{"id":15883,"date":"2019-11-18T15:47:16","date_gmt":"2019-11-18T20:47:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/?p=15883"},"modified":"2019-11-18T15:47:16","modified_gmt":"2019-11-18T20:47:16","slug":"policy-news-november-18-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/2019\/11\/18\/policy-news-november-18-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"Policy News: November 18, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Katherine S. McCarter<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Graduate Student Policy Award<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Applications are now being accepted.<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n

ESA is now accepting applications for its 2020 Katherine S. McCarter Graduate Student Policy Award. Offered each year, this award gives graduate students an all-expense paid trip to Washington, DC for science policy training with opportunities to meet with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.<\/p>\n

Visit the\u00a0ESA website<\/a>\u00a0for more information and details on application requirements. The deadline to apply is Jan. 8, 2020.<\/p>\n

In This Issue:<\/h1>\n

Lawmakers Question Rumored \u201cTransparency in Science\u201d Proposal<\/strong><\/a>
\nEPA proposed rule would prohibit the agency from using scientific studies\u00a0where the underlying data are not publicly available in regulations.<\/p>\n

Senate Considers Nominees for Top Energy, Public Lands Posts<\/strong><\/a>
\nSenate Energy and Natural Resources Committee holds confirmation hearing for President Trump\u2019s pick to replace Energy Secretary Rick Perry.<\/p>\n

Congress<\/strong><\/a>
\nSenate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee advances NASA authorization bill.<\/p>\n

Executive Branch<\/strong><\/a>
\nOffice of Science and Technology Policy holds Joint Committee on the Research Enterprise Summit.<\/p>\n

Courts<\/strong><\/a>
\nSupreme Court hears oral arguments in groundwater case.<\/p>\n

States<\/strong><\/a>
\nWisconsin State Assembly passes wetlands bill.<\/p>\n

International<\/strong><\/a>
\nItaly plans to make climate change education mandatory.<\/p>\n

Scientific Community<\/strong><\/a>
\nOver 11,000 scientists sign letter warning of a climate emergency.<\/p>\n

Opportunities to Get Involved<\/strong><\/a>
\nFederal Register opportunities.<\/p>\n

ESA In the News<\/strong><\/a>
\nView an up-to-date list of ESA\u2019s media coverage.<\/p>\n

Help Us Understand the Impact of Policy News<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Have you applied to join an advisory committee, submitted a public comment, contacted your lawmakers or taken another action as a result of reading about an issue or opportunity in Policy News?<\/p>\n

If so, ESA\u2019s Public Affairs Office would like to know. Please fill out\u00a0this form<\/a>\u00a0so that we can better understand the impact of Policy News.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers Question Rumored \u201cTransparency in Science\u201d Proposal<\/strong><\/h2>\n

<\/a>
\nThe New York Times\u00a0reported<\/a>\u00a0that the Environmental Protection Agency is expanding its proposed \u201cStrengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science\u201d rule. This proposed rule, initially released in April 2018, prohibits the EPA from using scientific studies where the underlying data are not publicly available in regulation. A leaked proposal obtained by The New York Times modifies the proposed rule so that it applies to broader section of research used by the EPA in decision-making and makes the rule retroactive and would apply to both existing and future regulations.<\/p>\n

The EPA declined to provide comment for The New York Times\u2019 story and later disputed the article\u2019s claims in a\u00a0press release<\/a>. Principal Deputy Administrator for Science Jennifer Orme-Zavelta told the House Science Committee that the proposal shared by The New York Times is not the most current version of the proposed regulation and a rule submitted to the White House for review would not allow the rule to be applied retroactively. Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL), however, pointed out that the EPA could apply the rule while completing periodic required reviews of regulations.<\/p>\n

The scientific community, including ESA, have long pushed back against the transparency in science rule and its legislative predecessors, the HONEST Act and the Secret Science Reform Act, stating that the rule would prevent the EPA from using the best available science in decision-making. Environmental and public health groups also widely oppose the policy, citing concerns that the rule will be used to weaken clean air and water regulations.<\/p>\n

