UPDATE: Jan. 23, 2025: The Senate Setting and Public Works Committee voted 11-8 on Thursday to suggest Lee Zeldin to the complete Senate for affirmation as U.S. EPA administrator.
Chairman Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., applauded Zeldin for displaying “he understands the significance of putting the fitting steadiness to enhance the lives of Individuals throughout the nation, to guard the setting whereas additionally uplifting communities and cities throughout the nation.”
She mentioned Zeldin is the fitting candidate to assist the setting in addition to the financial system, noting that the nation has lengthy felt the “detrimental impacts of EPA regulatory overreach [over the] years, devastating parts of our state’s financial system and placing my constituents out of labor.”
But Rating Member Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., criticized Zeldin for his connections to grease and fuel firm donors, which he mentioned would disincentivize mandatory investments in renewable power, result in additional air pollution and jeopardize crucial local weather change protections.
“I don’t see Mr. Zeldin having the independence to steer the company in a fashion that may defend us in opposition to these looming risks. He would not even appear to see that they exist,” he mentioned.
Zeldin’s nomination now strikes to the complete Senate for a vote.
Jan. 17: U.S. EPA administrator nominee Lee Zeldin acknowledged business considerations about how current PFAS laws might influence enterprise operations throughout his first affirmation listening to this week.
Zeldin, President-elect Donald Trump’s decide for the highest EPA position, appeared earlier than the Senate Setting and Public Works Committee on Jan. 16. He famous that air pollution from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances was a risk to the setting and mentioned he would work inside the EPA’s authority to assist these affected by such air pollution.
Zeldin was a member of the U.S. Home of Representatives from 2013 to 2023, and the Republican nominee for governor of New York in 2022. Throughout his time in workplace, he voted in favor of a number of payments associated to regulating PFAS.
Throughout the three-hour listening to, Zeldin fielded questions on ongoing air pollution in U.S. waterways, together with from plastic, in addition to how he would deal with total company spending, together with from earlier Inflation Discount Act funding.
If confirmed, Zeldin mentioned he would work with longtime EPA workers and with Republicans and Democrats to shortly stand up to hurry on quite a few urgent environmental and well being points, particularly as they influence the U.S. financial system. He underscored his perception within the “rule of legislation” and mentioned he would prioritize compliance.
“The EPA should even be higher stewards of tax {dollars}, honor cooperative federalism and be clear and accountable to Congress and the general public,” Zeldin mentioned in his opening assertion.
He added that many Individuals voted for Trump on account of considerations about financial mobility and stretched household budgets.
“We are able to, and we should, defend our treasured setting with out suffocating the financial system,” he mentioned. “An enormous a part of it will require constructing personal sector collaboration to advertise frequent sense, sensible regulation that may enable American innovation to proceed to steer the world.”
The steadiness of regulation and enterprise impacts got here up once more throughout a dialogue of the EPA’s designation of sure PFAS as hazardous substances below the Complete Environmental Response, Compensation and Legal responsibility Act, generally known as CERCLA or Superfund. Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., questioned Zeldin in regards to the concern in the course of the listening to.
The waste business has lengthy mentioned the hazardous substance designation might result in legal responsibility points and excessive cleanup prices for receiving or dealing with PFAS-containing objects. Lummis beforehand launched a bundle of payments meant to exempt industries that think about themselves “passive receivers,” which means they don’t generate PFAS or have management over PFAS-laden supplies that enter their amenities.
Zeldin mentioned lawmakers from each events have approached him in regards to the concern. “It is one thing that could be a large concern to you, and it’ll due to this fact be a giant concern for me,” he mentioned.
“That passive receiver concern is one thing the place it might get handed all the way down to the buyer, the place they find yourself paying for the cleanup prices in a approach that we must be cognizant of on the EPA,” he mentioned.
The query of how Zeldin would possibly deal with plastic air pollution initiatives additionally got here up in the course of the listening to.
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., requested about Zeldin’s opinion on chemical recycling, often known as superior recycling. Merkley, a longtime critic of chemical recycling, has beforehand launched payments meant to pause allowing for such applied sciences to additional analysis attainable environmental impacts.
Zeldin mentioned he was conscious of the time period, however didn’t supply an opinion of the applied sciences or their influence on plastic air pollution, saying he was nonetheless within the means of “researching and studying all that is being offered on all sides of this concern.”
On broader air pollution points, Zeldin credited his constituents for pushing him to get extra concerned throughout his time within the Home. He joined the bipartisan Local weather Options caucus in 2016.
Zeldin additionally highlighted the bipartisan success of Save Our Seas 2.0, a invoice signed into legislation in 2020 in the course of the earlier Trump administration, as a “mannequin to be adopted of bipartisanship.” The legislation offered funding and different initiatives for eradicating and stopping plastic air pollution within the setting, particularly waterways. Zeldin added that he advocated for clear waterways round his district when he served within the Home.
But some senators remained skeptical of Zeldin’s dedication to environmental points. In his opening remarks, rating member Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., highlighted that Trump has referred to as local weather change a hoax and referred to as on Zeldin to steer the EPA away from that pondering.
“Will he observe the science and the economics and defend our air, water and local weather? Or will he merely be a rubber stamp for looters and polluters who’re setting the Trump agenda?” he mentioned.
Throughout the listening to, Merkley famous that Zeldin has obtained quite a few political donations from the oil and fuel business and requested whether or not that will affect his decision-making on the EPA.
“There is no donation that anybody has ever offered me at any level, of any quantity, that’s going to affect any resolution that I make on this place, or past,” Zeldin replied.
Environmental teams have additionally criticized Zeldin’s earlier voting document on environmental points. The League of Conservation Voters mentioned he voted in favor of key environmental payments 14% of the time.
But Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., mentioned in his opening assertion that Zeldin is a accountable selection for EPA administrator. He famous Zeldin’s navy service – he’s a lieutenant colonel within the U.S. Military Reserve– and mentioned he has a monitor document of partnering with states over “out of contact regulators.”
“His expertise exhibits that he is aware of how you can steadiness a number of priorities. He understands that we have to be good stewards of the setting with out crippling the financial system,” he mentioned.
In a letter, the Recycled Supplies Affiliation provided help for Zeldin’s nomination, saying he has a “deep understanding of each environmental challenges and business realities” and would help “collaboration fairly than broad regulatory overreach.” The American Chemistry Council additionally submitted a letter of help.
Additionally at concern in the course of the listening to was how Zeldin would possibly deal with total EPA spending, particularly beforehand allotted grant funding from the Inflation Discount Act.
The incoming Trump administration had beforehand mentioned probably rescinding unspent funds from the IRA, which lately has funded power and local weather initiatives associated to biogas tasks, packaging manufacturing amenities, environmental justice initiatives and extra.
Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., referred to as for extra EPA oversight into spending from the IRA, whereas Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., referred to as for the EPA to protect beforehand awarded grant funding.
Zeldin replied that he couldn’t “pre-judge outcomes” or communicate on particular issues associated to IRA funding, however mentioned he would look into the problem and “ensure that we’re pursuing frequent sense, pragmatic options that make sense to you, that you could defend when going again to the constituents.”