Volume 150, No. 71 covering the 2nd Session of the 108th Congress (2003 - 2004) was published by the Congressional Record.
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“PAPERWORK AND REGULATORY IMPROVEMENTS ACT OF 2004” mentioning the Environmental Protection Agency was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E920 on May 19, 2004.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PAPERWORK AND REGULATORY IMPROVEMENTS ACT OF 2004
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speech of
HON. EARL BLUMENAUER
of oregon
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Chairman, I speak out in opposition to H.R. 2432, the ``Paperwork and Regulatory Improvements Act of 2003.'' This bill would weaken, rather than improve, the process of developing federal regulations by elevating the interests of regulated industries over all other considerations. The bill would needlessly divert resources from implementing important regulations and does nothing to protect current public health and environmental regulations, which are under fire from the Bush administration. These are regulations that even the Office of Management and Budget has indicated have immense benefits: in September of 2003 an OMB study concluded that environmental regulations are well worth the costs they impose on industry and consumers, resulting in significant public health improvements and other benefits to society. For example, the study found that the health and social benefits of enforcing clean-air regulations during the past decade were five to seven times greater in economic terms than were the costs of complying with the rules. Yet the Bush administration continues to issue rules and guidelines that weaken the Clean Air Act.
I strongly support the Waxman-Tierney amendment to establish an independent commission on the politicization of science in the regulatory process. The amendment responds to a growing concern among scientists and the environmental community that the Bush administration is placing politics above science. From refusing to release a report contradicting their views in the Klamath basin of Oregon to removing information on global warming in an Environmental Protection Agency report, this administration has shown little more than flat out contempt for science. Just last month we saw the Bush administration issue a new policy that would allow hatchery-raised salmon in the Pacific Northwest to be included in wild salmon population counts, which could have a significant impact on whether or not the species are listed under the Endangered Species Act. Press accounts show that this was done over the objection of an independent panel of scientists commissioned by National Marine Fisheries Service to advise them on the issue.
In February of this year, 60 leading scientists--including 20 Nobel laureates, leading medical experts, former federal agency directors, and university chairs and presidents--voiced their concern over the misuse of science by this administration. I am deeply disappointed that H.R. 2432 takes us in the wrong direction by advancing a misguided concept that elevates the interests of regulated industries over the health of our communities.
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