Dr. John H. Marburger III, Director
Office of Science and Technology Policy
725 17th Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20502
Dear Dr. Marburger:
In March of 2006, after several allegations of interference by the Administration with conclusions and statements made by federal scienctists in their reports - particularly as they related to climate change - you met with the principal science officials from all the federal agencies and departments. You urged them to adopt media contact policies similar to those issued by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). NASA's policy encourages "the free exchange of ideas, data and information as part of scientific and technical inquiry. Scientific and technical information from or about Agency programs and projects will be accurate and unfiltered."
We expect our government researchers and scientists to provide to both Congress and the public the full results of their taxpayer-supported work without the filter that those of opposing views might like to impose. Otherwise, we cannot have a full and free scientific debate. Therefore, we were very disappointed after all these commitments you have made publicly to scientific integrity, to read today that your office had played a role in removing sections of the testimony prepared for Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to present at a Senate hearing on "Examining the Human Health Impacts of Global Warming," concerning the impact of climate change on public health and potential health risks. According to Dana Perino, the White House press secretary, the Office of Science and Technology Policy did not believe the science in the testimony matched the science that was in a report by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). ...
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