I would first like to consider the nomination of
John D. Graham to be Administrator of the Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs.
This nomination has been considered through the
regular Committee process. Based on information collected by
Committee staff, letters and other documents received by the
Committee, and hearing testimony, I believe that Dr. Graham is
highly qualified for this position.
Dr. Graham has been a Professor of Policy &
Decision Sciences at the Harvard School of Public Health since
1985. He is founder and Director of the Harvard Center for Risk
Analysis and has worked with various federal agencies on related
issues through his research, advisory committees, and as a
consultant. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and
Politics from Wake Forest University, a Master’s degree in
Public Affairs from Duke University and a Ph.D. in Urban and
Public Affairs from Carnegie Mellon University with an emphasis
on decision science. In addition, EPA funded his post-doctoral
fellowship in environmental science and public policy and he
completed course work and research training in human health risk
assessment. It is interesting to note that the two previous
Administrators of OIRA were attorneys and had only legal
backgrounds. Dr. Graham has received testimonials from former
OIRA administrators, both Republican and Democratic
administrations, as well as from hundreds of leaders in
environmental policy, health policy and related fields. I think
we are fortunate to have a nominee with a strong analytical
background related to the duties of OIRA Administrator.
Opponents of Dr. Graham have charged that
corporations helped fund his Center at Harvard, but we have
shown numerous instances where the Center made findings that ran
contrary to the interests of corporate donors. He was charged
with nondisclosure, but the record shows that Harvard and the
Harvard Center go beyond the norm of similar organizations. He
was charged with being in the pocket of big tobacco, and the
record shows that he cited smoking as a great public health risk
on many occasions and argued that more should be done to curtail
it. These charges have been taken out of context in a very
complicated area.
It is said that he said that safe housing codes
can kill. What his study found was that the future building
codes have caused the price of new homes to rise, and many
middle-income and poor families will have to stay in their
existing dwellings longer. These older dwellings and apartments
have many hazards that do not exist in the new homes. So we had
a two-and-a-half-hour hearing where all of this was vetted, and
I think he is one of the most qualified candidates for this
position that we have ever had.
I think it is important to remember, as Dr.
Graham testified at his hearing, that many of the things that he
has written about have to do with cost-benefit analysis, that it
should be properly done, and at the front end of the process. By
the time it gets to him as OIRA Administrator, a lot of that
work will have already been done. He clearly sees the
distinction between an academic study, where you should look at
this on the front end of the process and weigh all of these
factors, and what his job as OIRA Administrator would be.
In addition, he is not always talking in favor
of less regulation.. What he has spent quite a bit of time on is
pointing out that if we have finite resources, it makes no sense
to be spending money on "X," with a little bit of
protection, when we could be spending money on "Y,"
with more protection. It is not a matter of less regulation all
of the time; it is a matter of more effective regulation. And I
hope that we do not get to the point where we discourage robust
academic discussion if it does not fit in with 51 percent of the
thinking, and certainly the more politically correct thinking,
at all times.
I think the proof ultimately is with his peers.
All of his studies are peer-reviewed. All of his studies that
are funded by private sources have two or three people on those
studies, not just him by himself. And then, ultimately, you have
all of these people coming forth, from both sides of the aisle,
including the environmental community, supporting him. I am
confident that Dr. Graham will effectively be able to transition
from academia to government service and that he will be able to
use his background to bring more insight to the issues that
confront OIRA everyday.
