National Academy of Sciences sanctions White House climate aide

The National Academy of Sciences is prohibiting White House climate aide Jane Lubchenco from being involved in NAS activities and publications for five years after she violated its code of conduct, the prestigious nonprofit organization said.

Lubchenco, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy's deputy director for climate and environment, is being sanctioned in relation to a paper she edited for the academy before she joined the Biden administration, an official told Axios. The paper was redacted from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in October because one of the authors was Lubchenco's brother-in-law and the underlying data was not the newest available.

The decision, which was effective Aug. 8 but published by Axios on Tuesday, is based on the NAS code of conduct, which states members "shall avoid those detrimental research practices that are clear violations of the fundamental tenets of research."

After the academy made its decision.Lubchenco said: "I accept these sanctions for my error in judgment in editing a paper authored by some of my research collaborators — an error for which I have publicly stated my regret."

Under the Obama administration, Lubchenco oversaw the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. She has been spearheading the Biden administration's efforts to develop scientific integrity policies throughout the government.