United States
Environmental Protection Agency
Fiscal Year 2025
Justification of Appropriation
Estimates for the
Committee on Appropriations
Tab 05: Environmental Programs and Management
EPA-190R24002 March 2024
www.epa.gov/cj
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Environmental Protection Agency
FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan and Congressional Justification
Table of Contents - Environmental Programs and Management
Resource Summary Table 5
Program Projects in EPM 6
Alaska Contaminated Lands 11
Alaska Contaminated Lands 12
Brownfields 14
Brownfields 15
Clean Air 19
Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs 20
Climate Protection 27
Federal Stationary Source Regulations 41
Federal Support for Air Quality Management 47
Stratospheric Ozone: Domestic Programs 59
Stratospheric Ozone: Multilateral Fund 66
Compliance 68
Compliance Monitoring 69
Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education 78
Children and Other Sensitive Populations: Agency Coordination 79
Executive Management and Operations 84
Exchange Network 91
Environmental Education 94
Small Business Ombudsman 97
Small Minority Business Assistance 101
State and Local Prevention and Preparedness 104
TRI / Right to Know 108
Tribal - Capacity Building 113
Enforcement 118
Civil Enforcement 119
Criminal Enforcement 127
NEPA Implementation 131
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Environmental Justice 135
Environmental Justice 136
Geographic Programs 144
Geographic Program: Chesapeake Bay 145
Geographic Program: Gulf of Mexico 149
Geographic Program: Lake Champlain 153
Geographic Program: Long Island Sound 156
Geographic Program: Other 159
Geographic Program: South Florida 166
Geographic Program: San Francisco Bay 170
Geographic Program: Puget Sound 173
Great Lakes Restoration 177
Homeland Security 185
Homeland Security: Communication and Information 186
Homeland Security: Critical Infrastructure Protection 194
Homeland Security: Protection of EPA Personnel and Infrastructure 196
Indoor Air and Radiation 199
Indoor Air: Radon Program 200
Radiation: Protection 202
Radiation: Response Preparedness 204
Reduce Risks from Indoor Air 207
International Programs 210
International Sources of Pollution 211
Trade and Governance 216
US Mexico Border 219
IT/ Data Management/ Security 223
Information Security 224
IT / Data Management 230
Legal/ Science/ Regulatory/ Economic Review 235
Administrative Law 236
Alternative Dispute Resolution 239
Civil Rights Program 242
Integrated Environmental Strategies 250
Legal Advice: Environmental Program 259
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Legal Advice: Support Program 264
Regulatory/Economic-Management and Analysis 268
Science Advisory Board 273
Science Policy and Biotechnology 276
Operations and Administration 279
Acquisition Management 280
Central Planning, Budgeting, and Finance 284
Facilities Infrastructure and Operations 290
Financial Assistance Grants / IAG Management 294
Human Resources Management 297
Regional Science and Technology 302
Pesticides Licensing 305
Pesticides: Protect Human Health from Pesticide Risk 306
Pesticides: Protect the Environment from Pesticide Risk 313
Pesticides: Realize the Value of Pesticide Availability 322
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) 326
RCRA: Corrective Action 327
RCRA: Waste Management 331
RCRA: Waste Minimization & Recycling 337
Toxics Risk Review and Prevention 341
Endocrine Disruptors 342
Pollution Prevention Program 346
Toxic Substances: Chemical Risk Review and Reduction 353
Toxic Substances: Lead Risk Reduction Program 368
Underground Storage Tanks (LUST/UST) 372
LUST/UST 373
Water Ecosystems 377
National Estuary Program / Coastal Waterways 378
Wetlands 382
Ensure Safe Water 385
Beach / Fish Programs 386
Drinking Water Programs 389
Preparation for Water Emergencies 400
3
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Ensure Clean Water 404
Marine Pollution 405
Surface Water Protection 409
Congressional Priorities 420
Congressional Priorities 421
4
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Environmental Protection Agency
FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan and Congressional Justification
APPROPRIATION: Environmental Programs & Management
Resource Summary Table
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2025
FY 2023
FY 2024
FY 2025
President's Budget
v.
Final
Annualized
President's
FY 2024
Actuals
CR
Budget
Annualized CR
Environmental Programs &
Management
Budget Authority
$3,077,440
$3,286,330
$4,406,988
$1,120,658
Total Workyears
8,698.8
9,592.7
11,212.5
1,619.8
Bill Language: Environmental Programs and Management
For environmental programs and management, including necessary expenses not otherwise
provided for, for personnel and related costs and travel expenses; hire of passenger motor
vehicles; hire, maintenance, and operation of aircraft; purchase of reprints; library memberships
in societies or associations which issue publications to members only or at a price to members
lower than to subscribers who are not members; administrative costs of the brownfields program
under the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002;
implementation ofa coal combustion residual permit program under section 2301 of the Water and
Waste Act of 2016; and not to exceed $10,000for official reception and representation expenses,
$4,406,988,000, to remain available until September 30, 2026: Provided, That funds included
under this heading may be used for environmental justice implementation and training grants, and
associated program support costs: Provided further, That of the funds included under this
heading
(1) $681,800,000, to remain available until expended, shall be for Geographic Programs as
specified in the explanatory statement described in section 4 (in the matter preceding division A
of this consolidated Act);
(2) $20,012,000, to remain available until expended, shall be for grants, including grants that may
be awarded on a non-competitive basis, inter- agency agreements, and associatedprogram support
costs to establish and implement a program to assist Alaska Native Regional Corporations, Alaskan
Native Village Corporations, federally-recognized tribes in Alaska, Alaska Native Non- Profit
Organizations and Alaska Native Nonprofit Associations, and intertribal consortia comprised of
Alaskan tribal entities to address contamination on lands conveyed under or pursuant to the Alaska
Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 etseq.) thatwere or are contaminated at the time of
conveyance and are on an inventory of such lands developed and maintained by the Environmental
Protection Agency: Provided, That grants awarded using funds made available in this paragraph
may be used by a recipient to supplement other funds provided by the Environmental Protection
Agency through individual media or multi- media grants or cooperative agreements: Provided
further, That of the amounts made available in this paragraph, in addition to amounts otherwise
available for such purposes, the Environmental Protection Agency may reserve up to $2,000,000
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for salaries, expenses, and administration of the program and any other grants related to such
program that address contamination on lands conveyed under or pursuant to the Alaska Native
Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) that were or are contaminated at the time of
conveyance and are on the EPA inventory of such lands; and (3) In addition to amounts otherwise
available for the purposes specified in this paragraph, not to exceed $30,000,000, to remain available
until expended, shall be for addressing water emergencies, as determined by the Administrator,
using the authorities under the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.) or the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.): Provided, That, notwithstanding section 1442(b))
of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-l(b)) funds available under this paragraph may be
used to provide technical assistance and grants regardless of whether such assistance will be used
to support actions that would not be taken without such emergency assistance: Provided further,
That funds available under this paragraph may be used to provide technical assistance and grants
under section 1442(b) of the Safe Drinking Water Act to any appropriate recipient, as determined
by the Administrator, to assist in responding to and alleviating an emergency situation affecting a
privately ownedwater system: Providedfurther, That, notwithstanding section 1431(a) of the Safe
Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300i(a)), funds available under this paragraph may be used to take
actions under section 1431 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300i) in coordination with
appropriate state and local authorities, regardless of whether appropriate state and local
authorities have acted: Providedfurther, Thatfunds available under this paragraph may be used to
take actions authorized under section 504(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33
U.S.C. 1364) deemed by the Administrator as necessary to protect the health or welfare of persons
affected by a water emergency, including other necessary actions, such as providing technical
assistance and grants to assist in responding to and alleviating any water emergency.
Program Projects in EPM
[Dollars in Thousands)
Program Project
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Alaska Contaminated Lands
Alaska Contaminated Lands
$3,215
$20,000
$20,012
$12
Brownfields
Brownfields
$22,582
$26,189
$39,084
$12,895
Clean Air and Climate
Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs
$17,268
$16,554
$30,743
$14,189
Climate Protection
$99,292
$101,000
$176,485
$75,485
Federal Stationary Source Regulations
$29,768
$30,344
$47,888
$17,544
Federal Support for Air Quality Management
$134,931
$147,704
$258,663
$110,959
Stratospheric Ozone: Domestic Programs
$6,358
$6,951
$72,282
$65,331
Stratospheric Ozone: Multilateral Fund
$8,326
$9,244
$18,000
$8,756
Subtotal, Clean Air and Climate
$295,943
$311,797
$604,061
$292,264
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Clean and Safe Water Technical Assistance Grants
Congressional Priorities
$25,700
$30,700
$0
-$30,700
Compliance
Compliance Monitoring
$104,593
$112,730
$168,474
$55,744
Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Children and Other Sensitive Populations:
Agency Coordination
$6,526
$6,362
$7,749
$1,387
Environmental Education
$8,752
$9,500
$8,759
-$741
Exchange Network
$12,165
$14,995
$14,769
-$226
Executive Management and Operations
$53,653
$56,160
$73,269
$17,109
Small Business Ombudsman
$1,379
$2,250
$2,242
-$8
Small Minority Business Assistance
$2,225
$2,056
$2,018
-$38
State and Local Prevention and Preparedness
$14,124
$15,446
$24,106
$8,660
TRI / Right to Know
$11,987
$15,052
$14,123
-$929
Tribal - Capacity Building
$12,619
$14,715
$35,088
$20,373
Subtotal, Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and
Education
$123,431
$136,536
$182,123
$45,587
Enforcement
Civil Enforcement
$177,860
$205,942
$256,252
$50,310
Criminal Enforcement
$57,374
$62,704
$67,829
$5,125
NEPA Implementation
$15,171
$20,611
$26,049
$5,438
Subtotal, Enforcement
$250,405
$289,257
$350,130
$60,873
Ensure Clean Water
Marine Pollution
$8,081
$10,187
$12,724
$2,537
Preparation for Water Emergencies
$0
$0
$30,000
$30,000
Surface Water Protection
$213,320
$224,492
$270,573
$46,081
Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation
$0
$0
$0
$0
Subtotal, Ensure Clean Water
$221,402
$234,679
$313,297
$78,618
Ensure Safe Water
Beach / Fish Programs
$1,673
$2,246
$2,391
$145
Drinking Water Programs
$109,958
$121,607
$143,886
$22,279
Subtotal, Ensure Safe Water
$111,631
$123,853
$146,277
$22,424
Environmental Justice
Environmental Justice
$109,347
$102,159
$317,712
$215,553
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Geographic Programs
Geographic Program: Chesapeake Bay
$74,640
$92,000
$92,000
$0
Geographic Program: Gulf of Mexico
$22,550
$25,524
$25,600
$76
Geographic Program: Lake Champlain
$25,823
$25,000
$25,000
$0
Geographic Program: Long Island Sound
$36,429
$40,002
$40,000
-$2
Geographic Program: Other
Lake Pontchartrain
$1,899
$2,200
$2,200
$0
S.New England Estuary (SNEE)
$6,546
$7,000
$7,000
$0
Geographic Program: Other (other
activities)
$2,041
$5,000
$5,000
$0
Subtotal, Geographic Program: Other
$10,486
$14,200
$14,200
$0
Geographic Program: Puget Sound
$48,317
$54,000
$54,000
$0
Geographic Program: San Francisco Bay
$45,061
$54,500
$54,500
$0
Geographic Program: South Florida
$6,806
$8,500
$8,500
$0
Great Lakes Restoration
$361,607
$368,000
$368,000
$0
Subtotal, Geographic Programs
$631,720
$681,726
$681,800
$74
Homeland Security
Homeland Security: Communication and
Information
$4,592
$4,692
$6,119
$1,427
Homeland Security: Critical Infrastructure
Protection
$249
$923
$1,025
$102
Homeland Security: Protection of EPA Personnel
and Infrastructure
$6,059
$5,188
$5,158
-$30
Subtotal, Homeland Security
$10,899
$10,803
$12,302
$1,499
Indoor Air and Radiation
Indoor Air: Radon Program
$2,844
$3,364
$5,147
$1,783
Radiation: Protection
$8,390
$9,088
$11,748
$2,660
Radiation: Response Preparedness
$2,111
$2,650
$3,185
$535
Reduce Risks from Indoor Air
$13,281
$13,593
$47,570
$33,977
Subtotal, Indoor Air and Radiation
$26,627
$28,695
$67,650
$38,955
International Programs
International Sources of Pollution
$7,214
$7,323
$26,183
$18,860
Trade and Governance
$7,390
$5,510
$7,201
$1,691
US Mexico Border
$2,512
$2,993
$5,132
$2,139
Subtotal, International Programs
$17,116
$15,826
$38,516
$22,690
IT / Data Management / Security
Information Security
$8,188
$9,142
$23,937
$14,795
IT / Data Management
$95,631
$91,821
$108,601
$16,780
Subtotal, IT / Data Management / Security
$103,819
$100,963
$132,538
$31,575
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Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Administrative Law
$5,223
$5,395
$6,195
$800
Alternative Dispute Resolution
$845
$972
$2,820
$1,848
Civil Rights Program
$10,146
$12,866
$32,227
$19,361
Integrated Environmental Strategies
$9,702
$11,297
$40,197
$28,900
Legal Advice: Environmental Program
$60,207
$60,061
$86,615
$26,554
Legal Advice: Support Program
$15,922
$18,957
$20,584
$1,627
Regulatory/Economic-Management and Analysis
$16,032
$17,475
$19,526
$2,051
Science Advisory Board
$4,219
$4,155
$4,671
$516
Science Policy and Biotechnology
$1,628
$1,811
$1,642
-$169
Subtotal, Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic
Review
$123,923
$132,989
$214,477
$81,488
Operations and Administration
Acquisition Management
$33,034
$37,251
$42,085
$4,834
Central Planning, Budgeting, and Finance
$85,840
$87,099
$100,595
$13,496
Facilities Infrastructure and Operations
$275,614
$283,330
$308,134
$24,804
Financial Assistance Grants / IAG Management
$28,225
$30,188
$34,745
$4,557
Human Resources Management
$51,882
$51,261
$68,124
$16,863
Regional Science and Technology
$1,879
$1,554
$7,287
$5,733
Subtotal, Operations and Administration
$476,474
$490,683
$560,970
$70,287
Pesticides Licensing
Pesticides: Protect the Environment from
Pesticide Risk
$45,217
$48,704
$75,963
$27,259
Pesticides: Protect Human Health from Pesticide
Risk
$59,740
$62,125
$66,281
$4,156
Pesticides: Realize the Value of Pesticide
Availability
$5,774
$7,637
$8,316
$679
Subtotal, Pesticides Licensing
$110,731
$118,466
$150,560
$32,094
Protecting Estuaries and Wetlands
National Estuary Program / Coastal Waterways
$38,790
$40,000
$32,611
-$7,389
Wetlands
$19,656
$21,754
$26,995
$5,241
Subtotal, Protecting Estuaries and Wetlands
$58,446
$61,754
$59,606
-$2,148
Research: Chemical Safety for Sustainability
Research: Chemical Safety for Sustainability
$153
$0
$0
$0
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Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
RCRA: Corrective Action
$37,176
$40,512
$42,105
$1,593
RCRA: Waste Management
$70,129
$75,958
$91,500
$15,542
RCRA: Waste Minimization & Recycling
$9,375
$10,252
$15,799
$5,547
Subtotal, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA)
$116,681
$126,722
$149,404
$22,682
Toxics Risk Review and Prevention
Endocrine Disruptors
$6,010
$7,614
$7,701
$87
Pollution Prevention Program
$12,568
$12,987
$29,193
$16,206
Toxic Substances: Chemical Risk Management
-$2
$0
$0
$0
Toxic Substances: Lead Risk Reduction Program
$11,777
$14,359
$14,597
$238
Toxic Substances: Chemical Risk Review and
Reduction
$91,216
$82,822
$131,900
$49,078
Subtotal, Toxics Risk Review and Prevention
$121,568
$117,782
$183,391
$65,609
Underground Storage Tanks (LUST /UST)
LUST/UST
$11,034
$12,021
$14,604
$2,583
TOTAL EPM
$3,077,440
$3,286,330
$4,406,988
$1,120,658
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Alaska Contaminated Lands
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Alaska Contaminated Lands
Program Area: Alaska Contaminated Lands
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Clean Up and Restore Land for Productive Uses and Healthy Communities
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S3.2I5
S20.000
S 20,012
SI 2
Total Budget Authority
$3,215
$20,000
$20,012
$12
Total Workyears
1.5
5.0
5.0
0.0
Program Project Description:
The Alaska Contaminated Lands Program supports President Biden's Executive Order 13985:
Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal
Government1 and seeks to address environmental injustices regarding the 44 million acres
transferred from federal ownership to Alaska Native corporations as part of the Alaska Native
Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA).2 Many of these lands were contaminated while not under Alaska
Native ownership, and the contaminants on some of these lands - arsenic, asbestos, lead, mercury,
pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and other petroleum products - pose health concerns
to Alaska Native communities, negatively impact subsistence resources, and hamper economic
activity.
EPA has initiated a whole-of-government approach to help advance the cleanup of contaminated
ANCSA lands through the Arctic Executive Steering Committee. The work continues with the
Department of the Interior, Department of Defense, and other federal agencies.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.1, Clean Up and Restore Land for
Productive Uses and Healthy Communities in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will:
Maintain a contaminated ANCSA sites inventory and maintain a public-facing dashboard
to provide site information, including cleanup status.
Continue to engage with the State of Alaska, Alaska Native Corporations, Alaska Native
Organizations, and other federal agencies to further develop, modify, and implement the
comprehensive approach to advancing cleanup efforts.
1 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federa1register.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-01753/advanciiig-
racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment.
2 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gOv/rl0-tribal/contamination-ancsa-conveved-lands#background.
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Manage the Contaminated ANCSA Lands Grant Program to facilitate assessment and
cleanup work at contaminated ANCSA lands.
Oversee and manage grants awarded under the Contaminated ANCSA Lands Grant
Program.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$12.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of base
payroll costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
Statutory Authority:
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Pub. L. 117-328.
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Brownfields
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Brownfields
Program Area: Brownfields
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Clean Up and Restore Land for Productive Uses and Healthy Communities
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S22.5.S2
s.Vi./.vy
S3V.0S-I
SI2..SV5
Total Budget Authority
$22,582
$26,189
$39,084
$12,895
Total Workyears
110.6
129.5
187.5
58.0
Program Project Description:
Brownfields sites are real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be
complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or
contaminant. Brownfields sites can be found in the heart of America's main streets and former
economic centers. The Brownfields Program supports efforts to revitalize these sites by awarding
grants and providing technical assistance to states, tribes, local communities, and other
stakeholders to work together to plan, inventory, assess, safely clean up, and reuse brownfields
sites. Approximately 160 million people (roughly 48 percent of the U.S. population) live within
three miles of a brownfields site that receives EPA funding.3 Similarly, within a half mile of a
brownfields site receiving EPA funding, 20 percent of people live below the national poverty level,
16 percent have less than a high school education, 54 percent are people of color, and seven percent
are linguistically isolated. As of December 2023, grants awarded by the Program have led to over
10,800 properties made ready for productive use and over 270 thousand jobs and over $40.4 billion
leveraged.4
The Brownfields Program directly supports the goals of the Administration's Justice40 initiative.
