Charter

Committee’s Official Designation

Scientific Management Review Board

Authority

Required by 42 U.S.C. 281(e), section 401(e) of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act, as amended. The Scientific Management Review Board (Board) is governed by the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. §§ 1001-1014).

Objectives and Scope of Activities

The purpose of the Board is to advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary), the Director, National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other appropriate agency officials on the use of the organizational authorities set forth in 42 U.S.C. 281(d)(2)-(4), section 401(d)(2)-(4) of the PHS Act, as amended, which include: (1) establishing, reorganizing, or abolishing national research institutes; (2) reorganizing the offices within the Office of the Director, NIH, including adding, removing, or transferring the functions of such offices or establishing or terminating such offices; and (3) reorganizing divisions, centers, or other administrative units within an NIH national research institute or national center, including adding, removing, or transferring the functions of such units, or establishing or terminating such units.

Description of Duties

The Board’s advice will be conveyed through reports to the Director, NIH. Specifically, not less than once each seven years, the Board will: (1) determine whether and to what extent the organizational authorities should be used; and (2) issue a report providing the recommendations of the Board regarding the use of the authorities and the reasons underlying the recommendations.

The activities of the Board with respect to a report will include the following, but only with respect to a specific contemplated organizational issue to be addressed in the report: (1) Review the research portfolio of the NIH to determine the progress and effectiveness and value of the portfolio and the allocation among the portfolio activities of the resources of NIH; (2) Determine the pending scientific opportunities and public health needs, with respect to research within the jurisdiction of NIH; (3) For any proposal for organizational changes to which the Board gives significant consideration as a possible recommendation in such report, the Board will: (a) analyze the budgetary and operational consequences of the proposed change(s); (b) take into account historical funding and support for research activities at national research institutes and centers that have been established recently relative to national research institutes and centers that have been in existence for more than two decades; (c) estimate the level of resources needed to implement the proposed changes; (d) assume the proposed changes will be made and make a recommendation for the allocation of the resources of NIH among the national research institutes and national centers; and (e) analyze the consequences for the progress of research in the areas affected by the proposed changes.

When issuing a report on one or more specific contemplated organizational issues, the Board will consult with: (1) the heads of national research institutes and national centers whose directors are not members of the Board; (2) other scientific leaders who are officers or employees of NIH and are not members of the Board; (3) advisory councils of the national institutes and national centers; (4) organizations representing the scientific community; and (5) organizations representing patients.

Agency or Official to Whom the Committee Reports

The Board will advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the Secretary, the Director, NIH, and other appropriate agency officials, through reports to the Director, NIH, regarding the use of organizational authorities set forth in 42 U.S.C. 281(d)(2)-(4), section 401(d)(2)-(4) of the PHS Act.

Support

Management and support services will be provided by the Office of the Director, NIH.

Estimated Annual Operating Costs and Staff Years

The estimated annual cost for operating the Board, including compensation and travel expenses for members, but excluding staff support, is $336,136. The estimate of annual person-years of staff support required is 1.0, at an estimated annual cost of $349,490.

Designated Federal Officer

The Director, NIH, will assign a full-time or permanent part-time NIH employee as the Designated Federal Officer (DFO) of the Board. In the event that the DFO cannot fulfill the assigned duties of the Board, one or more full-time or permanent part-time NIH employees will be assigned as DFO and carry out these duties on a temporary basis.

The DFO will approve all of the Board’s and subcommittees’ meetings, prepare and approve all meeting agendas, attend all Board and subcommittee meetings, adjourn any meeting when it is determined to be in the public interest, and chair meetings when directed to do so by the official to whom the committee reports.

Estimated Number and Frequency of Meetings

The Board will meet at the call of the Chair (with DFO’s approval) or upon request of the Director, NIH, not fewer than five times with respect to issuing any particular report. The location of the meetings of the Board will be subject to the approval of the Director, NIH.

Meetings will be open to the public except as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary) at the request of the DFO in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552b(c) and 41 C.F.R. 102-3.155 including specifying the specific exception(s) that justifies closure. Notice of all meetings will be given to the public. In the event a portion of a meeting is closed to the public, as determined by the Secretary in accordance with the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. 552b(c)) and the Federal Advisory Committee Act, an annual report of closed or partially-closed meetings will be prepared which will contain, at a minimum, a list of members and their business addresses, the Committee’s functions, dates and places of meetings, and a summary of the Committee’s activities and recommendations made during the fiscal year.

