Office of Government and Congressional Relations (OGCR)
The Office of Government and Congressional Relations (OGCR), formerly the Office of Policy Analysis and Response (OPAR), was established in the early 1990's. Its initial responsibility was to advise the NCI Director, staff, and advisory boards on legislative and Congressional activities as they relate to the NCI mission.
OGCR's duties have since expanded and today its functions cut across all levels of the NCI structure.
OGCR currently provides NCI and its constituents with three essential services:
- Coordinate, monitor, and analyze congressional activities
- Review, process, and respond to all requests for information from NCI that fall under the jurisdiction of the Freedom of Information (FOIA) and Privacy Act
- Serve as NCI's liaison for all U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) and DHHS Office of Inspector General investigations
Today, OGCR facilitates the relationships between NCI, the Congress, and the general public.
OGCR aims to ensure that the NCI community is kept abreast of the congressional issues and interests that affect the Institute, and in turn NIH. OGCR also works closely with other offices both at the Institute and agency level.
Since NCI is a federally funded institute within NIH and ultimately DHHS, we are part of the executive branch of government. As such, we are non-partisan and do not lobby or endorse members of Congress or legislation.