Operating activities include: 1) conducting the annual, high volume cooperative agreement
competitions; 2) awarding new cooperative agreements; 3) managing the ongoing cooperative
agreement workload; 4) providing technical assistance and ongoing support to grantees; 5)
providing contractor supported technical assistance to non-grantee communities with brownfields
sites; 6) collaborating with other agency programs; 7) operating the Assessment Cleanup and
Redevelopment Exchange System (ACRES) online grantee reporting tool; 8) assisting
communities to explore land reuse opportunities under the Land Revitalization Program; and 9)
developing guidance and tools that clarify potential environmental cleanup liabilities.
3 U.S. EPA, Office of Land and Emergency Management, 2023. Data collected includes: 1) Brownfields site information from
ACRES as of the end of FY 2022; 2) Population data from the 2017-2021 American Community Survey.
4 From ACRES as reported by grantees.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.1, Clean Up and Restore Land for
Productive Uses and Healthy Communities in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Today, there are more than one thousand active Brownfields cooperative agreements (CAs) and
hundreds of land revitalization projects, targeted assessments, financial planning, and visioning
sessions taking place, funded by regular appropriations and by the historic investment from the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJ A). All are supported and invigorated by the
Brownfields Program's best tool - community development specialists. Specialists are the
backbone of the success of the Agency broadly, and they bring unique technical and program
management experience, as well as public and environmental health expertise, to individual
brownfields communities. The communities that the Program works with have made significant
progress, but without the skilled guidance of EPA community development specialists, the
Program would not have had the success that characterizes its history at the nexus between
environmental revitalization and community development.
To continue to build on these successes, along with the historic investment from IIJA, the Agency
proposes to invest an additional $12.9 million and 58.0 FTE in FY 2025. In FY 2022, a detailed
Workload Model Analysis identified a significant barrier to engaging with communities related to
the availability of on-the-ground resources to conduct outreach and communication. This
investment of regional FTE will provide expanded technical assistance and build capacity in small,
rural, Environmental Justice (EJ), and other historically disadvantaged communities and support
the Program as it implements a responsive, expansive, and innovative environmental and economic
community redevelopment program. Prior to infrastructure funding, approximately 80 people
managed more than 1,100 open cooperative agreements across the country. It is estimated that the
program will have approximately 2,700 open cooperative agreements to manage by FY 2027.
Without additional FTE resources, EPA will not be able to sustain and responsibly manage the
unprecedented infrastructure investments in the Brownfields Program.
In FY 2025, community development specialists will continue to manage approximately 1,000
assessment, cleanup, Revolving Loan Fund (RLF), multi-purpose, and Environmental Workforce
Development and Job Training (EWDJT) CAs, as well as state and tribal assistance agreements.
In addition, EPA will be managing training, research, and technical assistance agreements;
Targeted Brownfields Assessments; and land revitalization projects. The Brownfields Program
also will continue to foster federal, state, tribal, and public-private partnerships to return properties
to productive economic use, including in historically disadvantaged communities and communities
with EJ concerns.
In addition, IIJA invests $1.5 billion to scale up community-led brownfields revitalization from
FY 2022 through FY 2026. This work includes $1.2 billion in direct grants and technical assistance
to assess and clean up brownfields sites, train and place people in environmental jobs, and assist
hundreds of communities in identifying equitable reuse options to cultivate healthy, resilient, and
livable neighborhoods. An additional $300 million will support State and Tribal Response
programs that can provide necessary funds to states and territories and over one hundred tribes to
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grow their brownfields programs. EPA will continue to manage an estimated four hundred
cooperative agreements funded under IIJA.
In FY 2025, the Brownfields Program will support the following activities:
Completing and Awarding New Cooperative Agreements: Review, select, and award
an estimated 170 new cooperative agreements, which will lead to approximately $2.3
billion and 12,135 jobs leveraged in future years.
Oversight and Management of Existing Cooperative Agreements: Continue federal
fiduciary responsibility to manage approximately one thousand existing brownfields CAs
funded under regular appropriations while ensuring the terms and conditions of the
agreements are met, as well as provide limited technical assistance. The Program also will
provide targeted environmental oversight support to grantees (e.g., site eligibility
determinations, review of environmental site assessment and cleanup reports).
Technical Assistance: Provide technical assistance to states, tribes, and local communities
in the form of research, training, analysis, and support for community-led planning
workshops. This can lead to cost effective implementation of brownfields redevelopment
projects by providing communities with the knowledge necessary to understand market
conditions, economic development, and other community revitalization strategies, and how
cleanup and reuse can be catalyzed by small businesses.
Collaboration: Work collaboratively with our partners at the state, tribal, and local levels
on innovative approaches to help achieve land reuse. The Program, in collaboration with
EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, also will continue to develop
guidance and tools that clarify potential environmental cleanup liabilities, thereby
providing greater certainty for parties seeking to reuse these properties. In addition, the
Program can provide direct support to facilitate transactions for parties seeking to reuse
contaminated properties.
Accomplishment Tracking: Support the maintenance of the ACRES online grantee
reporting tool. This enables grantees to track accomplishments and report on the number
of sites assessed and cleaned up, as well as the amount of dollars and jobs leveraged with
brownfields grants.
Land Revitalization Program Support: Provide support for approximately two
communities as part of EPA's Land Revitalization Program. The Land Revitalization
Program supports communities in their efforts to restore contaminated lands into
sustainable community assets.
Performance Measure Targets:
Work under this program supports performance results in the Brownfields Projects Program under
the STAG appropriation.
17
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FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$2,315.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base payroll costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This includes an increase for
critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$10,580.0 / +58.0 FTE) This increase is for community development specialists to
manage land revitalization projects, provide one-on-one financial planning support, and
educate tribal, rural, and EJ communities on how to address brownfields sites. This
investment includes $10.5 million for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), §§
101(39), 104(k), 128(a); Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act, § 8001.
18
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Clean Air
19
-------
Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs
Program Area: Clean Air and Climate
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Improve Air Quality and Reduce Localized Pollution and Health Impacts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SI -.20,S'
Slfi.55-1
s.w. v.?
SN.I.SV
Science & Technology
$6,578
$7,117
$19,987
$12,870
Total Budget Authority
$23,846
$23,671
$50,730
$27,059
Total Workyears
63.8
66.7
86.1
19.4
Program Project Description:
The Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs are nationwide and multi-state programs that address
air pollutants that are transported across state, regional, and international boundaries. The
programs are designed to control emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx),
key precursors of both fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and ozone (O3). These programs include
Title IV (the Acid Rain Program (ARP)) of the Clean Air Act, the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule
(CSAPR), the CSAPR Update, the revised CSAPR Update, and the Good Neighbor Plan. The
infrastructure for the Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs also supports implementation of
other state and federal programs to control SO2, hazardous air pollutants, and greenhouse gases.
The Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs establish a total emission limit across affected
emission sources, which must hold allowances as authorizations to emit one ton of the regulated
pollutant(s) in a specific emission control period. The owners and operators of affected emission
sources may select among different methods of complianceinstalling pollution control
equipment, switching fuel types, purchasing allowances, or other strategies. By offering the
flexibility to determine how the sources comply, the programs lower the overall cost, making it
feasible to pursue greater emission reductions. These programs are managed through a centralized
database system operated by EPA.5 Data collected under these programs are made available to the
public through EPA's Clean Air Markets Program Data (CAMPD) website,6 which provides
access to both current and historical data collected as part of the Clean Air Allowance Trading
Programs through charts, reports, and downloadable datasets. To implement these programs, EPA
operates an emission measurement and reporting program, market operations program,
environmental monitoring programs, and a communication and stakeholder engagement program.
In 2022, the eighth year of operation of the CSAPR SO2 programs, sources in both the CSAPR
SO2 annual programs and the ARP together reduced SO2 emissions by 14.9 million tons (95
percent) from 1990 levels (before implementation of the ARP), and 9.4 million tons (92 percent)
5 Clean Air Act § 403(d).
6 For additional information, please refer to https://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/data-resources.
20
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from 2005 levels (before implementation of the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR)7 and the
CSAPR). All ARP and CSAPR sources together emitted a total of 852,000 tons of SO2 in 2022.
In 2022, the eighth year of operation of the CSAPR NOx annual program, sources in both the
CSAPR NOx annual program and the ARP together emitted 749,000 tons, a reduction of 5.7
million tons (88 percent reduction) from 1990 levels, and 2.9 million tons (79 percent reduction)
from 2005 levels.
The Part 75 monitoring program requires almost 4,300 affected sources to monitor and report
emission and operation data.8 The Part 75 monitoring program requires high degrees of accuracy
and reliability from continuous emission monitoring systems (CEMS) or approved alternative
methods at the affected sources. EPA provides the affected emission sources with technical
assistance to facilitate compliance with the monitoring requirements, and softwarethe Emissions
Collection and Monitoring Plan System (ECMPS)to process, quality assure, and report data to
EPA. To assess the quality of the data, the Agency conducts electronic audits, desk reviews, and
field and virtual audits of the emission data and monitoring systems. EPA also conducts a Protocol
Gas Verification Program (PGVP) in cooperation with National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) to ensure calibration gases used for CEMS quality assurance/quality control
are of high quality. In addition to the Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs, the emission
measurement program and ECMPS software support several state and federal emission control
and reporting programs, including the Texas SO2 Trading Program, Regional Greenhouse Gas
Initiative (RGGI), Standards of Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Electric
Generating Units, and Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS). It also interfaces with the
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), ensuring the Part 75 data is seamlessly transferred
to that program's infrastructure (Electronic Greenhouse Gas Reporting Tool (eGGRT)).
EPA's centralized market operation system (the allowance tracking system) manages accounts and
records allowance allocations and transfers.9 At the end of each compliance period, working
directly with and supporting stakeholders, EPA reconciles allowances against reported emissions
to determine compliance for every facility with affected emission sources. For over 25 years, the
affected facilities have maintained near-perfect compliance under the trading programs.10 The
market operation system also supports several state and federal emission control and reporting
programs, including the Texas SO2 Trading Program, RGGI, and MATS.
The Clean Air Act's Good Neighbor provision11 requires states or, in some circumstances the
Agency, to reduce interstate pollution that significantly contributes to nonattainment or interferes
with maintenance of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). Under this authority,
EPA issued CSAPR, which requires 27 states in the eastern U.S. to limit their state-wide emissions
of SO2 and/or NOx to reduce or eliminate the states' contributions to PM2.5 and/or ground-level
ozone non-attainment of the NAAQS in downwind states. The emission limitations are defined in
terms of maximum statewide "budgets" for emissions of annual SO2, annual NOx, and/or ozone-
7 CAIR addressed regional interstate transport of fine particulate matter and ozone. CAIR was replaced by the Cross-State Air
Pollution Rule, as of January 1, 2015.
8 Clean Air Act § 412; Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. P.L. 101-549 § 821.
9 Clean Air Act § 403(d).
10 For more information, please refer to: http://www3.epa.gov/airmarkets/progress/reports/index.html.
11 Clean Air Act § 110(a)(2)(D); also refer to Clean Air Act § 110(c).
21
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season NOx emissions from certain large stationary sources in each state. In 2016, EPA issued the
CSAPR Update to address interstate transport of ozone for the 2008 ozone NAAQS in the eastern
United States. EPA revised the CSAPR Update on March 15, 2021, to address a ruling of the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. In 2022, EPA proposed the Good Neighbor Plan to address
interstate transport of ozone for the 2015 ozone NAAQS and included a proposed ozone-season
NOx trading program for EGUs in 25 states. The Good Neighbor Plan was finalized in spring 2023
and went into effect during the 2023 ozone season. In addition, EPA is supporting state efforts to
address regional haze including best available retrofit technology and reasonable progress, as well
as interstate air pollution transport contributing to downwind nonattainment of NAAQS as those
obligations relate to emissions from electricity generating units.12 EPA is conducting
environmental justice (EJ) analyses of the distribution of these emissions and associated public
health impacts on overburdened communities.
EPA manages the Clean Air Status and Trends Network (CASTNET), a rural ambient air
monitoring program supporting NAAQS determinations, model validation, and ecological
impacts. CASTNET measures ambient ozone and nitrogen and sulfur particles and gases to
evaluate air quality effects on human health and environmental loadings. In addition, EPA
participates in the National Atmospheric Deposition Program, which monitors wet deposition of
sulfur, nitrogen, and mercury, as well as ambient concentrations of mercury and ammonia. Data
from these air quality and environmental monitoring programs, in conjunction with SO2, NOx,
mercury, and CO2 emissions data from the Part 75 monitoring program and mercury emissions
data from the MATS reporting program, have allowed EPA to develop a comprehensive
accountability framework to track the results of its air quality programs. EPA applies this
framework to the programs it implements and issues annual progress reports on compliance and
environmental results achieved by the ARP, CSAPR, the CSAPR Update, and the Revised CSAPR
Update, and pollution controls installed and emissions reductions achieved by MATS.13 Required
by Congress since FY 2019 in the appropriations reports, these annual progress reports highlight
reductions in SO2 and NOx emissions, and impacts of these reductions on air quality (e.g., ozone
and PM2.5 levels), acid deposition, surface water acidity, forest health, and other environmental
indicators.
EPA produces several tools to inform the public and key stakeholders about power sector
emissions, operations, and environmental data. The Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated
Database (eGRID)14 is a comprehensive source of data on the environmental characteristics of
almost all electric power generated in the U.S. Data from eGRID are used by other EPA programs,
state energy and air agencies, and researchers. Between 2015 and 2021, eGRID was cited by more
than 1,600 academic papers. Power Profiler15 is a web application where electricity consumers can
see the fuel mix and air emissions rates of their region's electricity and determine the air emissions
associated with their electricity use. In keeping with the Agency's renewed commitment to energy
equity and EJ, EPA published the Power Plants and Neighboring Communities web application16
where consumers and advocates can find information about the demographics of communities
12 Clean Air Act § 110 and § 169A; refer to 40 CFR 52.2312.
13 To view the progress reports, please refer to: http://www3.epa.gov/aimrarkets/progress/reports/iiidex.html.
14 To view eGRID, please refer to https://www.epa.gov/egrid.
15 To view Power Profiler, please refer to https://www.epa.gov/egrid/power-profiler.
16 To view the Power Plants and Neighboring Communities, please refer to https://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/power-plants-and-
neighboring-communities.
22
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located near power plants. EPA is developing analytical tools to better understand and
communicate the impact of electricity generation on low-income communities and communities
of color. EPA also operates several initiatives to engage key stakeholders, including working
closely with tribal governments to build tribal air monitoring capacity through partnerships with
the CASTNET Program. The EmPOWER Air Data Challenge17 encourages academic researchers
to propose how to integrate the EPA emissions and/or environmental data in their research. The
Ask Clean Air Markets Division (CAMD) webinars provide an opportunity for stakeholders to ask
EPA about the Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs, Part 75 emission reporting program, and
the emission and environmental data programs.
EPA also develops multiple models and tools to project future emissions from the power sector to
inform EPA's air quality modeling, as well as water and land regulations affecting power plants.
The Integrated Planning Model (IPM) is a state-of-the-art, peer-reviewed, dynamic linear
programming model that EPA applies to project power sector behavior under future business-as-
usual conditions and to examine prospective air pollution control policies throughout the
contiguous United States for the entire electric power system. EPA uses IPM, along with the
National Energy Modeling System (NEMS) and the Regional Energy Deployment System
(ReEDS), to estimate future electricity market conditions and associated pollutant emissions
scenarios resulting from legislative and regulatory policies under consideration by Congress and
the Administration. The National Electric Energy Data System (NEEDS) includes geographic,
operating, air emissions, and other data on existing and planned grid-connected electric generating
units across the contiguous United States. EPA updates and publishes NEEDS on a quarterly basis
to inform emission modeling projections and to provide timely information to air quality planners
and policymakers developing regulations to address power sector pollution. EPA is augmenting
these power sector models and tools to include important information pertinent to EJ analyses and
community-level impacts.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.1, Improve Air Quality and Reduce
Localized Pollution and Health Impacts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to operate the Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs and the
systems to assess compliance with the Programs' regulatory requirements and the programs'
progress toward the environmental goals required by the Clean Air Act. EPA will work to meet
requirements and requests for modeling in support of the power sector emission control programs
and for legal defense of regulatory actions. The Programs will continue to support emission
reporting for other state and federal programs, including RGGI, MATS, and GHGRP.18 In FY
2025, EPA anticipates work on regulatory development and implementation related to power
plants including greenhouse gas emission guidelines for existing power plants (replacing the
previously promulgated Clean Power Plan and the Affordable Clean Energy Rule); interstate
ozone transport obligations under the 2015 ozone standard; and the risk and technology review for
17 For more information about the challenge, refer to https://www.epa.gov/aimiarkets/empower-air-data-challenge.
18 Refer to, 40 C.F.R. Part 63, Subpart UUUUU (National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Coal and Oil Fired
Electric Utility Steam Generating Units) and 40 C.F.R. Part 98, Subpart D (Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting: Electricity
Generation).
23
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MATS. If finalized, the programmatic, operational, and/or data collection and management
requirements will be expanded. EPA will continue to update power sector model inputs and
capabilities to most accurately reflect changes and inform power sector investments driven by the
Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).
This request also expands EPA's ability to perform advanced power sector analyses to tackle the
climate crisis, including developing EJ tools to consider the distributional impacts of emissions on
overburdened communities.
Allowance tracking and compliance assessment
EPA will allocate SO2 and NOx allowances to affected emission sources and other account holders
as established in the Clean Air Act19 and state and federal CSAPR implementation plans. These
allowance holdings and subsequent allowance transfers will be maintained in an allowance
tracking system (i.e., central database).20 EPA will annually reconcile each facility's allowance
holdings against its emissions to ensure compliance for all affected sources.21
Emission measurement data collection, review, and publication
EPA will operate the Part 75 emission measurement program to collect, verify, and track emissions
of air pollutants and air toxics from approximately 4,300 fossil-fuel-fired electric generating
units.22 In FY 2025, EPA also will implement several new regulatory actions, including the MATS
e-reporting rule23 and the Good Neighbor Plan and Part 75 regulatory update.24 These new
regulatory actions expand emission and compliance data collection. These emissions, operations,
and compliance data will be maintained in an emissions tracking system (i.e., central database)
and made publicly available.25
Program assessment and communication
EPA will continue to monitor ambient air, deposition, and other environmental indicators through
the CASTNET Program, contribute to the National Atmospheric Deposition Program, publish the
power sector progress reports required by Congress, and produce additional information to
communicate the extent of the progress made by the Clean Air Allowance Trading Programs.26
EPA will publish emissions, environmental, and EJ-related demographic data on our expanded
eGRID website. The expanded eGRID website will integrate new data available from the Energy
Information Agency (EIA) and provide visualizations and contextual information to describe the
emissions changes in the power sector.
Redesign system applications
EPA will continue the redesign of its markets operation system (CAMD Business System, CBS)
and ECMPS software. These mission critical systems support the trading programs, as well as
other emissions reporting programs operated by the states (e.g., RGGI) and EPA (e.g., MATS,
19 Clean Air Act §§ 110 and 403.
20 Clean Air Act §§ 110 and 403.
21 Clean Air Act §§110 and 404-405, and state CSAPR implementation plans.
22 Clean Air Act § 412; Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. P.L. 101-549 § 821; and 40 C.F.R. Part 63, Subpart UUUUU.
23 40 C.F.R. Part 63, Subpart UUUUU.
24 40 C.F.R. Part 75.
25 Clean Air Act § 412; Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. P.L. 101-549 § 821.
26 Government Performance and Results Act § 1115.
24
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GHGRP). Reengineering these decade-old systems will enable EPA to enhance the user
experience, comply with EPA security and technology requirements, consolidate software
systems, and reduce long-term operation and maintenance costs. EPA released the CAMPD
website in FY 2022 to enhance the public's access to the emission and allowance data. ECMPS
modules were released in FY 2023 with additional functionality added in FY 2024.
