{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/release/whitehouse-leads-senators-in-defending-epa-watchdog", "Whitehouse Leads Senators in Defending EPA Watchdog", "2017-12-07", "2017", "2017-12", "Democrat", "House", "RI", "Sheldon Whitehouse", "W000802", "www.whitehouse.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "12.07.17\n\t\t\t Whitehouse Leads Senators in Defending EPA Watchdog \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t \n\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t Slashing funding would hamper the EPA Inspector General\u2019s vital work\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t Washington, DC \u2013 Ten Senators led by Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) are calling for Senate appropriators to protect funding for the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s (EPA) in-house watchdog, which helps to ensure the agency carries out its function of protecting public health and the environment.\u00a0 The Senators ask leaders of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies in a letter to maintain current funding levels for the EPA Office of Inspector General.\u00a0 The President\u2019s budget request would slash the Inspector General\u2019s budget by 10 percent and reduce its staffing by roughly 25 percent.\u00a0 House and Senate appropriations bills would cut funding by 4 percent.\r\n\u201cThe EPA OIG plays a critical role promoting EPA\u2019s core mission of fighting pollution and ensuring that agency officials adhere to ethical standards and that taxpayer dollars are spent wisely,\u201d the Senators write. \u201cWe urge the Subcommittee to avoid reducing the appropriated funds for the EPA OIG and support adequate funding for the office.\u00a0 Such funding will allow this crucial office to do its job protecting taxpayer dollars and our environment.\u201d\r\nJoining Whitehouse in signing the letter are Senators Jeffrey Merkley (D-OR), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Tom Carper (D-DE), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Kamala Harris (D-CA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY).\r\nThe EPA Inspector General, Arthur Elkins, is engaged in important investigations of EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.\u00a0 In August, Elkins began looking into whether Pruitt violated agency policies and procedures with his frequent, costly travel to his home state of Oklahoma.\u00a0 On Wednesday, Elkins confirmed that he is reviewing Pruitt\u2019s meeting in April with the National Mining Association.\u00a0 During the meeting, Pruitt reportedly urged the group to tell the President to pull out of the Paris climate accord, which may be a violation of federal lobbying laws.\r\nText of the Senators\u2019 letter is below.\u00a0 A PDF copy is available here.\r\nDecember 6, 2017\r\nThe Honorable Lisa Murkowski\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Honorable Tom Udall\r\nChairman\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ranking Member\r\nSubcommittee on the Interior, \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Subcommittee on the Interior,\r\nEnvironment, and Related Agencies\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Environment, and Related Agencies\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\r\nSenate Committee on Appropriations\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Senate Committee on Appropriations\r\n131 Dirksen Senate Office Building\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 125 Hart Senate Office Building\r\nWashington, D.C. 20510\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Washington, D.C. 20510\r\nDear Chairman Murkowski and Ranking Member Udall,\r\nAs the Subcommittee finalizes the Fiscal Year 2018 funding for the agencies in its purview, we urge you to support adequate funding for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Inspector General (OIG).\u00a0 FY18 funding for the EPA OIG should be no less than the funding the office received in FY17, adjusted for inflation.\u00a0\r\nThe EPA OIG plays a critical role promoting EPA\u2019s core mission of fighting pollution and ensuring that agency officials adhere to ethical standards and that taxpayer dollars are spent wisely.\u00a0 Since the beginning of the year, the EPA OIG has begun working on at least 41 audits, evaluations, reviews, and other oversight actions, on topics including EPA\u2019s efforts to protect children from asbestos exposure in schools, whether drinking water agencies notify the public when there are contamination risks, chemical data reporting under the Toxic Substance Control Act, and an audit of Administrator Pruitt\u2019s travel expenses.\u00a0 In 2018, the EPA OIG plans, among other things, a review of the threats directed at the agency and its staff, which is timely given the reported increase in the number of EPA security officers assigned to Administrator Pruitt.\r\nThe Senate Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill would reduce EPA OIG funding by four percent, as would the relevant House appropriations bill.\u00a0 While this is an improvement over the President\u2019s requested budget, which would cut funding for the EPA OIG by almost 10 percent and reduce OIG staffing by approximately 25 percent, it is still not adequate to ensure that OIG will be able to effectively perform its important mission.\r\nWe urge the Subcommittee to avoid reducing the appropriated funds for the\u00a0EPA OIG and support adequate funding for the office.\u00a0 Such funding will allow this crucial office to do its job protecting taxpayer dollars and our environment.\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/release/whitehouse-leads-senators-in-defending-epa-watchdog"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.693845959380269, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}