Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 1431, the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act. Madam Speaker, H.R. 1431 is a blatant attempt to cripple the important mission of the EPA by stacking the EPA Science Advisory Board with industry insiders. When Congress established the Science Advisory Board in 1978 to review the scientific data that informs the EPA's regulatory process, they did that with the requirement that the Board be balanced with representatives from industry and academia. The legislation we are considering today would skew that balance in favor of industry, with the intent of slowing down the EPA's regulatory process. With a significant respect for the vice chair from Oklahoma, it makes no sense to suggest that the representatives of regulated corporate interests, however expert, can be credibly described as ``defenders of scientific integrity.'' I am particularly concerned about the double standard mandated by this bill. On the one hand, the bill makes it easier for industry representatives to serve on the Board by only requiring that they disclose their conflicts of interest. There is no recusal requirement for industry insiders, no matter how deep their financial ties may go or how much their industry is regulated by the EPA. But, astonishingly, on the other hand, the same scientists and researchers who received EPA research grants or contracts are automatically disqualified from service.…”