Linda Birnbaum, who recently retired from her post as the director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, testified that the rule would \u201cpractically lead to the elimination of science from decision-making.\u201d Witnesses representing the American Thoracic Society, a National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine \u201cReproducibility and Replicability in Science\u201d Committee, the Center for Open Science and the Michael J. Fox Foundation also participated in the House Science Committee\u00a0hearing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Coinciding with the Science Committee hearing and The New York Times report, Reps. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) and Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) asked the National Academies of Science to review the proposed rule in a\u00a0letter.<\/a><\/p>\n

Senate Considers Nominees for Top Energy, Public Lands Posts<\/strong><\/h2>\n

<\/a>
\nThe Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held confirmation hearings for\u00a0Dan Brouillette<\/a>, Trump\u2019s replacement for Energy Secretary Rick Perry and also for\u00a0Katharine MacGregor<\/a>\u00a0who is the administration\u2019s nominee for the number two spot in the Interior Department.<\/p>\n

Brouillette currently serves as deputy secretary of energy and previously worked as an executive at Ford and USAA. Senators overwhelmingly confirmed Brouillette to this post in April 2017. Brouillette received bipartisan praise at his confirmation hearing. He signaled his support for mining for \u201ccritical minerals\u201d like lithium and cobalt in the Arctic and touted the agency\u2019s leadership in science and computing during his tenure at the Department of Energy.<\/p>\n

MacGregor has been a political appointee in the Interior Department since 2017 and previously worked as a Republican staffer for the House Natural Resources Committee.<\/p>\n

Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) asked MacGregor about the National Invasive Species Council (NISC) and the Invasive Species Advisory Council (ISAC) and steps that the Interior Department should take to coordinate on invasive species management. The Interior Department cut funding for NISC by 50% in FY 2019 and ISAC was placed on indefinite administrative hold in May 2019. MacGregor mentioned working with states to combat invasive species. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) questioned MacGregor about drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and reports that the Interior Department rushed and suppressed scientific input into environmental reviews.\u00a0MacGregor declined to answer Cantwell\u2019s question about any potential harm to polar bear from drilling, stating that the US Fish and Wildlife Service is finalizing a biological opinion addressing that topic.<\/p>\n

Before the confirmation hearing, Reveal published an\u00a0article<\/a>\u00a0finding MacGregor personally helped oil company Cimarex obtain a permit for fracking in Oklahoma, despite a previous finding that the permit application was \u201cincomplete\u201d and \u201cdeficient.\u201d<\/p>\n

Energy and Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Ranking Member Joe Manchin (D-WV) support both nominees. The committee plans to vote on the nominations Nov. 19 and the full Senate could confirm Brouillette before the end of the year.<\/p>\n

Congress<\/h2>\n

<\/a>
\nAppropriations:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Congressional leaders are finalizing a deal to extend the current continuing resolution through Dec. 23. The current continuing resolution, or stop-gap measure, funds the government through Nov. 21. The federal government will shut down if President Trump does not sign an extension by then. House and Senate leaders are also\u00a0close<\/a>\u00a0to an agreement on top-line numbers for each of the 12 appropriations bills.<\/p>\n

NASA:<\/strong>\u00a0The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee advanced legislation reauthorizing funding for NASA and setting policy for the agency for 2020.<\/strong>\u00a0The bill (S. 2800<\/a>) directs the Earth Science Division to follow the priorities identified by the scientific community in the 2017 National Academies decadal survey. An amended version of the legislation requires NASA to make earth sciences data accessible to the research community to facilitate collaboration. Amendments approved by the committee require NASA to develop procedures for identifying and addressing violations of the agency\u2019s scientific integrity policy and to review any NASA contracts that would require the transfer of intellectual property to China.<\/p>\n

Senate Commerce Committee:<\/strong>\u00a0In addition to the NASA bill, the Committee advanced a handful of other bills of interest:<\/p>\n