Fostering Scientific Integrity

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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more news

Greenhouse Gases are Peachy Keen, 40 Senators Say

Jan 22, 2010 by Matthew Madia

Yesterday, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and a whopping 39 co-sponsors introduced a resolution that would disapprove the Environmental Protection Agency’s endangerment finding for greenhouse gas emissions.

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FDA Calls BPA Risky, but Puts off Regulation

Jan 19, 2010 by Matthew Madia

On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration made its long-awaited announcement on the safety of bisphenol-A, a chemical ingredient in hard plastics, food can liners, and other common products. The verdict? “[R]ecent studies provide reason for some concern about the potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior, and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children. FDA also recognizes substantial uncertainties with respect to the overall interpretation of these studies and their potential implications for human health effects of BPA exposure.”

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OMB Watch Suggests Improvements for Information Policy

Jan 4, 2010 by Matthew Madia

There’s no time like the holidays – when packages are wrapped up tight with paper only to be torn apart – to talk about paperwork. That’s why OMB Watch has submitted to the White House comments on improving implementation of the Paperwork Reduction Act.

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Transparency: Change You can Trust

In 2008, we heard a lot about "change." In this 2009 year-end summary, we use another type of "change" to rate the Obama administration's transparency efforts thus far.

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In Drinking Water, What’s Legal Can Be Poisonous

Dec 17, 2009 by Matthew Madia

In another of The New York Times’ startling articles on the state of U.S. waters, Charles Duhigg reports on the myriad chemicals polluting drinking water supplies and regulators’ inability to manage them.

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FDA Delays Decision on Chemical in Plastics

Dec 1, 2009 by Matthew Madia

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) missed a self-imposed deadline to make a determination about the safety of bisphenol-A (BPA), a chemical ingredient in hard plastics, food can liners, and other common products. Studies have linked BPA exposure to heart disease, developmental disorders, and other health problems.

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OSHA Misses Injuries and Illnesses, GAO Says

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cannot adequately verify lost-time injury and illness cases reported by employers, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Although injury and illness rates for workers have been declining in recent years, critics say the improvement has more to do with OSHA data collection procedures than occupational safety and health policy.

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OMB Responds to Criticism over Endocrine Program

Nov 19, 2009 by Matthew Madia

White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Peter Orszag said Monday that OMB did not improperly interfere in an EPA program meant to test the hormone-disrupting effects of chemicals. Orszag said that EPA has complete control over the program.

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Plastics Chemical Poses Sexual Health Risks to Exposed Workers

Nov 12, 2009 by Matthew Madia

Researchers spent years studying the effects of bisphenol-A (BPA) exposure on factory workers in China, and the news isn't good. The key findings of the study, which was funded by the U.S. National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, are more or less summed up in two passages.

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Groups Urge Transparency in Health Care Reform Implementation

Nov 4, 2009 by Matthew Madia

Twenty groups, including OMB Watch, have sent a letter calling on Congress to include accountability and transparency provisions in any health care reform legislation. Specifically, the groups focused on federal advisory committees – panels that will provide critical advice on health care issues if legislation is passed. The groups represent a wide variety of public interest issues.

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