While President Obama’s stem cell action has managed to suck all the oxygen out of the room (even in Roger’s and Ryan’s good posts), it’s worth taking a look at the other science policy memo of the week.  It gives the not-yet-confirmed Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy 120 days (until June 7) to do the following (key sections after the jump):

“[D]evelop recommendations for Presidential action designed to guarantee scientific integrity throughout the executive branch, based on the following principles:

(a) The selection and retention of candidates for science and technology positions in the executive branch should be based on the candidate’s knowledge, credentials, experience, and integrity;

(b) Each agency should have appropriate rules and procedures to ensure the integrity of the scientific process within the agency;

(c) When scientific or technological information is considered in policy decisions, the information should be subject to well-established scientific processes, including peer review where appropriate, and each agency should appropriately and accurately reflect that information in complying with and applying relevant statutory standards;

(d) Except for information that is properly restricted from disclosure under procedures established in accordance with statute, regulation, Executive Order, or Presidential Memorandum, each agency should make available to the public the scientific or technological findings or conclusions considered or relied on in policy decisions;

(e) Each agency should have in place procedures to identify and address instances in which the scientific process or the integrity of scientific and technological information may be compromised; and

(f) Each agency should adopt such additional procedures, including any appropriate whistleblower protections, as are necessary to ensure the integrity of scientific and technological information and processes on which the agency relies in its decisionmaking or otherwise uses or prepares.”

The rest of the memo has boilerplate language consistent with other Presidential Memoranda.

On close examination, this memo is not particularly earth-shattering.  Here’s why:

What exactly is scientific integrity? This is not a stupid question.  Even if the answer is obvious (I could see a case for (c)), it’s not present in this memo.  Exactly how is something supposed to be preserved if it’s not defined?

Lots of interpretive flexibility. Besides the absence of a definition for the integral concept in the memo, there are other places with plenty of wiggle room.  The OSTP Director is to make recommendations to the President.  There’s no guarantee the President will accept them. The operative verbs in this memo are all should.  I have no idea how many English majors read this (and for those that aren’t, Act V, Scene V), but a conditional verb like should is not as strong as a verb like shall.  Translation – it would be nice if we could follow these guidelines, but we understand there will be circumstances where we can’t, or won’t.

Most of the guidance isn’t that new.  Most agencies, certainly the big science agencies, already follow the basic guidelines in most of this memorandum.  Those agencies that had public fights over alleged scientific censorship are perhaps further along in fulfilling the guidelines.  The notion of a uniform policy across the executive branch is good, but it really just codifies the results of the fights fought during the last Administration.

I may be pleasantly surprised by what results from this memo, but the wording of it doesn’t make that outcome a certainty.  As it reads, it’s okay policy.  As it was implemented, it was better politics.