2 U.S.C. § 471 — Congressional findings and declaration of purpose

Congress makes these findings and declares this purpose: (a) Technology keeps changing and expanding fast. Its uses are (1) large and growing in scale, and (2) increasingly widespread, deeply embedded, and important in their effects — both good and bad — on nature and society. (b) So it's essential that, as much as possible, the effects of using technology be anticipated, understood, and factored into public policy decisions on both existing and new national problems. (c) Congress further finds that: (1) the federal agencies that currently answer directly to Congress aren't set up to give the legislative branch adequate, timely, and independently-developed information about technology's potential impact, and (2) Congress's current tools also aren't designed to provide that information. (d) So Congress needs to: (1) equip itself with new, effective ways to get competent, unbiased information about the physical, biological, economic, social, and political effects of these technology applications; and (2) use this information, when appropriate, as one factor in assessing legislation before Congress — especially when the federal government might be asked to support, manage, or regulate a technology application.