Proposed bills will open up agency's scientific review process

The U.S. House of Representatives is poised to vote on two Republican-backed bills supporters say would open up the scientific process the Environmental Protection Agency uses to implement its policies, although critics contend the legislation would actually skew the science in industry's favor.

The first bill, the EPA Secret Science Reform Act, would require scientific data EPA uses to make decisions to be made publicly available so outsiders may analyze it, according to Science Insider, the American Association for the Advancement of Science's online news publication. The second bill, the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act, would restructure the advisory board to include more input from industry-backed scientists.

The bills have pitted business groups against scientific societies and environmental organizations. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce praised both pieces of legislation in a Feb. 26 letter to House members, saying they will ensure the science EPA uses "is scientifically sound and unbiased."

"These bills would improve the transparency and trustworthiness of scientific and technical information agencies rely on to justify regulatory actions that can significantly affect society," the letter stated.

However, the science community has been quick to raise alarms about provisions in both bills.

Critics point out that the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office concluded that requiring EPA to make its scientific data public could cost up to $250 million annually. David Morganstein, president of the American Statistical Association, praised the intent behind the legislation but listed several concerns, including making data publicly available that is gathered under the promise of confidentiality.

"Thus, allowing unrestricted public access without appropriate controls could result in unintended disclosures," he said. "These could cause significant harm to the advancement of science and the federal government—especially the federal statistical system—as people may be less willing to provide their data if highly publicized breaches occur."

A House vote on the bills may come as early as this week. President Barack Obama has indicated he would veto both pieces of legislation should they pass in their current forms.http://bit.ly/1GMQogc