Prize upgrade!

FOUR contestants will win Internet access to BNA's Daily Environment Report
until January 2000 -- about a $2,000 value.
ONE contestant will win a 1-year subscription to the Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition
This contest is not sanctioned or endorsed by the Bureau of National Affairs or the Wall Street Journal.

To enter, simply click here to send an e-mail to the Office of Management and Budget containing your comments on the proposed data access rule.

At the conclusion of the public comment period around (April 4, 1999), each person who e-mailed a comment to the Office of Management and Budget according to contest rules, will be entered into a random drawing for a 1-year subscription to the Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition

The Junkman will draw five winners who will be notified immediately by e-mail. The Prizes will be awarded by the Junk Science Home Page.

It does not matter whether you are 'for' the data access rule (i.e., against 'secret' science) or 'against' the data accesss rule (i.e., for 'secret science), you enter the contest simply by expressing your opinion in an e-mail to President Clinton.

You don't need to be a rocket scientist to form an opinion on the proposed data access rule. If you need information on data access:

• Click here for a news article spotlighting the use of "secret science."
• Click here for the House- Senate Conference Report on the data access law.
• Click here for Senate colloquy on the data access law.
• Click here for the proposed rule.

So there are no excuses for not participating. If you can read and think, you can have your own opinion. As an example, here's the Junkman's e-mail to the mr. F. James Charney, Policy Analyst, Office of Management and Budget.

Dear Mr. Charney:

I support the proposed rule granting the public access to scientific data paid for by taxpayers and used by federal agencies in developing policy and rules.

The purpose of the rule is to ensure that data developed with taxpayer funds is available for independent scientific review.

This rule will prevent "secret science" from being used to establish federal policy and rules.

The public has the right-to-know the basis of federal policy and rules. By facilitating independent scientific review of key data, the rule will also help reduce the use of "junk science" in the development of federal policy and rules.

With respect to the language of the proposed rule, I urge that the language be clarified to state that any and all data underlying any and all scientific studies used in rulemaking processes are accessible through Freedom of Information Act requests.

I understand that requests for data may involve legitimate medical privacy and proprietary concerns. I believe these concerns can be easily managed without interfering with the public's basic right-to-know the basis for proposed federal policy and rules.

Sincerely,

Steven J. Milloy, Washington, D.C.

So click here to e-mail your comments to the Office of Management and Budget and enter the 'Stop Secret Science' Sweepstakes!