One of the last things former President Donald Trump's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) team did was finalize an administrative rule limiting which scientific research can be used to create public health policies. On Monday, a federal judge in Montana vacated the policy, enacted in early January, ruling that the EPA had improperly issued its rule under the Federal Housekeeping Statute, which applies only to procedural changes. The Biden administration had asked the judge, Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court in Great Falls, Montana, to scrap the ruling and send it back to the EPA for review.
Three environmental groups had sued the EPA over the rule, which would assign less weight to public health research that did not include raw data, sidelining studies that used personal medical data and other confidential information from human subjects. Trump's EPA officials argued that the rule would increase transparency and boost public confidence in the agency's environmental rule-making process. Critics said it was designed to reduce the influence of the best available science in crafting policy, limiting the government's ability to protect the public against pollution, harmful chemicals, and maybe even the coronavirus.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Critics' choice: Three takes on tavern diningFeature A second Minetta Tavern, A 1946 dining experience, and a menu with a mission
-
Film reviews: Warfare and A Minecraft MovieFeature A combat film that puts us in the thick of it and five misfits fall into a cubic-world adventure
-
What to know before lending money to family or friendsthe explainer Ensure both your relationship and your finances remain intact
-
China accuses NSA of Winter Games cyberattacksspeed read China alleges that the U.S. National Security Agency launched cyberattacks during the Asian Winter Games in February
-
Russian strike kills dozens in UkraineSpeed Read The Sumy ballistic missile strike was Russia's deadliest attack on civilians this year
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across SyriaTHE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
South Korea court removes impeached presidentSpeed Read The Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment of Yoon Suk Yeol after his declaration of martial law in December
-
Myanmar quake deaths rise as survivor search intensifiesspeed read The magnitude-7.7 earthquake in central Myanmar has killed a documented 2,000 people so far, and left scores more trapped beneath rubble
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weaponsThe Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
-
Israel detains director after West Bank settler clashspeed read The director of Oscar-winning documentary 'No Other Land' was arrested and beaten
-
Turkey arrests Istanbul mayor, a top Erdogan rivalSpeed Read Protests erupted in Turkey after authorities detained Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu
