EPN Year in Review: 2017

EPN’s Preliminary Analysis of the EPA FY2018 Senate Appropriations Bill

The Senate released its EPA FY2018 appropriations bill on November 20, 2017, and while it was an improvement over the House bill's proposed 8% budget cut, it is still the lowest Senate proposal since 1986. EPN produced a preliminary analysis of the Senate appropriations bill.

EPN Summarizes FY2018 House Appropriation for EPA, Cuts Core Programs 27%–Even More Deeply than Trump Requested

The EPA FY2018 House funding bill passed with significant cuts to core air, water and waste program funding, inflicting long-term damage to these vital programs. EPN produced a 4-page summary of the bill that includes troubling policy riders.

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EPN Analyzes Approved FY2018 House Appropriations Interior, EPA, and Related Agencies Bill

The House Appropriations Committee passed a bill for Interior, EPA, and Related Agencies that was an increase over the administration's severe FY2018 budget proposal, but still a hit to EPA's declining budget. EPN prepared a revised summary based on the committee's draft report.

EPN Summary of Proposed FY2018 Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, EPA, and Related Agencies Bill

The Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee released its proposed FY2018 budget bill, which included a $528 million budget cut For EPA and damaging riders. EPN prepared a short summary of the bill to highlight key issues and riders.

EPN Analyzes the Trump FY2018 Budget Blueprint for EPA and Its Efforts to Cripple Environmental Protection

President Trump's FY2018 EPA budget proposal threatened severe damage to health and environmental programs that have protected Americans for decades. In response, EPN released a 4-page document, a 50-page analysis and a press release to provide an in-depth look at the proposed cuts to budget, staffing, and programs.

EPN Fact Sheet: The EPA Budget—Why It Matters

The proposed FY2018 EPA budget cut core agency functions by 27%, which would greatly reduce the agency's ability to protect and preserve clean air, water, land, and public health. EPN created a 7-page fact sheet on the status of EPA’s budget and the essential work that’s at risk by proposed budget cuts.

EPN Fact Sheets: Core Programs Under Attack in the President’s Proposed FY2018 Budget

EPN produced an overview of EPA's core work as well as core program fact sheets in response to the Trump Administration's proposal for massive FY2018 cuts to EPA's budget. These fact sheets were used by reporters, other NGOs, and Hill staff to understand and communicate about how the President’s budget was an attack on human health and the environment.

EPN Fact Sheets: Vital Programs Eliminated or Significantly Cut in Trump’s FY2018 Budget Proposal

President Trump's proposal for a 31% cut to EPA's FY2018 budget includes the complete elimination of 50 vital programs and significant cuts to others that have aided in the protection of this country's environment and public health. EPN has created fact sheets for many of these programs to illustrate their importance.

Trump’s Proposed 2018 Budget Would Decimate EPA Enforcement

The proposed FY2018 EPA budget cuts would prevent the agency from continuing its enforcement work to curtail harmful pollution. EPN created an Enforcement Budget fact sheet to fully explain the importance of enforcement and a budget that supports this work.

The Trump Administration Is Considering Consolidating Regional Offices and Reducing Regional Operations—Why We Should Care

In light of the Trump Administration's potential plan to consolidate and reduce regional operations, EPN created a Regional EPA Offices fact sheet to illustrate the critical role these offices play in ensuring the protection of American's health and environment.

Cleaning Up the Nation’s Worst Toxic Sites Threatened by Proposed Budget Cuts

Proposals to cut EPA's budget by the Trump Administration endangers many of the agency's most important programs, like Superfund, which cleans the country's most contaminated land and water and responds to environmental emergencies. EPN created an EPA Superfund fact sheet to illustrate the impacts inadequate funding could have on this program and people's health.

EPN’s Response to EPA’s Proposal for a 2-Year Delay in the Oil and Gas New Source Performance Standards (Methane Rule)

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt proposed a 2-year delay on certain compliance dates in the Methane Rule, which completely discounted the health damage and climate-change impacts it would create. EPN wrote a 9-page letter to Administrator Pruitt detailing its concerns and opposition to the proposal.

EPN Comments on the EPA Superfund Task Force Report

Administrator Pruitt's Superfund Task Force presented recommendations for expediting the cleanup of the Nation's most hazardous sites, many of which were significant departures from tested approaches and important goals. EPN produced comments to explain its serious concerns with the report.

EPN Comments on the List of Candidates Under Consideration for Appointment to the CASAC

The advice of the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) is incredibly important because it affects the science and ultimately the policies and rules put into place. EPN submitted comments on the list of potential candidates for the CASAC, pointing out that only one candidate met the statutory criteria for the role.

EPN Comments on EPA’s Draft Strategic Plan for FY2018-2022

Administrator Pruitt and the Trump Administration presented their FY2018-2022 EPA strategic plan, which is an agency planning document for the 4-year term of each president. EPN produced a 7-page response to the plan, calling out the administration for its silence on human health and environmental challenges of the 21st Century.

EPN Comments on EPA Regulatory Reform Federal Register Notice

In response to EPA's request for comments on existing regulations up for possible repeal, placement, or modification, EPN presented a 13-page response urging careful analysis, including the full range of costs and benefits, of any existing EPA rule to safeguard public health and environmental protections.