II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1358 

To protect scientific integrity in Federal research and policymaking. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 30, 2005 

Mr. DURBIN (for himself and Mr. LAUTENBERG) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

A BILL

To protect scientific integrity in Federal research and 

policymaking.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Restore Scientific Integrity to Federal Research and Pol6 icymaking Act’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings and purpose. 

Sec. 3. Prohibition of political interference with science. 

Sec. 4. Whistleblower extension for disclosures relating to interference with 

science. 
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Sec. 5. Requirements relating to Federal scientific advisory committees. 

Sec. 6. Peer review. 

Sec. 7. State of scientific integrity report. 

Sec. 8. Definitions.

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) America has for its history served as a 

4 world leader of scientific innovation and research. 

5 (2) Multiple policy and legislative decisions af6 fecting the health and safety of the American public 

7 and the state of the environment depend upon com8 prehensive, accurate scientific information. 

9 (3) The Federal Government plays a key role in 

10 fostering and supporting scientific research. 

11 (4) The conduct of such research depends on 

12 free investigation and open exchange of ideas. 

13 (5) Scientific advisory committees must be com14 prised of individuals with the appropriate expertise 

15 regardless of political affiliation. 

16 (6) Over the past four years, leading scientific 

17 associations and scientific journals, Inspectors Gen18 eral, senior scientists within the Federal Govern19 ment, former scientific officials from both Repub20 lican and Democratic administrations, and 48 Nobel 

21 Laureates have raised concerns about political inter22 ference with science in the executive branch of the 

23 Federal Government. 
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1 (7) This interference has included tampering 

2 with the conduct of research, gagging of government 

3 scientists, distortion of scientific information pre4 sented to Congress and the public, and manipulation 

5 of Federal scientific advisory committees. 

6 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to protect 

7 scientific integrity in Federal research and policymaking. 

8 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF POLITICAL INTERFERENCE WITH 

9 SCIENCE. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter V of chapter 73 of 

11 title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following: 

13 ‘‘§ 7354. Interference with science 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—An employee may not engage in 

15 any of the following: 

16 ‘‘(1) Tampering with the conduct of federally 

17 funded scientific research or analysis. 

18 ‘‘(2) Censorship of findings of federally funded 

19 scientific research or analysis. 

20 ‘‘(3) Directing the dissemination of scientific in21 formation known by the directing employee to be 

22 false or misleading. 

23 ‘‘(b) PENALTIES.—An employee who violates this sec24 tion shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary action by 

25 the employing agency or entity.’’. 
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1 (b) PROHIBITED PERSONNEL PRACTICE.—Section 

2 2302(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

3 (1) in paragraph (11), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

4 end; 

5 (2) in paragraph (12), by striking the period 

6 and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

7 (3) by inserting after paragraph (12) the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(13) take or fail to take, or threaten to take 

10 or fail to take, a personnel action with respect to 

11 any employee because of the development or dissemi12 nation, within the scope of employment, of scientific 

13 research or analysis that the employee reasonably 

14 believes to be accurate and valid.’’. 

15 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

16 for chapter 73 of title 5, is amended by inserting after 

17 the item relating to section 7353 the following:

‘‘7354. Interference with science.’’.

18 SEC. 4. WHISTLEBLOWER EXTENSION FOR DISCLOSURES 

19 RELATING TO INTERFERENCE WITH 

20 SCIENCE. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraphs (A)(ii) and (B)(ii) 

22 of section 2302(b)(8) of title 5, United States Code, are 

23 amended by inserting after ‘‘authority,’’ the following: ‘‘in24 cluding but not limited to tampering with the conduct of 

25 federally funded scientific research or analysis, censoring 
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1 the findings of federally funded scientific research or anal2 ysis, or directing the dissemination of scientific informa3 tion known by the directing employee to be false or mis4 leading,’’. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

6 (1) Section 1212(a)(3) of title 5, United States 

7 Code, is amended by inserting after ‘‘authority,’’ the 

8 following: ‘‘including but not limited to tampering 

9 with the conduct of federally funded scientific re10 search or analysis, censoring the findings of feder11 ally funded scientific research or analysis, or direct12 ing the dissemination of scientific information known 

13 by the directing employee to be false or mis14 leading,’’. 

