The EPA’s recent reorganization has ignited fears of political interference in environmental policy and enforcement

EPA on Monday launched an agencywide reorganization that’s expected to sweep a key research office under the oversight of Administrator Lee Zeldin, raising fears among unions about political interference.

In an internal EPA memo obtained by POLITICO’s E&E News, Zeldin told staffers that the agency is ushering in a “new, more efficient, more effective EPA” that focuses on meeting statutory obligations. He said the revamp follows a six-month review by the agency’s leadership.

The administrator in the note to staff declared that “today is day one of the new EPA,” and the first part of a transition period that will play out through the end of November.

In the coming months, Zeldin said agency leaders will work with the newly created Office of Finance and Administration to make changes and that additional information will be shared Monday at an all-hands meeting at EPA at the assistant administrator level.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, we have recommitted our agency to commonsense policies supporting clean air, land, and water for all Americans while unleashing American energy, revitalizing domestic manufacturing, cutting the cost of living for families, and growing innovation and entrepreneurialism,” said Zeldin.

Zeldin touted the agency’s creation of a first-of-its-kind Office of State Air Partnerships and moves to elevate the issues of cybersecurity, emergency response, and water reuse and conservation. He also lauded the creation of the Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions, or OASES, an effort unveiled in May as part of a reorganization announcement. OASES is slated to be located in the Office of the Administrator, according to EPA’s plans.

“We are bolstering scientific capacity where it matters most — directly in our air, water, and land program offices — so that EPA scientists can better-support EPA’s core mission and statutory obligations,” Zeldin said. “We are prioritizing research through the Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions to ensure that science is at the forefront of our decision making.”

The new office, OASES, is expected to absorb functions previously housed under the Office of Research and Development, the scientific research arm of EPA established in the 1970s. EPA formally announced in July it would “eliminate” ORD, with the research office’s 1,500-or-so staffers facing either layoffs or reassignments to other program offices.

Already, the looming revamp has helped prompt some 326 ORD employees to take advantage of two previous early retirement and deferred resignation offers, according to data provided by EPA in July. The agency has not released the number of takers for a third round of the “early out” offers.

Zeldin’s email did not provide details about OASES’ structure, who will lead it and what the size its workforce will be. EPA press aides did not immediately reply Monday to questions seeking those details.

More information, including “an overview of our new organizational structure” for OASES will be told to staffers during an all-hands meeting, according to an email sent by current acting Assistant Administrator for Research and Development Maureen Gwinn, reviewed by E&E News.

Pushback

But scrapping the research office and shifting its replacement directly under Zeldin is riling unions that say critical researchers at EPA will no longer have representation and likely face pressure from political appointees.

“They are putting it directly under the administrator and subjecting it to political interference, subjecting research at the office to political interference,” said Nicole Cantello, president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 704, which represents EPA Region 5 employees. “They are splitting apart ORD for no reason.”

Cantello said the Office of Research and Development has produced “unparalleled” research that scientists have relied on for decades to craft policy and regulations that protect the public and the environment. Splitting up the office, she said, is meant to intimidate scientists and will undermine the credibility of EPA science.

But Cantello said EPA will face pushback on Capitol Hill where Senate appropriators recently moved spending bills requiring EPA to keep the Office of Research and Development intact and funded.

“We’ll see how much support we can get … to roll back this action by the Trump administration,” she said.

Bipartisan Senate appropriators in July approved a spending bill that calls on EPA to keep the research office.

In a report that accompanied the bill, lawmakers blasted EPA for proposing to ax the research office and warned that doing so would cause the agency to lose “biologists, chemists, engineers, ecologists, and other expert scientists numbering in the thousands and the closure of world-class laboratories and research centers.”

“The Agency has touted savings of [$748.8 million] in direct Federal spending, but fails to acknowledge the immeasurable risk to our health and environment that would come from undermining EPA’s ability to clean up hazardous chemicals, respond to disasters, and support states and Tribal Nations with sound, actionable science,” lawmakers wrote.

EPA’s press office also did not respond to a request for comment on the concerns voiced by Cantello and others about the potential for the new office’s work to be politicized.

A spokesperson for Sen. Lisa Murkowski, the Alaska Republican who chairs the Appropriations subcommittee with responsibility for EPA’s budget, did not immediately response to a request for comment Monday

Zeldin in the memo said EPA leaders have met for months to identify a “better” structure that will transform the workforce to better support the agency’s mission, meet statutory obligations, protect human health and the environment, and “Power the Great American Comeback.”

The administrator also acknowledged it will take time for staffers to “settle into our new roles and our new structure” and that more direction is coming.

“As we work through this transition, I encourage you to speak with your manager, to ask questions, and to raise any issues that come up,” said Zeldin.

Despite the blowback from unions, Zeldin in the memo defended the changes and said they align with his vow to protect federal workers and foster more collaboration.

“When I testified in front of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee before my confirmation, I pledged to enthusiastically uphold EPA’s mission. To foster a collaborative culture within the agency. To support the career staff who have dedicated themselves to our mission,” Zeldin wrote.

“I wholeheartedly stand behind these promises,” he added.

https://www.eenews.net/articles/epa-reorganization-sparks-fears-of-political-interference/