Assistance to states
EPA will work with states to develop emission reduction programs to comply with the Clean Air
Act Good Neighbor Provision and Regional Haze program requirements.27 As part of the emission
measurement, data collection, review, and publication, EPA will provide a web portal for states
with delegated authority for MATS to access and review emissions and compliance data.
CASTNET will continue to support states in meeting their minimum monitoring requirements and
assist with developing exceptional event demonstrations, as needed. Additionally, CASTNET will
continue to provide data that can be used for permitting and ecological assessments within state
boundaries (e.g., Colorado).
Stakeholder engagement
EPA will continue to engage our stakeholder communities through efforts to maintain and
strengthen current tribal air monitoring partnerships and build new ones to the extent possible. In
addition, EPA has new efforts underway to identify how power plant pollution impacts historically
marginalized and underserved communities, and how EPA air rules can mitigate those impacts.
EPA also seeks to communicate information about power plant emissions and the contributions to
low-income communities and communities of color and encourage the use of the Clean Air
Allowance Trading Programs' data for scientific analysis and communication through various
programs and tools, such as Power Plants and Neighboring Communities, EmPOWER Air Data
Challenge and Ask CMD Webinars.
Policy and regulatory development
EPA will contribute multi-pollutant and multi-media (i.e., air, water, land) power sector analyses
informing EPA's policy agenda to tackle the climate crisis and protect public health and the
environment, including EJ analyses to consider the distributional impacts of emissions on
overburdened communities. Analytic and policy topics addressing climate change and air pollution
that could be analyzed include a wide range of power sector actions under the CAA, as well as
analysis of interactions between alternative vehicle electrification futures and associated changes
in electric power generation.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM NOX) Tons of ozone season NOx emissions from electric power generation sources.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
355,000
344,000
332,000
332,000
Tons
Actual
443,764
389,170
341,082
359,124
324,285
293,519
27 Clean Air Act § 110(a)(2)(D).
25
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FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$14,189.0 / +17.7 FTE) This program change is an increase in support for emissions
trading programs, including associated data systems, that protect human health and the
environment by delivering substantial emissions reductions in the power sector of SO2,
NOx, and hazardous air pollutants. This proposal expands EPA's ability to perform
advanced power sector analyses to tackle the climate crisis, including developing
environmental justice tools to consider the distributional impacts of emissions on
overburdened communities. This investment includes $3,248 million in payroll and
additional changes to fixed support costs.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Air Act.
26
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Climate Protection
Program Area: Clean Air and Climate
Goal: Tackle the Climate Crisis
Objective(s): Reduce Emissions that Cause Climate Change
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S VV.2V2
SH)1 .ODD
SI '6.-/.S5
S S'5
Science & Technology
$9,968
$8,750
$10,800
$2,050
Total Budget Authority
$109,260
$109,750
$187,285
$77,535
Total Workyears
195.9
216.1
256.7
40.6
Program Project Description:
EPA's Climate Protection Program is working to tackle the climate crisis at home and abroad
through an integrated approach of regulations, partnerships, and technical assistance. This Program
takes strong action to limit carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane emissions as well as working to
reduce high-global warming potential greenhouse gases (GHG), like hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs),
that will help the U.S. realize near-term climate benefits. Through this program, EPA works with
federal, state, tribal, local government agencies, and key GHG emitting sectors to tackle the climate
crisis and deliver environmental and public health benefits for all Americans. EPA builds
partnerships, provides tools, and verifies and publishes GHG data, economic modeling, and policy
analysis, all of which increase the understanding of climate science, impacts, and protection. EPA
also extends this expertise internationally and plays critical roles in shaping and advancing
international agreements and solutions. This international collaboration helps to both improve
public health and air quality in the United States and level the global playing field for American
businesses.
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program:
EPA implements the U.S. Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program under the Clean Air Act. In 2007,
Congress directed EPA to "require mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions above
appropriate thresholds in all sectors of the economy of the U.S." EPA annually collects data from
over 8,100 facilities from 41 industrial source categories, including suppliers (e.g., producers,
importers, and exporters of GHGs), and uses this data to: 1) improve estimates included in the
Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks; 2) support federal and state-level policy
and regulatory development; 3) share GHG emissions; and 4) share data with state and local
governments, tribes, community groups, industry stakeholders, academia, the research community,
and the general public.
Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks:
To fulfill U.S. Treaty obligations under Article 4 of the 1992 Framework Convention on Climate
Change, which was ratified by the U.S. Senate, EPA prepares the annual Inventory of U.S.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks (Inventory). The Inventory provides information on total
27
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annual U.S. emissions and removals by source, economic sector, and GHG. The Inventory is used
to inform U.S. policy and for tracking progress towards the U.S. Nationally Determined
Contribution under the Paris Agreement. EPA leads the interagency process of preparing the
Inventory, working with technical experts from numerous federal agencies, including the
Department of Energy's (DOE) Energy Information Administration, Department of Agriculture
(USDA), Department of Defense, U.S. Geological Survey, and academic and research institutions.
Managing the Transition from Ozone-Depleting Substances:
EPA implements efforts directed by Section 612 of the CAA to ensure a smooth transition away
from ozone-depleting substances (ODS) to safer alternatives. Applying a comparative risk
assessment, the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) Program evaluates the health and
environmental effects of alternatives in the sectors and subsectors where ODS and high-global
warming potential HFCs are used, providing additional substitute options in key sectors such as
refrigeration and air conditioning.
Phasing Down HFCs:
EPA implements the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act, enacted to address
climate-damaging HFCs by phasing down their production and consumption; maximizing
reclamation and minimizing releases of HFCs and their substitutes from equipment; and
facilitating the transition to next-generation technologies through sector-based restrictions. This
phasedown will decrease the production and import of HFCs in the United States by at least 85
percent by 2036, resulting in significant climate benefits.
ENERGY STAR:
ENERGY STAR is the national symbol for energy efficiency, recognized by more than 90 percent
of American households, and is a critical tool to fight the climate crisis. ENERGY STAR addresses
barriers in the market so that consumers and businesses can make informed decisions to reduce
energy use, save money, and reduce harmful air pollutants. By reducing energy use, ENERGY
STAR lowers costs for states and local governments as they design and implement plans to meet
their air quality and climate goals.
ENERGY STAR achieves significant and growing GHG reductions by promoting the adoption
of cost-effective, energy-efficient, and efficient electric technologies and practices in the
residential, commercial, and industrial sectors. The Program yields significant environmental
and economic results through its network of thousands of partners. In 2020 alone, ENERGY
STAR and its partners helped American families and businesses save more than 520 billion
kilowatt-hours of electricity and avoid $42 billion in energy costs. These savings resulted in
emission reductions of more than 400 million metric tons of GHGs (roughly equivalent to more
than five percent of U.S. total GHG emissions) and more than 440 thousand tons of criteria air
pollutants (SO2, NOx, PM2.5). ENERGY STAR's criteria pollutant reductions are estimated to
result in $7 billion to $17 billion in public health benefits.28 These investments in turn drive job
creation across the economy. More than 750 thousand Americans are employed in manufacturing
or installing ENERGY STAR certified equipment alone - roughly 35 percent of all energy
28 For more information on ENERGY STAR's environmental, human health, and economic impacts, please see here:
https://www.energystar.gov/about/impacts. For more information on ENERGY STAR calculation methods, see the Technical
Notes, available here: https://www.energystar.gov/sites/default/files/asset/documeiit/Technical%20Notes%202022.pdf.
28
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efficiency jobs in 2022, with energy efficiency accounting for 40 percent of all energy sector jobs
overall.29
EPA manages the ENERGY STAR Program with clearly defined support from the DOE.
Specifically, EPA manages and implements the specification development process for more than
75 product categories and the ENERGY STAR Most Efficient recognition program; the ENERGY
STAR Residential New Construction Program for single-family homes, manufactured homes, and
multifamily buildings; and the ENERGY STAR commercial and industrial programs. This work
includes activities such as certification monitoring and verification; setting performance levels for
building types; managing and maintaining the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager tool to measure
and track energy use in buildings; and managing the integrity of the ENERGY STAR brand.
ENERGY STAR's IT portfolio is the foundation for program operation, partner communications,
data collection, and analysis. The portfolio includes Portfolio Manager, which is the backbone of
roughly 50 mandatory local benchmarking programs across the country; the qualified products
exchange, the repository of information on ENERGY STAR products; the ENERGY STAR
website, which is the program's primary means of communication with partners and citizens and
receives over eight million visits per year; and ES Connect, a customer database used to track and
communicate with thousands of stakeholders. All of these resources are supported by a robust
cloud-based IT infrastructure to ensure performance, reliability, and security for ENERGY STAR
stakeholders.
ENERGY STAR also supports equitable energy solutions by promoting broader access to energy-
saving products and home improvements among disadvantaged households. A key focus of
the ENERGY STAR Home Upgrade is to facilitate innovative financing approaches designed to
address barriers faced by the most energy burdened. The Program prioritizes outreach to low-
income populations on products that have the greatest opportunity to save energy and dollars. The
ENERGY STAR Program also looks for affordable alternatives to products that may be cost-
prohibitive, such as replacement windows (e.g., storm windows). In the residential new
construction sector, a quarter of active home builders that partner with ENERGY STAR work in
the affordable housing space, including 675 Habitat for Humanity affiliates who have built more
than 19,500 ENERGY STAR certified homes and apartments. Over 150 manufactured housing
plant partners have constructed more than 155,000 ENERGY STAR certified manufactured
homes. Within the multifamily sector, more than 75 percent of ENERGY STAR certified
multifamily high-rise buildings are identified as affordable housing.30
Renewable Energy Programs:
EPA works with industry and other key groups to promote climate leadership and encourage
efficient, clean technologies. For example, EPA's Green Power Partnership drives voluntary
participation in the U.S. green power market. This Program provides information, technical
assistance, and recognition to companies that use green power at or above minimum partnership
benchmarks. At the end of calendar year 2021, more than 700 EPA Green Power Partners reported
29 U.S. Department of Energy. (2023). U.S. Energy and Employment Report, https://www.energy.gov/policy/us-energy-
employment-iobs-report-useer (link is external). The survey does not account for retail employment.
30 For more information on ENERGY STAR's residential program, including affordable new construction, please visit:
https://www.energystar.gov/about/how_energy star works/why epa and
https://cmadmin.energystar.gov/partner_resources/residential_new.
29
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the collective use of more than 85 billion kilowatt-hours of green power annually. This amount of
green power use represents nearly 35 percent of the U.S. voluntary green power market (that goes
beyond required purchases under state renewable portfolio standards). Since 2001, the Program
has helped prevent more than 375 million metric tons of GHG emissions.31 In addition, EPA's
Green Power Partnership also recognizes more than 120 EPA Green Power Communities
nationwide that advance green power access and use to their community members. EPA also
establishes norms of climate leadership by encouraging organizations with emerging climate
objectives to identify and achieve cost-effective GHG emission reductions, while helping more
advanced organizations drive innovations in reducing their greenhouse gas impacts in their supply
chains and beyond.
State. Tribal and Local Climate and Energy Programs:
EPA works with state, tribal, and local governments to identify and implement cost-effective
programs that reduce GHG emissions, save energy, and improve air quality. EPA provides the
necessary tools, data, and technical expertise to help subnational governments implement energy
efficiency and clean energy policies and programs that reduce emissions, maximize co-benefits,
and prioritize low-income and vulnerable communities. Through trainings, webinars, outreach,
and technical assistance, the Programs help dozens of state and local governments develop
emissions inventories and analyze the emissions impacts and health benefits of energy efficiency
and clean energy strategies. Many more subnational governments use the Programs' resources and
policy guidebooks to discover best practices for emissions reductions. These programs also
highlight best practices on how to deliver inclusive climate programs that benefit low-income
communities and improve energy justice.
SmartWav Transport:
Launched in 2004, SmartWay is the only voluntary program working across the entire freight
system to comprehensively address economic and environmental goals related to sustainability.
Nearly 4,000 businesses that receive, ship, or carry freight rely upon SmartWay supply chain
accounting tools and methods to assess, track, and reduce transportation-related carbon, energy
use, and air emissions. By accelerating deployment of cleaner, more efficient technologies and
operational strategies across supply chains, SmartWay partners have avoided significant amounts
of pollution, helping to address the climate crisis and contributing to healthier air for underserved
and overburdened communities living close to freight hubs and routes. Improving supply chain
efficiency also helps grow the economy and protect and create jobs while contributing to energy
security. Participants in this economic sector are increasingly looking towards zero emission
technologies as options to improve environmental performance associated with their activities.
EPA is the SmartWay brand manager and is responsible for the specification process for hundreds
of product and vehicle categories, including both family (passenger) vehicles and commercial
(heavy-duty freight truck and trailer) vehicles, and the SmartWay Partnership and SmartWay
Affiliate recognition programs. EPA's technology verification program enables manufacturers to
voluntarily demonstrate fuel saving and emission reduction performance using standard testing
protocols. SmartWay partner fleets as well as others in the trucking industry use EPA's verified
technology lists to identify products that have been demonstrated to save fuel and reduce
31 For more information on EPA's Green Power Partnership's environmental, human health, and economic impacts, please visit:
https://www.epa.gov/greenpower/green-power-partnership-program-results.
30
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emissions. SmartWay also provides relevant information about fleet best practices and new
technologies to help program participants determine best approaches to managing their fleets.
Partnerships to Reduce Methane Emissions:
EPA operates several partnership programs that promote cost-effective reductions of methane by
working collaboratively with industry. Methane programs offer excellent opportunities for
reducing the concentration of GHGs in the atmosphere and providing an energy resource in the
process. Methane is a significant source of GHG emissions and has a relatively short atmospheric
lifetime of about 9 to 15 years, which means that reductions made today will yield positive results
in the near term.
Unlike other GHGs, methane is an important energy resource that allows for cost-effective
mitigation. There are many opportunities to recover and re-use or sell methane from the agriculture
(manure management), coal mining, oil and gas, and landfill sectors. The AgSTAR Program,
which is a collaboration between EPA and USD A, focuses on methane emission reductions
from livestock waste management operations through biogas recovery systems. The Coalbed
Methane Outreach Program promotes opportunities to profitably recover and use methane emitted
from coal mining activities. The Landfill Methane Outreach Program promotes abatement and
energy recovery of methane emitted from landfills. The Natural Gas STAR Methane Challenge
program spurs the adoption of cost-effective technologies and practices that reduce methane
emissions from the oil and natural gas sector through collaborative partnerships with companies.
EPA also manages the implementation of the Global Methane Initiative (GMI), a U.S. led
international public-private partnership that brings together over 45 partner governments and over
700 private sector and non-governmental organizations to advance methane recovery and use. GMI
builds on the success of EPA's domestic methane programs and focuses on advancing methane
reductions from agriculture, coal mines, landfills, oil and gas systems, and municipal wastewater.
With assistance from several agenciesparticularly EPA and U.S. Department of Statethe U.S.
Government has supported identification and implementation of more than 1,100 methane
mitigation projects since 2005. These projects have reduced methane emissions by about 500
million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTC02e), including approximately 39 MMTC02e
in 2021. Since 2005, U.S. efforts under the auspices of GMI leveraged more than $650 million for
project implementation and training and provided trainings for more than 50,000 people in
methane mitigation.32
Partnerships to Reduce Fluorinated Greenhouse Gas Emissions:
EPA operates partnership programs that promote cost-effective reductions of fluorinated
greenhouse gases (FGHG) by working collaboratively with industry. EPA's FGHG partnership
programs continue to make significant reductions in potent GHG emissions, such as
perfluorocarbons, HFCs, nitrogen trifluoride, and sulfur hexafluoride. Through its partnership
programs, EPA works closely with participating industries to identify cost-effective emissions
reduction opportunities, recognize industry accomplishments, and facilitate the transition toward
environmentally friendlier technologies and chemicals and best environmental practices. Although
32For more information on the Global Methane Initiative's environmental, human health, and economic impacts, please visit:
https://www.epa.gov/gmi/us-govemment-global-methane-iiiitiative-accomplishments.
31
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FGHGs account for a small portion of total U.S. GHG emissions, they have very high global
warming potentials.
Science. Economic, and Technical Analyses:
EPA conducts a range of economic, scientific, and technical analyses for CAA regulatory actions
and to support the Administration's efforts to address climate change. These efforts include the
communication of the science of climate change to the public by providing information on the
indicators of climate change, climate risks, and actions that can be taken to mitigate the impacts.
EPA applies an analytical framework to evaluate avoided risk and economic impacts of GHG
mitigation. These efforts also include the development of multiple models and tools to project
future multipollutant emissions (including GHGs) from the power sector to inform EPA's air
quality modeling and air, water, and land regulations affecting power plants. EPA applies
modeling tools and expertise across a wide range of high priority work areas, including supporting
U.S. participation in the Paris Agreement, providing analysis and technical expertise to the U.S.
Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and other interagency partners to support U.S. engagement
with foreign governments on climate change, renewable fuel climate assessments, and conducting
legislative analyses as requested by Congressional staff. Furthermore, EPA provides critical,
world-renowned non-CCh, agriculture, and forestry analyses and participates in the interagency
process to improve and apply the models and analyses as needed. Moreover, EPA is expanding its
ability to conduct equity and Environmental Justice (EJ) analyses to identify policy implications
and improve collaboration with underserved and frontline communities.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 1/Objective 1.1, Reduce Emissions that Cause
Climate Change in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. Work in this program also directly
supports progress toward the FY 2024-2025 Agency Priority Goal: Phase down the production and
consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). By September 30, 2025, annual U.S. consumption of
HFCs will be 40 percent below the baseline of 302.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide
equivalent (MMTCChe) consistent with the HFC phasedown schedule in the American Innovation
and Manufacturing (AIM) Act and codified in the implementing regulations.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting resources to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions while also
addressing EJ through an integrated approach of regulations, partnerships, and technical
assistance. This request enables EPA to take strong action on CO2 and methane as well as high-
global warming potential climate pollutants such as HFCs; restores the capacity of EPA's climate
partnership programs to provide essential contributions to our Nation's climate, economic, and
justice goals; and strengthens EPA's capacity to apply its modeling tools and expertise across a
wide range of high priority work areas, including supporting U.S. participation in the Paris
Agreement.
EPA will continue to implement the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, which currently covers a
total of 41 sectors with approximately 8,100 reporters. In FY 2025, additional resources are
requested to implement regulations in FY 2025 to update global warming potentials and enhance
reporting of emissions from U.S. industrial sectors, including methane emissions from the oil and
natural gas sector. In FY 2025, EPA will verify at least 98 percent of Annual Greenhouse Gas
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Reports from these sectors prior to the anticipated data publication during the first week of October.
Focus areas for the Program will include:
Implementing recent regulatory amendments to update, streamline, and enhance the scope
and quality of the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program across multiple sectors, GHG
emissions data from the oil and gas sector, as well as carbon capture projects;
Aligning the electronic greenhouse gas reporting tool (e-GGRT) with those regulatory
amendments and performing system enhancements to accommodate HFC supply data
submitted by industry to meet the reporting requirements of the AIM Act regulations;
Conducting a verification process through a combination of electronic checks, staff reviews,
and follow up with facilities;
Publishing reported data while enhancing the Facility Level Information on Greenhouse
Gases Tool (FLIGHT) mapping feature to visually display the distribution of GHG
emissions and sources of GHG supply in areas of the country of EJ and equity concern;
Continuing the review and decision making on the increased number of Carbon Capture
and Storage Monitoring Reporting and Verification plans that are submitted to the GHG
Reporting Program due to changes in the IRS 45Q tax code; and
Implementing administrative actions, including one or more rulemakings, using Inflation
Reduction Act (IRA) supplemental funds to revise the GHGRP subpart W (requiring
reporting of GHG emissions from Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems) and implementing
the Waste Emissions Charge.
