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U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL
Compliance with the law
Operating efficiently and effectively
EPA's Use of
Administratively
Determined Positions
Is Consistent with Its
Authority Under the
Safe Drinking Water Act
Report No. 19-P-0279 August 21, 2019
119 Total Appointments to Administratively
Determined Positions
(January 2009-August 2018)
:
8
13
¦
12
8
6
8 5
11
I
1
1
2
¦
¦
H H
1
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015 2016
2017 2018
(Jan -
Aug)
-------
Report Contributors: Angela Bennett
Jean Bloom
Darren Schorer
Claire McWilliams
Wendy Swan
John Trefry
Abbreviations
AD
Administratively Determined
EPA
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
GS
General Schedule
OIG
Office of Inspector General
OPM
U.S. Office of Personnel Management
SDWA
Safe Drinking Water Act
SES
Senior Executive Service
U.S.C.
United States Code
Cover Image: Between January 2009 and August 2018, various EPA Administrators have
used the authority under the SDWA to appoint 119 personnel to
administratively determined positions without regard to the civil service laws.
(EPA OIG graphic)
Are you aware of fraud, waste or abuse in an
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Washington, DC 20460
(888) 546-8740
(202) 566-2599 (fax)
OIG Hotline@epa.gov
Learn more about our OIG Hotline.
EPA Office of Inspector General
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Washington, DC 20460
(202) 566-2391
www.epa.gov/oiq
Subscribe to our Email Updates
Follow us on Twitter @EPAoig
Send us your Project Suggestions
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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Inspector General
At a Glance
19-P-0279
August 21, 2019
Why We Did This Project
The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA's)
Office of Inspector General
(OIG) conducted this audit to
determine how the agency
used its authority under the
Safe Drinking Water Act to fill
administratively determined
(AD) positions.
Under the Safe Drinking Water
Act, the Administrator has the
authority to appoint personnel
to fill not more than
30 scientific, engineering,
professional, legal and
administrative positions. The
agency refers to these
positions as AD positions.
Our audit focused on
appointments made between
January 2009 and
August 2018. Six different
Administrators or acting
Administrators served during
this period, beginning with
Lisa Jackson and ending with
Andrew Wheeler.
This report addresses the
following:
• Compliance with the law.
• Operating efficiently and
effectively.
Address inquiries to our public
affairs office at (202) 566-2391 or
OIG WEBCOMMENTS@epa.oiq.
EPA's Use of Administratively Determined
Positions Is Consistent with Its Authority Under
the Safe Drinking Water Act
What We Found
Between January 2009 and August 2018, the Since 2009, the EPA has
agency used its authority under the Safe Drinking made 119 appointments
Water Act to make 119 appointments to to AD positions
AD positions. The appointments varied by consistent with the
Administrator in terms of location, number and authority provided by the
classification. Our analysis of the Safe Drinking Water Act.
119 appointments showed that 63 (53 percent)
were made to positions in the Administrator's office, 26 (22 percent) were made
to positions in program offices, and 30 (25 percent) were made to positions in
regional offices. Former Administrator Scott Pruitt made the most appointments
to AD positions (54), followed by former Administrator Jackson (36). The
appointments were spread across four position classifications allowed under the
Safe Drinking Water Act. Specifically, there were 102 appointments made to
professional positions, five to legal positions, one to a scientific position, and
11 to administrative positions.
The appointments were primarily made for new employees; however, we
identified two existing employees who were converted to AD positions. We also
identified a shift that began in 2017 to use AD positions to facilitate the hiring of
political appointees. In this regard, the agency used its Safe Drinking Water Act
authority to expedite the hiring of individuals who, within a matter of months, were
converted to political appointments (i.e., noncareer Senior Executive Service or
Schedule C positions).
Because the act does not specify how AD appointments are to be used and does
not require that appointees work on drinking-water related issues, the agency's
use is consistent with the authority provided by the statute. As a result, we make
no recommendations.
Agency Response and OIG Comments
The report contained no recommendations; therefore, the agency was not
required to respond. Nonetheless, the agency responded on August 12, 2019.
