By Bryan Thompson, KPR

WASHINGTON, D.C. — All four Kansas members of the U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of three bills last week that seek to rein in the Environmental Protection Agency.

The most controversial of the three measures is called the Secret Science Reform Act. Backers say it would prohibit the EPA from relying on data that isn’t publicly available in making rules and regulations. They contend it’s about transparency, while opponents say the real goal is to tie the EPA’s hands.

Dozens of prominent scientific organizations testified against the bill, saying much of the research EPA uses includes patient information, which by law is confidential. Written testimony included a joint statement by Harold Wimmer, president and CEO of the American Lung Association, and Stephen C. Crane, executive director of the American Thoracic Society.

“The legislation before the Congress will compel the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to either ignore the best science by prohibiting the agency from considering peer-reviewed research that is based on confidential patient information or force EPA to publicly release confidential patient information, which would violate federal law,” Wimmer and Crane said in the statement. “This is an untenable outcome that would completely undermine the ability of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to perform its responsibilities under the Clean Air Act and myriad other federal laws. The legislation will not improve EPA’s actions, rather it will stifle public health protections.”

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the bill likely would force the EPA to cut in half the number of scientific studies it uses and add up to $1.5 billion in administrative costs.

Another measure, called the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act of 2014, would change the makeup of the panel that advises the EPA administrator on matters including the relevance and quality of scientific and technical information used in regulatory decisions. One part of the measure reads, “Board members may not participate in advisory activities that directly or indirectly involve review or evaluation of their own work.”

Union of Concerned Scientists director Andrew Rosenberg said in a Roll Call editorial last week that the clause means that “academic scientists who know the most about a subject can’t weigh in, but experts paid by corporations who want to block regulations can.”

The bill also would make it easier for industry experts to serve on the advisory panel, while making it more difficult for scientists who’ve applied for EPA grants in the past to be appointed.

The measure includes requirements for members of the board to disclose potential conflicts of interest, and bars them from weighing in on matters affecting any specific party in which they have an interest.

The third bill, called the Promoting New Manufacturing Act, would require the EPA to publicly report the number of preconstruction permits it issues for construction or modification of businesses — like power plants — that emit large amounts of air pollution. Among other provisions, it would require the EPA to report on actions to speed up the review of these permits.

All three bills passed on largely partisan votes in the House, with Republicans in favor and Democrats opposed. Kansas Republican Reps. Tim Huelskamp, Lynn Jenkins, Mike Pompeo and Kevin Yoder voted in favor of all three measures.

The White House has threatened to veto all three bills if they make it through the Senate.

Bryan Thompson is a reporter for Heartland Health Monitor, a news collaboration focusing on health issues and their impact in Missouri and Kansas.

JIM SALTER, Associated Press
DAVID A. LIEB, Associated Press

FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) — A grand jury has decided not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson in the death of Michael Brown, the unarmed, black 18-year-old whose fatal shooting sparked weeks of sometimes-violent protests.

St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch announced the decision Monday evening. A grand jury of nine whites and three blacks had been meeting weekly since Aug. 20 to consider evidence.

At least nine votes would have been required to indict Wilson.

The Justice Department is conducting an investigation into possible civil rights violations that could result in federal charges.

Brown’s Aug. 9 death sparked more than a week of unrest that included angry clashes between police and protesters and led Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon to briefly summon the National Guard.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

A grand jury has reached a decision about whether to indict a Ferguson police officer in the shooting death of Michael Brown.

In a brief email to reporters, a spokesman for St. Louis County’s top prosecutor said the decision would be announced at 8 p.m. at the downtown courthouse in the St. Louis County seat of Clayton. He offered no other details.

As the nation awaited the announcement, authorities quickly stepped up security around the courthouse. Barricades were erected, and more than 20 Missouri state troopers were seen silently assembling with rifles, 3-foot batons, riot shields and other equipment. Some nearby businesses boarded up their windows, just as many shops have already done near the site of Brown’s death in Ferguson.

School and business closings scrolled on local television as if there were a snowstorm.

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon urged people to remain peaceful as he appeared at a news conference with the state’s public safety director and the leaders of St. Louis city and county.

“Our shared hope and expectation is that regardless of the decision, people on all sides show tolerance, mutual respect and restraint,” Nixon said.

