Citing the confidentiality of the requested documents and the integrity of the scientific process, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said it won’t give Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) what he recently subpoenaed about the research.
At the center of the controversy is a study that concluded there has not been a 15-year “pause” in global warming. Some NOAA scientists contributed to the report.
Skeptics of climate change, including Smith, have cited the pause to prove that increased greenhouse gas emissions, mostly from burning fossil fuels, are not heating up the globe.
Smith, the chairman of the House Science Committee, vehemently disagreed with the study’s findings. He subpoenaed for communications among the scientists and some data, leading to charges from Democrats that he was trying to intimidate the researchers.
Late Tuesday, NOAA provided Smith with some more information about its methods and data, but refused to give Smith all he wanted.
NOAA spokeswoman Ciaran Clayton said the internal communications are confidential, and not related to what Smith is trying to find out.
“We have provided data (all of which is publicly available online), supporting scientific research, and multiple in person briefings,” she said.
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