FOR AJSTP ABOUT EPs\ EMPLOYEES
Inside:
• Feds to the Fore
• OEA Awards
OOON88003
VOLUME 5
NUMBER 3
MARCH 1988
NAEP Honors
Thomas
EPA Administrator Lee Thomas was
recently recognized by the National
Association of Environmental
Professionals (NAEP) with an
honorary membership for his career
achievements and leadership in
environmental protection. NAEP
President Audrey Binder, OTS,
presented the award to Thomas at a
reception held in his honor.
NAEP is a non-profit,
interdisciplinary professional society,
headquartered in Washington but with
over 1000 members nationwide, many
of whom are EPA employees.
Founded in 1975, the group publishes
a journal and a newsletter, and is
gaining national renown as the
certifying organization for the
environmental profession, a
Presidential Awards
Distinguished and Meritorious
Presidential Rank Awards for 1987
have been presented by Lee Thomas
to SES members for outstanding
achievement in protecting the nation's
health and environment.
Distinguished Senior Executive
Awards were given to Alexandra B.
Smith, Deputy Regional
Administrator, Region 8; Rebecca W.
Hanmer, Deputy Assistant
Administrator for Water; and Michael
B. Cook, Director, Office of Drinking
Water.
Meritorious Senior Executive
Awards went to Herbert Barrack,
Assistant Regional Administrator for
Policy and Management Region 2;
Don R. Clay, Deputy Assistant
Administrator for Air and Radiation;
Frank M. Covington, Deputy Regional
Administrator, Region 5; Willis E.
Greenstreet, Director, Office of
Administration and Resources
Management, RTF; Norbert A.
Jaworski, Director, Environmental
Research Lab-Narragansett; James R.
Moore, Regional Counsel-Region 10;
Thomas A. Murphy, Director,
Environmental Research Lab-Corvallis;
Courtney Riordan, Director, Office of
Environmental Processes and Effects
Research; John H. Skinner, Director,
Office of Environmental Engineering
and Technology; and Stephen R.
Wassersug, Director, Hazardous Waste
Management Division, Region 3. Q
Brain Drain
According to Mike Causey, Post
columnist, the Senior Executives
Association says the retirement rate
for career federal executives has risen
61 percent in the last seven years.
SEA President Carol Bonosaro blames
the phenomenon on low pay and pay
freezes, and claims the "executive
exodus could spell trouble for federal
programs and the career service." SEA
has begun analyzing case histories to
see why so many top federal
executives leave and some stay
despite munificent offers from the
private sector.
Causey also reports virtual
unanimity among both Republican
and Democratic officials of recent
years, regardless of background or
ideology, that they never worked with
sharper or more dedicated people
than civil servants, who they admit
are generally underpaid and
overworked. One caveat: these top
guns also insist upon the importance
of reforms that would let them fire
outright the one-half of one percent
who are incompetent, dishonest or
disruptive, n
PMS
In March, many EPA executives,
managers and employees will get a
chance to evaluate how well the
Performance Management System
(PMS) is doing its job. The major
features of PMS are performance
agreements, mid-year performance
and career development reviews, and
annual performance appraisal and
compensation decisions.
The agency wants to know which
parts of the system are working well
and which may need some
refinement, so about 2,600
questionnaires will be sent to a
randomly-selected sample, asking
managers and employees to share
their experiences on PMS
standards-setting and appraisal
features. EPA commissioned a similar
survey in 1984 that lead to an
extensive management training and
communication program stressing
better and more frequent performance
feedback. D
Contracts Award Ceremony
On January 14, 1988, EPA awarded
$500,000 to the National Association of
Minority Contractors (NAMCJ to conduct
training programs in Superfund hazardous
waste removal /or small and minority
contractors. Attending the signing
ceremony were, left to right, seated:
Thomas Reamer, EPA contracting officer;
Ralph Thomas, Exec. Dir., NAMC; left to
right, standing: Cong. Louis Stokes; John
Ropes, Dir., Office of Small and
Disadvantaged Business; Deputy Admin.
Jim Barnes; David O'Connor, Dir.,
Procurement and Contracts Management
Div. a
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Feds to the Fore
At a time when civil servants are still
routinely savaged as leeches whose
only function is to live off the fat of
the land, one is always hungry for
evidence to the contrary. A new
Congressional Budget Office study
shows that some 270,000 extra
employees would have had to be
hired over the last 10 years to
accomplish that part of the rising
workload due to population growth
alone had not we feds boosted our
output to match it.
