WASHINGTON (October 30, 2007) - Spurred by the recalls of millions of unsafe toys this summer, the Senate Commerce Committee today approved bipartisan legislation sponsored by Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) that substantially improves the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), giving it more resources and staff. The bill includes whistleblower protection for agency employees, a provision that heartened the Union of Concerned Scientists, a leading science advocacy group that has been critical of how the current administration has muzzled federal scientists.
 
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) inserted language into the bill that strengthened whistleblower protections, provided for more resources, and granted the agency's inspector general more authority.

"Whistleblower protections and a more active inspector general should send a strong signal to CPSC managers not to distort the findings of agency staff or suppress findings that can protect public safety," said Francesca Grifo, director of the UCS Scientific Integrity Program.

"The whistleblower provision should dissuade top-level agency officials from manipulating staff research," she added. "But when the House takes up its companion bill, it should go  further to make sure the agency is accountable and its deliberations are open to the public. 
 
"Staff scientists' views and concerns about product safety must be part of the public record. They also must have the right to publish their research and have the freedom to express their views outside the agency."