The stories in Washington indicate Scott Pruitt wanted his EPA cut, but maybe not as deep as President Trump is proposing. Might be worth the price to hear what he’s saying private about what the President wants to do with his agency budget.
If the President’s able to get Congress to approve his move, the EPA would lose 31 percent of its funding along with 3,200 employees. The layoff of the 3,200 workers would represent 19 percent of the EPA’s workforce. The EPA would suffer the biggest cut of any federal agency in the 2018 budget from the White House.
“Consistent with the President’s America First Energy Plan, the budget reorients the EPA’s air program to protect the air we breathe without unduly burdening the American economy,” a summary of the proposed EPA budget said.
Under Pruitt’s leadership, the new budget would eliminate nearly $100 million on research funding as well as international programs meant to fight climate change. When asked about the climate change programs, Trump’s budget director Mick Mulvaney responded, “we consider that to be a waste of your money.”
Funding for the Superfund program would drop by $330 million to $762 million and the budget would push to give local and state governments responsibility for such clean-up efforts according to a report by Reuters.
The budget would also slash 31 percent from the enforcement division of the EPA. That’s the division that fines companies for pollution. Dozens of other programs would get the ax including the Energy Star appliance efficiency program.