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October 18, 2017

Senate EPW Committee Postpones Vote on EPA Nominees

Lynn L. Bergeson

On October 18, 2017, the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee postponed a scheduled business meeting to vote on the nominations of four U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials:  Michael Dourson, Ph.D., for Assistant Administrator (AA) of the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP); William Wehrum, Esquire for AA of the Office of Air and Radiation (OAR), Matthew Leopold, Esquire, for General Counsel, and David Ross, Esquire for AA of the Office of Water (OW).  

The EPW Committee did not give a reason for the postponement nor announce a new date for the meeting, but it is being reported that EPW Committee members, including Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), have reservations regarding Wehrum’s confirmation due to increasing friction with EPA on biofuels and the renewable fuel standard (RFS).  On October 16, 2017, 33 Senators on both sides of the aisle sent a letter to Administrator Pruitt regarding the proposed Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO) for advanced biofuel for 2018 and biomass-based diesel for 2019, stating the proposed volumes “could have a negative impact on jobs and economies” as they “would hold the biomass-based diesel volume for 2019 stagnant at 2.1 billion gallons and decrease the advanced biofuel volume for 2018 to 4.24 billion gallons.”

As mentioned in our blog item “Senate EPW Committee Hearing on Nominations of EPA Officials,” during the October 4, 2017, hearing, Dourson was questioned and criticized the most heavily, followed by Wehrum.

More information is available on our blog under key word nomination.