Some 70 percent of feds now work
in defense, veterans services, the post
office or health care, and employment
has held steady during the past
decade in these areas, with the
exception of health, while
productivity escalated. Meanwhile,
the proportion of staff with college or
graduate degrees has shot up to a
level far higher than in the labor force
EPA Celebrates OIG Week
EPA's Office of Inspector General
celebrated its eighth anniversary
February 9. Three EPA managers were
presented the "OIG Recognition
Award" for exemplifying teamwork to
promote efficiency, effectiveness and
integrity: Pasquale (Pat) A. Alberico,
Deputy Director, Compliance and
Program Operations, Office of
Enforcement and Compliance
Monitoring; Kittybelle Rivera,
Assistant Regional Counsel, Region 4;
and Harold W. Hopkins, Chief,
Facilities Construction Branch, Water
Management Division, Region 4.
Rivera is shown here with Lee
Thomas(l.) and John Martin, IG. n
as a whole, despite the low wages
paid professionals in the public
sector.
According to CBO and other
sources, the size of government is
hard to cut because of the critical
nature of the services
provided—managing our two-trillion
dollar debt, regulating transportation
safety, conducting scientific and
medical research, overseeing the stock
exchanges, protecting public health,
building highways, spreading
educational opportunity, safeguarding
the environment, gathering business
statistics, negotiating peace and trade
agreements, serving in the Peace
Corps, sending out those social
security checks and so forth.
These and hundreds of other vital
functions have earned strong political
support across the country. If
government is too big, they ask, where
should the knife be applied? n
Meyers to OIA
Lee Thomas has announced the
appointment of Sheldon Meyers as
Acting Associate Administrator for the
Office of International Activities,
effective January 24, 1988. Meyers has
been Director of the Office of
Radiation Programs since September
1984, responsible for the development
and promulgation of national
radiation rules and regulations, the
operation of a national ambient
radiation monitoring system, the
introduction of a national
indoor-radon program and running a
nuclear emergency-response team. He
has served in a number of senior
positions here at EPA and the
Department of Energy.
Meyers comes to his new post with
a strong background in a broad range
of international activities including
the negotiation of bilateral agreements
and representing the United States at
numerous international meetings and
symposia. He also has extensive
experience in environmental, nuclear
and hazardous waste management and
government operations and methods.
Thomas said he expects Meyers to
make a valuable contribution in
leading OIA at a time of intensified
activity. He has been succeeded as
head of ORP by Richard Guimond,
quondam chief of the Radon
Division, n
1987 OEA Awards
Individual Bronze Medalists
• AI Heier, OPA
• Christo/er Ho//, OLA
• Paul Kaldj'ian, OFA
• Lee Herwig, OFA
Group Bronze Medalists/
Indians Workgroup
• Anne Miller, OFA
• Lee Price, OFA
• Casey Ambutas, Region 5/OFA
• Al Havinga, ODW/OFA
• Deborah Gates, Region 10/OFA
Group Bronze Medalists/
Human Resources Forum
• Connie Thompkins
• Clara Mickles
• Pamela Abraham
• Janice Berry-Chen
• Jack Lewis
• Carolyn Lowe
• Paul Murray
• Linda Strachan
• Yvonne Weber
• Vera Hannigan
• Don Flattery
• Mary McCarthy-O'Reilly
Certificates of Appreciation
• Pearl Young, OFA
• Robert Storey, OAA
• Holley Darley, OFA
• Frank Sounders, Contractor/Facilities
Special Achievement Plaques
• Frank Rusincovitch, OFA
• Johanna Hunter, OCL
• Rob Brenner, OAR
• Barbara Goetz, Region 6
• Loretta Marzetti, EPA Library
• Gretl Cox, EPA Library
• Emma McNamara, EPA Library
Plaques/Certificates of
Appreciation for Outsiders
• Dave Ketcham, U.S. Forest Service
• Carol Kochesien, National League of Cities
• Barbara Paley, National Association
of Counties
• Nancy New, National Conference
of State Legislatures
OEA Communicator Awards
• Pat Banner, Chesapeake Bay O//ice
• Hazel Groman, Office of Wetlands Protection
• Brooke Cook, Director of Public A/fairs,
Region 1
• Jim Marshall, Director of Public A/fairs,
Region 2
• Janet Viniski, Director of Public A//airs,
Region 3
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Human
Experimentation
An interagency committee is about to conclude a
long-term project to develop a model federal policy for the
protection of human research subjects. It is expected that
many of EPA's health effects and exposure-monitoring
studies will be subject to these strictures because the
policy "applies to all research involving human subjects
conducted, supported or otherwise subject to regulation by
any federal department or agency," with few named
exemptions.
