EPA announces broad reorganization that includes shuffle of scientific
research
[May 03, 2025]
By MICHAEL PHILLIS
The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday announced a broad
reorganization as part of the Trump administration's drive to cut costs
that some activists worry will harm the agency's independent scientific
research.
Administrator Lee Zeldin announced changes that included creating a new
unit within his office “to align research and put science at the
forefront of the agency's rulemakings.” He said the overall
reorganization would boost efficiency and save at least $300 million
annually, though he didn't detail how the money would be saved.
Though Zeldin didn't mention it by name, some scientists and activists
saw it as an attack on EPA's Office of Research and Development, which
has long provided the scientific underpinnings for EPA’s mission to
protect the environment and human health. The agency said it would shift
“its scientific expertise and research efforts to program offices” that
focus on major issues like air and water.
Separately on Friday, President Donald Trump unveiled a proposed budget
to cut that office's funding by $235 million.
Trump's budget said the cut would put "an end to unrestrained research
grants, radical environmental justice work, woke climate research, and
skewed, overly-precautionary modeling that influences regulations — none
of which are authorized by law.”
Agency researchers have improved air pollution monitoring, found high
levels of PFAS in drinking water sources, provided flood prevention
resources and made more information available on chemical safety.
EPA's possible plans to lay off as many as 1,155 staffers in the office
— as much as three-fourths of its workers — became public in March.
Those cuts are part of a broader push by Zeldin to cut EPA's budget by
about two-thirds.
The Office of Research and Development has 10 facilities across the
country. It was designed to be insulated from politics so it can produce
essential science.
Camden Weber, climate and energy policy specialist at the Center for
Biological Diversity, said, “is a textbook move from the authoritarian
playbook.”
“By gutting key institutions and driving away experts, this attack will
endanger public health, clean air, and environmental progress, while
undermining independent scientific research in America,” Weber said.
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EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin speaks during a cabinet meeting at the
White House, April 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci,
File)
 “This is a reorganization, not a
reduction in force,” EPA spokeswoman Molly Vaseliou said.
Zeldin's announcement also included the creation of the Office of
State Air Partnerships to work “with, not against” states and other
agencies to handle plans for pollution reduction by states. The EPA
has long had authority to impose its own plan if states were seen as
not doing enough to cut pollution.
The EPA said that change would make sure states get consistent
treatment no matter their geography.
“The problem is that some areas of the country have much worse air
pollution, and it cannot be treated as a one-size-fits-all,” said
Kyla Bennett, director of science policy at the Public Employees for
Environmental Responsibility, a union for public employees focused
on environmental ethics.
The new office for scientific review will be called the Office of
Applied Science and Environmental Solutions. EPA said it would “gain
more than 130” experts in science and other fields to to complete
long-delayed reviews of hundreds of chemicals and thousands of
pesticides.
“When finalized, EPA expects to have staffing levels near those seen
when President Ronald Reagan occupied the White House,” Zeldin said.
EPA had about 15,000 employees before cuts began. The agency’s
employment during the Reagan years ranged from roughly 11,000 to
around 14,400 people.
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Associated Press writer Matthew Daly contributed reporting.
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