Epa eliminates research and development office, begins layoffs
The agency said Friday it is creating a new Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions that will allow it to focus on research and science more than ever before. Once fully implemented, the changes will save the EPA nearly 750 million, officials said.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement that the changes announced Friday would ensure the agency is better equipped than ever to deliver on our core mission of protecting human health and the environment while Powering the Great American Comeback. The EPA also said it is beginning the process to eliminate thousands of jobs following a Supreme Court ruling last week that cleared the way for President Donald Trump's plans to downsize the federal workforce despite warnings that critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be out of their jobs.
Total staffing at EPA will go down to 12448, a reduction of more than 3700 employees or nearly 23 percent from staffing levels in January when Trump took office, the agency said. 'This reduction in force will ensure we can better fulfill that mission while being responsible stewards of your hard-earned tax dollars,' Zeldin said, using a government term for mass firings.
'Heart and brain of EPA' The research and development office is the 'heart and brain of the EPA,' said Justin Chen, president of American Federation of Government Employees Council 238, which represents thousands of EPA employees. 'Without it, we don't have the means to assess impacts upon human health and the environment,' Chen said. 'It's destruction will devastate public health in our country.'
The research office – EPA's main science arm – currently has 1540 positions excluding special government employees and public health officers, according to agency documents reviewed by Democratic staff on the House Committee on Science Space and Technology earlier this year. As many as 1155 chemists, biologists, toxicologists, and other scientists could be laid off, the documents indicated. The research office has 10 facilities across the country stretching from Florida and North Carolina to Oregon. An EPA spokeswoman said Friday that all laboratory functions currently conducted by the research office will continue.
In addition to the reduction in force or RIF, the agency also is offering the third round of deferred resignations for eligible employees including research office staff, spokeswoman Molly Vaseliou said. The application period is open until July 25.
Declaration of dissent The EPA's announcement comes two weeks after the agency put on administrative leave 139 employees who signed a declaration of dissent with agency policies under the Trump administration. The agency accused the employees of unlawfully undermining Trump's agenda. In a letter made public June 30, the employees wrote that 'the EPA is no longer living up to its mission to protect human health and the environment'. The letter represented rare public criticism from agency employees who knew they could face retaliation for speaking out.
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