Dr. Fruci joined the House Science Committee Minority Staff in July of 1995, and is responsible for environmental science and technology programs within the committee's jurisdiction. Dr. Fruci received her Ph.D. in Soil Science from Cornell University.

Our third panelist is Dr. Wendy Baldwin. Dr. Baldwin was appointed National Institutes of Health (NIH) Deputy Director for Extramural Research in February of 1994. She was previously the Deputy Director at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development at NIH. Dr. Baldwin's graduate degrees are in Social Demography, with special attention to issues related to fertility, infant mortality, family/child wellbeing, AIDS risk behavior, and research and statistical methods. Dr. Baldwin was elected a fellow of the AAAS in 1998.

Our fourth panelist is Dr. Mary Ellen Sheridan. Dr. Sheridan is the Assistant Vice President for Research, and Director, of University Research Administration at the University of Chicago. Dr. Sheridan deals with research policy matters, and her principal responsibilities are the administration of government and other sponsored research, federal regulatory compliance, including conflict of interest, human subjects, animal use, biohazards, and other research support. Dr. Sheridan has a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Illinois.

Our fifth panelist is Dr. Roger O. McClellan, who serves as President of the Chemical Industry Institute of Toxicology (CIIT), a position held since September of 1988. The CIIT is supported by dues payments from some 40 leading industrial firms and the Chemical Manufacturers Association. The Institute has the mission of creating an improved knowledge base for understanding and assessing the adverse effects of exposure to chemicals.

Our sixth panelist is Mr. Marc Garufi. Mr. Garufi is currently a program examiner in the Health Division of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in the Executive Office of the President. Mr. Garufi is responsible for developing the President's budget for NIH and other issues related to federal research and development.