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Office of Technology Assessment Archive
Direct access at: http://digital.library.unt.edu/search/?q=OTA&t=collection
About the OTA
The Office of Technology Assessment was created by Congress in 1972 with Public Law 92-484 and closed on September 29, 1995. During its twenty-three-year history, OTA provided Congressional members and committees with analyses of the scientific and technological issues that were increasingly relevant to public policy and legislative action.
OTA occupied a unique role among the Congressional information agencies. Unlike the General Accounting Office, which is primarily concerned with evaluation of ongoing programs, and the Congressional Research Service, which provides rapid information on legislative topics, OTA provided a deeper, more comprehensive, and more technical level of analysis. Through eleven Congressional sessions, OTA became a key resource for Congressional members and staff confronting technological issues in crafting public policy. Its existence brought a healthy balance to the analytical resources available to the executive and legislative branches of government.
The agency's legacy is found in the many items of legislation it influenced and in the channels of communication its staff helped foster between legislative policymakers and members of the scientific, technical, and business communities.
About the Collection
This archive consists of the OTA Legacy (a collection of formally issued reports, including some background and contractor papers) and the OTA Collection (quarterly and annual reports, as well as internal OTA documents, such as orientation materials).
- OTA Legacy (via the CyberCemetery)
- OTA Collection