The response did not address the factual accuracy of the report. As such, the
OIG stands by the factual accuracy of the report and its conclusion that the
agency's use of AD positions is consistent with the authority provided by the
Safe Drinking Water Act.
List of OIG reports.
-------
UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460
OFFICE OF
INSPECTOR GENERAL
August 21, 2019
MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT: EPA's Use of Administratively Determined Positions Is Consistent with
Its Authority Under the Safe Drinking Water Act
Report No. 19-P-0279
FROM: Charles J. Sheehan, Deputy Inspector General
TO:
Donna Vizian, Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator
Office of Mission Support
This is our report on the subject audit conducted by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The project number for this audit was OA-FY18-0085.
This report addresses the EPA's use of authority under the Safe Drinking Water Act to make
AD appointments. This report represents the opinion of the OIG and does not necessarily represent the
EPA's position.
You are not required to respond to this report because this report contains no recommendations.
However, if you submit a response, it will be posted on the OIG's website, along with our memorandum
commenting on your response. Your response should be provided as an Adobe PDF file that complies
with the accessibility requirements of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended. The
final response should not contain data that you do not want to be released to the public; if your response
contains such data, you should identify the data for redaction or removal along with corresponding
justification.
We will post this report to our website at www.epa.gov/oig.
-------
EPA's Use of Administratively Determined
Positions Is Consistent with Its Authority
Under the Safe Drinking Water Act
19-P-0279
Table of C
Purpose 1
Background 1
Responsible Offices 2
Prior Report 2
Scope and Methodology 3
Results 3
Use of AD Positions Varied by Administrator 3
AD Positions Converted to Political Appointments 5
Conclusion 6
Agency Comments and OIG Evaluation 7
Appendices
A Agency Response to Draft Report 8
B Distribution 16
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Purpose
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) conducted an audit of the EPA's use of administratively
determined (AD) positions. Our objective was to determine how the agency used
its authority under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) to fill up to 30 AD
positions. This audit was initiated based, in part, on a congressional request.
Background
The EPA Administrator has authority under the SDWA to appoint personnel to
fill not more than 30 scientific, engineering, professional, legal and administrative
positions without regard to the civil service laws. The agency refers to these
positions as AD positions.
A provision of the SDWA—42 U.S.C. § 300j-10, which is titled Appointment of
scientific, etc., personnel by Administrator of Environmental Protection Agency
for implementation of responsibilities; compensation—provides the following
description of the Administrator's authority related to AD positions:
To the extent that the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency deems such action necessary to the discharge
of his functions under title XIV of the Public Health Service Act
[42 U.S.C. §§ 300f et seq.] (relating to safe drinking water) and
under other provisions of law, he may appoint personnel to fill not
more than thirty scientific, engineering, professional, legal, and
administrative positions within the Environmental Protection
Agency without regard to the civil service laws and may fix the
compensation of such personnel not in excess of the maximum rate
payable for GS-18 of the General Schedule under section 5332 of
title 5.1
The EPA has various appointment authorities besides those granted under the
SDWA. Depending on the requirements of the position, the agency can convert
employees in AD positions to other types of appointments, including:
• Noncareer Senior Executive Service (SES). The number of these
appointments are limited by law and are excepted from competitive service.
• Schedule C. The appointments to these positions are excepted from
competitive service because they have policy-determining (i.e.,
policymaking) responsibilities or require the appointees to serve in close
1 GS stands for General Schedule.
19-P-0279
1
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and confidential working relationships with the head of an agency or other
key appointed officials.
• Schedule A. These appointments include positions excepted from
competitive service that are not of a confidential or policy-determining
character. This appointing authority is used for special jobs or situations
for which it is impractical to use standard qualification requirements and
to rate applicants using traditional competitive procedures.
• Career Conditional. These appointments are permanent positions in the
competitive service for employees with less than 3 years of federal
service.
Schedule C and noncareer SES employees are considered political appointees
because they are excepted from the competitive service due to their confidential
or policymaking nature within an executive agency. All Schedule C and noncareer
SES appointments, including those converted from AD positions, must undergo a
U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) approval process.
