Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
Seal of the Environmental Protection Agency
Incumbent Lee Zeldin since January 29, 2025
Member of	Cabinet
Inaugural holder	William D. Ruckelshaus
Formation	1970
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.

Lee Zeldin is the current administrator of the EPA. ^[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

The following persons served as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency: ^[2]

  Denotes Acting Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

No.	Officeholder		Term Start	Term End	Refs.	President(s)
1		William Ruckelshaus	December 4, 1970	April 30, 1973 [a]	[3] [4] [5]		Richard Nixon (1969–1974)
–		Robert W. Fri Acting	April 30, 1973	September 12, 1973
2		Russell E. Train	September 12, 1973	January 20, 1977
							Gerald Ford (1974–1977)
–		John Quarles Jr. Acting	January 21, 1977	March 6, 1977			Jimmy Carter (1977–1981)
3		Douglas M. Costle	March 7, 1977	January 20, 1981
–		Steven Jellinek Acting	January 21, 1981	January 25, 1981			Ronald Reagan (1981–1989)
–		Walter Barber Jr. Acting	January 25, 1981	May 19, 1981
4		Anne Gorsuch Burford	May 20, 1981	March 9, 1983
–		Lee Verstandig Acting	March 10, 1983	May 17, 1983
5		William Ruckelshaus	May 18, 1983	January 4, 1985
6		Lee M. Thomas	January 4, 1985	February 8, 1985
			February 8, 1985	January 20, 1989
–		John Moore Acting	January 20, 1989	February 6, 1989			George H. W. Bush (1989–1993)
7		William K. Reilly	February 6, 1989	January 20, 1993
–		W. Michael McCabe Acting	January 20, 1993	January 31, 1993			Bill Clinton (1993–2001)
8		Carol Browner	January 31, 1993	January 20, 2001
–		W. Michael McCabe Acting	January 20, 2001	January 31, 2001			George W. Bush (2001–2009)
9		Christine Todd Whitman	January 31, 2001	June 27, 2003
–		Linda Fisher Acting	June 27, 2003	July 11, 2003
–		Stephen L. Johnson Acting	July 11, 2003	July 14, 2003
–		Marianne Lamont Horinko Acting	July 14, 2003	November 6, 2003	[6]
10		Mike Leavitt	November 6, 2003	January 26, 2005
11		Stephen L. Johnson	January 26, 2005	May 2, 2005
			May 2, 2005	January 20, 2009
–		Michael W. Leavitt Acting	January 20, 2009	January 20, 2009	[ citation needed ]		Barack Obama (2009–2017)
–		Granta Nakayama Acting	January 20, 2009	January 21, 2009
–		Mike Shapiro Acting	January 21, 2009	January 23, 2009
12		Lisa P. Jackson	January 23, 2009	February 15, 2013
–		Bob Perciasepe Acting	February 15, 2013	July 18, 2013
13		Gina McCarthy	July 19, 2013	January 20, 2017	[7]
–		Mathy Stanislaus Acting	January 20, 2017	January 20, 2017	[ citation needed ]		Donald Trump (2017–2021)
–		Catherine McCabe Acting	January 20, 2017	February 17, 2017	[8]
14		Scott Pruitt	February 17, 2017	July 9, 2018	[9] [10]
15		Andrew R. Wheeler	July 9, 2018	February 28, 2019
			February 28, 2019	January 20, 2021	[11]
–		Charlotte Bertrand Acting	January 20, 2021	January 20, 2021	[12]		Joe Biden (2021–2025)
–		Jane Nishida Acting	January 20, 2021	March 11, 2021
16		Michael S. Regan	March 11, 2021	December 31, 2024	[13] [14]
–		Jane Nishida Acting	January 1, 2025	January 20, 2025	[15]
–		Kimberly Patrick Acting	January 20, 2025	January 20, 2025	[16]		Donald Trump (2025–present)
–		James Payne Acting	January 20, 2025	January 29, 2025	[17]
17		Lee Zeldin	January 29, 2025	present	[18]

Table notes:

1. During the Nixon administration, Ruckelshaus left the EPA in 1973 to become the acting head of the FBI during the middle of the Watergate scandal. Ruckelshaus would later return a decade later to head the EPA during the Reagan administration.

List of deputy administrators

The following persons served as deputy administrator: ^[19]

