To: Dr. Jane Lubchenco, NOAA Administrator
Paying for it once is enough!
Dear Dr. Jane Lubchenco,
We strongly urge the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to reject Congress’s request to charge fees for access to their data. Congress cites soaring costs for the data collection as the motivation for this request. This is a red herring. Most of the would-be purchasers of the data are other government agencies. As such, charging for access to NOAA’s data would be little more than robbing Peter to pay Paul. It would, however, stifle The United States’ tradition of free and open access to information generated with public funds. It would suppress the creativity of academics working with little or no funding. It would push the United States further along the path toward becoming a full-fledged pay-as-you-go, ownership society. Urge NOAA to reject Congress’s attempt to turn the United States into a plutocracy. NOAA is funded by tax-payer’s dollars and tax payers should have access to the data it generates. So please reject Congress’s request.
Sincerely,
Citizens for scientific integrity and independence.
Why is this important?
Urge the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to reject Congress’s request to charge fees for access to their data. Congress cites soaring costs for the data collection as the motivation for this request. This is a red herring. Most of the would-be purchasers of the data are other government agencies. As such, charging for access to NOAA’s data would be little more than robbing Peter to pay Paul. It would, however, stifle America’s tradition of free and open access to information generated with public funds. It would suppress the creativity of academics working with little or no funding. It would push the United States further along the path toward becoming a full-fledged pay-as-you-go, ownership society. Urge NOAA to reject Congress’s attempt to turn the United States into a plutocracy. NOAA is funded by tax-payer’s dollars and tax payers should have access to the data it generates. So please join me in urging NOAA to reject Congress’s request.