Responsible Offices
The EPA's Chief of Staff and the White House Liaison, both within the Office of
the Administrator, are responsible for recruiting and recommending individuals
for AD positions, with input from the Administrator.
Within the Office of Mission Support, the Office of Human Resources provides
agencywide policy development, strategic planning and direction for the EPA's
human resources program, including executive resources management.
Prior Report
EPA OIG Report No. 18-N-0154. Management Alert: Salary Increases for
Certain Administratively Determined Positions, issued April 16, 2018, provided
information pertaining to six employees who occupied AD positions. Specifically,
the report outlined certain personnel actions, including who requested and signed
actions related to these employees, position conversions and salary increases. The
OIG found that the authority under the SDWA was used to provide significant
pay raises for individuals in AD positions. We identified three employees in AD
positions who were converted to Schedule C positions and then back to their
original AD positions. Two of these employees received salary increases with the
Schedule C conversion. All three employees received significant salary increases,
ranging from 25.1 percent to 72.3 percent, when converted back to their original
AD positions. As a result of the audit, the agency later reduced the salaries of the
two employees who received increases with their Schedule C conversions back to
their original AD salaries. The OIG made no recommendations.
19-P-0279
2
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Scope and Methodology
We conducted our audit from January 2018 to August 2019 in accordance with
generally accepted government auditing standards issued by the Comptroller
General of the United States. Those standards require that we plan and perform
the audit to obtain sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable basis
for our findings and conclusions
based on our audit objective. We
believe that the evidence
obtained provides a reasonable
basis for the findings and
conclusions presented in this
report.
To determine how the agency
used its authority to fill AD
positions, we interviewed staff
from the Office of Human
Resources, reviewed the
provisions of the SDWA,
obtained a list of AD positions,
and reviewed personnel files.
We also compared how different
EPA Administrators used AD
positions between January 2009
and August 2018.
Results
Use of AD Positions Varied by Administrator
The EPA's use of its authority under the SDWA to fill AD positions varied by
Administrator and included AD appointments to positions located in the
Administrator's office, program offices and regional offices. The Administrators
primarily hired new employees to fill AD positions; however, we identified two
existing employees who were also converted to AD positions.
While the SDWA identifies the maximum number of AD positions allowed and
provides examples of position classifications, it does not provide specific details
regarding how the positions are to be used. We found no requirement that
employees hired to AD positions work on issues related to the SDWA. In
addition, the congressional record does not clearly identify whether the AD
positions are intended to be drinking-water related.
EPA Administrations
The scope of our audit spanned
six EPA Administrators:
Administrator
Tenure
Andrew Wheeler
7/7/18-present*
(acting until 2/28/19)
Scott Pruitt
2/17/17-7/6/18
Catherine McCabe
(acting)
1/20/17-2/17/17
Gina McCarthy
7/19/13-1/20/17
Bob Perciasepe
(acting)
2/15/13-7/18/13
Lisa Jackson
1/26/09-2/14/13
Ms of publication of report.
19-P-0279
3
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As shown in Table 1, the six EPA Administrators within our audit scope
appointed 119 individuals to AD positions. Of the 119 appointments,
63 (53 percent) were made to positions in the Administrator's office,
26 (22 percent) were made to the program offices, and 30 (25 percent) were made
to positions in various regional offices. Of the six agency Administrators, former
Administrator Pruitt made the most appointments to AD positions (54), followed
by former Administrator Jackson (36).
