Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

Last updated

Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
Seal of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.svg
Seal of the Environmental Protection Agency
Michael S. Regan official photo (cropped).jpg
Incumbent
Michael S. Regan
since March 11, 2021
Member of Cabinet
Inaugural holder William D. Ruckelshaus
Formation1970
Website www.epa.gov

The administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency is the head of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and is thus responsible for enforcing the nation's Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, as well as numerous other environmental statutes. The administrator is nominated by the president of the United States and must be confirmed by a vote of the Senate.

Contents

On March 10, 2021, Michael S. Regan was confirmed by a vote 66 to 34 as the administrator of the EPA, the first Black man to serve in this role. [1]

Rank in the Cabinet

Since the Clinton administration, the EPA administrator has been accorded cabinet rank by the president. The administrator of the EPA is equivalent to the position of Minister of the Environment in other countries. There have been various proposals to make the EPA a full executive department.

List of administrators

  Denotes Acting Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
  Nominee for Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
OfficeholderTermPresident(s)
William Ruckelshaus.jpg William Ruckelshaus December 4, 1970 – April 30, 1973 Richard Nixon
No image.svg Robert W. Fri
Acting
April 30, 1973 – September 12, 1973
Russell train.gif Russell E. Train September 12, 1973 – January 20, 1977
Gerald Ford
No image.svg John Quarles Jr.
Acting
January 21, 1977 – March 6, 1977 Jimmy Carter
Doug M. Costle official EPA portrait.jpg Douglas M. Costle March 7, 1977 – January 20, 1981
No image.svg Steve Jellinek
Acting
January 21, 1981 – January 25, 1981 Ronald Reagan
No image.svg Walter Barber Jr.
Acting
January 25, 1981 – May 19, 1981
Anne M. Gorsuch 1982b.jpg Anne Gorsuch Burford May 20, 1981 – March 9, 1983
No image.svg Lee Verstandig
Acting
March 10, 1983 – May 17, 1983
William Ruckelshaus.jpg William Ruckelshaus May 18, 1983 – January 4, 1985
Lee m thomas 2008.jpg Lee M. Thomas January 4, 1985 – February 8, 1985
February 8, 1985 – January 20, 1989
No image.svg John Moore
Acting
January 20, 1989 – February 6, 1989 George H. W. Bush
William K. Reilly official EPA portrait.jpg William K. Reilly February 6, 1989 – January 20, 1993
No image.svg W. Michael McCabe
Acting
January 20, 1993 – January 31, 1993 Bill Clinton
CarolBrownerCirca1996.jpg Carol Browner January 31, 1993 – January 20, 2001
WhitmanChristineTodd.jpg Christine Todd Whitman January 31, 2001 – June 27, 2003 George W. Bush
No image.svg Linda Fisher
Acting
June 27, 2003 – July 14, 2003
No image.svg Marianne Lamont Horinko
Acting
July 14, 2003 – November 5, 2003
Mike Leavitt.jpg Mike Leavitt November 6, 2003 – January 26, 2005
Stephen L. Johnson, official 2006 EPA photo.jpg Stephen L. Johnson January 26, 2005 – May 2, 2005
May 2, 2005 – January 20, 2009
No image.svg Granta Nakayama
Acting
January 20, 2009 – January 21, 2009 Barack Obama
No image.svg Mike Shapiro
Acting
January 21, 2009 – January 23, 2009
Lisa P. Jackson official portrait.jpg Lisa P. Jackson January 23, 2009 – February 15, 2013
EPA Deputy Admin Bob Perciasepe.jpg Bob Perciasepe
Acting
February 15, 2013 – July 18, 2013
Gina McCarthy official portrait.jpg Gina McCarthy July 18, 2013 – January 20, 2017
Catherine McCabe.jpg Catherine McCabe
Acting
January 20, 2017 – February 17, 2017 Donald Trump
Scott Pruitt official portrait.jpg Scott Pruitt February 17, 2017 – July 9, 2018
Andrew Wheeler official photo (cropped).jpg Andrew R. Wheeler July 9, 2018 – February 28, 2019
February 28, 2019 – January 20, 2021
Charlotte Bertrand.jpg Charlotte Bertrand
Acting [lower-alpha 1]
January 20, 2021 Joe Biden
Jane Nishida, EPA Deputy Assistant Administrator.jpg Jane Nishida
Acting
January 20, 2021 – March 11, 2021
Michael S. Regan official photo (cropped).jpg Michael S. Regan March 11, 2021 – present
  1. Served as Acting Administrator in her capacity as Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water for a few hours following the conclusion of the term Andrew R. Wheeler at noon on January 20, 2021. President Joe Biden signed an executive order naming principal deputy assistant head of the Office of International and Tribal Affairs Jane Nishida as acting Administrator later that day. [2] [3]

