§1008 Establishment and Purpose of Advisory Committees

Summary

Advisory committees must not be created unless a law or the President specifically allows it, or the head of the agency decides in a formal record—after consulting the Administrator and publishing timely notice in the Federal Register—that the committee is in the public interest for the agency’s duties. Unless a law or Presidential order says otherwise, these committees only give advice. Any decisions or policies about topics the committee reports on must be made by the President or a federal officer. A committee cannot meet or act until it files a charter. Presidential committees file the charter with the Administrator. Other committees file it with the agency head they report to and with the Senate and House standing committees that oversee that agency. The charter must state the committee’s name; goals and scope; how long it needs to work; who it reports to and who provides support; its duties and, if not only advisory, the legal authority for those duties; estimated annual costs in dollars and person-years; estimated number and frequency of meetings; a termination date if under 2 years; and the filing date. A copy of the charter must also be given to the Library of Congress.