Table 1: Number of appointments to AD positions between January 2009 and August 2018
Office
Administratora
Total
Jackson
Perciasepe
McCarthy
McCabe
Pruitt
Wheeler
Administrator
10
1
12
1
36
1
61
Program offices
Air and Radiation
1
2
3
6
Chief Financial Officer
1
1
Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention
1
1
2
Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
1
1
International and Tribal Affairs
4
1
5
Solid Waste and Emergency Response b
1
1
Water
1
1
3
5
Research and Development
1
1
2
Environmental Information c
1
1
General Counsel
1
2
1
4
Program office subtotal
10
1
8
0
9
0
28
Regional offices
Region 1
2
1
3
Region 2
3
1
4
Region 3
2
1
3
Region 4
1
1
2
4
Region 5
2
1
3
Region 6
1
1
1
3
Region 7
1
1
2
Region 8
2
1
1
4
Region 9
1
1
2
Region 10
1
1
2
Regional office subtotal
16
1
3
9
1
30
Total AD appointments
36
3
23
1
54
2
119
Source: OIG-generated based on personnel records from the OPM's electronic Office Personnel Folder.
a Administrators are listed in chronological order.
b Effective December 15, 2015, the name of the EPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response was
changed to the Office of Land and Emergency Management.
c Effective November 26, 2018, the EPA combined its Office of Environmental Information with the Office of
Administration and Resources Management to become the Office of Mission Support.
As shown in Table 2, the 119 appointments were spread across four
classifications allowed in the SDWA: professional, legal, scientific and
administrative. Based on information obtained from personnel records, we
classified 102 (86 percent) of the total appointments as professional positions. The
19-P-0279
4
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remaining 17 appointments were classified as either legal, scientific or
administrative positions.2
Table 2: AD position classifications between January 2009 and August 2018
Administratora
Professional
Legal
Scientific
Administrative
Total
Jackson
32
1
3
36
Perciasepe
3
3
McCarthy
18
2
3
23
McCabe
1
1
Pruitt
47
2
1
4
54
Wheeler
2
2
Total
102
5
1
11
119
Percent of total
86%
4%
1%
9%
100%
Source: OIG-generated based on data from personnel records from the OPM's electronic
Office Personnel Folder.
a Administrators are listed in chronological order.
AD Positions Converted to Political Appointments
We identified a shift that began in 2017 to use AD positions to facilitate the hiring
of political appointees. In this regard, the agency used AD positions to enable
individuals who were intended for political appointments to begin work sooner.
As mentioned in the "Background" section, Schedule C and noncareer SES
appointments must undergo an OPM approval process, which means it takes
longer to hire political appointees than AD appointees. By initially appointing
intended political employees to AD positions, the agency enables these
individuals to begin work prior to and during the OPM approval process. Upon
approval, the AD appointees are then converted to their political appointments.
This approach was used from 2017 through August 2018 by two EPA
Administrators to appoint 24 people to AD positions that were later converted—
often within months—to political appointments (i.e., noncareer SES or
Schedule C). As shown in Table 3 and Figure 1, between 2009 and 2016 only
11 AD appointees were converted to other positions, and not all of the positions
were political.
Furthermore, our analysis showed that the one conversion made under
Administrator Wheeler as of August 2018 occurred 33 days after the person's
being appointed to an AD position. For the 23 conversions made under former
Administrator Pruitt, the average number of days was 58 days. Conversions made
by the other Administrators ranged on average from 363 days to 770 days.
2 The OIG's position classification includes some auditor judgment, especially for the "administrative" category.
The auditor based the "administrative" designation on education, experience and pay. For example, if the individual
lacked experience, was a recent college graduate, or had no college degree and was at a GS-7 or GS-9 pay level, the
individual was classified as "administrative."
19-P-0279
5
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Table 3: AD position activity between January 2009 and August 2018
Administratora
Total number
of AD
appointments
Conversions
Average
number of
days to
conversion
Resigned,
retired or
terminated
Noncareer
SES
Schedule
C
Schedule
Ab
Career
conditionalb
Total
Jackson
36
1
1
363
11
Perciasepe
3
0
5
McCarthy
23
2
5
2
1
10
770
o
CO
Cfi
McCabe
1
0
Pruitt
54
6
17
23
58
10
Wheeler
2
1
1
33
7
Total
119
8
23
2
2
35
68
Source: OIG-generated based on information provided by the EPA Office of Human Resources' Executive Resources
Division.
a Administrators are listed in chronological order.
bNot considered political appointments.
c McCarthy's Chief of Staff believed that all employees in AD positions should leave when agency administrations
changed, and most employees appointed by McCarthy—including those remaining from Jackson—did leave when
McCarthy resigned.
