42 U.S.C. § 8911 — Comprehensive study of projected impact on atmospheric levels of fossil fuel combustion, etc.

(a) Implementing agreement — (1) The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy must make an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to fully study how burning fossil fuels, coal-conversion, related synthetic-fuel activities, and other sources affect the level of carbon dioxide in the air — including the study of economic, physical, climate, and social effects. The Office and Academy are encouraged to work with domestic, foreign, and international groups to make the assessment worldwide, and the Academy may suggest whatever original research it thinks is necessary. (2) The President had to report to Congress within six months after June 30, 1980, on how the Office's talks to set up the study were going. (b) Final report — The Office and Academy had to give Congress a report with their major findings and recommendations no later than three years after June 30, 1980. The Academy's part of the report cannot be reviewed or cleared beforehand by anyone, and no conditions may be placed on the Academy through its agreement with the Office. The report must include recommendations on: (1) how a long-term domestic and international program of research, monitoring, modeling, and assessment of carbon dioxide's causes and effects should be organized — including the Office's comments on coordinating agencies and the Secretary of State's comments on needed international agreements; (2) how the U.S. can best help build such a long-term international program; (3) what domestic resources should support it; (4) how the existing U.S. government carbon dioxide assessment program should change to give policymakers better information; and (5) whether Congress needs periodic reports on any long-term program the Office and Academy recommend. (c) Information from other agencies — The Secretary of Energy, Secretary of Commerce, the EPA Administrator, and the Director of the National Science Foundation must give the Office or Academy any information they ask for that is needed to do this study. (d) Separate assessment — The Office must separately assess what different agencies would need to do together to carry out a long-term program like the one described in subsection (b).