Lee Thomas is requesting that each EPA office
sponsoring or requiring human studies nominate a
representative to an Agency-wide workgroup to be charged
with updating human-research-subject procedures. Dr. Ken
Sexton, Director of the Office of Health Research, ORD,
will chair this important effort, o
Security
"Security Guidelines for Government Executives", a new
booklet published by GSA, tells federal managers how to
protect themselves, their coworkers and their families from
criminal acts, abnormal behavior and terrorist tactics.
Prepared by GSA's Federal Protective Service, the 28-page
publication is part of the Agency's ongoing
crime-prevention program, and contains extensive
recommendations for office, home, family and travel
protection. There is also an in-depth treatment of entry
security, including locks, doors, windows and a handy
checklist.
Director Richard Hankinson said FPS is willing to work
with federal executives in conducting physical-security
surveys of the workplace and devising appropriate
protection and response plans. In November 1987 the
Service issued "What You Should Know About Preventing
Thefts in the Federal Workplace." Additional titles are
forthcoming; in the DC metro area call 472-1632 for free
copies, n
Task Force on
Enviro-Disease
Lee Thomas has submitted to Congress EPA's Ninth
Annual Report of the Task Force on Environmental Cancer
and Heart and Lung Disease.
The task force sponsors workshops and promotes
cooperation among 15 member agencies in an effort to
identify risks and consolidate scientific research
recommendations, with the goal of reducing dangers posed
to human health by environmental pollutants. During
1986, the task force examined federal risk-communication
activities, conducted a workshop for academically-based
occupational-medicine physicians and completed a
five-year plan of activities based on analysis of critical
issues.
The current report presents three recommendations.
The first two emphasize the need for education and
training of health professionals with regard to hazards that
may exist in certain environmental and occupational
settings, and the need for surveillance and collaboration
among physicians when identifying and treating patients
so exposed. The third touts primary health-care providers
in the community as important sources of information to
patients about potential health effects of exposure to
pollutants.
The task force also provides guidance to the scientific
and regulatory community on the complex relationship
between environmental pollution and human disease.
Thomas said "the coordination of task force agencies
continues to result in scientific and educational advances
and in more open communication with health
professibnals and the general public." o
Enforcement
Management Council
Deputy Administrator Jim Barnes has announced the
establishment of an Enforcement Management Council, a
forum for representatives of all components of the
Agency's enforcement program to discuss policy and
coordination issues. The Council is expected to identify
ways to streamline administrative and judicial case
management, foster region-specific strategic planning,
including enforcement targeting, and bolster follow-up
vis-a-vis settlement agreements and orders. This action
arises from a meeting last August in Easton, Maryland,
focused on ways to streamline and enhance the
enforcement process. One product of that session was a
recommendation that the group be given a clear mandate
for future action.
The Council consists of headquarters and regional
representatives from each program area, one
environmental services director, a representative of the
Administrator's office, and representatives from offices of
regional counsel and the Office of Enforcement and
Compliance Monitoring. "The participants have been
selected", Barnes said, "for their valued experience within
the agency, and the sound judgment and agencywide view
they bring to this effort. In designating members we also
sought to achieve broad regional representation."
The Council chairmanship will rotate annually between
OECM and the lead region for enforcement. While its
permanent membership is established in a charter, others
will be invited to participate on given matters of interest.