Figure 1: Analysis of AD appointment activity between January 2009 and August 2018
50
¦ Number of AD appointments (119 total)
45 ¦ Number of AD appointees converted (35 total)
¦ Number of AD appointees resigned/retired/terminated (68 total)
40
35
30
25
20
15
: I I 1.1. ¦ 111.. I.i ii
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
(Jan-Aug)
Source: OIG-generated based on information provided by the EPA Office of Human Resources' Executive Resources
Division.
Conclusion
Since January 2009, EPA Administrators have used their authority under the
SDWA to make a variety of appointments to AD positions, including new hires
and existing employees. Appointments varied in terms of type (professional,
19-P-0279
6
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legal, scientific and administrative) and location (Administrator's office, program
offices and regional offices). Beginning in 2017, EPA Administrators used their
authority under the SDWA to expedite the hiring of employees intended for
political appointments. The act does not specify how appointments are to be used
and does not require that appointees work on drinking-water related issues.
Therefore, the agency's use of AD positions is consistent with the authority
provided by the statute. As a result, we make no recommendations.
Agency Comments and OIG Evaluation
The report contained no recommendations; therefore, the agency was not required
to respond. Nonetheless, the agency responded on August 12, 2019 (Appendix A).
The response did not address the factual accuracy of the report. As such, the OIG
stands by the factual accuracy of the report and its conclusion that the agency's use
of AD positions is consistent with the authority provided by the SDWA.
19-P-0279
7
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Appendix A
Agency Response to Draft Report
#^oss%
4% , UNITED 8TAV;"> ! r!At fcC RON AGENCY
'.s&'
THE ADMINISTRATOR
AUG 1 I III!
MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT; Agones Response on the (HCi Dratt Report. "/¦'A J \ I 'u> „f. Ulministnttnvly
Ih-hrwinct! l'o\iiioii.\ Is (''insistent with In Authority ( nder the Suk Drinking
Hitter Ac/, " Project No. () \-FY 18-0085. dated August i. 2019
FROM; Ryan Jackson. Chief of Staff
TO; Charles Sheehan. Acting Inspectot General
I.PA Administrators have exercised tlicir authority under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
to hire agency personnel ill administrative!) determined (AO) positions since the authoritv
originated in 1977. "I he KPA maintains a written policy which has existed since at least 2010
describing the process for hiring -\l) employees, their responsibilities, and employment rights.
I he OKI's conclusion that beginning in 2(117, FPA Administrators used their authority under the
SOW A tn expedite the hiring ol employees intended for political appointments is misleading.
I he appropriate inquiry is whether an I.PA Administrator has c\cr used their SDWA Al) hiring
authority to hire a career employee, I he answer to that inquiry is no. I his audit eo\ers January
to August 201X. I he f.PA has no c\ idettee based on the records for that time period, and
those records the FPA has access to dating back to 2001. that SDWA Al) authority was ever
used to hire a career employee.
I he audit includes a discussion of the OK I Report No, I S-N-t) 154 Management Alert, flic draft
report references 2?, 1% and 72."!% salary taiscs, yet it does not address whether there were
interim raises nor does it discuss the progression of the salary history as the personnel became
responsible tot new and additional responsibilities nor does it compare the referenced salaries of
the individuals to the salaries of their peers.
1 i(tally, the audit includes a discussion and contains a table addressing what the OKi refers to as
conversions. Charming an employee's type of appointment has nothing to do with the Sl)\\ A.
V* hat the audit relers lo as a "conversion" is actually a move to a different appointment. I hose
mows often require an (>PM approval process for noncareer. Schedule C political appointments
or the delegated examination process for career-conditional appointments. ""Conversion" is
simply used as a functional processing term and is an indication that the employee was already
Rec»c»e5»»cj'clalil« •MnM »« « Clilorlne Free R«ycl«l Piper
19-P-0279
8
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on the auenc} s emplo\ ment roster at the lime ol the mu\ e to the new appointment. 1'lie audit
admits this nas a practice used by previous Administrations ami another indication the HPA\s
use ol administrativ ely determined positions is and continues to be consistent with its authoril\
under the SDWA.