Of the meetings held with respect to issuing a report on one or more specific contemplated organizational issues, (1) one or more meetings will be directed toward the scientific community to address scientific needs and opportunities related to proposals for organizational changes under 42 U.S.C. 281(d), section 401(d) of the PHS Act, as amended, or as the case may be, related to a proposal that no such changes be made; and (2) one or more meetings will be directed toward consumer organizations to address the needs and opportunities of patients and their families with respect to proposals referred to in clause (1).

Duration

Continuing.

Termination

Unless renewed by appropriate action, prior to its expiration, the charter for the Scientific Management Review Board will expire two years from the date the charter is filed.

Membership and Designation

The Board shall consist of the Director, NIH, who will be a permanent nonvoting ex officio member, and an odd number of voting members, not to exceed 21, who are selected by the Secretary. The voting members of the Board will include not fewer than 9 officials who are directors of NIH national research institutes or national centers, who will serve as voting ex officio members. The Secretary will ensure that the group of institute and center officials includes directors of:

• national research institutes whose budgets are substantial relative to a majority of the other institutes;
• national research institutes whose budgets are small relative to a majority of the other institutes;
• national research institutes that have been in existence for a substantial period of time without significant organizational change under 42 U.S.C. 281(d), section 401
• (d) of the PHS Act, as amended;
• as applicable, national research institutes that have undergone significant organizational changes under 42 U.S.C. 281(d), section 401(d) of the PHS Act, as amended, or that have been established under such subsection, other than national research institutes for which such changes have been in place for a substantial period of time; and
• national centers.

The Secretary will appoint members from among individuals who are not officers or employees of the United States (appointed members). Such members will include: (1) individuals representing the interests of public or private institutions of higher education that have historically received funds from NIH to conduct research; and (2) individuals representing the interests of private entities that have received funds from NIH to conduct research or that have broad expertise regarding how the NIH functions, exclusive of private entities under (1). Appointed members must be eligible to serve as Special Government Employees (SGEs) and will serve as SGEs, as defined by 18 U.S.C. § 202.

Appointed members will be invited to serve for five-year terms, except that any member appointed to fill a vacancy for an unexpired term will be appointed for the remainder of that term, and the Secretary shall make appointments in such a manner as to ensure that the terms of the appointed members do not all expire in the same year. An appointed member may serve 180 days after the expiration of that member’s term if a successor has not taken office. A member who has been appointed for a term of five years may not be reappointed to this Board before two years from the date of expiration of that member’s term of office. The Chair of the Board will be selected by the Secretary from among the appointed members and invited to serve as Chair for two years.

A quorum for the conduct of business by the full Board will consist of a majority of the current voting members.

Subcommittees

As necessary, subcommittees and ad hoc working groups may be established by the DFO within the Board’s jurisdiction. The advice/recommendations of a subcommittee/working group must be deliberated by the parent advisory committee. A subcommittee/working group may not report directly to a Federal official unless there is statutory authority to do so.

Subcommittee membership may be drawn in whole or in part from the parent advisory committee. All subcommittee members may vote on subcommittee actions and all subcommittee members count towards the quorum for a subcommittee meeting. Ad hoc consultants are not members, do not count towards the quorum, and may not vote. A quorum for a subcommittee will be three members. The Department Committee Management Officer will be notified upon establishment of each standing subcommittee and will be provided information on its name, membership, function, and estimated frequency of meetings.

Recordkeeping

Meetings of the Board and its subcommittees will be conducted according to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, and other applicable laws and Departmental policies. Committee and subcommittee records will be handled in accordance with General Records Schedule 6.2, Federal Advisory Committee Records, or other approved agency records disposition schedule. These records will be available for public inspection and copying, subject to any applicable exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552(b) and 41

C.F.R. 102-3.170.

Each report on one or more specific contemplated organizational issues issued by the Board will be submitted by the Director, NIH to: (1) the House Committee on Energy and Commerce; (2) the House Committee on Appropriations; (3) the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; (4) the Senate Committee on Appropriations; (5) the Secretary; and (6) officials with organizational authorities, other than any such official who served as a member of the Board with respect to the report involved. For each meeting with respect to a report, the Director of NIH shall post a summary of the proceedings on NIH’s website.