Federal RuleAug 21
62
DOL Rewrites Disability Rules for 'Merit-Based Opportunity' Push
RuleLabor DepartmentFederal Contract Compliance Programs OfficeSignificant Wallet
S4545119th Congress
Scientific Integrity Act
Sponsored By: Senator Schatz, Brian [D-HI]
Introduced
Summary
Establish a uniform scientific integrity standard across federal research agencies. This bill would require agencies that fund, conduct, or oversee scientific research to adopt enforceable integrity policies with reporting, oversight, training, and dispute processes.
Show full summary
- Researchers, contractors, and grantees would get clear protections against suppression, alteration, intimidation, and retaliation, and explicit rights to publish, speak at conferences, join advisory bodies, and participate in peer review. Policies may allow technical accuracy reviews before public dissemination if a clear process exists.
- Agency leaders and staff would have to appoint a Scientific Integrity Officer, who must be a career employee and work with inspectors general. Agencies would create administrative dispute resolution and regular training programs, with new hires trained within 1 month and other processes set up within 180 days.
- The Office of Science and Technology Policy would review and approve agency policies, post aggregated SIO reports, and convene SIOs annually. Agencies must report misconduct counts and outcomes annually and undergo a Comptroller General review within 2 years and a full policy review every 5 years.
Personalized for You
How does this bill affect your finances?
Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this bill means for your household, plus every other piece of legislation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.
Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
5 provisions identified: 4 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
New scientific integrity rules for agencies
This bill would require each covered agency to adopt a written scientific integrity policy and send it to OSTP within 90 days. If an agency already has a policy, it could send that policy with a written statement that it complies. After OSTP approves a policy, the agency would publish it online and notify the named Congressional committees within 30 days. Agencies would have to send major updates to OSTP and submit the policy for formal review at least every 5 years.
Protections for federal scientific work
This bill would require agency policies to bar research misconduct, suppression or alteration of findings, and retaliation or intimidation. Policies would let covered individuals publish, present at conferences, serve on advisory boards, and participate in peer review, subject to existing law. Agencies would have to ensure scientific conclusions are not based on political considerations and base hiring and retention on expertise, while exempting political appointees. Policies must include whistleblower protections and follow existing administrative appeals.
Scientific Integrity Officer duties
This bill would require each covered agency to name a career Scientific Integrity Officer within 90 days. The officer would prepare annual public reports listing counts of misconduct complaints, anonymized summaries and outcomes, and any policy changes. Agencies would have to report within 30 days if someone outside established channels overrules an officer's decision. OSTP would collect the reports and meet SIOs yearly, and the GAO would review agency implementation within two years.
Agency dispute and training rules
This bill would require agencies to set up an administrative dispute resolution and appeal process within 180 days. Agencies would also have to run regular scientific integrity and ethics training. New covered employees would get training within one month of starting. Training must explain rights, publishing and media rules, and how hearings and appeals work.
Optional review before public release
This bill would allow an agency's policy to require covered individuals to submit technical findings for an accuracy review before public release only if the agency's policy sets a clear, timely review process. This review option would be discretionary, so agencies could choose whether to include it.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Schatz, Brian [D-HI]
HI • D
Cosponsors
Sen. Bennet, Michael F. [D-CO]
CO • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
CT • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Hickenlooper, John W. [D-CO]
CO • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN]
MN • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM]
NM • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA]
MA • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR]
OR • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA]
CA • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Rosen, Jacky [D-NV]
NV • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Schiff, Adam B. [D-CA]
CA • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD]
MD • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Warner, Mark R. [D-VA]
VA • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT]
VT • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Whitehouse, Sheldon [D-RI]
RI • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR]
OR • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Shaheen, Jeanne [D-NH]
NH • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Schumer, Charles E. [D-NY]
NY • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ]
NJ • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA]
MA • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Baldwin, Tammy [D-WI]
WI • D
Sponsored 5/14/2026
Sen. Heinrich, Martin [D-NM]
NM • D
Sponsored 7/21/2026
Sen. Alsobrooks, Angela D. [D-MD]
MD • D
Sponsored 9/29/2026
Sen. Fetterman, John [D-PA]
PA • D
Sponsored 9/29/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov