Improving Scientific Advice to Government

摘要

Congress and federal policymakers draw on independent expert panels for scientific and technical advice in addressing some of society's most controversial and economically significant issues. It is imperative that these panels operate in the most productive manner possible. Yet recent "reforms" intended to increase the panels' transparency and reduce the potential for bias and conflict of interest may be weakening the advisory process. Concern centers particularly on two of the most important sources of advice: the National Research Council (NRC), which is part of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), and the Science Advisory Board (SAB), which serves the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Both the NAS and SAB create panels to develop consensus opinions on some of the most controversial scientific topics of our time, testing science's predictive tools and directly affecting the outcome of federal policies involving billions of dollars in private and public outlays. Interest groups acknowledge the crucial influence of the panels by focusing considerable resources on how NAS and SAB panels are populated and managed.