In addition, EPA will work to complete the annual Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Emissions and
Sinks (Inventory). In FY 2025, additional resources are requested to enhance the data collection,
reporting and publication processes, while also supporting reconciliation and convergence of
bottom-up and top-down approaches to measuring methane emissions, ensuring EPA continues to
meet the legally binding treaty obligations. Focus areas will include:
Continuing improvements to inventory methodologies in areas such as oil and gas, land-
use, and waste, consistent with Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change guidelines,
and to meet upcoming Paris reporting requirements;
Disaggregating the national Inventory to the state level and publishing the results annually
through the online Data Explorer tool;
Furthering work to make use of advanced observation technologies, including through
developing the capacity to publish an annual gridded methane inventory, which is essential
for use by atmospheric researchers and as input to other studies;
Integrating the GHG emission calculator into Portfolio Manager to help users fully comply
with accounting protocols and local mandates;
Enhancing GHG inventory tools and technical assistance to states, local governments, and
tribes; and,
In coordination with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and other
partners, EPA will continue to study and prototype capabilities for a greenhouse gas
monitoring and information system that will integrate data from a variety of sources, with
a goal of making data more accessible and usable to federal, state, and local governments,
researchers, the public, and other users.
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In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement the ENERGY STAR Program, partnering with
nearly 840 utilities (representing an annual collective investment of $7.6 billion in energy
efficiency programs) plus state and local governments and nonprofits. These partners leverage
ENERGY STAR in their efficiency programs to achieve GHG reductions in major economic
sectors, consistent with national commitments. In FY 2025, ENERGY STAR also will continue
to modernize its IT infrastructure, including moving existing software to open-source, cloud-
based solutions to improve system performance and reliability while also reducing operational
costs. ENERGY STAR will further prioritize usability of its web-based tools and resources for
both partners and the general public.
More than 50 cities and states have developed mandatory energy requirements for existing
commercial and multifamily buildings (e.g., benchmarking, disclosure, and energy or climate
performance) that rely on EPA's Portfolio Manager (EPA's online tool for building managers to
measure and track energy and water consumption, as well as greenhouse gas emissions) and work
with EPA on implementation.
EPA also will support the IRA's expanded incentives - including tax credits and/or rebates for
consumers, businesses, and owners of commercial and multifamily buildings that explicitly rely
on ENERGY STAR - through both an information hub and targeted outreach and technical
assistance to potential users of these incentives.
Under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with DOE, EPA has an obligation to review and
update ENERGY STAR specifications on a regular cycle. Failure to update these specifications
undermines EPA's commitments under this MOU and risks a situation where ENERGY STAR
specifications would be less rigorous than DOE's regulatory standards, or national model energy
codes and advanced state-level codes for new construction, which introduces the possibility of
legal risk to the Agency. In FY 2025, the Agency is requesting additional resources to address the
growing backlog of ENERGY STAR specifications that are overdue for review and update.
ENERGY STAR will work in the Residential Sector to enable and accelerate the adoption of energy
efficiency. In FY 2025, the Program will:
Update up to five product specifications for ENERGY STAR-labeled products to ensure
top efficiency performance and complete development of a specification for up to one
new product type;
Further amend up to two ENERGY STAR specifications in response to changes in DOE
minimum efficiency standards and test procedures;
Complete the stakeholder process across all relevant residential and commercial product
specifications to prioritize labeling of efficient, electric products;
Administer third-party certification to ensure consumer confidence in more than 75
categories for ENERGY STAR labeled products, which includes overseeing 500
recognized laboratories worldwide and more than 20 certification bodies;
Further drive long-term climate goals by advancing the cutting edge of the current and
future market through the ENERGY STAR Emerging Technology Awards and the
ENERGY STAR Most Efficient recognition program, which recognizes over 2,500 product
34
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models from nearly 350 manufacturers;
Leverage the market power of the ENERGY STAR brand through the ENERGY STAR
Home Upgrade to quickly scale home energy retrofits featuring the high impact, broadly
applicable measures (e.g., heat pumps and heat pump water heaters) that are critical to
efficiently decarbonizing the residential sector;
Target energy-saving resources to underserved and energy burdened households with
expanded efforts to leverage the ENERGY STAR market power to advance utility-scale
uptake of equitable financing approaches for home energy upgrades, a key opportunity to
support environmental justice goals;
Continue to develop and implement critical updates of program requirements for EPA's
ENERGY STAR Residential New Construction programs in response to newly-developed
and adopted national model codes and unique states codes, such as California, to ensure that
the Program continues to deliver at least 10 percent energy savings; and
Provide support for the implementation of the Section 45L tax credit for energy-efficient
new homes, including coordination with other federal agencies (e.g., Treasury and DOE),
as well as providing technical assistance for builders and energy rating companies to ensure
maximum uptake of available credits that promote increased efficiency in residential new
construction.
In addition, ENERGY STAR will continue to partner with businesses and public-sector
organizations to advance energy efficiency in the commercial sector. In FY 2025, the program
will:
Continue to operate and maintain ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, as well as deliver
critical enhancements to accommodate the more than 300 commercial software vendors
and utilities that use the tool, and add reporting and tracking functionality and enhanced
data quality checks to increase support to corporate and federal, state and local government
users;
Update and expand ENERGY STAR building scores, used to understand how a building's
energy consumption compares with similar buildings nationwide;
Verify the efficiency of more than 7,000 buildings with EPA's ENERGY STAR label,
including conducting approximately 250 spot audits;
Provide guidance and technical assistance to the many local governments and states that
are exploring or have adopted building performance standards, as well as continue to
support jurisdictions that have adopted mandatory or voluntary energy benchmarking and
disclosure policies that rely on EPA's ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager and related
tools; and
Deploy in marketplace the new ENERGY STAR-based certification program that was
launched in FY 2024 to recognize the next generation of existing commercial and
multifamily buildings that demonstrate achievement of top efficiency plus low carbon
emissions through efficient electrification and use of renewable energy.
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ENERGY STAR will continue to work with partners in the industrial sector to improve efficiency
and reduce costs while protecting the environment. In FY 2025, the Program will:
Continue to support ENERGY STAR industrial partners across 33 diverse industrial
sectors through webinars, focus industry meetings, company-to-company mentoring, and
recognition of efficient plants;
Update and develop new Energy Performance Indicators to incorporate key factors that
impact energy use in the plant and convert electricity inputs to source energy;
Work with, review, and audit an expected 200 industrial plants applications registered to
achieve the ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry in which industrial sites commit to
reducing their energy intensity by 10 percent within five years; and
Deploy scalable guidance and technical assistance to increase efficiency in lower-resourced
small and medium sized industries.
EPA will implement the Green Power Partnership and other activities to accelerate the transition to
a carbon-pollution free electricity sector. In FY 2025, the Program will:
Update and develop new resources, educational tools, and recognition of actions and
leadership to incentivize all sectors of Green Power Partners;
Foster market leadership through the Green Power Leadership Awards that focus on the
aggressive actions of Partners to facilitate use of green power within their own operations,
supply chains, underserved communities, and among Partner employees;
Partner with over 130 Green Power Communities to encourage local efforts to increase their
use of and investment in renewable electricity, including underserved communities that
have traditionally lacked adequate access to green power;
Promote cost-effective corporate GHG management practices that support the
measurement and management of corporate-wide emissions; and
Maintain and update widely utilized tools, such as the Emissions Factor Hub, that are key
to ensuring accurate and credible estimations of corporate greenhouse gas emissions and
reporting practices in the measurement and management of greenhouse gas emissions.
In FY 2025, EPA will implement the State and Local Climate and Energy Program to support state,
local, and tribal actions that are essential to tackling the climate crisis, reducing pollution, and
promoting equity and environmental justice in clean energy programs. Focus areas of the Program
will include:
Providing technical support to dozens of state, tribal, and local governments as they
implement climate and clean energy policies for efficiency, renewables, and efficient
electrification and provide increased support on equity and environmental justice in clean
energy policy design;
Updating major analytical tools to enable state, tribal and local governments to develop
and analyze GHG inventories, pollutant emissions reductions, and public health co-benefits
of efficiency, renewables, and efficient electrification;
Conducting outreach and training on tools to hundreds of state and local officials as well
as increased collaboration with other EPA offices and regions with focus on energy
efficiency and efficient electrification analytics; and
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Providing best practices to states and local governments on energy efficiency and efficient
electrification program design through webinars and convenings for state and local
policymakers.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to mitigate domestic methane and fluorinated greenhouse gases
emissions by implementing partnership outreach programs focused on providing technical
information on best practices and cost-effective technologies in the petroleum and natural gas
systems, municipal solid waste landfills, livestock manure anaerobic digestion and biogas systems,
coal mining, and electric power transmission sectors. EPA's GreenChill Partnership Program will
continue to work with key sectors transitioning from ODS and HFCs to promoting lower global
warming potential and improved more energy-efficient technologies. The Responsible Appliance
Disposal Program partners achieve emissions reductions by collecting and disposing of
refrigerated appliances containing ODS and HFCs. Regulatory controls under the AIM Act will
further phase down HFCs.
EPA also will continue implementing and promoting global methane mitigation opportunities
across multiple sectors (oil and gas, coal mining, municipal solid waste, wastewater,
agriculture/manure management) in support of the GMI by:
Running the secretariat of the GMI, coordinating and organizing overall activities;
Providing technical leadership across multiple sectors;
Coordinating with key methane-focused initiatives such as United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe, Climate & Clean Air Coalition, and the International Energy
Agency; and
Serving Administration-level priorities, such as the Global Methane Pledge.
In FY 2025, EPA will maintain and enhance the climate change website by updating scientific
material and further developing web products that reach the American public and effectively
communicate the causes and effects of climate change and Administration priorities. EPA also will
support the State Department as the technical lead in developing both current and additional
measure projections and compiling information on GHG mitigation policies and measures to assess
our progress towards meeting our Nationally Determined Contribution goal. These projections and
actions will be included in the upcoming first U.S. Biennial Transparency Report, as required by
the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Paris Agreement.
EPA will continue its United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change engagement by
serving as negotiators on U.S. delegations, for example, on transparency and markets, and working
to assess mitigation potential and information from other countries. EPA also will review national
inventory and related reports submitted by other countries, including other major economies such
as Brazil, Germany, and China.
EPA will continue to improve work on climate change impacts modeling including how risks and
economic impacts can be reduced under mitigation and adaptation scenarios by:
Advancing the scientific literature on climate impacts through the Climate Change
Impacts and Risk Analysis project by publishing and applying sectoral impact
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methodologies and the FrEDI reduced complexity tool to improve analytical and
communication capability;
Quantifying and monetizing the disproportionate risks of climate change on socially
vulnerable populations;
Continuing to make the Climate Change Indicators more accessible through enhanced
products and visualization tools; and
Collaborating with the interagency U.S. Global Change Research Program through
participation in the National Climate Assessment and other key Program activities.
EPA also will analyze program data on GHG emissions from petroleum and natural gas facilities
and support the Agency by:
Developing more detailed oil and gas projections to support the nationally determined
contributions under the Paris Agreement; and
Performing technical analyses, regulatory development, and regulatory impact analyses.
EPA also will analyze program data on greenhouse gas emissions from power plants by:
Developing regulations, conducting regulatory impact analyses, and model emission
projections to address criteria and toxic air pollutants as well as greenhouse gases from the
power sector;
Providing economic analyses and power sector modeling to inform a holistic picture of
multipollutant and multimedia regulation of the sector; and
Conducting detailed analytics and extensive public engagement to integrate environmental
justice into policy development for power sector rules.
Also in FY 2025, EPA will continue to achieve significant reductions in climate and other harmful
emissions from freight transportation by expanding SmartWay efforts to:
Develop and refine GHG accounting protocols for freight carriers and their customers;
Continue to provide expertise and serve as a technical test bed in support of the Agency's
efforts to reduce GHG emissions, including activities related to zero emission technologies;
Continue to transition SmartWay partner tools to an online platform making it easier to
benchmark and track performance and expand access to SmartWay for smaller businesses;
Encourage adoption of SmartWay approaches globally under international frameworks and
agreements, including co-administering SmartWay with Canada and continuing a
SmartWay pilot in Mexico;
Contribute to the dissemination and implementation of an International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) standard to calculate GHG emissions from transportation
operations; and,
Update GHG requirements for federal purchases of passenger vehicles under the Energy
Independence and Security Act as needed.
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Performance Measure Targets:
(PM CPP) Million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent reduced annually by EPA's climate partnership
programs.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
486.9
500.7
513.9
509.3
MMTC02e
Actual
505.6
518.6
529.6
469.9
Data
Avail
11/2024
Data
Avail
11/2025
(PM REP) Percentage of Annual Greenhouse Gas Emission Reports verified by EPA before publication.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
65
98
98
98
100
Percent
Actual
97
96
95
99
97
97
Numerator
7,821
7,867
7,722
7,935
7,877
7,891
Reports
Denominator
8,061
8,165
8,126
8,029
8,141
8,130
(PM HFC) Remaining U.S. consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
:"s.5
273.5
181.5
181.5
MMTC02e
Actual
:5i4
Data
Avail
11/2024
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$190.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements.
(+$65,295.0 / +37.3 FTE) This program change is an increase to advance work to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions and advance environmental justice through an integrated
approach of regulations, partnerships, and technical assistance. The increase would enable
EPA to take strong action on CO2 and methane as well as high-global warming potential
climate pollutants such as HFCs, as directed by the AIM Act; restore the capacity of EPA's
climate partnership programs to provide essential contributions to our nation's climate,
economic, and justice goals; and strengthen EPA's capacity to apply its modeling tools and
expertise across a wide range of high priority work areas including supporting U.S.
participation in the Paris Agreement and the Climate-Macro Interagency Technical
Working Group. This investment includes $7.3 million in payroll and additional changes
for fixed support costs. This also includes support for critical agencywide infrastructure for
Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and
litigation support, and implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$5,000.0) This program change is an increase for EPA, in coordination with NASA, to
study and prototype capabilities for a greenhouse gas monitoring and information system
39
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that will integrate data from a variety of sources with a goal of making data more accessible
and usable to federal, state, and local governments, researchers, the public, and other users.
(+$5,000.0) This program change is an increase to support implementation of the
Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund under the Inflation Reduction Act. The administrative set
aside provided for the fund was less than two tenths of one percent.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Air Act; Global Change Research Act of 1990; Global Climate Protections Act; Energy
Policy Act of 2005 § 756; Pollution Prevention Act §§ 6602-6605; National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA) § 102; Clean Water Act § 104; Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) § 8001; American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM)
Act.
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Federal Stationary Source Regulations
Program Area: Clean Air and Climate
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Improve Air Quality and Reduce Localized Pollution and Health Impacts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
s 2V, ~r,s
S.WJ-I-I
S-/-.SSS
s r.5-1-1
Total Budget Authority
$29,768
$30,344
$47,888
$17,544
Total Workyears
113.2
124.5
165.3
40.8
Program Project Description:
The Clean Air Act (CAA) requires EPA to take action to improve and protect air quality and limit
emissions of harmful air pollutants from a variety of sources. The CAA directs EPA to set National
Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for six "criteria" pollutants considered harmful to public
health and the environment. The criteria pollutants are particulate matter (PM), ozone (O3), sulfur
dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), and lead (Pb). The CAA requires
EPA to review the science upon which the NAAQS are based and the standards themselves every
five years. These national standards form the foundation for air quality management and establish
goals that protect public health and the environment. Section 109 of the CAA Amendments of
1990 established two types of NAAQS. Primary standards are set at a level requisite to protect
public health with an adequate margin of safety. Secondary standards are set at a level requisite to
protect public welfare from any known or anticipated adverse effects.
Sections 111,112, and 129 of the CAA direct EPA to take actions to control air emissions of toxic,
criteria, and other pollutants from stationary sources. Specifically, to address air toxics, the CAA
Section 112 program provides for the development of National Emission Standards for Hazardous
Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for major sources and area sources; the assessment and, as necessary,
regulation of risks remaining after implementation of NESHAP that are based on Maximum
Available Control Technology (MACT); the periodic review and revision of the NESHAP to
reflect developments in practices, processes, and control technologies; and associated national
guidance and outreach. In addition, EPA must periodically review, and, where appropriate, revise
both the list of air toxics subject to regulation and the list of source categories for which standards
must be developed.
The CAA Section 111 program requires issuing, reviewing, and periodically revising, as
necessary, New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for certain pollutants from listed categories
of new, modified, or reconstructed sources of air emissions; issuing emissions guidelines for states
to apply to certain existing sources; and providing guidance on Reasonably Available Control
Technology through issuance and periodic review and revision of control technique guidelines.
The CAA Section 129 program further requires EPA to develop and periodically review standards
of performance and emissions guidelines covering air emissions from waste combustion sources.
41
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Sections 169A and 169B of the CAA require protection of air quality related values (AQRV) for
156 congressionally mandated national parks and wilderness areas, known as Class I areas.
Visibility is one such AQRV, and Congress established a national goal of returning visibility in the
Class I areas to natural conditions, i.e., the visibility conditions which existed without manmade
air pollution. The Regional Haze Rule sets forth the requirements that state plans must satisfy to
make reasonable progress towards meeting this national goal.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.1, Improve Air Quality and Reduce
Localized Pollution and Health Impacts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting additional resources to propose federal plans to implement rules to
limit GHG emissions from new and existing sources in the power sector and new and existing
facilities in the oil and gas sector, and to propose or finalize actions with court-ordered or court-
enforceable deadlines occurring in FY 2025, as well as other priority air quality actions. This
increase also implements a strategy to meet statutory deadlines for Risk and Technology Reviews
of Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standards, per corrective action
commitments made in response to OIG recommendations in FY 2022 which include requesting
required resources.33
NAAOS
EPA strengthened the PM2.5 annual standard on February 7, 202434. EPA also is under a consent
decree to issue a proposed rulemaking for the secondary NAAQS for sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides,
and particulate matter by April 9, 2024, and to finalize the decision by December 10, 2024. In FY
2025, EPA will advance the review of the 2020 Ozone NAAQS, will continue its review of the lead
NAAQS and anticipates reviewing the primary nitrogen oxides NAAQS under a consent decree
schedule. EPA has requested resources commensurate to support these reviews. Each review
involves a comprehensive reexamination, synthesis, and evaluation of scientific information; the
design and conduct of complex air quality and risk and exposure analyses; and the development of
a comprehensive policy assessment providing analysis of the scientific basis for alternative policy
options.
With FY 2025 resources, EPA will continue a multi-phased process for improving air pollution
health benefits analysis methods to improve the science it uses to quantify health benefits from air
quality regulations. This is one of the learning priority areas as part of the Agency's Learning
Agenda in the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan. EPA will finalize a health benefits guidelines
document outlining best practices for incorporating new scientific information into methods for
health benefits analysis. This will be followed by additional annual reviews and necessary updates
33 The EPA Needs to Develop a Strategy to Complete Overdue Residual Risk and Technology Reviews and to Meet the Statutory
Deadlines for Upcoming Reviews. March 30, 2022. Pages: At-A-Glance, 6, 8, 11, 12,14, 25, 26, & 27.
https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-03/ epaoig_20220330-22-e-0026.pdf.
