Rep. Lamar Smith’s battle against federal scientists and communications officials related to an important climate change study is turning into a partisan kerfuffle.

Smith, chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, has been criticized by Texas Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, the top Democrat on the committee, for subpoenas sent to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The subpoenas seek communications related to a study showing the rate of global warming did not change during the last 15 years, as was previously believed.