CONTACT INFORMATION;
II uw have any questions regarding this response, please contact Aaron Dickerson at 202-564-
fi'Wy or IK i.ji'.uK/ .-p.j to ensure it is appropriately addressed.
Attachments:
Administrative!) Determined Positions
Administrative!} Determined Positions Legislative History
ec; Donna Vizian. OMS, Pi )AA.
Matthew /.. l.eopokl. (ietieral Counsel
Holly \V. (i reaves, Chief Financial Officer
Hise Packard. Depuu tieneral Counsel for Operations
W, Carpenter. OMS DAA-ARM
I), /eckman. OMS/ADAA
lv. Chrtstensen. OKi'DIt J
J. I retry, OK i Director
D. (otolith, OGC PDAA
D. Bloom, OCRVPDAA
19-P-0279
9
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ADMINISTRATIVELY DETERMINED (AD)
Authority Under provisions of the Safe Drinking Water Amendments of 1977
(Public Law 95-190, November 16,1977), the BP A Administrator has the
authority to fill 30 scientific, engineering, professional, legal, or
administrative positions without regard to the civil service laws. These
appointments allow the Administrator the flexibility of appointing
individuals to positions equivalent to the OS-J 5 grade level and below
pursuant to Section 11(b) of the Safe Drinking Water Amendments. No
interaction or approval with OPM is required. The agency independently
establishes positions, makes qualifications determinations and effects
appointment.
Pay
The AD authority is an ungraded system, consisting of any pay rate not in
excess of the maximum salary rate payable for 'the GS-15 step 10 level.
When comparability increases are granted to other GS employees, the
Administrator normally reviews existing AD pay rates and determines
whether or not to adjust them as well. Such adjustments can be made
across the board or on an individual basis.
Benefits
AD employees are entitled to the same benefits as competitive
service employees: Annual and sick leave; health, life insurance
coverage, and retirement.
Awards
Non-temporary AD employees are entitled to Time Off (TOA) and
monetary awards (Q award, S award, On-The-Spot award, or Team
award). These awards will be processed in accordance with the same
guidance as provided for General Schedule employees.
NOTE: Monetary awards for AD employees are on "freeze" per a _
memorandum from the White House dated August 3, 2010. They will
remain on freeze until further notice.
Performs
AD employees are covered by the Agency's PERFORMS plan.
AD employees should have performance agreements in place (based upon
the Statement of Work) and evaluated accordingly.
Details
AD employees can be detailed to other excepted service positions.
19-P-0279
10
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AB's as Supervisors AD appointees may supervise employees who occupy
competitive service of SES positions (both General and
Career Reserved).
Reassignment and . AD employees may be assigned to various capacities as
Pronotioa the Administrator determines necessary. Thus, each
reassignment action must be accompanied by a signed
memorandum from the Administrator and Statement of
Work.
Because AD employees are not in "graded" (OS) positions,
they cannot be promoted; however, their pay may be
adjusted at the request and approval of the Administrator.
Employees in AD positions must be able to qualify for the
position's classification series and the level of work and
responsibilities to be performed in accordance with the
Office of Personnel Management's qualifications policies
and standards. Example: In order to qualify for a position
that has duties and responsibilities determined to be
classifiable at the grade 11, the employee must have a least
one year of specialized/directly related work experience at
the next tower grade (grade 9).
Separations/Removals AD employees serve at the pleasure of the Administrator
and may be separated at any time. They have no appeal
rights.
For additional information or questions, please call the Executive Resources Division, Office of
Human Resources on 202-564-0400.
19-P-0279
11
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01/16/01 Tit 20^^b0Ji:N
•4J uui:
97 th ConfTtM 1
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C05QTITTXI PEEK?
