NOAA and NASA = Unethical, unscientific -- and illegal, too?

The current brouhaha which is also being referred to as climategate II concerns data collected and maintained by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin.(NOAA), part of the Dept. of Commerce and by NASA. Seems that there are various unadjusted versions of temperature data (there should only be 1), missing or hidden original data, and many disappearing measurement stations. Furthermore, the rationale and methodology for adjusting it should be available, and probably opened to public comment in advance. (Check "watts up with that" and chiefio)

How can these agencies be held accountable? This is a public trust issue, not just a matter of professional integrity. Turns out that Congress passed a law that addresses this:

Information Quality Act, Pub. L. No. 106-554, section 515; 
see also, “Guidelines for Ensuring and Maximizing the Quality, Objectivity, Utility, and Integrity of Information Disseminated by Federal Agencies” (67 FR 8452) and your agency’s Information Quality Act guidelines. 4  
The Federal Government has defined quality and objectivity in, “Guidelines for Ensuring and Maximizing the Quality, Objectivity, Utility, and Integrity of Information Disseminated by Federal Agencies” (67 FR 8452). Quality is “…the encompassing term, of which ‘utility,’ ‘objectivity,’ and ‘integrity’ are the constituents.” “‘Objectivity’ focuses on whether the disseminated information is being presented in an accurate, clear, complete, and unbiased manner, and as a matter of substance, is accurate, reliable, and unbiased.” 
(From a December 8, 2009 OMB memo regarding open government directive)

There are also federal laws concerning official records. Ask Sandy Berger about this one:

Concealment, Removal, or Mutilation of Records

(18 U.S.C. § 2071)
(a) Whoever willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates, obliterates, or destroys, or attempts to do so, or, with intent to do so takes and carries away any record, proceeding, map, book, paper, document, or other thing, filed or deposited with any clerk or officer of any court of the United States, or in any public office, or with any judicial or public officer of the United States, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.
(b) Whoever, having the custody of any such record, proceeding, map, book, document, paper, or other thing, willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates, obliterates, falsifies, or destroys the same, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both; and shall forfeit his office and be disqualified from holding any office under the United States. As used in this subsection, the term “office” does not include the office held by any person as a retired officer of the Armed Forces of the United States.

So, who's going to file a complaint? I would have to change my employment and maybe career, which I'm not in a good position to do at the moment.



Link list:
D'Aleo on NOAA Sea Surface temperature change claims
Andrew Watts, "Is the US Surface Temperature Record Reliable?" pdf available at surfacestations.org
Newsmax discussion with Dr. Gray - It's all about the money
American Thinker article including links to KUSI interview, summary of issues with missing and "corrected" NOAA data, plus explanations of the NASA GISTemp data massaging. (Massaging is as kind as I can be; made it up is more like it.)
John Coleman's corner
WSJ "The Tip of the Climategate Iceberg" article discussing efforts to get NOAA and NASA to release data and records of adjustments, codes, etc.
NOAA Climate Change page censored?
The Dog Ate Global Warming