Policy

Watchdog groups and the Associated Press report on federal agency foot-dragging in making a reality of Obama administration declarations that it would foster government transparency.

A new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists documents the Obama administration's declarations that it intends to be more open. But the same report also documents the many actions not taken at the agency level.

Environment Canada ignored a similar letter from SEJ sent a year ago, requesting restoration of public access to science that taxpayers have paid for.

A new rule signed by EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson restores cuts in how much data communities can get about nearby industrial releases of toxic substances.

A year-old National Institutes of Health policy requiring results of taxpayer-funded research articles to be posted online could be reversed by a bill introduced by Rep. John Conyers, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

EPA's public release of the latest Toxics Release Inventory data -- and rollback of Bush-era cutbacks on the amount of information chemical companies must report -- may have marked the beginning of a new era for the embattled program.

Carrying out a January 21 order by President Barack Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder has reversed the so-called "Ashcroft Memo," which had encouraged agencies during the George Bush presidency to err on the side of secrecy.

After years of effort, and despite a last-minute gambit by the outgoing President Bush, US policy for offshore energy development is going back to the drawing board. DOI is extending by six months the public comment period on the country's 5-year plan.