Velazquez Seeks to Undo EPA Hiring Freeze

Measure Would Exempt Agency from January Trump Order

Washington, DC –Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) has introduced legislation aimed at ensuring adequate staffing levels at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Her bill, H.R.1716, would exempt the agency from a Presidential Memorandum signed by President Trump in January that froze staffing levels at all federal agencies.

"President Trump's hiring freeze makes for bad policy all around, but is particularly damaging when it comes to our environment," Velázquez said. "We need EPA to be fully staffed so they can protect our air and water and administer programs that keep local communities healthy."

The EPA's mission is protecting the environment and human health. It develops and enforces policies stemming from environmental statutes enacted by Congress. Additionally, half of the agency's budget goes into grants that are distributed to non-profit organizations, state environmental work and educational institutions focused on science-based research.

"Already, the Trump Administration seems dead set on rolling back environmental protections and progress and we must resist these efforts." Velázquez noted. "This hiring freeze at EPA is just one way the Administration is seeking to undermine environmental protections and this move should be immediately rescinded."

Velázquez's district, New York's 7th, includes parts of Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan. The district includes three environmentally damaged sites that have been targeted for cleanup under EPA's National Priorities List or "Superfund" program. Gowanus Canal, Newtown Creek and Wolff-Alport Chemical Company are all located within the 7th district. The Gowanus and Newtown waterways have endured years of pollution and sewage runoff. Wolff-Alport is a former industrial site that has exhibited higher than normal levels of radiation.

"The Superfund program allows us to turn around local environmental sore spots, reduce public health risk by removing contaminants, and enables commerce to thrive in previously blighted areas," Velázquez noted. "Importantly, this initiative applies the principle of ‘polluter pays' so cleanup costs are borne by those responsible for environmental harm. However, for this program to work, EPA needs adequate staff and I'm concerned Trump's hiring freeze could hamstring the Superfund program."

Velázquez's legislation has been referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform for consideration. The measure is cosponsored by nine other House Members. Velázquez had previously introduced a measure that would exempt from the hiring freeze the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

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