FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, January 22, 2025
Contact:
Kyla Bennett (508) 230-9933 kbennett@peer.org
Jeff Ruch (510) 213-7928 jruch@peer.org
EPA’s Scientific Integrity Policy Too Little Too Late
Rhetoric Alone No Meaningful Check on Trump’s Reign of “Alternative Facts”
Washington, DC — Less than a week before President Trump’s second inauguration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) unveiled a new Scientific Integrity Policy. This timing leaves implementation of the policy in the hands of the very Trump political appointees it was intended to restrain, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
Like its original 2012 policy, EPA’s new policy allows no independent review of scientific misconduct allegations. Under that policy, during Trump’s first term, EPA undertook no formal investigations of alleged violations. Not surprisingly, Trump officials did not alter or rescind EPA’s or any other agency’s scientific integrity policies adopted under President Obama.
In addition, the new EPA policy still lacks procedures specifying how scientific integrity complaints should be investigated, adjudicated, or appealed. Those remain to be drafted. It further lacks any performance standards or evaluation criteria for the program.
“EPA’s latest self-policing scientific integrity is a recipe for failure, especially under the Trump administration,” stated PEER Science Policy Director Kyla Bennett, a scientist and attorney formerly with EPA, noting the recent scathing assessment of the program from EPA’s Office of Inspector General (IG). “The fact that after more than a dozen years EPA still does not have a process for dealing with scientific integrity complaints highlights what a farce this program is.”
EPA’s new policy arrives nearly four years after a 2021 Biden directive that all federal agencies strengthen their scientific integrity policies to “restore public trust” in science following the first Trump term. EPA is one of 27 agencies charged with developing stronger policies.
The new policy has some new positive provisions, such as requiring all instances of political interference with science to be reported to the IG, which has independent investigatory powers and resources and can pursue criminal activity. However, the President can remove the IG, and the IG has no power to carry out its recommendations no matter how egregious a violation.
The policy also has a provision allowing employees to participate in communications with the media regarding their scientific activities and areas of scientific expertise in their official capacities, a provision that appears particularly vulnerable in a new Trump administration.
“While this policy will not protect employees the administration perceives as disloyal, with proper legal guidance, there are important ways that employees can come forward to challenge this administration’s anti-government worker, anti-science, anti-environmental narrative,” adds Bennett. “We recommend that employees who want to raise issues consult with an attorney first to explore their options and understand what protections they have against retaliation.”
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View EPA’s new Scientific Integrity Policy
Revisit EPA’s scientific integrity performance under Trump I
Read scathing IG assessment of EPA’s scientific integrity program
Note changes made to EPA’s 2024 draft policy
See EPA reprisal against scientists under Biden
Review outcome of 2021 Biden scientific integrity initiative
Examine PEER’s prescription for protecting scientific integrity
