GOP-backed measures seek to rein in science used at EPA

WASHINGTON — Pondering new restrictions on how the Environmental Protection Agency can use scientific data, congressional Republicans are seeking advice from the chemical and fossil fuel industries. House Science, Space and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith this week accused the Obama administration of relying on faulty and falsified data to justify new regulations, such as limiting carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants. At a hearing Tuesday called “Making EPA Great Again,” Smith’s committee sought to build support for several industry-backed measures by calling on a panel of experts that included a chemical industry representative, a corporate consultant and a coal-company lobbyist.