The Clinton administration proposed a bill Friday that would let Americans living near dangerous chemicals know the casualty estimates for a worst-case accident in their region, while attempting to keep the information out of the hands of terrorists who might use it to plan an attack. The EPA last fall considered posting detailed worst-case chemical accident scenarios for the whole nation on the Internet, but dropped the plan after concerns were raised by the FBI, CIA, and lawmakers. Under the new plan, the agency would release info on paper to people who request it about their particular geographic area. Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), who has opposed release of a national database with the info, plans to write his own bill. Environmental groups want a national database to be made fully accessible.