Barnes stated that he is enthusiastic about the work of the
Council and looks forward to "collaborating with it in
finding concrete ways to improve enforcement. I will rely
upon the Council to evaluate and review enforcement
issues and to make recommendations to me for
implementation through normal agency mechanisms." o
New Bibliography
The Headquarters Library has developed a new
bibliography in support of waste minimization and to
improve access to current source-reduction and recycling
information. Compiled with assistance from the Office of
Solid Waste, Waste Minimization: Hazardous and
Non-Hazardous Solid Waste (1980 to Present], includes
citations from journals, books, government reports,
bibliographies, conference proceedings, techno-scientific
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papers and speeches. The document includes five
appendices on state programs supporting waste
minimization, EPA regional minimization contacts,
recycling periodicals, etc. Call Sheila Richard,
Headquarters Library, 382-5922, for information, n
The Montreal Protocol
EPA continues to push hard for implementation of the
Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone
Layer. The Department of State completed the final stages
of document preparation and on December 21 the
President sent the Protocol to the Senate, where it awaits
hearings. Lee Thomas, in trips abroad and meetings with
foreign officials in Washington, has been urging all parties
to sign and ratify the Protocol as soon as possible.
On December 1, Thomas signed a proposed rule laying
out EPA's method of implementation and a final rule
requiring firms to notify us of their production, import and
export levels of ozone-depleting compounds in 1986.
These data will provide a clear basis for determining the
U.S. baseline and will be checked against data from the
Chemical Manufacturers Association (CMA) and the
International Trade Commission.
In Montreal, Resolution Three called for all signatories
"to take expeditiously all steps necessary to acquire data
and report on the production, import and export of
controlled substances in a complete and timely fashion."
UNEP has already cabled nations requesting these data
and has tentatively scheduled a meeting in the coming
months to discuss data collection and implementation.
EPA has briefed House and Senate staffs on the
Protocol, which proposes an "allocated quota" approach to
limiting production of specified chlorofluorocarbons
(CFCs) and halons, with provisions related to timing,
scope of coverage, reduction scheduling, trade and review.
The Agency's December 1 proposal states that its rule
would take effect co-evally with the Protocol. While EPA
is optimistic that the required number of signatories will
ratify by January 1, 1989, if that does not occur EPA
regulations would be suspended.
Assuming that the Protocol, and therefore our rule, goes
into effect, EPA has promulgated the same scheduled
phase-down in production and consumption of regulated
chemicals required by the Protocol. At a recent public
hearing on the proposed rule, the Agency received
virtually unanimous support from industry for full
implementation of the Protocol. Though this reduction
schedule legally fulfills our commitment, EPA has asked
for comments on various options to be used with or in lieu
of the allocated quota system, making it clear that the
scheduled reductions are subject to periodic review and
emendation by the parties. Q
Triple-T Terminates
Lee Thomas has distributed to leading EPA executives the
final report of the Administrator's Task Force on
Technology Transfer and Training, representing the
culmination of many months of collaborative effort among
senior managers from federal, state and local governments.
"The conclusions and recommendations in this report
reflect a solid consensus", said Thomas. "I consider this
an excellent report and concur with its recommendations".
Thomas commended the task force members for their
contribution and has requested that the report be given
serious attention by all addressees.
The Administrator pointed out that improvement of
state and EPA relations is one of his highest priorities, and
that implementing task force recommendations will be a
good way to upgrade existing institutional partnerships.
He intends to support a significant action-oriented
technology transfer and training program this year.
In this connection Thomas announced the appointment
of Tom Parker as the Director of the recommended
agencywide technology transfer staff, initially housed
within the Office of Regional Operations. The new staff
will sustain the positive momentum of the task force and
set priorities which address agency processes, identify
problems and provide solutions. Thomas said he expects
everyone to work together to build an organizational
framework that stimulates agencywide, cross-media,
multi-disciplinary technology transfer and training—in
other words, constructive action across and beyond
traditional boundaries.
Thomas pointed out that the new focus is not intended
to obstruct or impede ongoing efforts, but rather to
strengthen EPA capabilities through systematic
implementation of the task force recommendations. The
task force will convene at an appropriate time this year to
assess progress and identify any necessary mid-course
corrections. He commended task force executive director
Jack Stanton for his sedulous work in the development of
the report. Stanton is slated to continue to provide a
significant contribution through his new
technology-transfer management role in the Office of
Research and Development, a
Bringing the Bad Guys
to Justice
Lee A. DeHihns III (r.), Acting Administrator for Region 4,
accepts an initial payment of $387,001 from Gene Roberts,
Mayor of Chattanooga, TN for damages recovered by the
city after contractors were found guilty of bid-rigging on
EPA-funded wastewater-treatment facilities. The total
recovery was $4.1 million, m
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