Office of Science and Technology Policy


The Office of Science and Technology Policy is a department of the United States government, part of the Executive Office of the President, established by United States Congress on May 11, 1976, with a broad mandate to advise the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs.
The director of this office is colloquially known as the President's Science Advisor. In January 2019, meteorologist Kelvin Droegemeier was confirmed to the position, after almost two years of the position being vacant.

History

President Richard M. Nixon eliminated the President's Science Advisory Committee after his second Science Advisor, Edward E. David Jr., resigned in 1973, rather than appointing a replacement. The United States Congress then established the OSTP in 1976 with a broad mandate to advise the President and others within the Executive Office of the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs. The 1976 Act also authorizes OSTP to lead inter-agency efforts to develop and to implement sound science and technology policies and budgets and to work with the private sector, state and local governments, the science and higher education communities, and other nations toward this end.
Under President Donald Trump, OSTP's staff dropped from 135 to 45 people. The OSTP director position remained vacant for over two years, the longest vacancy for the position since the office's founding. Kelvin Droegemeier, an atmospheric scientist who previously served as the vice president of research at the University of Oklahoma, was nominated for the position on August 1, 2018 and confirmed by the Senate on January 2, 2019. Michael Kratsios was nominated by President Trump to be the fourth Chief Technology Officer of the United States and Associate Director of OSTP in March 2019 and was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on August 1, 2019.

Public facing key staff

Key positions vary among administrations and are not always published online.
No.PortraitNamePresidentTerm
1H. Guyford SteverGerald Ford1976–1977
2Frank PressJimmy Carter1977–1981
Benjamin Huberman Ronald Reagan1981
3George A. Keyworth, IIRonald Reagan1981–1985
John P. McTague Ronald Reagan1986
Richard G. Johnson Ronald Reagan1986
4William Robert GrahamRonald Reagan1986–1989
Thomas P. Rona Ronald Reagan1989
William G. Wells George H. W. Bush1989
5D. Allan BromleyGeorge H. W. Bush1989–1993
6John H. GibbonsBill Clinton1993–1998
Kerri-Ann Jones Bill Clinton1998
7Neal F. LaneBill Clinton1998–2001
Rosina Bierbaum George W. Bush2001
Clifford Gabriel George W. Bush2001
8John H. Marburger IIIGeorge W. Bush2001–2009
9John HoldrenBarack Obama2009–2017
10Kelvin DroegemeierDonald Trump2019–present