EPA, Accused of Bias and Discrimination Against Conservative Groups

Washington, D.C. – Republican Study Committee Chairman Steve Scalise today led 34 other Members of Congress in demanding answers from the EPA on bias and discrimination against conservative-leaning groups.

The letter to Acting EPA Administrator Bob Perciasepe stems from a report by the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) analyzing the discriminatory handling of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) fee waiver requests for left and right leaning organizations.  The CEI findings show that the EPA approved FOIA fee-waivers 92 percent of the time for left-leaning groups, but denied the same requests 93 percent of the time for right-leaning groups.

“Granting waivers to more than 90 percent of left-leaning groups while denying waivers to more than 90 percent of right-leaning groups is not a coincidence, and is another example of the Obama Administration’s political thuggery against people who don’t agree with their liberal political views,” Scalise said.  “Politics should not play a role in approving or denying fee waivers, and the EPA clearly crossed the line by injecting bias and favoritism into their decision making process.  The American people deserve a fair, honest, accountable, and transparent federal government, but all we’ve been seeing lately from the Obama Administration is a disturbing pattern of favoritism for their friends while targeting and punishing their enemies.  From the IRS to the NLRB and now to the EPA, this is just the latest in an alarming string of scandals and bias from the Obama Administration that has left a serious crack in the public trust. The EPA’s liberal bias and unequal treatment based on political leanings indeed raises serious questions that need to be answered, and I look forward to a swift reply.”

In the letter, Scalise specifically demanded that the EPA disclose:

• Who at EPA is in charge of determining whether fee-waiver requests are granted or denied?
• What review processes are in place to ensure bias in decision-making does not occur?
• What are the consequences for employees who are found to have discriminated against American citizens based on their political views?
• How will your internal review capture the time-frame not referenced in the CEI findings?
• What actions have you taken and do you plan to take to hold those accountable for any biased handling of FOIA fee waiver requests at the EPA?

The full letter can be found here.

---

ags: EPA, accused. bias, discrimination, EPA, Against, Conservative Groups, Republican Study Committee, Steve Scalise To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!