by this Office), Consumer Services drafted a proposed Consumer Strategy for the Department and developed a resource catalog of potential sources of HEW assistance for consumer-related projects.

Program Plans FY 1974 This Office's first priority, after continuance of its ongoing policy advisory and technical assistance functions, will be the implementation of the proposed HEW Consumer Strategy. The Consumer Consultant Pilot Project will be regionalized, and emphasis will be placed on low-income consumer problems. Consumer Services will develop a system for increased consumer representation on the Secretary's policy advisory committees, will work with Regional Offices to improve their responsiveness to consumer needs, and will increase its input into drafting consumer-related legislation and planning implementation of new consumer legislation. In conjunction with the HEW Consumer Council, Consumer Services will conduct a study of Departmental complaint-handling procedures.

Office of Mental Retardation Coordination FY 1973 Accomplishments

This Office coordinates the Department's mental retardation programs and advises the Secretary on related issues. On January 26, 1972, the Secretary's Committee on Mental Retardation became the Office of Mental Retardation Coordination. The new office continued its coordinating activities with the agencies in the prevention of mental retardation and the care of institutionalized mentally retarded. In FY 1973, the office co-sponsored the first meeting on the problems of the deaf/mentally retarded, opening the door for the first time to many issues related to this disability. The Office supported publication of a booklet entitled, "Mental Retardation Source Book of the Department of HEW", bringing together all available mental retardation data in the Department.

Program Plans FY 1974 The Office will play a crucial role in coordinating agency mental retardation programs with emphasis on: reduction of the number of mentally retarded persons in institutions through vocational rehabilitation; integration of agency resources at the community level; and coordination of agency resources available for the prevention of MR. The Office will be concerned with the accurate presentation of the Department's position relative to three legislative authorities now before Congress: The Developmental Disabilities Act, Education for the Handicapped Act, and the Rehabilitation Amendments. The Office will participate in the development of evaluation projects related to Departmental mental retardation programs.

President's Committee on Mental Retardation FY 1973 Accomplishments

The Committee, the chairman of which is the Secretary of HEW, provides assistance and advice in the area of mental retardation to the President. In FY 1973, at the President's request, the Committee organized a full-scale review of all MRrelated programs throughout the Executive Branch of the Federal Government. The resulting report detailed activities and programs of the Executive Departments and Agencies which pertain directly or indirectly to mental retardation. In addition, the Committee published a Committee position on lead poisoning from paint and other sources, noting that it is a predictable cause of mental retardation and that it is largely preventable. The Committee further determined that the President's goal of reducing mental retardation by half could best be met at this time through improved maternal and infant care.

Program Plans FY 1974 - In FY 1974 the President's Committee will sponsor a national legal rights conference for the mentally retarded, after which a definitive legal document will be published. Radio and TV spots, including some in Spanish language, will be produced and aired by the networks. In addition, the Committee will complete projects in law, education, behavioral science, medicine and other areas as they pertain to mental retardation. The Committee will continue to pursue the two major goals of the President: (1) to reduce by half the occurence of mental retardation in the United States before the end of the century and (2) to enable one third of the more than 200,000 retarded persons in public institutions to return to useful lives in the community.

The Office of the General Counsel acts as legal advisor to, and provides legal services for, the secretary and the operating agencies of the Department. In F.Y. 1974, 46 positions are requested to provide an increased level of support to meet growing demands for legal services in Supervisory and General Legal Services (6 positions), Departmental Program Services (30 positions), and Regional and Field Services (10 positions).

Supervisory and General Legal Services

This subactivity includes the Immediate Office of the General Counsel, the Business and Administrative Law Division and the services to all program activities of the Department. Following are some of the highlights of activities during the past year.

