Judge throws out rule limiting what science EPA can use Juliet Eilperin, The Washington Post Feb. 1, 2021 FacebookTwitterEmail EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler departs a White House event in May 2019.Washington Post photo by Jabin Botsford WASHINGTON - A federal judge on Monday vacated the Trump administration rule limiting which scientific studies the Environmental Protection Agency can use in crafting public health protections, overturning one of the last major actions taken by the agency before Joe Biden took office. The ruling by Judge Brian Morris, chief judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana, Great Falls, marked a victory for environmental groups and public health advocates. Two weeks before Biden's inauguration, the EPA finalized a rule requiring researchers to disclose the raw data involved in their public health studies before the agency could rely upon their conclusions.