15 (2) Section 1213(a) of such title is amended— 

16 (A) in paragraph (1)(B), by inserting after 

17 ‘‘authority,’’ the following: ‘‘including but not 

18 limited to tampering with the conduct of feder19 ally funded scientific research or analysis, cen20 soring the findings of federally funded scientific 

21 research or analysis, or directing the dissemina22 tion of scientific information known by the di23 recting employee to be false or misleading,’’; 

24 and 
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1 (B) in paragraph (2)(B), by inserting after 

2 ‘‘authority,’’ the following: ‘‘including but not 

3 limited to tampering with the conduct of feder4 ally funded scientific research or analysis, cen5 soring the findings of federally funded scientific 

6 research or analysis, or directing the dissemina7 tion of scientific information known by the di8 recting employee to be false or misleading,’’. 

9 SEC. 5. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO FEDERAL SCI10 ENTIFIC ADVISORY COMMITTEES. 

11 (a) BAR ON LITMUS TESTS.—All appointments to 

12 Federal scientific advisory committees shall be made with13 out regard to political affiliation, unless required by Fed14 eral statute. 

15 (b) DESIGNATION OF MEMBERS AS SPECIAL GOV16 ERNMENT EMPLOYEES OR REPRESENTATIVES.— 

17 (1) An individual appointed to a Federal sci18 entific advisory committee who is not a full-time or 

19 permanent part-time officer or employee of the Fed20 eral Government shall be designated, by the agency 

21 to which the committee reports, as either— 

22 (A) a special Government employee, if the 

23 individual is providing advice based on the indi24 vidual’s expertise or experience; or 
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1 (B) a representative, if the individual is 

2 representing the views of individuals or entities 

3 outside the Federal Government. 

4 (2) An agency shall review the members of each 

5 Federal scientific advisory committee that reports to 

6 the agency to determine whether each member’s des7 ignation is appropriate, and to redesignate members 

8 if appropriate. Such review shall be made when the 

9 committee’s charter expires or, in the case of a com10 mittee with an indefinite charter, every 2 years. 

11 (c) ENSURING INDEPENDENT ADVICE AND EXPER12 TISE.— 

13 (1) Each agency shall, to the extent permitted 

14 by law, appoint individuals to Federal scientific advi15 sory committees as special government employees. 

16 (2) Each agency shall make its best efforts to 

17 ensure that— 

18 (A) no individual appointed to serve on a 

19 Federal scientific advisory committee has a con20 flict of interest that is relevant to the functions 

21 to be performed, unless such conflict is prompt22 ly and publicly disclosed and the agency deter23 mines that the conflict is unavoidable; and 

24 (B) each report of the advisory committee 

25 will be the result of the advisory committee’s 
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1 independent judgment and include a statement 

2 indicating the process used by the advisory 

3 committee in formulating the recommendations 

4 or conclusions contained in the report. 

5 (3) Each agency shall require that individuals 

6 that the agency appoints or intends to appoint to 

7 serve on a Federal scientific advisory committee in8 form the agency of the individual’s conflicts of inter9 est that are relevant to the functions to be per10 formed. 

11 (4) If an agency determines that representative 

12 members are required on a Federal scientific advi13 sory committee, the Advisory Committee Manage14 ment Officer of the agency shall consult with the 

15 designated agency ethics official to ensure that the 

16 designation is appropriate and necessary to fulfilling 

17 the committee’s purpose. 

18 (5) The designated agency ethics official of 

19 each agency shall issue guidance to ensure that Fed20 eral scientific advisory committees are providing suf21 ficiently independent advice and expertise. 

22 (6) The Administrator for General Services 

23 shall conduct an annual review of compliance by 

24 agencies with this subsection and shall submit to the 

25 Committee on Government Reform of the House of 
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1 Representatives and the Committee on Govern2 mental Affairs and Homeland Security of the Senate 

3 a report on the results of the review. 

4 (d) DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.— 

5 (1) ITEMS REQUIRED TO BE DISCLOSED.—With 

6 respect to each Federal scientific advisory committee 

7 established before, on, or after the date of the enact8 ment of this Act, the agency to which the committee 

9 reports shall make available as described in para10 graph (2) the following information, at a minimum: 

11 (A) The charter of the committee. 

12 (B) A description of the committee forma13 tion process, including at least— 

14 (i) the process for identifying prospec15 tive members; 

16 (ii) the process of selecting members 

17 for balance of viewpoints or expertise; and 

18 (iii) a justification of the need for rep19 resentative members, if any. 

20 (C) A list of all current members, includ21 ing, for each member, the following: 

22 (i) The name of any person or entity 

23 that nominated the member. 
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1 (ii) Whether the member is designated 

2 as a special Government employee or a 

3 representative. 

4 (iii) In the case of a representative, 

5 the individuals or entity whose viewpoint 

6 the member represents. 

7 (D) A list of all special Government em8 ployees who have received conflict of interest 

9 waivers under section 208(b) of title 18, United 

10 States Code, under regulations issued by the 

11 Office of Government Ethics, a summary de12 scription of the conflict necessitating the waiv13 er, and the reason for granting the waiver. 

