The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been
pushing model legislation in legislatures throughout the country
to undermine scientific support for environmental protection.
At first glance, some of these bills seem reasonable. The Verifiable
Science Act, for example, seems to simply make scientific data,
used to develop public policy, more accessible to citizens. Two
words make the bill more complicated: pertinent and ascertainable.
These words have no clear legal meaning, which makes policy decisions
more difficult to promulgate. Public access to government documents
is already guaranteed under the federal Freedom of Information
Act, so why do we need another law? The Verifiable Science Act's
true purpose is to restrict agencies' authority to craft policy.
One of these bills was introduced in Vermont in 2003.
The Common Sense Scientific and Technical Evidence Act also appears
to be innocuous by simply defining scientific evidence and expert
testimony. Those definitions, however, have serious consequences
because they significantly limit the evidence that can be presented
to the court. This makes it more difficult for environmental activists
to bring lawsuits against corporate polluters. These types of
ALEC-influenced bills have been introduced in South Dakota, Oregon,
Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.
Not only is ALEC trying to confuse the public's understanding
of scientific process, but they are attempting to rewrite scientific
knowledge by pushing a Resolution on Non-Verified Science Curriculum
Funding and the Environmental Literacy Act. These acts attempt
to control, confine, and intimidate educators into toeing the
corporate line on environmental issues. They set up processes
to defund environmental education and to allow business interests
to write science curriculum.
Through these bills, ALEC is trying to restrict state rights
to protect human health and the environment. They intend to erode
scientific data and public understanding of the threats so that
big business can profit. We need trained professionals to interpret
and disseminate scientific information, not corporations.
Ran 5/13/02, 2/23/04
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