Key Health, Environmental Data Vulnerable to Obscure Law

[Guest guest]

> Thu, 29 Jul 2004 13:07:41 GMT

> " BushGreenwatch " <info

 

> Key Health, Environmental Data Vulnerable

> to Obscure Law

>

> ***************************************

> BUSHGREENWATCH

> Tracking the Bush Administration's Environmental

> Misdeeds

> http://www.bushgreenwatch.org

> ***************************************

>

> July 29, 2004

>

> KEY HEALTH, ENVIRONMENTAL DATA VULNERABLE TO OBSCURE

> LAW

>

> The Data Quality Act, a little-known law inserted

> into a huge

> 2001 budget bill, is undermining government

> protections of

> public health and the environment. The Bush

> administration's

> Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which has

> overseen the

> law's implementation, has obscured and even omitted

> the

> situation from a new report to Congress.

>

> " The law was written by Congress, but it was very

> vague. OMB put

> the meat on the bone, so they are reluctant to admit

> there are

> any problems " says Sean Moulton, senior policy

> analyst with OMB

> Watch, a non-profit organization that monitors the

> OMB. " The new

> law is a tool for them to be involved with agencies

> and

> influence their actions. OMB is a White House

> office. It's

> problematic to have a political office overly

> involved in the

> regulatory process. "

>

> The Data Quality Act was added as a brief rider to

> the Treasury

> and General Government Appropriations Act for fiscal

> year 2001,

> and took effect in October 2002. It directed the OMB

> to instruct

> federal agencies on setting standards for the

> quality of

> scientific and statistical information they use and

> distribute.

> It also required agencies to accept and review

> challenges to

> their data.

>

> OMB Watch has found that in its report to Congress,

> OMB

> significantly undercounted the number of challenges

> made under

> the law, and understated the extent to which

> industries are

> challenging information that affects their business

> interests.

>

> In one case, the Animal Health Institute, a trade

> organization

> for companies in the animal health and

> pharmaceutical industry,

> challenged data from the Centers for Disease Control

> showing

> that use of a particular antibiotic in poultry leads

> to

> antibiotic-resistant bacteria in food.

>

> This resistance makes it more difficult to treat

> people sickened

> by bacteria from eating undercooked poultry. The AHI

> alleged

> that the Center's recommendations were based on

> flawed data, and

> tried to have them removed from the Center's

> materials.

>

> OMB reported to Congress that there have been no

> slowdowns in

> the regulatory process as a result of the law.

> However, it did

> not ask federal agencies the amount of time or money

> they are

> spending on implementation, or for input on how the

> law is

> affecting the speed with which agencies make and

> implement

> regulations.

>

> Industries are also trying to use the law to block

> distribution

> of information. Although so far no such challenges

> have

> succeeded, the attempts suggest how the law could

> chill even

> intra-agency information disseminations.

>

> For instance, a timber industry coalition has

> repeatedly

> challenged U.S. Forest Service data on the Northern

> Goshawk. The

> service considers the bird a " sensitive species, " a

> designation

> that limits logging and other activities in its

> habitat.

> Industry's petitions sought to " correct " the data by

> having the

> agency withdraw entire documents or whole sections

> of

> documents--in effect " de-publishing " information.

>

> " 'Don't correct, just withdraw', " says Gregory,

> describing

> industry's tactics for changing the Forest Service's

> rules.

> " That would open the entire area to logging. "

>

> Moulton is most concerned that Congress is not

> getting the

> information it needs to assess the impact of the

> Data Quality

> Act on public health and the environment. " We want

> the General

> Accountability Office to do an independent study, to

> find out

> what the true impact of the law has been. OMB is too

> close to

> give an objective report. "

>

> ###

>

> TAKE ACTION

> Tell Congress to investigate the Data Quality Act:

> http://ga3.org/ct/Y1zkGk91-QYF/.

>

> ***************************************

> :: TELL A FRIEND ABOUT BUSHGREENWATCH

> http://ga3.org/ct/YdzkGk91-QY-/

>

> :: READ BACK ISSUES

> http://ga3.org/ct/YpzkGk91-QYD/

> ***************************************

>

> BushGreenwatch

> 1320 18th Street NW 5th Floor

> Washington, DC 20036

> (202) 463-6670

> Web site comments: info

>

> Copyright © 2003 Environmental Media Services

> -----------------

>

> If you received this message from a friend, you can

> sign up for

> BushGreenwatch at:

>

>

http://ga3.org/bushgreenwatch/join.html?r=57zkGk91na9XE

>

> -----------------

***************************************

> Powered by GetActive Software, Inc.

> Member Relationship Management Solutions

> That Recruit, Engage, and Retain

> http://www.getactive.com

> ***************************************