34 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/docuiiients/2024-02/piii-naaqs-final-fm-pre-
pufalicatioii.pdf".
42
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of specific methods and applications in the guidelines document. This effort will help ensure
transparency and confidence in the process for selecting and applying the latest science in health
benefits analysis. EPA also will improve tools and approaches to enable more robust analysis of
program impacts on vulnerable communities. EPA will work to achieve and maintain compliance
with any existing standards. These include the ozone standards established in 2015, 2008, 1997,
and 1979; the 1987 PMio standards; the 2012, 2006, and 1997 PM2.5 standards; the 2008 and 1978
lead standards;35 the 2010 NO2 standard;36 the 1971 CO standard; and the 2010 SO2 standard.37
EPA also will work to complete initial area designations for the 2024 PM2.5 standard, as well as
any other outstanding designation actions for other NAAQS. EPA, in close collaboration with
states and tribes, will work to improve air quality in areas not in attainment with the NAAQS,
including assisting states and tribes in developing CAA-compliant pollution reduction plans.
Air Toxics
Section 112(d)(6) of the CAA requires EPA to review and revise, as necessary, all NESHAP (for
both major and area sources) every eight years. These reviews include compiling information and
data already available to the Agency; collecting new information and emissions data from industry;
reviewing emission control technologies; and conducting economic analyses for the affected
industries needed for developing regulations. Similarly, Section 112(f) of the CAA requires EPA
to review the risk that remains after the implementation of MACT standards within eight years of
promulgation. In addition, Section 112 requires EPA to periodically review, and, where
appropriate, revise both the list of air toxics subject to regulation and the list of source categories
for which standards must be developed. The CAA Section 129 Program further requires EPA to
develop and periodically review standards of performance and emissions guidelines covering air
emissions from waste combustion sources.
In FY 2025, EPA will undertake multiple CAA reviews and associated rulemakings. The air toxics
program will prioritize conducting reviews of NESHAP and CAA Section 129 rules, many of which
are subject to court-ordered or court-entered dates, or are actions otherwise required by courts. EPA
expects to propose or promulgate more than 41 air toxics rules in FY 2025. If EPA receives the
resources requested as part of its commitment to the OIG concerning corrective action measures
for the Air Toxics Program, EPA also will expect to propose or finalize an additional 48 air toxics
rules in FY 2025 - a total of 89 air toxics actions. EPA will enhance risk assessment capabilities
to better identify and determine impacts of exposures to air toxics on communities. The Program
will prioritize its work, as resources allow, with an emphasis on meeting court-ordered deadlines,
and incorporating environmental justice (EJ) considerations as part of the decision-making
process. FY 2025 funds also will be used to provide outreach, training, technical assistance, and
capacity building to communities and small businesses that may be affected by the rules we
promulgate.
As called for in the Administrator's April 27, 2021, Memorandum Regarding Per- and
Polyfluoroalkyl Substances,5 EPA will take actions to address PFAS pollution. The EPA Council
on PFAS will continue to collaborate on cross-cutting strategies; advance new science; develop
coordinated policies, regulations, and communications; and engage with affected states, tribes,
35 In September 2016, EPA completed the review of the 2008 Lead NAAQS and retained the standards without revision.
36 In April 2018, EPA completed the review of the 2010 NO2 NAAQS and retained the standards without revision.
37 In February 2019, EPA completed the review of the 2010 SO2 NAAQS and retained the standards without revision.
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communities, and stakeholders. The Agency's PFAS Strategic Roadmap outlined a whole-of-
agency approach to addressing PFAS contamination. In the Roadmap, the Office of Air and
Radiation (OAR) committed to "evaluate mitigation options, and/or pursuing other regulatory and
non-regulatory approaches." This includes consideration of appropriate actions using existing
CAA authorities.
As called for in the Administrator's April 27, 2021, Memorandum Regarding Per- and
Polyfluoroalkyl Substances,5 EPA will take actions to address PFAS pollution. The EPA Council
on PFAS will continue to collaborate on cross-cutting strategies; advance new science; develop
coordinated policies, regulations, and communications; and engage with affected states, tribes,
communities, and stakeholders. The Agency's PFAS Strategic Roadmap outlined a whole-of-
agency approach to addressing PFAS contamination. In the Roadmap, the Office of Air and
Radiation (OAR) committed to "evaluate mitigation options, and/or pursuing other regulatory and
non-regulatory approaches." This includes consideration of appropriate actions using existing
CAA authorities.
As part of a forward-looking air toxics strategy, EPA will address these regulatory and emerging
issues and improve access to air toxics data. The Agency will continue its transition to an approach
that develops and shares air toxics data faster and more regularly to the public, allowing for
increased transparency and the ability to see trends and exposure risks over time. In 2025 EPA will
report the most current air toxics data available each year in the annual Air Trends Report and an
online interactive tool (AirToxScreen) instead of the previous three to four - year cycle for toxics
data reporting and provide that data at increased spatial resolution. EPA will continue providing
information annually for communities on health risks from exposures to air toxics through the
AirToxScreen, which enables the public to identify existing and emerging air toxics issues.
NSPS
Section 111 of the CAA requires EPA to set NSPS for new, modified, or reconstructed stationary
sources of air emissions in categories that have been determined to cause, or significantly
contribute to, air pollution that may endanger public health or welfare. Section 111 also requires
EPA, at least every eight years, to review and, if appropriate, revise NSPS for each source category
for which such standards have been established. Under CAA Section 111, EPA must establish
emission guidelines for existing sources for which air quality criteria have not been issued, are not
included in the list published under Section 108(a), or are emitted from a source category that is
regulated under Section 112, but to which a standard of performance would apply if such an
existing source were a new source.
In meeting the requirements of Executive Order 13990 and as part of the Administration's
comprehensive approach to tackling the climate crisis, EPA also will continue its work to reduce
GHGs from fossil-fuel fired power plants and from sources in the oil and natural gas industry.
These sources are the two largest categories of stationary sources of GHG emissions in the U.S.38
EPA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking for fossil-fuel fired power plants in May 2023 to
revise new source performance standards for natural gas-fired combustion turbines and to establish
emission guidelines for existing steam electric generating units and certain existing natural gas-
38 EPA (2023) Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2021. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA
430-R-23-002. h ttps://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/iiiventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-l 990-2021.
44
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fired combustion turbines. EPA also issued a notice of proposed rulemaking for the oil and natural
gas sector in November 2021 and a supplemental proposal in December 2022 to revise new source
performance standards and to establish emission guidelines for existing sources. These proposals
were informed by extensive engagement with states, tribal nations, communities, and abroad range
of stakeholders, as well as a fresh look at pertinent policies, technology, and data. EPA issued a
final rule addressing GHGs from new and existing sources in the oil and natural gas industry in
fall 2023 and intends to issue a final rule addressing GHGs from new and existing fossil fuel-fired
power plants in spring 2024.
In FY 2025, EPA plans to implement new source performance standards and emission guidelines
applicable to power plants and to the oil and gas sources that EPA will have finalized under Section
111. As part of this effort, EPA also will provide support for implementation of the final new
source performance standards and support to states in the development of state plans to meet oil
and natural gas emission guidelines and power plant emission guidelines. EPA also intends to
develop proposed federal plans for existing oil and natural gas sources and power plants not
covered by a respective state or tribal plan. These actions are key steps toward EPA's commitment
to deliver public health protections from these pollutants for communities across America.
In addition, in FY 2025, EPA will work to fulfill the CAA's Section 111 requirements for
approximately 11 source categories in multiple rulemaking actions, many of which are subject to
court or executive orders or are in litigation.
EPA also will undertake other projects, such as those required by statute or executive order;
overdue NSPS and area source technology reviews related to source categories in addition to those
described above. EPA will continue work on case-by-case regional and national NESHAP and
NSPS applicability determinations.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM NAAQS) Percentage of air quality improvement in counties not meeting current NAAQS.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
7
8
9
10
Actual
3
7
8
10
8
Data
Avail
11/2024
Percent
(PM NAAQS2) Percentage of people with low SES living in areas where the air quality meets the PM2.5
NAAQS.
FY 2018
FY 2019
FY 2020
FY 2021
FY 2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
90
93
97
100
Percent
Actual
82
82
81
85
83
Data
Avail
11/2024
Numerator
52,044,172
51,560,102
48,678,558
50,304,779
49,634,175
People
Denominator
63,150,683
62,687,368
60,053,454
59,241,268
59,614,742
45
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FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands)
(+$1,132.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation
of base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs.
(+$13,648.0 / +38.8 FTE) This program change is an increase to support the regulation of
stationary sources of air pollution through developing and implementing emissions
standards, regulations, and guidelines. This includes resources to implement rules to limit
GHG emissions from new and existing sources in the power sector and new and existing
facilities in the oil and gas sector and to meet statutory and court-ordered legal deadlines.
This increase also is necessary to meet statutory deadlines for Risk and Technology
Reviews of Maximum Achievable Control Technology standards, per corrective action
commitments made to OIG. This investment includes $7.3 million for payroll.
(+$2,764.0 / +2.0 FTE) This program change is an increase in support of implementation
of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018, to help the Agency
identify, prioritize, and undertake evidence-building activities and develop evidence
building capacity to inform policy and decisions. This investment includes $358.0
thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Air Act.
46
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Federal Support for Air Quality Management
Program Area: Clean Air and Climate
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Improve Air Quality and Reduce Localized Pollution and Health Impacts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.s lMf.il
SN'.'O-I
.S 25X.M>3
S I10.V5V
Science & Technology
$8,950
$11,343
$10,754
-$589
Total Budget Authority
$143,881
$159,047
$269,417
$110,370
Total Workyears
824.3
879.3
1,079.7
200.4
Program Project Description:
The Federal Support for Air Quality Management Program assists state, tribal, and local air
pollution control agencies in the development, implementation, and evaluation of programs for the
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS); establishes standards for reducing air toxics;
and helps reduce haze and improve visibility in some of America's largest national parks and
wilderness areas.
Under this program, EPA develops federal measures and regional strategies that help to reduce
emissions from stationary and mobile sources. Delegated states have the primary responsibility
(and tribes may choose to take responsibility) for developing clean air measures necessary to meet
the NAAQS and protect visibility. At the core of this program is the use of scientific and technical
air quality and emissions data. EPA, working with states, tribes, and local air agencies, develops
methods for estimating and measuring air emissions and monitoring air quality concentrations,
collects these data, and maintains databases (e.g., Emissions Inventory System, Air Quality
System, etc.). EPA also supports training for state, tribal, and local air pollution professionals.
NAAQS Development
The Clean Air Act (CAA) requires EPA to set the NAAQS for six "criteria" pollutants considered
harmful to public health and the environment. The criteria pollutants are particulate matter (PM),
ozone (O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), and lead (Pb).
Section 109 of the CAA Amendments of 1990 established two types of NAAQS - primary and
secondary standards. Primary standards are set at a level requisite to protect public health with an
adequate margin of safety, including the health of at-risk populations. Secondary standards are set
at a level requisite to protect public welfare from any known or anticipated adverse effects, such
as decreased visibility and damage to animals, crops, vegetation, and buildings. The CAA requires
EPA to review the science upon which the NAAQS are based and the standards themselves every
five years. These national standards form the foundation for air quality management and establish
goals that protect public health and the environment.
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Air Pollution Information Tracking
For each of the six criteria pollutants, under Section 110 of the CAA, EPA tracks two kinds of air
pollution information: air pollutant concentrations based on actual measurements in the ambient
(outside) air at monitoring sites throughout the country; and pollutant emissions based on
engineering estimates or measurements of the total tons of pollutants released into the air each
year.
Air Quality Management Planning
Under CAA Section 110, EPA develops regulations and guidance to clarify requirements for state
and local air agencies for developing State Implementation Plans (SIPs) for implementing the
NAAQS. SIPs are the plans that ensure attainment and maintenance of the NAAQS. EPA works
with state and local governments to ensure the technical integrity of emission source controls in
SIPs and with tribes on Tribal Implementation Plans (TIPs). EPA also reviews SIPs to ensure they
are consistent with applicable requirements of the CAA and takes regulatory action on SIP
submissions consistent with CAA responsibilities.
New Source Review (NSR) Preconstruction Permit Program
The NSR preconstruction permit program in Title I of the CAA is a part of state plans to attain and
maintain the NAAQS. The two primary aspects of this program are the Prevention of Significant
Deterioration program, described in Section 165 of the CAA, and the Nonattainment NSR
program, described in various parts of the CAA, including Sections 173 and 182.
Outer Continental Shelf (PCS) Air Permit Program
Section 328 of the CAA establishes requirements for managing and minimizing air pollution
through the permitting of activities located offshore of the United States along the Pacific, Arctic
(except the North Slope Borough of Alaska), and Atlantic Coasts, and in certain parts of the Gulf
Coast. Additional specific requirements are codified in rulemaking. To support the Nation's
transition to clean energy, EPA is developing policy and guidance applicable to offshore wind
projects being constructed on the OCS and will devote increased resources to this work to support
the Administration's goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2030 as part of
the federal government's efforts to tackle climate change.
Protection of Visibility in Class I Areas
Sections 169A and 169B of the CAA require protection of visibility for 156 congressionally
mandated national parks and wilderness areas known as Class I areas. Congress established a
national goal of returning visibility in the Class I areas to natural conditions {i.e., the visibility
conditions that existed without manmade air pollution). The Regional Haze Rule sets forth the
requirements that state plans must satisfy to make reasonable progress towards meeting this
national goal.
Control of Air Toxics
Toxic air pollutants are known to cause or are suspected of causing increased risk of cancer
and other serious health effects, such as neurological damage and reproductive harm. EPA assists
state, tribal, and local air pollution control agencies in characterizing the nature and scope of their
air toxics issues through modeling, emission inventories, monitoring, and assessments. For
example, EPA maintains updated air toxic emission and exposure data, incorporating current
48
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toxicity data to provide recent information on air toxics risks from a national perspective and at a
local scale, where possible. EPA also supports programs that reduce inhalation risk and multi-
pathway risk posed by deposition of air toxics to water bodies and ecosystems, facilitates
international cooperation to reduce transboundary and intercontinental air toxics pollution,
develops and improves risk assessment methodologies for toxic air pollutants, and provides
training for air pollution professionals.
The provisions of the CAA that address the control of air toxics are located primarily in Section
112 and 129. Section 112 requires issuing National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air
Pollutants (NESHAP) for major sources and area sources; the assessment and, as necessary,
regulation of risks remaining after implementation of NESHAP that are based on Maximum
Available Control Technology (MACT); the periodic review and revision of all NESHAP to reflect
developments in practices, processes, and control technologies; and associated national guidance
and outreach. In addition, EPA must periodically review, and, where appropriate, revise both the
list of air toxics subject to regulation and the list of source categories for which standards must be
developed. EPA has promulgated rules for approximately 180 source categories to control air
toxics under Section 112 and is continually engaged in their periodic review and revision. EPA
will enhance risk assessment capabilities to better identify and determine impacts of exposures to
air toxics on communities, including communities impacted by environmental justice (EJ) issues.
The Program prioritizes its work, as resources allow, with an emphasis on meeting court-ordered
deadlines and incorporating EJ considerations as part of the decision-making process, as well as
implementing a strategy to meet statutory deadlines for Risk and Technology Reviews of
Maximum Achievable Control Technology standards, per corrective action commitments made in
response to OIG recommendations in FY 2022.39Section 129 of the CAA requires a similar
approach to review regulations applicable to solid waste incinerators, as well as issuance of new
source performance standards and emission guidelines pursuant to CAA Section 111, the review
of state plans to implement those guidelines, and development of federal plans to do so if
necessary. EPA has promulgated rules for approximately six categories of solid waste incineration
units to control air toxics and criteria pollutants under Section 129, and EPA is continually engaged
in their periodic review and revision. In addition to this regulatory work, EPA also provides
determinations to states and industry seeking information about source-specific applicability of
these regulations.
Climate Change
The President has prioritized action to tackle climate change with a focus on an equitable transition
to clean energy. These plans call for cuts in greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution to reduce the
contribution of human activities to climate change and its impacts on public health, while
investing in communities that are on the front line of impacts. EPA issues regulations to limit GHGs
and assists states, tribes, and local air pollution control agencies in the development,
implementation, and evaluation of programs to reduce GHG pollution. The Program also
supports the Agency's work with international partners to combat short-lived climate pollutants.
These air pollutants, including black carbon (a component of PM), methane, and tropospheric
39 The EPA Needs to Develop a Strategy to Complete Overdue Residual Risk and Technology Reviews and to Meet the Statutory
Deadlines for Upcoming Reviews. March 30, 2022. https://www.epa.gov/system/fLles/documents/2022-03/_epaoig_20220330-
22-e-0026.pdf.
49
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ozone, are contributing to and accelerating the impacts of climate change. In addition, wildfire
smoke is expected to increase because of a changing climate, and this will impact an increasingly
greater number of people. The Program will support agency efforts to address the public health
impacts of wildland fire smoke and help communities prepare for and respond to wildfire/smoke
events.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.1, Improve Air Quality and Reduce
Localized Pollution and Health Impacts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting $110.9 million in additional resources to support critical work to
implement climate and clean air regulations and programs both at headquarters and in regional
offices. This includes activities such as reviewing and taking action on state plans required under
forthcoming GHG standards, priority NAAQS work, taking timely action on SIPs, reducing the
SIP backlog, air monitoring and analysis, and EJ activities. EPA also will be undertaking the initial
area designations process for the 2024 PM2.5 NAAQS, and processing associated exceptional
events demonstrations. Also, the EPA's Office of Inspector General (OIG)40"41"42"43 and the
Government Accountability Office (GAO)44 have documented several programmatic goals that
are not being fulfilled due to insufficient resources year after year in both EPA Headquarters and
Regions. EPA's corrective actions commit the Agency to seeking resources for these activities as
contained in the President's Budget requests.
This request includes resources to support the implementation of emission guidelines for GHGs
from oil and gas operations as well as power plants under Section 111(d) of the CAA. Section
111(d) of the CAA provides states with a lead implementing role and considerable flexibility, and
the development and implementation of the emission guidelines will require extensive work to
develop program implementation infrastructure; engage states, tribes, and communities; assess EJ
impacts; evaluate state plans; and ensure consistent application of the emissions guidelines
nationwide. Resources will be used to continue developing a standard reporting system for states
to use, or adapt as needed, for submitting plans and tracking their compliance data, and ensuring
that communities have access to that data.
The request also includes additional support for NAAQS review work and implementation
activities, many of which are increasingly complex. Critical to successful implementation is timely
issuance of rules and guidance documents, ongoing outreach to states and other entities as well as
40 EPA Has Reduced Its Backlog of State Implementation Plans Submitted Prior to 2013 but Continues to Face Challenges in
Taking Timely Final Actions on Submitted Plans. June 14, 2021. https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2021-
06/documents/ epaoig 2021.0614-21.-e-01.63 O.pdf".
41 EPA's Title V Program Needs to Address Ongoing Fee Issues and Improve Oversight. January 12, 2022. Pages: At-A-Glance,
15,19, 22, & 25. https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-01/ epaoig_20220112-22-e-0017.pdf.