Accomplishments FY 1972-73

The Business and Administrative Law Division has responded to increasing demands for legal advice and assistance in every area which its lawyers serve. New departmental regulations on Freedom of Information have had to be drafted while at the same time the Administrative Law Branch is consulted daily on both initial denials and on appeals. P.L. 92-463 creates new legal problems concerning the entire range of committee management, especially with respect to closing meetings to the public. There is an increasing dollar volume of contracts as well as greater use of contracts, particularly in financing medical research. The work of the Patents Branch has been steadily increasing over a period of years, as is evident from the doubling of research and development money and the almost eightfold increase in U.S. patent applications since 1963. New responsibilities include

Telecommunications Policy - FY 1973 Accomplishments

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The Office joined NASA and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in implementing an experiment in delivering health and educational services via satellite to three regions with special communications problems the Rocky Mountain area, Alaska, and Appalachia. To make the experiment possible the Office obtained agreement at the World Administrative Radio Conference in Geneva on the use of Instructional Television Fixed Service frequencies for satellite communications. These frequencies, dedicated to educational users, have previously been utilized only in surface communications. Plans have also been initiated, with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the White House Office of Telecommunications Policy, for a cable television demonstration that will determine the feasibility of employing this technology to meet the public service needs of metropolitan areas of varying sizes.

Program Plans FY 1974 An increase of one position is requested for FY 1974. The position would be used to add a staff electrical engineering capability which would be utilized in conducting the satellite communications experiment, in the service delivery experiment and in other satellite communications work. The position would also be utilized for interaction with the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC), the Executive branch frequency manager. Additional FY 1974 objec

tives of the Office are: To complete design and installation of components of a satellite project demonstrating utility of this technology for reducing distribution costs of delivering social services; begin satellite transmission and pre-testing of program components of a project demonstrating actual service delivery; design a cable television demonstration to determine public acceptance, marketability, and commercial viability of communications-deliverable social services.

Special Concerns - FY 1973 Accomplishments

The several components of The Office of Special Concerns performed a wide range of activities in pursuing their advocacy role for women and minorities. These activities include advice to Departmental programs, assistance in developing new potter and legislation compatible with minority and women's needs, and technical assistance to minority organizations. Several highlights by specific office Follows The Division of Analysis and Evaluation designed a study aimed at identifring and removing barriers facing ethnic minorities in receiving DHEW services; the office of Spanish-Surnamed Americans established a resume bank to facilitate selection of Spanish-speaking persons to national advisory committees and designed a study to define the needs of the U.S. Cuban population; the Women's Action Program assisted the office of Civil Rights in planning regulations to implement the anti*ex discrimination provisions Title IX) of the 1972 Higher Education Amendments, extablished a resume dank for women available to serve on Departmental committees, and worked with agency statis to implement the Report of the Women's Action Program mudattted to and accepted by the Secretary in 1972, the Office of Asian-American Arraits developed a study to determine the extent and cause of possible under-utilXpation of kö% services dy Asian-Americans; and the Office of Indian Affairs initiated an Interagency Task Force on Urban Indians, planner a Regional Indian Task rence and undertook an issue paper on the Indian Health Service.

Program Mare 1 10% - de iseresse of time positions is requested for FY 1974. Six of Dere positions would establish a new Cifice for Afro-americans which would analyse. De djectives, policies and progress of operating and potential programs which trakt af de peers and concerns of Black Americans. Three additional posiTravi? Ne vitluse to handle increased clerical secretarial workload in the Niwe at Social Canoes,

Primary attention was placed on designing a structured process for allocating research and evaluation resources and assuring that these resources produce information which is used in Departmental decision-making. Under the system each agency is expected to develop research and evaluation plans explaining what programs and projects will be funded and why these activities are important means of achieving the Department's objectives. Agencies are also expected to identify the policy implications of their research and to communicate these implications, supported by research and evaluation findings, to appropriate program and policy decision-makers.

Program Plans FY 1974 - An increase of 2 positions is requested for this office. One position would be utilized to coordinate evaluations and policy analysis concerning HEW programs as these affect consumers. The second position would be used to coordinate agency development of policy papers and would monitor responses to these papers. FY 1973 efforts will also be continued and these include: Implementation of a system in which past management performance becomes a criterion in the allocation of research and evaluation resources among agencies in the Department, and implementation of a system to provide HEW's Regional Directors a full role in the Department's research and evaluation process.