List of deputy administrators

Acting administrators

Acting administrators usually assume the office in the interim period between the resignation of a previous administrator and the confirmation of his or her successor, including during the transition period between two presidential administrations, before the successor has been nominated and confirmed. Acting administrators come from within the EPA and usually hold an office that is subject to Senate confirmation before becoming the acting administrator. Linda Fisher and Stephen L. Johnson had served as Deputy Administrator when they became acting administrator. Marianne Lamont Horinko was an assistant administrator at the time. They are not subject to Senate confirmation to serve as the acting administrator, though to continue to serve as a full-fledged administrator (as in the case of Lee M. Thomas or Stephen L. Johnson), they must be confirmed by the Senate.

Line of succession

The line of succession for the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency is as follows: [4]

  1. Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
  2. General Counsel
  3. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Land and Emergency Management
  4. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention
  5. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation
  6. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water
  7. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
  8. Chief Financial Officer
  9. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Research and Development
  10. Assistant Administrator for the Office of International and Tribal Affairs
  11. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Administration and Resources Management
  12. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Environmental Information
  13. Regional Administrator, Region 7 (Kansas City, Kansas)
  14. Principal Deputy General Counsel
  15. Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
  16. Deputy Regional Administrator, Region 2 (New York, New York)
  17. Deputy Regional Administrator, Region 5 (Chicago, Illinois)

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Environmental Protection Agency</span> U.S. federal government agency

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it began operation on December 2, 1970, after Nixon signed an executive order. The order establishing the EPA was ratified by committee hearings in the House and Senate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Director of National Intelligence</span> US Cabinet-level government official

The director of national intelligence (DNI) is a senior cabinet-level United States government official, required by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to serve as executive head of the United States Intelligence Community (IC) and to direct and oversee the National Intelligence Program (NIP). All IC agencies report directly to the DNI. The DNI also serves, upon invitation, as an advisor to the president of the United States, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council on all intelligence matters. The DNI, supported by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), produces the President's Daily Brief (PDB), a classified document including intelligence from all IC agencies, handed each morning to the president of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carol Browner</span> American environmentalist and lawyer (born 1955)

Carol Martha Browner is an American lawyer, environmentalist, and businesswoman, who served as director of the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy in the Obama administration from 2009 to 2011. Browner previously served as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) during the Clinton administration from 1993 to 2001. She currently works as a Senior Counselor at Albright Stonebridge Group, a global business strategy firm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen L. Johnson (politician, born 1951)</span> American politician

Stephen Lee Johnson is an American politician who served as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under President George W. Bush during the second term of his administration. He has received the Presidential Rank Award, the highest award that can be given to a civilian federal employee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lisa P. Jackson</span> American politician: EPA administrator

Lisa Perez Jackson is an American chemical engineer who served as the administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 2009 to 2013. She was the first African American to hold that position.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">W. Michael McCabe</span>