42 The EPA Needs to Develop a Strategy to Complete Overdue Residual Risk and Technology Reviews and to Meet the Statutory
Deadlines for Upcoming Reviews. March 30, 2022. Pages: At-A-Glance, 6, 8, 11, 12,14, 25, 26, & 27.
https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-03/epaoig 20220330-22-e-0026.pdf.
43 EPA's Processing Times for New Source Air Permits in Indian Country Have Improved, but Many Still Exceed Regulatory
Time Frames. April 22, 2020. Pages: At-A-Glance, 9, 15, 16, 24, & 31. https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2020-
04/documents/ epaoig_20200422-20-p-0146.pdf.
44 AIR POLLUTION: Opportunities to Better Sustain and Modernize the National Air Quality Monitoring System. November 12,
2020. h ttps://www. gao. go v/assets/ gao-21. -3 8 .pdf.
50
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development of NAAQS implementation and permitting-related tools. EPA will engage with states
and tribes to develop guidance to assist air programs with meeting implementation deadlines.
These critical resources also will support efforts to reduce the SIP backlog as well as ensure
timeliness of review of incoming SIPs, permitting needs (both NAAQS and GHG-related, onshore
and offshore), and air quality monitoring and analysis needs. This increase also will enhance
EPA's abilities to forecast where smoke will impact people; identify and communicate when and
where smoke events are occurring through monitoring and AirNow's Fire and Smoke Map; build
community capacity to be Smoke Ready and reduce smoke exposure; and strengthen internal as
well as state, local, and tribal capacity to better coordinate and communicate regarding wildfire
smoke and address related regulatory activities. During a 2023 air quality episode originating from
wildfires in Canada, the AirNow website received more than 10 million page views on June 8th,
2023 and was the most-visited federal government website that day.45
Addressing Climate Change
EPA expects to take action in FY 2025 for rules finalized in FY 2024 in accordance with Executive
Order 13990, which directed EPA to revise and address as appropriate the regulation of GHGs
from fossil-fuel fired power plants and the oil and gas sector, the two principal sources of industrial
GHG emissions.46 In FY 2025, EPA plans to propose federal plans to implement amended new
source performance standards and emission guidelines applicable to power plants and the oil and
gas sector that it will have finalized under Section 111 in FY 2024. Additionally, EPA expects to
review rules covering emissions from municipal solid waste landfills, the third-largest U.S. source
of anthropogenic methane emissions47 and propose the results of that review in FY 2025.
EPA will continue to work with other countries to take action to address climate change. EPA
will consider the results of a range of international assessments to address the climate impacts of
short-lived climate pollutants. Reducing emissions of these pollutants can create near-term climate
and public health benefits. EPA will continue to identify the most significant domestic and
international sources of black carbon and ozone precursor emissions by working with the
multilateral Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), the Arctic Council, the Convention on
Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP), and other related international efforts. Based
on these findings and enhanced analytical capabilities, EPA will pursue effective steps for
reducing these emissions. For instance, EPA is scaling up online tools and resources focused on
assisting low-and middle-income countries to implement best practices for addressing air pollution
in ways that achieve climate co-benefits.
In FY 2025, the Agency will provide on-the-ground resources to assist overburdened and
underserved communities as they work to engage on EPA's regulatory efforts and address the
impacts of climate change. These community resource coordinators will work with external
partners, such as community stakeholder organizations, other federal agencies, state, local and
regional governments, private sector entities, academic institutions, and foundations to assist
communities as they begin to plan for climate change and implement actions to increase resilience
to climate impacts.
45 According to https://aiialYtics.usa.gov/.
46 EPA (2023) Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2021. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA
430-R-23-002. h ttps://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/iiiventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-l 990-2021.
47 EPA (2023) Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2021. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA
430-R-23-002. h ttps://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/iiiventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-l 990-2021.
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Finally, in FY 2025 EPA is requesting an increase of $1.1 million, including payroll, and one FTE
to support implementation of EPA's Climate Adaptation Action Plan. This increase will support
priority commitments, such as actions to integrate climate adaptation into EPA programs, policies,
and processes, efforts to address climate adaptation science and data needs, and efforts to consult
and partner with outside stakeholders.
Improving Air Quality
In FY 2025, EPA requests increased resources to support efforts to maintain and rebuild
programmatic capabilities that focus on protecting clean air. Air quality has improved significantly
for communities across the country since passage of the CAA in 1970 (with amendments in 1977
and 1990). Between 1990 and 2022, for example, national average levels have decreased by 22
percent for O3, 34 percent for coarse PM, 90 percent for SO2, and since 2010, national average
levels for Pb have decreased 88 percent.48 In FY 2025, EPA will continue to prioritize key activities
in support of attainment of the NAAQS and implementation of stationary source regulations by
state, tribal, and local air agencies. This includes activities in key nonattainment areas along the
U.S.-Mexico border as part of U.S. commitments under the Border 2025 agreement.
NAAQS Review
In FY 2025 EPA will continue its CAA-mandated responsibilities to review the science upon which
the NAAQS are based and the standards themselves. Periodic review of the NAAQS requires
significant resources and analysis of scientific and technical information to ensure for each
NAAQS that public health is protected with an adequate margin of safety, considering at-risk
populations.
EPA strengthened the PM2.5 annual standard on February 7, 2024.49 EPA also is under a consent
decree to issue a proposed rulemaking for the secondary NAAQS for SO2, NOx, and PM by April
9, 2024, and to finalize the decision by December 10, 2024. In FY 2025, EPA will advance the
review of the 2020 O3 NAAQS, will continue its review of the Pb NAAQS, and anticipates
reviewing the primary NOx NAAQS under a consent decree schedule. EPA has requested resources
commensurate to support these reviews. Each review involves a comprehensive reexamination,
synthesis, and evaluation of scientific information; the design and conduct of complex air quality
and risk and exposure analyses; and the development of a comprehensive policy assessment
providing analysis of the scientific basis for alternative policy options.
EPA will continue to administer the NAAQS by reviewing SIPs and decisions consistent with
statutory obligations; taking federal oversight actions, such as action on SIP and TIP submittals;
and developing regulations and policies to ensure continued health and welfare protection during
the transition between existing and new standards. EPA will work with air agencies to determine
the need for additional federal rulemakings and guidance documents to support state and tribal
efforts to meet CAA SIP/TIP requirements, in alignment with capacity and priorities. EPA will
provide technical and policy assistance to states and tribes developing or revising SIPs/TIPs. To
48 For additional information on air quality trends, please see the Air Quality -National Summary at: https: //www, epa. gov/air-
trends/air-quality-national-summary and at Our Nation's Air: Status and Trends Through 2021.
49 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2024-02/pm-naaqs-final-fm-pre-
publication.pdf.
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the extent that the above-referenced NAAQS reviews result in a change to the standards, air quality
designations related activities for the changed standard(s) would be required. For example, EPA
will be working on initial area designations for the 2024 PM2.5 standard. The timing of any
additional initial area designations, or other designations, work would depend on when the final
NAAQS are promulgated.
NAAQS Nonattainment Areas
EPA, in close collaboration with states and tribes, will work to improve air quality in areas not in
attainment with the NAAQS, including identifying and, where necessary, redesignating to
nonattainment areas that previously were in attainment. The Agency will continue to implement
changes to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the SIP process, with a goal of maximizing
the timely processing of state-requested SIP actions and reducing the backlog. The Agency also
will act on redesignation requests of nonattainment areas to attainment in a timely manner. EPA
will maximize use of its comprehensive, online State Planning Electronic Collaboration System
(SPeCS) to promote efficiencies for states to submit SIP revisions to EPA, and for EPA to track and
process state submittals. Since it launched in January 2018, more than 1,900 SIP submittals (about
90 percent official submissions and 10 percent draft submittals) have come through SPeCS, and
more than 400 users have registered from all 50 states and eight air districts. EPA also will complete
its re-platforming of SPeCS to improve system integrity and functionality and work to provide
additional transparency to the public about NAAQS nonattainment areas, state SIP requirements,
and related EPA actions.
SIPs for Regional Haze
In FY 2025, EPA will continue reviewing and taking action on regional haze SIP revisions for the
second planning period (and working on any remaining first planning period obligations). EPA
will continue to work on any outstanding SIP matters and continue providing technical assistance
to ensure that states are making reasonable progress towards their visibility improvement goals,
consistent with statutory obligations. Consistent with this, EPA may be undertaking work on
Federal Implementation Plans (FIPs) as needed to fully implement the Regional Haze
requirements. Under the Regional Haze Rule, states are required to submit updates to their plans
to demonstrate how they have and will continue to make progress towards achieving their visibility
improvement goals. EPA also has indicated its intent to undertake a notice-and-comment
rulemaking process to address future planning periods.
Fulfilling Legal Obligations
One of EPA's priorities is to fulfill its statutory and court-ordered obligations. Section 112 of
the C AA sets deadlines for EPA to review and update, as necessary, all NESHAP every eight years,
accounting for developments in practices, processes, and technologies related to those standards.
Section 112 also requires that EPA conduct risk assessments within eight years of promulgation
of each MACT-based NESHAP to determine if it appropriately protects public health and to revise
it as needed, and that EPA review and revise, as appropriate, the list of hazardous air pollutants.
Sections 111 and 129 similarly require review of rules promulgated under those programs to
address air pollution. In FY 2025, EPA will undertake these required reviews and associated
rulemakings. EPA will enhance risk assessment capabilities to better identify and determine
impacts on communities. The Program will prioritize conducting reviews of NESHAP and rules
issued under Sections 111 and 129, many of which are subject to court-ordered or court-entered
53
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dates or are actions otherwise required by courts and incorporating EJ considerations as part of the
decision-making process. From this work, EPA expects to propose or promulgate more than 51
rules in FY 2025. Additionally, if EPA receives the funding requested to implement its strategy to
meet statutory deadlines for reviewing air toxics rules, per corrective action commitments made
in response to OIG recommendations in FY 2022, EPA expects to take action on another 48 air
toxics rules in FY 2025.
Technical Assistance to External Government Partners
EPA will continue to assist other federal agencies and state and local governments in implementing
the conformity regulations promulgated pursuant to Section 176 of the CAA. These regulations
require federal agencies undertaking activities in nonattainment and maintenance areas to ensure
that the emissions caused by their activities will conform to the SIP.
In FY 2025, EPA also will continue to provide training and technical assistance to state, local, and
tribal air agencies for NSR, OCS, and Title V (operating) permits. This support will occur at
appropriate times and as requested, consistent with applicable requirements, before and during the
permitting process. EPA expects to implement such support in an efficient manner and consistent
with established timeframes for applicable oversight of state, tribal, and local air agencies during
the permitting process. Where EPA is the permitting authority for wind energy projects located on
the OCS, the Agency will prioritize timeliness in providing guidance, feedback, and review of
permit applications consistent with CAA and Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST)
Act (Title 41) requirements. EPA's Electronic Permitting System and Title V petition submittal
portal will improve EPA interaction with state, local, and tribal air agencies and the general public,
and improve data availability and transparency.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to assist state, tribal, and local air agencies with various technical
activities. EPA develops and provides a broad suite of analytical tools and associated technical
guidance, such as: source characterization analyses; emission factors and inventories; statistical
analyses; source apportionment techniques; quality assurance protocols and audits; improved
source testing and monitoring techniques; fenceline monitoring techniques, source-specific
dispersion, and regional-scale photochemical air quality models; and augmented cost/benefit tools
to assess control strategies.50 The Agency will maintain the core function of these tools (e.g.,
integrated multiple pollutant emissions inventory, air quality modeling platforms, etc.) to provide
the technical underpinnings for scientifically sound, efficient, and comprehensive air quality
management by state, local, and tribal agencies.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue providing information and assistance to tribes, states, and
communities through documents, websites, webinars, and training sessions on tools to help them
build capacity and to provide input into EJ assessments that can inform risk reduction strategies
for air toxics. The Agency will continue to communicate and effectively collaborate with
communities to address a myriad of environmental concerns.
In FY 2025, EPA will provide support for critical response to the growing number of wildfire
smoke events through real-time, accessible air quality information, as well as supporting
communication documents and websites. The Agency also will enhance its partnerships across the
50 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/techmcal-air-pollution-resources.
54
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federal government, such as with the Center for Disease Control and the U.S. Forest Service, to
ensure a consistent and coherent response and deployment of technical assistance to address the
public health impacts of wildland fire smoke. EPA expects this work to support tribal, state, local,
and community needs to prepare for an increasing number of wildfires and the impacts those fires
have on public health across the country, building capacity for "smoke ready" communities.
In FY 2025, state and local air agencies will continue to lead the implementation of the National
Air Toxics Trends Sites (NATTS). The NATTS Program is designed to capture the impacts of
widespread air toxics andis comprised oflong-term monitoring sites throughout the Nation.51 EPA
will continue to consult on priority data gaps to improve the assessment of population exposure to
toxic air pollution.
Maintaining Analytical Capabilities and Continuing Data Management
EPA will maintain baseline analytical capabilities required to develop effective regulations,
including: analyzing the economic impacts and health benefits of regulations and policies;
developing and refining source sampling measurement techniques to determine emissions from
stationary sources; updating dispersion models for use in source permitting; and conducting air
quality modeling to characterize the future air quality changes that inform estimates of public
health and environmental impacts of our rules and policy actions. Resources from the Science and
Technology appropriation component of this program support the scientific development of
these capabilities.
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provided EPA supplemental appropriations under numerous
provisions including, but not limited to, fenceline monitoring (60105(a)), multipollutant
monitoring (60105(b)), sensors (60105(c)), wood heaters (60105(d)), and methane monitoring
(60105(e)). EPA will work on the planning, awarding, and implementation of these funds in FY
2025.
EPA, using resources from the IRA, will begin a multi-year project to develop a new information
technology infrastructure. The new information technology infrastructure will allow access to air
quality, emissions, and regulatory information for communities, environmental agencies, and other
stakeholders. Access to this information will enable the development and implementation of
strategies to improve air quality and reduce emissions of climate pollutants. During the
requirements analysis and gathering phase of the project, the development team will look to
incorporate the business processes so that one or more of the following legacy Agency systems
and applications can be retired once the infrastructure is operational: Air Quality System (AQS),
AirNow, Emissions Inventory System (EIS), Electronic Reporting Tool (ERT), Compliance and
Emissions Data Reporting Interface (CEDRI), Combined Air Emission Reporting System
(CAERS), Web Factor Information Retrieval System (WebFIRE), State Planning Electronic
Collaboration System (SPeCS), Exceptional Events Submission and Tracking System (EETS), and
Petitions to Object to Title V Permits (POTVP). Additionally, during the requirements analysis
and gather phase of the project, EPA will investigate the feasibility of incorporating other business
processes supported by other existing tools/applications. While funding of operations and
maintenance for legacy systems will still be required as the new infrastructure is being developed,
51 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/amtic/air-toxics-ambient-monitoriiig.
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EPA's intent is that once the new infrastructure is operational, existing funding from these legacy
systems will be shifted to support the new infrastructure.
In FY 2025, EPA will develop the new information technology infrastructure, and continue to
operate and maintain the Air Quality System (AQS) and AirNow, which houses the Nation's
regulatory ambient air quality data. EPA also will continue to support the AQS Data Mart, which
provides that same ambient air quality data to the scientific community and the general public. The
Agency's national real-time ambient air quality data system, AirNow, will maintain baseline
operations. The public increasingly relies on AirNow for ambient air quality information during
wildfires. In FY 2025, EPA will continue integrating the Fire and Smoke map by engaging tribal,
state, and local agencies for input to provide information that millions of people rely on during
periods of smoke from wildfires.
EPA will continue to operate and maintain baseline operations of the Emissions Inventory System
(EIS), which quality assures and stores current and historical emissions inventory data and
supports the development of the National Emissions Inventory (NEI). EPA, states, and others use
the NEI to aid in state and local air agency SIP development, serve as a vital input to air quality
modeling, help analyze public health risks from air toxics, develop strategies to manage those
risks, and support multi-pollutant analysis for air emissions. As needed, the Agency will enhance
EIS to support the revised Air Emissions Reporting Requirements (AERR) rule and other user-
focused needs.
In FY 2025, as EPA develops the new information technology infrastructure, the Agency will
continue to streamline emissions data reporting for multiple agency programs through the
Combined Air Emissions Reporting System (CAERS). This system is a central hub that takes a
single submission of data in a single format and sends it to the appropriate EPA program system.
When fully developed, CAERS is expected to reduce the cost to industry by only reporting
emissions data for multiple agency programs to one system and to the government by better
managing emissions data and making that data available in a timely fashion. EPA will enhance
CAERS to support the revised AERR rule and continue to onboard state, local, and tribal air
agencies.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue a multi-phased process for strengthening air pollution health
benefits analysis methods to improve the science it uses to quantify health benefits from air quality
regulations. EPA will finalize a health benefits guidelines document outlining best practices for
incorporating new scientific information into methods for health benefits analysis. This will be
followed by additional annual reviews and necessary updates of specific methods and applications
in the guidelines documents. This effort will help ensure transparency and confidence in the
process for selecting and applying the latest science in health benefits analysis. EPA also will
improve tools and approaches to enable more robust analysis of program impacts on communities
with EJ concerns and vulnerable populations.
As part of a forward-looking air toxics strategy, EPA will address regulatory and emerging issues
and improve access to air toxics data. The Agency will continue implementation of a new approach
that develops and shares air toxics data faster and more regularly to the public, allowing for
increased transparency and the ability to see trends and exposure risks over time. In 2025, EPA
will continue reporting the most current air toxics data each year in the annual Air Trends Report
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and an online interactive tool, instead of the previous three to four-year cycle for reporting air
toxics data, and providing that data at an increased spatial resolution. EPA will continue providing
information annually for communities on health risks from exposures to air toxics through the Air
Toxics Screening Assessment (AirToxScreen), so that the public can more easily identify existing
and emerging air toxics issues.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM NAAQS) Percentage of air quality improvement in counties not meeting current NAAQS.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
20IX
201<)
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
7
8
9
10
Actual
3
"
S
lu
8
Data
Avail
11/2024
Percent
(PM NAAQS2) Percentage of people with low SES living in areas where the air quality meets the PM2.5
NAAQS.
FY 2018
FY 2019
FY 2020
FY 2021
FY 2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
90
93
97
100
Percent
Actual
82
82
81
85
83
Data
Avail
11/2024
Numerator
52,044,172
51,560,102
48,678,558
50,304,779
49,634,175
People
Denominator
63,150,683
62,687,368
60,053,454
59,241,268
59,614,742
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$17,219.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This includes $1.1
million to support critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive order 14028
cybersecurity requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and
implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$92,640.0 / +193.4 FTE) This program change is an increase to support critical work to
implement climate and clean air regulations and programs. This includes activities such as
reviewing and taking action on state plans required under forthcoming GHG standards,
priority NAAQS work, taking timely action on SIPs and reducing the SIP backlog, air
monitoring and analysis, and EJ activities. Total includes $36.4 million for payroll.
(+$1,100.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to support implementation of
the EPA Climate Adaptation Action Plan. In particular, this increase is to support priority
commitments, such as actions to integrate climate adaptation into EPA programs, policies,
and processes, efforts to address climate adaptation science and data needs, and efforts to
consult and partner with outside stakeholders. This investment includes $187.0 thousand
for payroll.
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Statutory Authority:
Clean Air Act.
