Reports: Trump budget proposal would slash EPA funding

Dive Brief:

President Trump is expected to send preliminary budget proposals to federal agencies on Monday, and the plans reportedly include deep cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Multiple media outlets report the budget proposal will include "transformational" cuts to the EPA and reduce funding for climate-related programs at the State Department. Past statements from Trump officials have indicated the administration could seek to reduce the EPA workforce by as much as two-thirds.
The White House is also preparing a set of executive orders aimed at eliminating EPA regulations on carbon pollution and coal production put into place under President Obama.

Dive Insight:

The White House is expected to reveal a budget proposal Monday that will outline its priorities for a number of federal agencies, including the EPA.

The nation's environmental regulator has been a top target for the administration, which has promised to roll back the administrative state. While the budget will ultimately be hashed out in Congress, administration officials told news outlets this weekend Trump's plans to shrink the agency are more than just talk.

In January, EPA transition team head Myron Ebell indicated the Trump budget could cut the EPA's $8 billion in funding by $1 billion and reduce the 15,000-person workforce to about 5,000 nationwide.

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt declined to comment on rumored cuts in a question-and-answer session at the Conservative Political Action Conference this weekend, but promised more cooperation with states and "regulatory certainty” for energy companies.

Reports of EPA budget cuts come as the Trump administration is preparing to release slate of executive orders to cancel the Clean Power Plan and rules governing coal leasing and production. Those orders could be released as soon as Monday.

Cuts to the EPA and State Department are not expected to reduce overall spending, as those reductions will reportedly be offset by increases to military spending.

No information was reported on the future of the Department of Energy, which was also a target for deep cuts in a preliminary budget proposal leaked in January.