- The Washington Times - Friday, February 7, 2014

A new bill introduced by Republican lawmakers would put an end to the Environmental Protection Agency issuing regulations without revealing all the scientific research used to justify the new rules.

“Public policy should come from public data, not based on the whims of far-left environmental groups,” Arizona Rep. David Schweikert, the author of the bill, said in a statement.

The bill, which aims to curb EPA powers absent legislation, is making its way through the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology.

“For far too long, the EPA has sponsored regulations that have placed a crippling financial burden on economic growth in this country with no public evidence to justify their actions,” Mr. Schweikert said.

So far, about a dozen co-sponsors from the Republican ranks have signed the bill, named the Secret Science Reform Act of 2014. The text requires the EPA administrator to reveal “all scientific and technological information” as a condition of proposing or finalizing any new rules.

If passed, the bill could prove a significant rein to the Obama administration’s power.

“Virtually every regulation proposed by the Obama administration has been justified by nontransparent data and unverifiable claims,” said Rep. Lamar Smith, Texas Republican and chairman of the committee.

• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.

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