The governor said he did not know what the grand jury had decided.

Hours before the announcement, dozens of people gathered in the parking lot across the street from the Ferguson Police Department. Many stood right at the edge of the lot, almost in the street, chanting things “no justice, no peace, no racist police.”

One woman leading the group screamed through a bullhorn “indict that cop. Police don’t like it. We want an indictment.”

Several young men in hooded sweatshirts that said “Peace Keepers” kept people from streaming into the street. A couple of people approached the police department building, but a woman asked them to protest the right way and pulled them into a prayer circle. Shortly after that, 15 uniformed officers came out to monitor the protests.

The grand jury has been considering charges against Darren Wilson, the white suburban St. Louis officer who fatally shot the black 18-year-old after a confrontation in August.

The Aug. 9 shooting inflamed tensions in the predominantly black St. Louis suburb that is patrolled by an overwhelmingly white police force. As Brown’s body lay for hours in the center of a residential street, an angry crowd of onlookers gathered. Rioting and looting occurred the following night, and police responded with armored vehicles and tear gas.

Protests continued for weeks — often peacefully, but sometimes turning violent, with demonstrators throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails and police firing smoke canisters, tear gas and rubber bullets.

Nixon said the National Guard will provide security at “critical facilities,” such as police and fire stations and utility substations, and would offer other support as needed.

St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said demonstrators would be given leeway to slow down traffic in the streets, but “we will not allow them to hurt anyone or damage anyone’s property.”

St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley urged people to “think with their head and not with their emotion.”

Anticipating the potential for large demonstrations, more than 15 school districts canceled Monday evening activities and several extended their Thanksgiving break by canceling classes Tuesday. Washington University closed a satellite campus in Clayton.

Pastors were planning a rally and prayer service later Monday evening at the West Side Missionary Baptist Church in St. Louis.

“There’s a lot of hurt, a lot of brokenness. There’s anger and frustration on every side,” said the Rev. Ronald Bobo Sr., the church’s pastor. “We need the hand of God to lead us and guide us.”

The 12-person grand jury met in secret for months, hearing evidence from a wide variety of witnesses as it weighed whether Wilson’s should face charges that could range from involuntary manslaughter to murder. The grand jurors could also decide not to charge Wilson at all.

At the lower end of the possible charges is second-degree involuntary manslaughter, which is defined as acting with criminal negligence to cause a death. It is punishable by up to four years in prison. The most serious charge, first-degree murder, can be used only when someone knowingly causes a death after deliberation and is punishable by either life in prison or lethal injection.

JUNCTION CITY- A Kansas man was injured in an accident just after 2 p.m. on Monday in Geary County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1996 Chevy pickup driven by Vincent A. Biehler, 67, Herington, was north bound on U. S.77 three miles south of Interstate 70.

The vehicle went off the roadway, struck a guardrail and overturned.
Biehler was transported to Geary County Hospital.

The KHP reported he was properly restrained at the time of the accident.

TOM KRISHER, AP Auto Writer

DETROIT (AP) — Honda is admitting that it failed to report more than 1,700 injury and death claims about its vehicles to U.S. safety regulators, a violation of federal law.

The automaker says that it found out about the omissions in 2011, yet it took about three years to take action.

The company says it filed documents detailing the lapses on Monday with regulators. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had demanded an explanation on Nov. 3. The agency said at the time that Honda may have failed to report incidents related to air bags made by Takata Corp. as well as other defective parts.

Honda blamed the lapses on inadvertent data entry and computer programming errors, as well as a misinterpretation of the law. The automaker says it’s taking corrective action.

MCPHERSON -Authorities have made an arrest in a death of man whose body was found along a McPherson County road earlier this month.
According to a release from the McPherson County Sheriff’s Office, 31-year-old Clinton W. Bascue, from McPherson has been arrested and charged with First Degree Murder in connection with the death of 39-year-old James Amery Croft, originally from Portland, OR.
Mr. Croft was found dead in a car in a ditch in the 2100 block of Moccasin Road approximately .3 mile east of 21st Avenue north of Galva Saturday evening November 15th.
In earlier releases, officials were looking at three persons of interest.
The McPherson County Sheriff’s Office and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation are continuing to investigate this incident.