Washington, D.C., Wednesday, November 19, 2014 —Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ), Chairman of the House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee on the Environment released a statement following the passage of H.R. 4012, The Secret Science Reform Act Wednesday. The legislation prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from proposing regulations based upon science that is not transparent or not reproducible.  

"The Secret Science Reform Act rules ‘secret science’ a condition of the past," said Chairman Schweikert. "Public policy should come from public data.

For far too long, the EPA has approved regulations that have placed a crippling financial burden on economic growth in this country without public evidence to justify their actions, all the while keeping science in the shadows.

This common-sense legislation forces the EPA to be accountable with their findings and brings transparency to the forefront of the regulatory process. The Secret Science Reform Act brings science out of the shadows."

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BACKGROUND: Chairman Schweikert introduced H.R. 4012 in February of 2014. The bill has received letters of support from over 80 scientists and experts, including the former head of the EPA Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, and the former head of the EPA’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee. 

Provisions in the bill are consistent with White House policy, the data access provisions of major scientific journals, and the recommendations of the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Obama administration’s top science advisors. The Chair of EPA’s own Science Advisory Board testified that EPA’s advisors recommend “that literature and data used by EPA be peer-reviewed and made available to the public.”