58
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Stratospheric Ozone: Domestic Programs
Program Area: Clean Air and Climate
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Improve Air Quality and Reduce Localized Pollution and Health Impacts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
V»..W
.S '2.2X2
Vo..?.?/
Total Budget Authority
$6,358
$6,951
$72,282
$65,331
Total Workyears
20.6
28.2
52.2
24.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's stratospheric ozone protection program implements provisions of the Clean Air Act (CAA)
which facilitates a global phaseout of ozone-depleting substances (ODS); the American Innovation
and Manufacturing (AIM) Act of 2020 to phase down climate-damaging hydrofluorocarbons
(HFCs); and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (Montreal
Protocol). These actions help protect both the climate system and the stratospheric ozone layer,
which shields all life on Earth from harmful solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation.
Scientific evidence demonstrates that ODS used around the world destroy the stratospheric ozone
layer,52 which raises the incidence of skin cancer, cataracts, and other illnesses through
overexposure to increased levels of UV radiation.53 Based on EPA's peer-reviewed Atmospheric
and Health Effects Framework model, the Montreal Protocol is expected to prevent approximately
443 million cases of skin cancer, 2.3 million skin cancer deaths, and 63 million cases of
cataracts for people in the United States born in the years 1890-2100.54 EPA developed this
model to better understand the benefits to public health of stratospheric ozone protection. As a result
of global action to phase out ODS, the ozone layer is expected to recover to its pre-1980 levels by
mid-century.
The AIM Act addresses the climate impact of HFCs by phasing down their production and
consumption, maximizing reclamation and minimizing releases of HFCs and their substitutes from
equipment, and facilitating the transition to next-generation technologies through sector-based
52 World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion: 2022, GAW Report No. 278, 509 pp.;
WMO: Geneva, 2022.
53 Ross J. Salawitch (Lead Author), Laura A. McBride, Chelsea R. Thompson, Eric L. Fleming, Richard L. McKenzie, Karen H.
Rosenlof, Sarah J. Doherty, David W. Fahey, Twenty Questions and Answers About the Ozone Layer: 2022 Update, Scientific
Assessment of Ozone Depletion: 2022, 75 pp., World Meteorological Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 2023.
This report is available on the internet at: https://www.csl.noaa.gov/assessments/ozone/2022.
54 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Updating the Atmospheric and Health Effects Framework Model:
Stratospheric Ozone Protection and Human Health Benefits. EPA: Washington, DC. May 2020. Available on the internet at:
https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2020-04/documents/2020_ahef_report.pdf.
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restrictions. A global phasedown of HFCs is expected to prevent up to 0.5 °C of global warming
by 2100.55
EPA uses a combination of regulatory and partnership programs to implement Title VI of the CAA
and the AIM Act and to further the protection of the ozone layer and climate system. Title VI
provides for a phaseout of production and consumption of ODS and requires controls on their use,
including banning certain emissive uses, requiring labeling to inform consumer choice, and
requiring sound servicing practices for the use of refrigerants in air-conditioning and refrigeration
appliances. Title VI also prohibits venting ODS and their substitutes and requires listing of
alternatives that reduce overall risks to human health and the environment, ensuring that businesses
and consumers have alternatives that are safer for the ozone layer than the chemicals they replace.
The AIM Act provides for a phasedown of production and consumption of HFCs in the United
States by 85 percent, supports industry's transition to next-generation technology, and requires
management of HFCs and their substitutes. EPA has established an allowance allocation program
to implement the phasedown, as well as robust compliance assurance and enforcement
mechanisms to provide a level playing field for producers and importers of HFCs and ensure the
program delivers the intended environmental benefits. EPA also works with the Department of
Homeland Security, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, to manage an interagency task
force to prevent and deter illegal trade in HFCs and support enforcement of the phasedown.
As a signatory to the Montreal Protocol, the U.S. is committed to ensuring that our domestic
program is at least as stringent as international obligations, and to regulating and enforcing the
terms of the Montreal Protocol respective of domestic authority. In 2007, with U.S. leadership, the
Parties to the Montreal Protocol agreed to a more aggressive phaseout for ozone-depleting
hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) equaling a 47 percent reduction in overall emissions during
the period 2010 - 2040. The adjustment in 2007 also called on Parties to the Montreal Protocol to
promote the selection of alternatives to HCFCs that minimize environmental impacts, in particular
impacts on climate.56 The CAA provides the necessary authority to ensure EPA can collect and
validate data, and where appropriate, report data on production and consumption of ODS on behalf
of the United States. The Parties to the Montreal Protocol also agreed to the Kigali Amendment in
2016,57 which seeks to globally phase down the production and consumption of HFCs consistent
with the AIM Act. The United States ratified the Kigali Amendment on October 31, 2022. The
AIM Act and EPA's existing HFC allocation regulations provide EPA with the authority to collect
and validate data and report data on production and consumption of HFCs on behalf of the United
States.
Partnership programs are designed to increase benefits by focusing on specific areas where the
Agency has identified the most significant opportunities. The Responsible Appliance Disposal
55 World Meteorological Organization, Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion: 2018, World Meteorological Organization,
Global Ozone Research and Monitoring ProjectReport No. 58, 588 pp., Geneva, Switzerland, 2018. Available on the internet
at: https://ozone.unep.org/sites/default/files/201.9-05/SAP-201.8-Assessment-report.pdf.
56 Montreal Protocol Decision X1X/6: Adjustments to the Montreal Protocol with regard to Annex C, Group I, substances
(hydrochlorofluorocarbons).
57Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, Kigali 15 October 2016, found at:
https://treaties.un.org/doc/Publication/CN/2016/CN.872.2016-Eng.pdf.
60
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(RAD) Program58 is a partnership that protects the ozone layer and reduces emissions of
greenhouse gases through the recovery of ODS and HFCs from old refrigerators, freezers,
window air conditioners, and dehumidifiers prior to disposal. RAD has approximately 50
partners and affiliates, including manufacturers, retailers, utilities, and state governments. The
GreenChill Partnership Program59 helps supermarkets transition to environmentally friendlier
refrigerants, reduce harmful refrigerant emissions, and move to advanced refrigeration
technologies, strategies, and practices that lower the industry's impact on the ozone layer and
climate. The Program includes stores in all 50 states and represents over 30 percent of the United
States' supermarkets. GreenChill partners are reducing refrigerant leak rates to half the estimated
national average and developing annual plans for further improvements.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.1, Improve Air Quality and Reduce
Localized Pollution and Health Impacts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. Work in this
program also directly supports progress toward the FY 2024-2025 Agency Priority Goal: Phase
down the production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). By September 30, 2025,
annual U.S. consumption of HFCs will be 40 percent below the baseline of 302.5 million metric
tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTCChe) consistent with the HFC phasedown schedule in
the AIM Act and codified in the implementing regulations.
In FY 2025 an additional $65 million and 24 FTE are requested to implement provisions in the
American Innovation and Manufacturing Act to phase down the use of HFCs, to facilitate U.S.
entry to the Kigali amendment to the Montreal Protocol, and to restore staff capacity around efforts
to tackle the climate crisis.
Title VI of the Clean Air Act and Montreal Protocol Activities
In carrying out the requirements of the CAA and the Montreal Protocol in FY 2025, EPA will
continue to meet its ODS consumption caps and work toward the required gradual reduction in
production and consumption of ODS. To meet the FY 2026 long-term performance goal for
lowering consumption of HCFCs to 76.2 tons per year of ozone depletion potential,60 EPA will
issue allowances for HCFC production and import in accordance with the requirements established
under CAA Sections 605 and 606; review petitions to import used ODS under sections 604 and
605; manage information that industry identifies as confidential under CAA Section 603; and
implement regulations concerning the production, import, and export of ODS and maintenance of
the tracking system used to collect the information. The FY 2022 result for this goal is -6.36 metric
tons of HCFCs. This result is negative because exports and destruction together exceeded
production and imports in calendar year 2022. In FY 2025, EPA anticipates proposing a rule on
feedstock uses of ODS. EPA also will implement a rule on reporting of process agent use and
emissions that is expected to be finalized in FY 2024. EPA also will prepare and submit the annual
report under Article 7 of the Montreal Protocol on U.S. consumption and production of ODS and
58 For more information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/rad,
59 For more information, please visit: littp://www, epa. gov/greenchi 11.
60 The HCFC consumption cap of 15,240 ODP-weighted metric tons for the U.S. was effective January 1, 1996, and became the
U.S. consumption baseline for HCFCs.
61
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HFCs consistent with the treaty.61
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement the CAA Section 608 and 609 refrigerant
management requirements related to the use and emission of ODS, HFCs, and other substitutes.
CAA Section 612 requires continuous review of alternatives for ODS through EPA's Significant
New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program to both find those that pose less overall risk to human
health and the environment and ensure a smooth transition to safer alternatives.62 Through these
evaluations, SNAP generates lists of acceptable and unacceptable substitutes for approximately 50
end-uses across eight industrial sectors. In FY 2025, EPA expects to list through notice as well as
a notice-and-comment rulemaking substitutes that would expand the list of acceptable lower-GWP
alternatives, particularly for end-uses where there is an urgent need for more options such as certain
air-conditioning and refrigeration applications as well as fire suppression, which also will support
implementation of the AIM Act. EPA also will continue to work towards ensuring the uptake of
safer alternatives and technologies, while supporting innovation, and ensuring adoption of
alternatives through support for changes to industry codes and standards. EPA also anticipates
finalizing a rule in FY 2025 that would address court decisions concerning the extent to which
manufacturers must replace HFCs with substitute substances.
With the decline in allowable ODS production, a significant stock of equipment that continues to
use ODS will need access to recovered and recycled/reclaimed ODS to allow for proper servicing.
EPA will continue to review available market and reported data to monitor availability of recycled
and reclaimed ODS where production and import of new material is phased out to support this
need. In addition, EPA will continue to implement a petition process to allow for the import of
used ODS, primarily halon for fire suppression purposes. EPA also will implement other
provisions of the Montreal Protocol, including exemption programs to allow for a continued
smooth phaseout of ODS, particularly for laboratory and analytical uses, feedstock, process
agents,63 and HCFCs used consistent with the servicing tail.
AIM Act Implementation Activities
In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to implement the AIM Act HFC phasedown through an
allowance allocation program established in FY 2021, and this work also will support
implementation of EPA's FY 2024-2025 Agency Priority Goal. In FY 2025, resources are
requested to promulgate rulemakings to establish requirements for the management of HFCs and
HFC substitutes in equipment, distribute grants to support technology transition, equipment
transition, and to provide program support for and coordination of implementation efforts within
EPA and working with other federal agencies.
The Agency will continue to implement and administer an electronic HFC reporting system, which
will begin collecting new reports required by regulations finalized in FY 2023 and FY 2024, and
develop additional tracking, review, and data tools to better ensure compliance with the phasedown
61 The Article 7 report prepared by EPA on behalf of the United States contains chemical-specific production, import and export
data. The data included in the report is aggregated and available at: https://ozone.unep.org/countries/profileAisa.
62 For more information, please visit: fattps: //www, epa. gov/snap.
63 EPA will implement a rule on process agents that was finalized in FY2024.
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regulations, and work with other agencies to prevent illegal imports. In FY 2025, resources are
requested to implement innovative IT solutions, such as database integration across EPA and
Customs and Border Patrol databases. Specifically, EPA will ensure that the phasedown is not
undermined by illegal imports; implement a regulation expected to be finalized in FY 2024 to
establish requirements for the management of HFCs and HFC substitutes in equipment servicing,
repair, disposal, or installation, as appropriate; distribute grants to small businesses to support
technology transition; support enforcement by EPA and across the government by continuing to
lead the interagency HFC taskforce; and stand up new protocols for rules finalized in FY 2023
addressing products containing HFCs. EPA also will educate stakeholders on HFC phasedown
requirements. EPA will implement a regulation finalized in FY 2023 to issue allowances for HFC
production and consumption for calendar years 2024 through 2028. The Agency also will complete
a review required by the AIM Act and finalize a rulemaking to be proposed in FY 2024 on whether
to reauthorize the issuance of application-specific allowances for the six uses of HFCs identified
in subsection (e)(4)(B) beyond 2025, which include:
a propellant in metered-dose inhalers;
defense sprays;
structural composite preformed polyurethane foam for marine use and trailer use;
the etching of semiconductor material or wafers and the cleaning of chemical vapor
deposition chambers within the semiconductor manufacturing sector;
mission-critical military end uses, such as armored vehicle engine and shipboard fire
suppression systems and systems used in deployable and expeditionary applications; and
onboard aerospace fire suppression.
Under subsection (h) of the AIM Act, in FY 2025, EPA will begin implementing a rule expected
to be finalized in FY 2024 that will control certain practices, processes, or activities regarding: 1)
the servicing, repair, disposal, or installation of equipment that involves a regulated substance; 2)
a substitute for a regulated substance; 3) the reclaiming of a regulated substance used as a
refrigerant; or 4) the reclaiming of a substitute for a regulated substance used as a refrigerant.
Under subsection (i) of the AIM Act, in FY 2025 the Agency will continue to implement
regulations finalized in FY 2023 to restrict use of HFCs in products and equipment within certain
sectors or subsectors where HFCs are used, promoting a transition to next-generation technologies.
EPA will implement new reporting tools, upgrade existing data systems, and develop additional
compliance mechanisms to implement this regulation. Other activities under subsection (i) include
granting and/or denying petitions for sector-based restrictions on HFCs. In FY 2025, EPA
anticipates proposing a rule that would implement AIM subsection (i)(5) which provides EPA
authority to assess substitutes under the AIM Act.
The AIM Act also authorizes EPA to establish a grant program for small businesses for purchase
of recycling, recovery, or reclamation equipment for HFC substitutes, including for servicing
motor vehicle air conditioners. In FY 2025, additional funding is requested to fund distribution of
grants to support technology transition already underway and equipment transition. This builds off
EPA's FY 2024 request to initiate a grant program for small businesses for purchase of recycling,
recovery, or reclamation equipment for HFC substitutes, including for servicing motor vehicle air
conditioners.
63
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In FY 2025, EPA will continue to provide technical expertise for the Montreal Protocol's
Technology and Economic Assessment Panel and its Technical Options Committees, advancing
reductions of ODS and HFC consumption and ensuring U.S. interests are represented.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to conduct its essential work to support a level playing field for
companies operating legally under the CAA and AIM Act regulations and those that have
transitioned to alternatives for ODS and HFCs. Under both the AIM Act and the Montreal Protocol,
in FY 2025 EPA will be implementing a 40 percent reduction in HFCs from historic levels. EPA
exchanges data with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Department of Homeland
Security on ODS and HFC importers and exporters to determine admissibility and target illegal
shipments entering the United States, as well as reviews and approves imports flagged in the
Automated Commercial Environment. With the significant reduction of available HFC allowances
in FY 2025, this data exchange will increase in importance as accurate data will be needed on a
real-time basis. EPA also will continue to work with partner agencies, including through the
Interagency Task Force on Illegal HFC Trade, to detect, deter, and disrupt attempts to illegally
import or produce HFCs in the United States, as well as work with State Department and other
Departments to carry out the Administration's whole-of-government approach. These efforts also
include EPA's work to support federal sector management and transition from HFCs through
continued cooperation with organizations such as Department of Defense and the General Services
Administration.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM HCFC) Remaining U.S. consumption of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), chemicals that deplete the
Earth's protective ozone layer, in ozone depletion potential (ODP)-weighted metric tons.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
76.2
76.2
76.2
76.2
Metric
Tons
Actual
434.1
224.2
-110.8
-20.8
-6.36
Data
Avail
10/2024
(PM HFC) Remaining U.S. consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
273.5
273.5
181.5
181.5
MMTC02e
Actual
253.4
Data
Avail
11/2024
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$648.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$64,683.0 / +24.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to implement provisions in
the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act to phase down the use of HFCs, to support
64
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U.S. entry to the Kigali amendment to the Montreal Protocol, and to build staff capacity
around efforts to tackle the climate crisis. This investment includes $4.4 million for
payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Title VI of the Clean Air Act and the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act.
65
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Stratospheric Ozone: Multilateral Fund
Program Area: Clean Air and Climate
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Improve Air Quality and Reduce Localized Pollution and Health Impacts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S.SJ2/,
SV.244
SIS. 000
S.S', ~5f)
Total Budget Authority
$8,326
$9,244
$18,000
$8,756
Program Project Description:
The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (Montreal Protocol) is the
international treaty designed to protect the stratospheric ozone layer by facilitating a global
phaseout of ozone-depleting substances (ODS) and since 2016, phasing down climate-damaging
hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) under its Kigali Amendment. EPA is phasing down ODS under Title
VI of the Clean Air Act and HFCs under the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act
of 2020. As a result of global action to phase out ODS, the ozone layer is expected to recover to
its pre-1980 levels by mid-century. A global phasedown of HFCs is expected to prevent up to
0.5 °C of global warming by 2100.
The Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol (Multilateral Fund) was
created by the Parties to the Montreal Protocol to provide funds that enable developing countries
to comply with their obligations following agreed upon schedules. The United States and other
developed countries contribute to the Multilateral Fund. The United States holds a permanent seat
on the Multilateral Fund's governing body (the Executive Committee) and can help focus efforts
on cost-effective assistance and encourage climate-friendly transitions. The U.S. contribution to
the Multilateral Fund is split between EPA and the Department of State.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.1, Improve Air Quality and Reduce
Localized Pollution and Health Impacts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
EPA's contributions to the Multilateral Fund in FY 2025 will primarily continue to support cost-
effective projects designed to build capacity and eliminate ODS production and consumption in
over 140 developing countries and provide support for the global phasedown of HFCs. Through
2022, the Multilateral Fund supported over 9,175 activities in 145 countries that have phased out
292,732 ozone-depletion potential (ODP) metric tons, 305,336 carbon dioxide equivalent metric
tons of consumption of controlled substances, and 205,377 ODP metric tons of production of
controlled substances. Additional projects will be submitted, considered, and approved in
accordance with Multilateral Fund guidelines.
66
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In FY 2025, the United States will continue to promote developing country transitions to climate-
friendly alternatives and will support projects to phase down HFCs under the Kigali Amendment.
A small number of demonstration projects aimed at furthering climate projection are anticipated.
These projects will concern either planning for reclaim, recycling, and refrigerant disposal or energy
efficiency upgrades. The United States also will support preparatory activities such as establishing
HFC baselines, phasedown starting points, and Kigali HFC Implementation Plans to phase down
HFCs in developing countries, as well as projects to reduce HFC-23 byproduct emissions, ensuring
that the global HFC phasedown will leverage the expertise and experience gained during the 30-
year history with phasing out ODS. Taken together, this work will support developing countries'
compliance with Protocol obligations.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$8,756.0) This program change reflects an increase to help fund additional activities
associated with the adoption of the Kigali Amendment and developing country phase down
of HFCs while continuing to support ODS phaseout activities.
Statutory Authority:
Title VI of the Clean Air Act.
