1、 https:/crsreports.congress.gov May 7, 2018The U.S. Geological Survey: FY2019 Appropriations and BackgroundBackground The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) aims to provide unbiased scientific information to describe and understand the geological processes of the Earth; minimize loss of life and property
2、 from natural disasters; manage water, biological, energy, and mineral resources; and enhance and protect the nations quality of life. USGS is a scientific agency that is housed within the Department of the Interior (DOI). Its primary mission is conducting science; it has no regulatory authority and
3、 does not manage any significant area of federal land. USGS also collects and stores scientific information in long-term continuous data sets. These data sets range from satellite imagery of land and ecosystem features to streamflow data of major rivers and streams. Congress authorized the creation
4、of USGS in an appropriations bill that passed on March 3, 1879, and became known as the USGS Organic Act (43 U.S.C. 31). Specifically, the Organic Act states that the Director of the USGS shall have the direction of the United States Geological Survey, and the classification of the public lands and