Conflict-Of-Interest Issue Surfaces At NSF

Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Finance, is investigating a potential conflict of interest at NSF. Grassley has sent a letter to NSF Director Arden L. Bement Jr. requesting information on the appointment of Timothy L. Killeen to head the agency's Geosciences Directorate. Killeen is on a two-year assignment from his post as the director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colo., which according to Grassley has received approximately $975 million in grants from NSF. In his letter, Grassley says he wants to learn how Killeen can objectively oversee the directorate that provides grant funding to his home institution. He wants to ensure that Killeen does not participate in any grant decisions to NCAR. Grassley is also interested to learn how Killeen was selected to lead the directorate and how his regular trips home are being paid for. Killeen's term ends in 2010.