W. Michael McCabe is an American policy advisor specializing in environmental and energy policy. He had previously served as a Regional Administrator, and later Deputy Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), being the only person in the Agency's history to serve as both. Between 2003 and 2006, McCabe consulted for DuPont and led DuPont’s defense against an EPA lawsuit of the toxic PFAS chemical PFOA. In November 2020 he was named a volunteer member of the Joe Biden presidential transition Agency Review Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere</span>

The under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere, or USC(OA), is a high-ranking official in the United States Department of Commerce and the principal advisor to the United States secretary of commerce on the environmental and scientific activities of the department. The under secretary is dual hatted as the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration within the Commerce Department.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Pekoske</span> American government official (born 1955)

David Peter Pekoske is an American government official and retired U.S. Coast Guard vice admiral who has served as the seventh administrator of the Transportation Security Administration in the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) since 2017. He served as the acting deputy secretary of Homeland Security from April to November 2019 and again from January to June 2021. From January 20, 2021 to February 2, 2021 he served as acting secretary of homeland security, during the Senate confirmation of Alejandro Mayorkas. Pekoske retired with 33 years of active military service in 2010 as the 26th vice commandant of the Coast Guard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Perciasepe</span> American politician

Robert Perciasepe is an American former government official who currently serves as a senior adviser to McKinsey and Company and the nonprofit Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, following his role as President of the organization. He served as the Deputy Administrator and Acting Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency during the administration of Barack Obama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gina McCarthy</span> American government official (born 1954)

Regina McCarthy is an American air quality expert who served as the first White House national climate advisor from 2021 to 2022. She previously served as the thirteenth Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency from 2013 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catherine McCabe</span> American lawyer

Catherine McCabe is a retired public administrator and environmental lawyer who served as acting administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency from January to February 2017 and commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection from January 2018 to January 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew R. Wheeler</span> 15th Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (born 1964)

Andrew R. Wheeler is an American attorney who served as the 15th administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 2019 to 2021. He served as the deputy administrator from April to July 2018, and served as the acting administrator from July 2018 to February 2019. He has been a senior advisor to Governor of Virginia Glenn Youngkin since March 2022. He previously worked in the law firm Faegre Baker Daniels, representing coal magnate Robert E. Murray and lobbying against the Obama administration's environmental regulations. Wheeler served as chief counsel to the United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and to the chairman U.S. senator James Inhofe, prominent for his rejection of climate change. Wheeler is a critic of limits on greenhouse gas emissions and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael S. Regan</span> American environmental regulator (born 1976)

Michael Stanley Regan is an American environmental regulator. He has been serving as the 16th administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency since March 11, 2021. He is the first African American man to serve in the role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janet McCabe</span> American lawyer

Janet Garvin McCabe is an American attorney and academic who serves as the deputy administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency since April 29, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlotte Bertrand</span>

Charlotte Bertrand is an American government official who had served as Acting Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency in her capacity as Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water for a few hours following the conclusion of the term of Andrew R. Wheeler at noon on January 20, 2021. President Joe Biden signed an executive order naming principal deputy assistant head of the Office of International and Tribal Affairs Jane Nishida as acting Administrator later that day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Wassmer</span> American civil servant

Victoria Marie Baecher Wassmer is an American government official who serves as the Chief Financial Officer and an assistant secretary of transportation for budget and programs within the Department of Transportation. She previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Finance and Budget within the department as well as in various roles at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Uhlmann</span> American attorney and educator

David M. Uhlmann is an American educator and attorney who is the assistant administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency within the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. He previously served as a deputy assistant administrator in the same division and as an environmental law professor at the University of Michigan Law School.

References

  1. "President Joe Biden Announces Acting Federal Agency Leadership". whitehouse.gov. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  2. "About the Office of the Administrator". epa.gov. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  3. "Here's Who Is Leading Federal Agencies as Biden Nominees Await Confirmation". govexec.com. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  4. "Providing an Order of Succession Within the Environmental Protection Agency". Federal Register. August 17, 2016.