Bill gives industry groups more environmental protection control

Wisconsin lawmakers are considering a Republican-sponsored bill that would give industry groups and politicians more control over environmental protection, according to a report from the Wisconsin State Journal. Under the proposed legislation, individuals, businesses, or members of the Legislature’s rules committee could use external “peer review” panels to halt or alter proposed administrative rules and block state scientists from even recommending health-based groundwater standards for pollutants. Midwest Environmental Advocates Executive Director Tony Wilkin Gibart said the bill would invite industry-influenced research to dictate whether Wisconsinites will have their air and water protected. The bill was drafted by Republican Sen. Mary Felzkowski with input from a pesticide industry lobbyist, and it has support from groups including Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, the Wisconsin Paper Council, the American Chemistry Council, and the Wisconsin Corn Growers Association. Felzkowski said the bill is about transparency and holding state agencies accountable for scientific irregularities.