OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF (pet

DEFENSE RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING

WASHINGTON, DC 20301

 

(R&AT)

Dr. Joshua Lederberg 26 SEP 1989

President

The Rockefeller University
1230 York Avenue

New York, New York 10021

Dear Dr. Lederberg:

I appreciate receiving your comments on Senate 933. It is
always important to be aware of the viewpoints of academic and
scientific leaders concerning legislation before the Congress.

There is one other issue I would like to bring to your
attention. The Government Accounting Office (GAO) is auditing the
Biological Defense Research Program to determine if the DoD effort
is consistent with the mission of the program. The principal
concern of the audit team appears to be whether or not the DoD
program addresses development of offensive capabilities. The audit
team recognizes that they do not have the scientific expertise to
evaluate the program, and would like to form a scientific group for
this purpose. I gave them your name, both as a member of the
National Academy of Sciences, and as an individual with a
professional interest in the program. The audit team leader,

Mr. Derek B. Stewart, is likely to contact you in the near future.

Please let me know if I can be of further assistance.

Sincerely,

frag Vo dena —

Joseph V. Osterman
Director, Environmental
and Life Sciences