From vaccine deniers to flat Earthers, from COVID-19 to global warming conspiracy theorists, science skeptics are becoming more vocal and influential every day. Now Congress is trying to address that problem with the newly introduced Scientific Integrity Act.
The bill was introduced in the House by Congressman Paul D. Tonko (D-NY). Actually, re-introduced would be more accurate. Tonko had introduced the bill in the 117th Congress, but it had failed to make any traction.
Among other things, the bipartisan legislation sets clear, enforceable standards for federal agencies and federally-funded research to keep public science independent from political and special interest meddling. The idea is that the public will never trust science if it is seen as a political tool. “Public science must be about the pursuit of truth—not about serving political objectives,” Congressman Tonko said.
In a press release, Tonko commented that the Scientific Integrity Act “provides much-needed protections for our federal scientists, helps repair public trust, and better enables us to address and solve the pressing challenges our communities face.” He added, “I’m grateful to my colleagues in the House for their commitment to restore scientific integrity and advance this legislation and ensure that these standards are protected under the full force of law.”
Among its provisions, the bill:
- Requires federal agencies that fund or direct public science to establish & maintain clear scientific integrity principles, formalizing and strengthening these policies with the force of law;
- Clarifies that science should determine policy, free from inappropriate politics, ideology, or financial conflicts of interest
- Holds public scientists to the highest standards while guaranteeing their rights and protections under the law.