No.	Officeholder		Term Start	Term End	Refs.
1		Robert W. Fri	June 14, 1971	April 29, 1973
acting		John R. Quarles Jr.	April 29, 1973	October 18, 1973
2			October 19, 1973	January 20, 1977
3		Barbara Blum	March 7, 1977	January 20, 1981
4		John W. Hernandez Jr.	May 20, 1981	March 25, 1983
5		Alvin L. Alm	August 5, 1983	May 9, 1985
6		A. James Barnes	May 10, 1985	August 14, 1988
acting		John A. Moore	August 15, 1988	January 20, 1989
Vacant			January 20, 1989	February 4, 1989	[19]
acting		John A. Moore	February 5, 1989	May 18, 1989
7		F. Henry Habicht II	May 19, 1989	January 20, 1993
acting		Richard Morgenstern	January 21, 1993	March 7, 1993
acting		Jonathan Z. Cannon	March 8, 1993	May 9, 1993
8		Robert M. Sussman	May 10, 1993	October 17, 1994
9		Fred Hansen	October 18, 1994	September 30, 1998
acting		Peter D. Robertson	October 1, 1998	December 7, 1999
acting		W. Michael McCabe	December 8, 1999	August 6, 2000
10			August 6, 2000	January 20, 2001
Vacant			January 20, 2001	May 31, 2001	[19]
11		Linda Fisher	May 31, 2001	June 27, 2003
Vacant			June 28, 2003	July 11, 2003	[19]
acting		Stephen L. Johnson	July 11, 2003	August 1, 2004
12			August 1, 2004	January 26, 2005
Vacant			January 26, 2005	August 8, 2005	[19]
13		Marcus Peacock	August 8, 2005	January 20, 2009
Vacant			January 20, 2009	February 4, 2009	[19]
acting		Scott Fulton	February 4, 2009	December 24, 2009
14		Bob Perciasepe	December 24, 2009	August 7, 2014
acting		Lisa Feldt	August 8, 2014	October 7, 2014
acting		Stan Meiburg	October 7, 2014	January 20, 2017
acting		Mike Flynn	January 20, 2017	April 3, 2018
15		Andrew R. Wheeler	April 12, 2018	July 7, 2019	[20]
acting		Henry Darwin	July 9, 2019	January 20, 2021
Vacant			January 20, 2021	April 28, 2021	[19]
16		Janet McCabe	April 29, 2021	October 4, 2024	[21] [22]
acting		Jane Nishida	October 5, 2024	December 31, 2024
acting		Dan Utech	January 1, 2025	January 20, 2025
acting		Gregg Treml	January 20, 2025	January 29, 2025
acting		Chad McIntosh	January 29, 2025	June 16, 2025
17		David Fotouhi	June 16, 2025	present	[23] [24]

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: ^[25]

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

• White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy
• Presidential Task Force on the Auto Industry

References

• "About the Office of the Administrator". Washington, D.C.: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. February 25, 2020.

1. Frazin, Rachel (January 29, 2025). "Senate confirms Zeldin to be EPA administrator". The Hill . Retrieved January 30, 2025.
2. "Chronology of EPA Administrators". EPA.
3. "Remarks at the Swearing In of William D. Ruckelshaus as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency". The Nixon White House. December 4, 1970 – via The American Presidency Project.
4. "Bill Ruckelshaus, 1932-2019". EPA.
5. "William D. Ruckelshaus (Acting), April 30, 1973 - July 9, 1973". FBI.
6. "Biography of Acting Administrator Marianne Lamont Horinko". EPA. Archived from the original on October 8, 2003.
7. "#OTD in 2013, Gina McCarthy is sworn in as the 27th EPA Administrator". EPA. July 19, 2020 – via Facebook.
8. "EPA's Acting Administrator". EPA.
9. "Scott Pruitt Confirmed and Sworn in as EPA Administrator". EPA. February 17, 2017.
10. Hersher, Rebecca; Neely, Brett (July 5, 2018). "Scott Pruitt Out At EPA". NPR .
11. "EPA Administrator Wheeler". EPA.
12. "About the Office of the Administrator". epa.gov. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
13. "Michael S. Regan Sworn in as 16th EPA Administrator". EPA. March 11, 2021.
14. Daly, Matthew (December 20, 2024). "EPA head Regan, who championed environmental justice, to leave office Dec. 31". Associated Press .
15. Friedman, Lisa (December 20, 2024). "E.P.A. Administrator Michael Regan to Depart at End of December" . The New York Times .
16. Bogardus, Kevin (January 17, 2025). "EPA's mission support boss to be acting administrator". E&E News .
17. Bogardus, Kevin (January 21, 2025). "Trump taps new EPA acting boss". E&E News .
18. "Lee M. Zeldin Sworn in as 17th EPA Administrator". EPA. January 30, 2025.
19. "Chronology of EPA Deputy Administrators". EPA.
20. Henry, Mike (July 12, 2018). "Pruitt Successor Expected to Continue Controversial EPA Science Policies". American Institute of Physics . Andrew Wheeler, left, was sworn in as deputy administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency on April 20, 2018. Wheeler became acting administrator on July 6 when Scott Pruitt, right, resigned following a tumultuous tenure marked by mounting ethics investigations.
21. "Janet McCabe Sworn in as 16th EPA Deputy Administrator". EPA. April 29, 2021.
22. Moerman, Jessica (October 4, 2024). "EEN Thanks EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe for Years of Service Defending Public Health". Evangelical Environmental Network.
23. Friedman, Lisa; Tabuchi, Hiroko; Davenport, Coral (January 25, 2025). "Trump Stocks E.P.A. With Oil, Gas and Chemical Lobbyists" . The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved March 5, 2025.
24. "EPA Deputy Administrator". EPA.
25. "Providing an Order of Succession Within the Environmental Protection Agency". Federal Register. August 17, 2016.