Oh, it's worse than that. Akin is a member of the House's Science and Technology committee. He can set policy for the following non-defense federal scientific research and development areas. Specifically, the committee has partial or complete jurisdiction over the following federal agencies: NASA, the Department of Energy, EPA, ATSDR, NSF, FAA, NOAA, National Institute of Standards and Technology, FEMA, the U.S. Fire Administration, and United States Geological Survey.