PRESS RELEASE: Representatives Urge White House to Support Public Access to Federally Funded Research

“This morning, Congressman Mike Doyle (D-PA) and 12 other Members of Congress sent a letter to the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) at the White House in support of policies promoting greater public access to the results of federally funded research. In the letter, Members encouraged the OSTP to implement rules that require federal agencies to permit free access to published works funded by federal dollars.  Such policies would ‘promote the broadest possible return on taxpayer investment in academic research,’ the Members wrote. ‘The Internet has made access to information exponentially easier and faster,’ Congressman Doyle said. ‘So it’s only logical that we help our scientists share their research as widely as possible online, to encourage greater collaboration and innovation in the sciences. I think this is the wave of the future and I urge the OSTP to implement public access policies to support our nation’s leadership in the sciences.  I think keeping taxpayer-funded research behind expensive paywalls runs counter to the goals of encouraging continued U.S. economic competitiveness.’The Members point out in the letter that public access policies are ‘well-tested, common sense efforts that have not led to any known reports of job losses or financial cutbacks in the publishing industry.  On the other hand, they have received the utmost praise of innovators and 
researchers whose access to that data expands the value of federal R&D investment.’ The letter was signed by Reps. Mike Doyle, Kevin Yoder, Wm. Lacy Clay, Henry Waxman, Michael Fitzpatrick, Zoe Lofgren, Bobby Rush, Jared Polis, Ron Paul, Michael Capuano, Russ Carnahan, Tim Holden, and Donald Manzullo. The text of the letter is below...”