(Washington, D.C.) – Today, House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Brian Babin and Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Rich McCormick sent letters to the Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and National Science Foundation raising concerns about the role of foreign-backed paper mills, including some linked to the Chinese Communist Party, in enabling fraudulent scientific publishing operations that threaten the integrity of U.S. taxpayer-funded research.
In the letters, the Chairmen warned, "According to available reports, articles based on fabricated data from paper mills are appearing in American academic journals with increasing frequency."
They further wrote, "The real-world consequences of fraudulent research are well documented. For example, a 2006 study on the effects of Alzheimer's disease developed the 'amyloid hypothesis,' which the National Institutes of Health (NIH) subsequently used to justify prioritizing related research. This focus even led NIH to approve an experimental drug whose manufacturer stated it could stabilize amyloid proteins in the brain, halting Alzheimer's progression. However, in 2021, the hypothesis was revealed to have been based on fabricated data. This means that for 16 years, the bulk of Alzheimer's research funding and effort rested on a false foundation."
The Chairmen stressed that falsified research can undermine the credibility of the global scientific enterprise, misdirect taxpayer dollars, and delay critical breakthroughs. They underscored the need to determine what safeguards federal agencies currently have in place to prevent fraudulent or manipulated research from influencing federally funded work.
The letters seek answers from the agencies and initiate oversight into how they vet scientific literature, assess research integrity risks, and guard against foreign-linked compromised findings entering the scientific record. The agencies have been asked to respond by February 27, 2026.
To read Fox News' exclusive on the letters, please click here.
To read the letters to each agency, please click the links below:
• Environmental Protection Agency
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration