H.R. 9277: To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide that judicial review under the Administrative Procedure Act does not include any evidence that the court determines is not the product of reliable scientific principles and methods.

This bill would change how federal courts review certain agency actions under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), which is the law people often use to challenge government agency decisions.

Under current APA rules, a court can set aside an agency action if it is, among other things, unsupported by substantial evidence in some cases or arbitrary and capricious in others. This bill would add a new rule saying that courts cannot rely on evidence that they decide is not based on reliable scientific principles and methods, or that does not reflect a reliable use of those scientific principles and methods.

What this means in practice

• When a court reviews an agency decision, it would be able to disregard evidence that the court finds scientifically unreliable.
• The bill would give judges a clearer basis to reject scientific evidence they consider flawed, weak, or improperly applied.
• This would affect judicial review of federal agency actions, especially in cases involving science, data, technical studies, or expert analysis.

Scope

The change would be made in Section 706(2) of title 5 of the U.S. Code, which is a core part of the APA’s standards for judicial review. The bill does not itself create new agency powers or new regulations; instead, it changes what kinds of evidence courts may consider when reviewing agency decisions.

Likely effects

• Agency rules or decisions that depend on scientific studies or technical evidence could face closer scrutiny in court.
• Parties challenging or defending agency actions could spend more time arguing about whether certain studies or expert opinions are scientifically reliable.
• The bill could make it harder for agencies to rely on evidence that a court views as methodologically weak or poorly supported.

Relevant Companies

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