Immediate Office of the Assistant Secretary

The Immediate Office directs and coordinates the activities of the Assistant Secretary's planning and evaluation offices. These offices administer approximately $15,000,000 of the Department's evaluation funds. In order to centralize management of these funds and of the evaluation contracting process, an increase of two positions is requested for the Immediate Office. The two positions would be used for an Evaluation Financial Manager and supporting secretarial staff.

nates,

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, directs, coordiand evaluates the Department's nationwide public affairs program. Special emphasis is given to developing better public understanding of the benefits and services available from HEW. OPA serves as the central public affairs office of the Department; counsels and acts for the Secretary and his staff in assisting them to meet their legal and administrative responsibilities for informing the general public of programs and policies; and establishes and enforces policies which effect and encourage a clear, efficient and consistent flow of information to the general public and other audiences served by the Department. The Office is also reponsible for administering the Freedom of Information Act and operating the Visitors Information Center.

FY 1972-73

the Office continued to refine and augment the Department-wide ent System and the Departmental Communications Operating Plan, 1972 to coordinate and control the diverse public affairs ment and provide for the orderly review and clearance of

Telecommunications Policy FY 1973 Accomplishments

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The Office joined NASA and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in implementing an experiment in delivering health and educational services via satellite to three regions with special communications problems the Rocky Mountain area, Alaska, and Appalachia. To make the experiment possible the Office obtained agreement at the World Administrative Radio Conference in Geneva on the use of Instructional Television Fixed Service frequencies for satellite communications. These frequencies, dedicated to educational users, have previously been utilized only in surface commmmunications. Plans have also been initiated, with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the White House Office of Telecommunications Policy, for a cable television demonstration that will determine the feasibility of employing this technology to meet the public service needs of metropolitan areas of varying sizes.

Program Plans FY 1974 An increase of one position is requested for FY 1974. The position would be used to add a staff electrical engineering capability which would be utilized in conducting the satellite communications experiment, in the service delivery experiment and in other satellite communications work. The position would also be utilized for interaction with the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC), the Executive branch frequency manager. Additional FY 1974 objec

tives of the Office are: To complete design and installation of components of a satellite project demonstrating utility of this technology for reducing distribution costs of delivering social services; begin satellite transmission and pre-testing of program components of a project demonstrating actual service delivery; design a cable television demonstration to determine public acceptance, marketability, and commercial viability of communications-deliverable social services.

The several components of The Office of Special Concerns performed a wide range of activities in pursuing their advocacy role for women and mirorities. These activities include advice to Departmental programs, assistance in developin new policy and legislation compatible with minority and women's needs, and techni cal assistance to minority organizations. Several highlights by specific office follow: The Division of Analysis and Evaluation designed a study aimed at identi fying and removing barriers facing ethnic minorities in receiving DHEW services; the Office of Spanish-Surnamed Americans established a resume bank to facilitate selection of Spanish-speaking persons to national advisory committees and design a study to define the needs of the U.S. Cuban population; the Women's Action Preassisted the Office of Civil Rights in planning regulations to implement the ant sex discrimination provisions (Title IX) of the 1972 Higher Education Amendment established a resume bank for women available to serve on Departmental committer and worked with agency staffs to implement the Report of the Women's Action Pro submitted to and accepted by the Secretary in 1972; the Office of Asian-America Affairs developed a study to determine the extent and cause of possible under-u ization of HEW services by Asian-Americans; and the Office of Indian Affairs ir ated an Interagency Task Force on Urban Indians, planned a Regional Indian Tas} Force and undertook an issue paper on the Indian Health Service.

Program Plans FY 1974 An increase of nine positions is requested for FY Six of these positions would establish a new Office for Afro-Americans which analyze the objectives, policies and progress of operating and potential progr which impact on the needs and concerns of Black Americans. Three additional r tions would be utilized to handle increased clerical/secretarial workload in ⚫ Office of Special Concerns.

The several components of Special Concerns will continue their advocacy for women and minorities. Several highlights follow: The Division of Analys Evaluation will monitor implementation of recommendations derived from the st barriers to minority utilization of HEW services, and it will evaluate Depar advocacy structures; the Women's Action Program will monitor implementation 1972 WAP report; the Office of Asian-American Affairs will complete the stud HEW service utilization by Asian-Americans; The Office of Indian Affairs wil plete the Indian Health Services issue paper and will seek implementation of mendations der!"

paper.