A LEGISLATIVE HISTORY OF THE
SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT
tog n urn vrrrn a
SECTION-BY-SECTION INDEX
rRTj-ArtLD by Tia
ENVIRONME N T AND NATURAL RESOURCES
POLICY DIVISION
OF TEE
CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE
or THE
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
FEBRt aRT 1&S2
SERIAL NO. 97-9
Prlaied Tor the use or the
Senate Coominec ot Earironracnt au<3 Public WorLs
U.S GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
%"A5 3LNCTON :t-32
19-P-0279
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293
my collesgMes icrou the lisle in formulating the compon«ntj of tii»
amendment. I appreciate theit^counsel and aisistanct.
As I stated on the floor of the House'in July when we first considered
this bill, it would extend authorities for several existing programs that
are essential to assure the provision of safe drinking water for the
citizens of this country. The bill also directs the Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency to study alternative methods tr>
provide and pay for safe drinking water and to study the effect of
PCB's trihalomethanes, and other toxic substsncss on sources of drink-
ing water. These studies should supplement, but not delay, current or
future control efforts. The bill also would extend the deadline for the
attainment of primacy by States that have not done so and would per-
mit States in the process of attaining primacy to receive program
grants for public water s^'stem supervision programs.
1 nm offering today an amendment. Two parts of the amendment
perfect and correct amendments to the bill passed by the Senate oc
August 5, 1977. Two other parts of the amendment add new sections
to the bill. The remaining part of the amendment is technical in nature.
First, we propose to amend the Senate amendment pcrtainins to
underground injection control programs. [Sec. 1412(b) SDWA"! This
amendment would carefully dsfine and limit the effect of the Senate
amendment on underground injection control regulations. It would
provide that the Administrator's underground injection control regu-
lations must, to the extent feasible, avoid promulgation of require-
ments which would unnecessarily disrupt State underground injection
control programs which are in effect and bein" enforced in a substan-
tia! number of States. The amendment clearly defines what would con-
stitute an unnecessary disruption o: State programs and retains the
basic and overriding requirement that the Administrator assure that
underground drinking water sources—present and potential—will not
be endangered by underground injection-rclnted activities. This
amendment has the support of the American Petroleum Institute and
my colleagues on the other aide of the aisle.
Second, we propose to amend the Senate amendment which would
have authorized the appointment to the Environmental Protection
Agency of 150 persona exempted from the civil service laws. Our
amendment would reduce this amount to authorize the Administrator
to appoint personnel to fill not more than SO scientific, engineering,
professional, legal, and administrative positions within the Environ-
mental Protection Agency; these positions would be exempted from
the civil .--[-nice law. Additionally, the- amendment would expand the
civil service poo! by 50. frcn: 3H-.Z to 2.2P3. This expansion would be
earmarkrd for EPA. This amrndrr.ent !,as the approval of the OS-e
of Mnr.a''.-r:tM and Budget, the Ctvil Service Commission, the Post
Office and Civil Service Committee, and my colleagues on the minority
side.
The third facet of the amendment would amend the bill by adding
new siection 12 which would authorize the Administrator to re
quire periodic assessment and evaluation of unregulated contaminants
of drinking wafer which mav remiire continuous monitoring or r«gu
1 at ion. [Sec. 1112(e), 1414(c), 1445(a), (b) SDWA] Presently the
act may be read to authorize the Administrator only to require moni-
u Cc a, e-b o-fc " ' "" 1
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19-P-0279
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Appendix B
Distribution
The Administrator
Deputy Administrator
Chief of Staff
Deputy Chief of Staff
Assistant Administrator for Mission Support
Agency Follow-Up Official (the CFO)
Agency Follow-Up Coordinator
General Counsel
Associate Administrator for Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations
Associate Administrator for Public Affairs
Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator for Mission Support
Associate Deputy Assistant Administrator for Mission Support
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Administration and Resources Management,
Office of Mission Support
Director, Office of Resources and Business Operations, Office of Mission Support
Director, Office of Continuous Improvement, Office of the Administrator
Audit Follow-Up Coordinator, Office of the Administrator
Audit Follow-Up Coordinator, Office of Mission Support
19-P-0279
16
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