Washington, D.C. (November 19, 2014) – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4012, the Secret Science Reform Act of 2014 with a bipartisan vote of 237-190.  The bill prohibits the EPA from enacting or proposing regulations without first publishing for independent review the science on which they rely.

Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chairs Steve Pearce (NM-02) and Cynthia Lummis (WY-At Large) along with Western Caucus member and House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology Chairman Lamar Smith (TX-21) and bill sponsor and Subcommittee on the Environment Chairman David Schweikert (AZ-06) released the following statements in response to the passage of the bill:

“Over the last six years, the EPA has cost jobs and increased electricity rates for Western families through their economically damaging proposals,” said Chairman Pearce. “These costly proposals have been implemented based on science that the EPA refuses to publicize for peer review. Taxpayers who pay for these reckless regulations deserve a say in the process. This bill will create a more transparent process by requiring the EPA to publicize their science. I urge my colleagues in the Senate to take up this important piece of legislation immediately.”

“The American people and independent researchers have a right to see the science on which federal policy decisions are based, especially since it is the American taxpayer footing the bill,” said Chairman Lummis. “This is particularly critical throughout the West where decisions based on this ‘secret science’ hurt the livelihoods of thousands of American families. This secrecy erodes the quality of the decisions and serves only to aggravate the growing distrust the public justly has for an EPA too set on holding back even the most basic information needed to verify their scientific findings.”

“Costly environmental regulations should only be based upon data that is available to independent scientists and the public," said Chairman Smith. "However, the EPA does not adhere to this practice.  Nearly every major air quality regulation from this administration has been justified by data that has been kept secret. This bill requires the EPA to base its decisions on information to which all scientists have access.  This will promote sound science and confidence in the EPA decision making process. This bill ensures the transparency and accountability that the American people want and deserve.”

“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 all their actions, said Chairman Schweikert. Public policy should come from public data. This common-sense legislation forces the EPA to be transparent and accountable with their findings."