EPA Administrator Nomination of Lee Zeldin Moves Forward in the Senate

On Thursday, 1/23, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) advanced the nomination of Lee Zeldin to the full Senate for a vote to confirm him as the next Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The 11-8 vote to advance the nomination was largely along party lines, with Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) as the only Democrat to vote in favor of advancing Zeldin’s nomination. Zeldin is expected to be confirmed by the Senate in the near future.

EPW held a hearing on the nomination of Lee Zeldin to be Administrator of EPA on January 16th. The hearing provided insights into the issues of highest interest and concern to EPW members. Chairman Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV) noted several issues on which she hoped EPA would focus, including cleaning up brownfields and Superfund sites, addressing contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and reliability and affordability of electricity. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), ranking Democrat on EPW, stated that climate change is his number one issue.