White House to Review Federal Scientific Integrity Policies


By
Elizabeth Redden
March 30, 2021


The Biden administration will investigate Trump-era political interference in the federal government’s science decision making, The New York Times reported. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy sent a letter to leaders of all federal agencies Monday announcing the formation of a task force aimed at identifying past incidents of political interference and reviewing the effectiveness of federal policies aimed at protecting scientific integrity.

“We know that there were blatant attempts to distort, to cherry pick and disregard science -- we saw that across multiple agencies,” Jane Lubchenco, deputy director for climate and the environment at the White House science office, told the Times in an interview. She added that the Biden administration, is “ushering in a new era.”

Kelvin K. Droegemeier, the former head of the White House science office under Trump, declined the Times’ request for comment.