14 (E) A summary of the process used by the 

15 committee for making decisions. 

16 (F) Transcripts of all meetings of the com17 mittee. 

18 (G) Notices of future meetings of the com19 mittee. 

20 (2) METHODS OF DISCLOSURE.— 

21 (A)(i) Except as provided in clause (ii), the 

22 information required to be disclosed by an 

23 agency under this subsection shall be available 

24 electronically, including on the official public 

25 Internet site of the agency, at least 7 calendar 
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1 days before each meeting of a Federal scientific 

2 advisory committee. 

3 (ii) In the case of a transcript of a meeting 

4 of a Federal scientific advisory committee, the 

5 transcript shall be disclosed by an agency under 

6 this subsection not later than 7 calendar days 

7 after the meeting. 

8 (B) The Administrator of General Services 

9 shall provide, on the official public Internet site 

10 of the General Services Administration, elec11 tronic access to the information made available 

12 by each agency under subparagraph (A). 

13 SEC. 6. PEER REVIEW. 

14 (a) AGENCY-DIRECTED PEER REVIEW.—Each agen15 cy shall determine a peer review process appropriate for 

16 the agency’s functions and needs. 

17 (b) INEFFECTIVENESS OF INFORMATION QUALITY

18 BULLETIN FOR PEER REVIEW.—The Information Quality 

19 Bulletin for Peer Review, issued in final form by the Office 

20 of Management and Budget on December 16, 2004 (70 

21 Fed. Reg. 2664; January 14, 2005), shall not apply to 

22 any agency that has established its own peer review proc23 ess. The Office of Management and Budget shall not take 

24 any action to discourage an agency from determining and 
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1 establishing a peer-review process appropriate for its 

2 needs. 

3 SEC. 7. STATE OF SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY REPORT. 

4 By January 15 of each year, beginning with January 

5 15, 2006, the Director of the Office of Science and Tech6 nology Policy shall provide to Congress a report address7 ing— 

8 (1) major controversies regarding scientific in9 tegrity that arose during the year, and the current 

10 status of such controversies, including controversies 

11 brought to the attention of the Director by members 

12 of Congress; 

13 (2) by agency and with respect to the period 

14 covered by the report— 

15 (A) the number of instances in which the 

16 amendments made by sections 3(a), 3(b), and 

17 4(a), respectively, were violated; and 

18 (B) a brief description of the violations to 

19 which the information under subparagraph (A) 

20 relates, excluding any information that identi21 fies or makes possible the identification of any 

22 individual; 

23 (3) Federal policy changes during the year re24 lated to scientific integrity, including changes that 

25 affect the right to publish, the use of data, commu-
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1 nications with the public, participation in profes2 sional scientific activities, and Federal advisory com3 mittee membership; and 

4 (4) administration efforts specifically designed 

5 to further scientific integrity. 

6 SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) FEDERAL SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COM9 MITTEE.—The term ‘‘Federal scientific advisory 

10 committee’’ means any advisory committee estab11 lished in whole or in part to provide expert scientific 

12 advice, or to provide policy advice based in whole or 

13 in part on an assessment of scientific information. 

14 (2) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘advi15 sory committee’’ has the meaning provided in section 

16 3(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

17 U.S.C. App.). 

18 (3) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ has the same 

19 meaning as in section 551(1) of title 5, United 

20 States Code. 

21 (4) SCIENTIFIC.—The term ‘‘scientific’’ means 

22 relating to the natural, medical, or social sciences or 

23 engineering, encompassing, but not limited to, the 

24 fields considered related to science and engineering 

25 by the National Science Foundation. 
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1 (5) TAMPERING.—The term ‘‘tampering’’ 

2 means improperly altering or obstructing so as to 

3 substantially distort, or directing others to do so. 

4 (6) CENSORSHIP.—The term ‘‘censorship’’ 

5 means improper prevention of the dissemination of 

6 valid and nonclassified scientific findings. 

7 (7) SPECIAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE.—The 

8 term ‘‘special Government employee’’ has the same 

9 meaning as in section 202(a) of title 18, United 

10 States Code. 

11 (8) ADVISORY COMMITTEE MANAGEMENT OFFI12 CER.—The term ‘‘Advisory Committee Management 

13 Officer’’ means the officer designated under section 

14 8(b) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

15 U.S.C. App.). 

16 (9) DESIGNATED AGENCY ETHICS OFFICIAL.—

17 The term ‘‘designated agency ethics official’’ has the 

18 same meaning as in section 109(3) of the Ethics in 

19 Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.).

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