Dive Brief:
- The Trump administration has frozen grants and contracts at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, a move that could have wide-ranging ramifications on areas like water testing, environmental cleanup and ecological research.
- Few details are known about the hold, but ProPublica reports the review could be complete Friday. It is unclear if the move impacts only new grants and contracts, or existing agreements as well.
- The agency has also instituted a communications blackout, according to media reports, barring staffers from issuing press releases, blog posts or using the EPA's social media accounts.
Dive Insight:
President Trump is locking down federal agencies while new leadership is installed and the transition is completed.
White House officials have said the moves are common, similar to those taken by past administrations, but increasingly it appears Trump's version of taking stock goes beyond his predecessors'.
Yesterday, ProPublica reported on an email exchange involving an EPA contracting officer, who wrote "right now we are in a holding pattern."
"The new EPA administration has asked that all contract and grant awards be temporarily suspended, effective immediately," wrote the storm water management contractor. "Until we receive further clarification, this includes task orders and work assignments."
Myron Ebell, who ran the EPA transition team for Trump, told the media outlet the move is "very similar to what others have done." But other sources in the agency said the freeze appears unprecedented, as does the media blackout, which bars staff from posting blogs, using social media or sending out press releases.
A former Obama EPA official told the Huffington Post the Trump administration's actions were "extreme and very troubling." Sources in both reports remained anonymous because they were not authorized to speak on the record.
The EPA freeze on its grants and contracts could have immediate repercussions for states. The agency has more than $6 billion in contracts already on the books, covering things like deployment of portable emissions measurement systems and advanced engine development.
An official at Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection, for example, said it was too soon to know what the impact could be, but they were closely watching the situation.
"Suspension of EPA grants for any duration of time would significantly disrupt the work of the agency to protect public health and the environment,” DEP spokesman Neil Shader told local news source StateImpact Pennsylvania. The state receives $36 million annually for a variety of projects including cleanup of hazardous sites.
All this comes as the U.S. Senate considers Trump's pick, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt (R), to head the agency. Pruitt has drawn criticism from environmental advocates who point to his close ties to the energy industry and over a dozen lawsuits he filed against the agency during President Obama's terms. His confirmation hearing revealed little about how he would handle grants or reform policy, beyond a broad pledge to scale back regulations.
As it takes control of the federal government, Trump's White House also directed federal agencies to cease finalization of new regulations until the incoming administration is fully in place. That's another move that White House officials say is similar to past administrative actions — though it also means uncertainty for four efficiency regulations finalized in the waning days of the Obama administration