67
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Compliance
68
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Compliance Monitoring
Program Area: Compliance
Goal: Enforce Environmental Laws and Ensure Compliance
Objective(s): Detect Violations and Promote Compliance
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SW4.5V3
.SII 2.-30
SIM. 4'4
S.\\ '44
Inland Oil Spill Programs
-$5
$649
$2,154
$1,505
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$1,377
$1,017
$1,036
$19
Total Budget Authority
$105,966
$114,396
$171,664
$57,268
Total Workyears
441.1
478.9
544.6
65.7
Program Project Description:
The Compliance Monitoring Program is a key component of EPA's Office of Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance (OECA) that supports both compliance with federal environmental laws
and identifies noncompliance. Compliance monitoring activities, such as inspections and
investigations, or review of self-reported compliance monitoring information and other forms of
offsite compliance monitoring, are conducted by EPA and other co-regulators (states, federally
recognized tribes, and territories) to determine if regulated entities are complying with
environmental statutes, applicable regulations, and permit conditions. A robust inspection,
compliance assistance and enforcement program are essential to advancing the promise of clean
air, land, and water to many communities across the country, including those that are vulnerable
and overburdened, and for implementing Executive Order 14008 on Tackling the Climate Crisis
at Home and Abroad.64
Compliance information gathered from these activities is reported into EPA's data systems for
analyses and inspection or enforcement targeting. A variety of data is available to co-regulators
and the public to increase compliance with EPA statutes and to identify programs and sectors with
high noncompliance in order to focus resources through National Enforcement and Compliance
Initiatives (NECIs).65 The NECIs can help identify conditions that may present an imminent and
substantial endangerment to human health and the environment and thereby warrant immediate
attention. The Compliance Monitoring Program further supports each NECI with specific and
robust targeting and data analysis (including developing dashboards and data integration systems
to allow EPA, states, and tribes to analyze national compliance datasets).
Given the large number of regulated entities, effective targeting of compliance monitoring and
analysis of compliance data plays a critical role in achieving the goals EPA has set forth for
64 For additional information, please visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/27/executive-
order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/.
65 For additional information, please visit: https: //www, govinfo. gov/content/pkg/FR-202 3-01. -1.2/pdf/202 3-00500 .pdf.
69
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protecting health and the environment. The Compliance Monitoring Program utilizes a number of
tools and approaches to carry out its work, including:
Compliance Program Data Management and Electronic Reporting: EPA has a national
enforcement and compliance data system, the Integrated Compliance Information System
(ICIS), which supports both the compliance monitoring and civil enforcement programs. ICIS
is a critical infrastructure tool used by the Agency, state, tribal, local, and territorial
governments as well as the regulated community and other federal agencies, to track
compliance and enforcement of environmental statutes. States are a major user of this resource.
For instance, twenty-one state governments depend on ICIS to directly manage their clean
water permitting and compliance activities. EPA utilizes ICIS enforcement and compliance
data and other information technology tools to: 1) Identify potential violations of federal
environmental laws; 2) Facilitate efficient enforcement; and 3) Promote compliance with these
requirements. ICIS data is available to the public via the internet-accessible Enforcement and
Compliance History Online (ECHO) system as well as the companion data change notification
tool ECHO Notify. Using ICIS and ECHO to electronically track its civil enforcement work
allows EPA to better ensure that its enforcement resources are used to facilitate transparency
and address the most significant noncompliance problems, including noncompliance affecting
overburdened or vulnerable communities and noncompliance that leads to climate impacts.
EPA, through the National Targeting Center (NTC), utilizes the data in ECHO to help identify
the worst problem areas to align inspections and enforcement activities. EPA collaborates with
state, local, federal, tribal, and industry partners, through the E-Enterprise initiative, to leverage
technologies such as promoting electronic reporting and permitting. EPA and states implement
the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Electronic Reporting Rule
through ICIS, the NPDES eReporting Tool (NeT), and the Network Discharge Monitoring
Report (NetDMR). These are key tools for improving the availability of clean water
compliance data to EPA, states, and the public.66
Support for the Clean Water Act (CWA) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) Program: The Agency will continue to implement Phases 1 and 2 of the
NPDES Electronic Reporting Rule which covers electronic discharge monitoring reports,
Notices of Intent to discharge in compliance with a general permit and data sharing
requirements for EPA and states that includes permit and compliance monitoring data. EPA
will continue to work with states to ensure complete and high-quality data acquisition from
permits and from compliance and enforcement data. The Program will evaluate and prioritize
the development of additional electronic reporting tools that support states. EPA will continue
to provide tools and support for tracking, interpreting, and reducing their NPDES
noncompliance rate and will provide support to states to strengthen their NPDES compliance
programs. In FY 2023, the percentage of permittees in significant noncompliance with their
NPDES permits was 9.3 percent, down from a FY 2018 baseline of 20.3 percent. For federal
facilities in FY 2023, the percentage of permittees in significant noncompliance with their
NPDES permits was 4.0 percent, which is a 74 percent reduction for federal facilities from
their FY 2018 baseline.
66 For more information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/compliance/npdes-ereporting.
70
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Building Capacity in the Compliance Assurance Program's Inspector Cadre for EPA,
State, Tribal and Local Governments and Restoring EPA's National Enforcement
Training Institute as the premier National Enforcement Training Center in the United
States: To ensure the quality of compliance monitoring activities, EPA develops national
policies, updates inspection manuals, establishes training requirements for inspectors, and
issues inspector credentials. The Pollution Prosecution Act of 1990 required the establishment
of the National Enforcement Training Institute (NETI) to provide training to federal, state, and
local lawyers; inspectors; civil and criminal investigators; and technical experts in the
enforcement of the Nation's environmental laws. The Agency will build capacity in EPA's
inspector cadre and restore NETI, both of which are critical to advancing the FY 2022 -2026
EPA Strategic Plan "Goal 3: Enforce Environmental Laws and Ensure Compliance." This
includes OECA's goal to conduct 55 percent of annual inspections at facilities affecting
vulnerable or overburdened communities by September 30, 2026, an estimated 25 percent
increase over EPA's historical average. The Compliance Monitoring Program uses inspectors
on the ground to help identify public health concerns and environmental regulatory violations
throughout the United States, including in communities with Environmental Justice (EJ)
concern. In FY 2023, EPA outperformed and achieved over 60 percent of on-site inspections
in overburdened communities and is on target to continue this rate in FY 2024. EPA delivers
critical in-person and online training courses to new and experienced federal, state, tribal, and
local inspectors to ensure the integrity of the national Compliance Monitoring Program. EPA
hosts several in-person inspector training programs, such as the annual CWA NPDES
Technical Inspector Workshop, the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Public Water System
Supervision (PWSS) Advanced Inspector Training, and the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Pesticide Inspector Residential Training Program.
Compliance Assistance: Compliance assistance is a valuable tool to assist regulated facilities
in understanding their compliance obligations and achieving and maintaining compliance.
EPA provides compliance assistance by working with third-party organizations and federal
agencies to support 17 web-based, sector-specific compliance assistance centers and other
web-based assistance resources. In addition, the Agency develops webinars, compliance
advisories, and other assistance materials to help EPA, state regulators, and the regulated
community to understand compliance rules and obligations. EPA also provides through the
Compliance Advisors for Sustainable Water Systems Program, facility specific technical
assistance to regulated entities under the CWA and SDWA programs and the polychlorinated
biphenyl program.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 3/Objective 3.2, Detect Violations and Promote
Compliance in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an increase of $41.4 million and 56.2 FTE in Compliance
Monitoring resources to implement the NECIs and continue to rebuild the inspector cadre. A robust
inspection and enforcement program is essential to advancing the promise of clean air, land, and
water to many communities across the country. Increased staffing can identify public health
71
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concerns and potential environmental regulatory violations. This is critical to protect communities,
including those that are vulnerable and overburdened.
In FY 2025, NETI will increase staffing and continue in its effort to re-establish its role as the
premier National Enforcement Training Center in the United States by building training capacity
(including for the NECIs), establishing inspector internship, cross-regional training, and
mentorship programs; creating a digital training hub; and educating the future workforce in the
enforcement of environmental laws in accordance with its statutory mandate.
EPA's inspection programs have been under-resourced for over a decade leading to a loss of
agency expertise and a decline in the numbers of inspections. To meet EPA's EJ goals and the
mission to protect human health and the environment, EPA must rebuild and strengthen its
inspection program with increased hiring and training of new and existing inspectors, including
in-person basic inspector training for the following programs: Clean Air Act (CAA); SDWA;
CWA; Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); FIFRA; and Toxic Substances Control
Act (TSCA). Additionally, the Agency is requesting additional funding to purchase health, safety,
and inspection monitoring equipment. Some of the equipment include the following: Forward
Looking InfraRed (FLIR) cameras, Data Acquisition Real-Time (DART), flame ionization
detectors/photo ionization detectors, fence line monitors, and Smart Tools software and hardware
for inspectors.
EPA will continue its customer-focused, evidence-based targeting approaches to help inspectors
find environmental problems by utilizing software and technical assistance from the National
Targeting Center (NTC). The NTC works with media-specific communities of practice to
collaborate with EPA, regions, state, tribal partners, and builds and maintains relationships with
academic data science labs to develop training and tools. ECHO (and ECHO Gov) serves as the
data integration hub used by the NTC for developing models, publishing tools, and providing a
means for accessing the results of these efforts.
EPA will continue to implement its comprehensive action plan for integrating EJ and climate
change considerations throughout all aspects of the Program, including a performance measure
tracking the percentage of inspections affecting communities with potential EJ concerns. This
effort answers the President's call to "strengthen enforcement of environmental violations with
disproportionate impact on overburdened or vulnerable communities through the Office of
Enforcement and Compliance Assurance".67 This work includes, but is not limited to, multi-
state/multi-regional matters, issues of national significance, complex contamination at and from
federal facilities, and emergency situations.
In addition, EPA will provide targeted oversight and support to state, local, tribal, and other federal
agency programs. To accomplish this objective, the Agency will prioritize work with states to
67 For additional information on the Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, please see:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/OTesidentM-actions/2021/01/27/executive-order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-
home-and-abroad/.
72
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develop methods that successfully leverage advances in both monitoring and information
technology.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting an increase of approximately $3.0 million and 5.0 FTE to continue
its modernization efforts which was started with IRA funding.68 EPA will continue to improve
ICIS and ECHO, including future integration of the data collected using Smart Tools, which will
facilitate better access to compliance data and community information (e.g., EPA's EJ screening
tool) for EPA, states, tribes, other federal agencies, and the public. The Agency will continue to
modernize its national enforcement and compliance data system as it expands its compliance
monitoring and technical assistance efforts to address EJ issues (including the Compliance
Advisors for Sustainable Water Systems Program), per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS),
and climate change concerns including resilience and reduction in the use of hydrofluorocarbons
(HFCs).
In FY 2025, EPA requests an increase of $2.0 million to expand the Program's software solutions
for field inspectors to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of compliance inspections
conducted by EPA and authorized states. In FY 2020 and 2021, EPA rolled out its Smart Tools for
inspectors in the RCRA Hazardous Waste Program and the CWA - NPDES Program. Smart Tools
software makes the process of documenting field inspections and preparing inspection reports
more efficient. This tool allows the Program to use its compliance monitoring resources more
efficiently, including monitoring for noncompliance. It also allows the Agency to make inspection
reports more readily and timely available to the regulated entities and the public. The work on the
design and development of software for additional inspection programs (e.g., Underground
Storage Tanks, CAA Risk Management Program, TSCA lead-based paint, FIFRA Good
Laboratory Practices Standards) will continue through FY 2025 and beyond.
Additionally, in FY 2025, EPA requests an increase of $1.1 million and 2.0 FTE to strengthen
EPA's Drinking Water Agenda. EPA will increase its implementation of the Evidence Act through
the "Drinking Water Systems Out of Compliance" priority area in EPA's Learning Agenda.69 Safe
drinking water is critical to the health of communities and each year thousands of community water
systems violate one or more health-based drinking water standards. Drinking water noncompliance
is greatest in small, under-resourced communities and may be higher than EPA data suggests due
to under reporting. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to collect new information and conduct studies
under this learning priority area to evaluate the efficacy of policy instruments. EPA will define
potential metrics of public water systems' technical, managerial, and financial capacity for early
identification of at-risk drinking water systems. The analysis will test existing and new predictive
analytic tools designed to identify at-risk systems. EPA will continue to work with states, tribes,
and academic experts to implement OECA's Compliance Learning Agenda. The agenda will
improve the effectiveness of enforcement and compliance programs, approaches, and tools by
prioritizing the most pressing programmatic questions; planning evidence-based studies to address
these questions; and identifying effective and innovative approaches for improving compliance.
The first two priority proj ects identified through this effort will focus on assessing the effectiveness
of offsite compliance monitoring and identifying the root causes of municipal noncompliance.
68 OECA is working with the CIO to refine cost estimates for ICIS modernization.
6'Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act (Public Law 115^35):
https://wvyw.congress.gOv/l 1.5/plaws/puM435/PLAW-1.1.5publ435.pdf.
73
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In FY 2025, EPA also is requesting an increase of $2.0 million to support the Agency's
Compliance Advisors for Sustainable Water Systems Program (previously called the Circuit
Riders Program), which reduces noncompliance at small public water systems (PWSs) and small
wastewater treatment facilities (WWTFs) by providing hands-on technical assistance. Many small
drinking water and wastewater systems are under-resourced, in overburdened or vulnerable
communities, and unable to achieve and maintain compliance due to lack of technical, managerial,
and financial capacity. These communities are impacted by factors such as aging infrastructure,
workforce shortages, and declining rate bases. These challenges are the root cause of most
violations of the SDWA and CWA. Part trainer and part consultant, Compliance Advisors
troubleshoot issues, develop plans to return systems to compliance, and increase the technical
capacity of operators. The Compliance Advisors may revisit systems as needed, promoting
sustainable compliance.
Through FY 2023, Compliance Advisors have provided technical assistance to approximately 232
small PWSs and 61 WWTFs in under-resourced communities nationwide, across all Regions -
covering 25 states, Puerto Rico, and seven tribes. There are thousands more small systems and
facilities that need technical support to help them achieve and stay in compliance. In general, the
systems supported by the Compliance Advisor Program are small (serving populations of less than
10,000). Approximately 84 percent are in overburdened or vulnerable communities.70 Compliance
Advisors have completed work at 24 wastewater systems and 130 drinking water systems and
provided more than 1,000 standard operating procedures, checklists, and other tools to help these
small systems return to sustained compliance. In order to meet the significant demand for targeted
technical assistance, this investment will bolster other agency technical assistance efforts. The
regions working with states, tribes and territories will continue to identify and nominate systems
to receive Compliance Advisor help to return to and sustain compliance.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support inspections and fund compliance monitoring efforts to
support development of civil enforcement cases. The Agency will use compliance monitoring
funds to continue supporting enforcement and compliance inspections adhering to CAA
requirements including for motor vehicles, engines and fuels, stationary sources, chemical accident
prevention, wood heaters, municipal solid waste landfills, and stratospheric ozone; CWA
requirements for permitted discharges, preventing and addressing oil spills and spills of sewage or
other hazardous substances, wetlands protection, and biosolids use and disposal; TSCA
requirements for new and existing chemicals, lead based paint in target housing including
privatized military housing, and PCBs; FIFRA requirements for pesticide registration; Emergency
Planning and Community Right to Know Act requirements for emergency planning and Toxics
Release Inventory reporting; American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act requirements to
reduce the harmful effects of climate-change causing chemicals like HFCs; RCRA requirements
for hazardous and non-hazardous solid waste; and SDWA requirements for public water systems.
In FY 2025, EPA proposes to hire additional inspectors for federal facility investigations to
increase sampling capabilities to identify regulatory violations and threats to public health and the
environment. These resources will help ensure that EPA meets the RCRA statutory requirement
of annual inspections of federal facility treatment, storage, and disposal facilities. This investment
70 OECA protocols for identifying Areas of Potential EJ Concern.
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will assist in dispute resolution and case development against federal agencies that are responsible
for contamination (e.g., PFAS), thereby protecting military families and the public health of
surrounding communities affected by these contaminants, particularly those communities with EJ
concerns.
In FY 2025, the Agency is requesting an increase of $3.0 million to support EPA's PFAS Strategic
Roadmap and EPA's PFAS NEC! Resources will be used to actively investigate and identify
releases of PFAS to the air, land, and water from large manufacturers, processing facilities, waste
disposal facilities, and federal facilities where PFAS are suspected of contaminating various
environmental media. This investment will support case development and issuance of information
requests, including the potential identification of imminent and substantial endangerment issues
under CWA, SDWA, or RCRA.
In addition, resources will be used to continue the operation and development of the PFAS Analytic
Tools, a data integration platform currently used by the Agency, states, and researchers to analyze
national PFAS data sets. The funding will provide enhancements including increasing data
availability to the public, including communities with potential EJ concerns. Compliance
monitoring funds will advance protection of communities by supporting investigations into PFAS
contamination, including activities associated with EPA's PFAS NECI, and assisting with the
identification of areas for compliance assistance to ensure nearby facilities adhere to regulations
designed to protect vulnerable populations. The increased funding will help create and expand
programs to further environmental protections and increase monitoring capabilities.71
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM 409) Number of federal on-site compliance monitoring inspections and evaluations and off-site
compliance monitoring activities.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
10,000
10,000
10,000
10,000
10,000
10,000
11,000
12,000
Inspections
&
Evaluations
Actual
10,600
10,300
8,500
10,800
13,900
13,100
(PM 444) Percentage of EPA inspection reports sent to the facility within 70 days of inspection.
FY
20IS
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
75
75
75
75
75
Percent
Actual
X.
85
83
77
Numerator
4.1"
1,940
4,362
5,521
Reports
Denominator
5.11'"
2,287
5,237
7,129
71 For additional information, please see: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7530144/pdf/nihms-1627933.pdf.
75
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(PM 450) Percentage of EPA inspections at facilities affecting communities with potential environmental
justice concerns.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
45
50
50
55
Percent
Actual
57
61
Numerator
3,333
4,700
Inspections
Denominator
5,861
7,750
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$2,346.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support
for critical agency wide infrastructure Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$41,357.0 / +56.2 FTE) This program increase will focus compliance monitoring
resources on implementation of the National Enforcement Compliance Initiatives,
including continued efforts to rebuild EPA's inspector cadre. Additional funding will build
capacity for inspections, case development, and to supplement the Program's training
budget by providing FTE to restore the NET! This funding will enhance EPA's
compliance monitoring programmatic capabilities to improve efforts to address pollution
in overburdened and vulnerable communities and increase compliance. This investment
includes $10.16 million for payroll.
(+$2,000.0) This program increase will allow the Compliance Advisor Program to provide
critical technical assistance to an additional 80-100 systems to achieve and maintain
compliance. This investment also will be used to support inspections and case development
in the regional offices. The available funds will be used to support vulnerable and
overburdened communities identified by EPA and States as having concerns because of
lead Action Level exceedances.
(+$3,000.0) This program increase will allow EPA to actively investigate and identify
releases of PFAS to the air, land, and water from large manufacturers, processing facilities,
federal facilities, and waste disposal facilities where PFAS are suspected of contaminating
various environmental media. In addition, these funds will allow EPA to continue operation
and development of the PFAS Analytic Tools, a data integration platform currently used
by EPA and states to analyze national PFAS data sets.
(+$2,954.0 / +5.0 FTE) This program increase will support the modernization efforts of
ICIS and enhance its communication integration (internet-based services) with ECHO.
This modernization process will enhance EPA's efforts to address compliance data
exchange concerns in disadvantaged or vulnerable communities. This investment includes
$904.0 thousand for payroll.
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(+$2,000.0) This program increase will allow EPA to advance work on the Smart Tools
for Field Inspectors to develop tools for some of the smaller Agency programs that have
more of a direct impact for EJ communities such as the TSCA lead-based paint programs.
(+$1,061.0 / +2.0 FTE) This program increase will allow EPA to evaluate the Drinking
Water Learning Agenda, developed under the Evidence Act, and thereby test the efficacy
of policies to address drinking water noncompliance. The increase will allow the program
to conduct studies with broader participation with more partners (e.g., states and tribes,) to
test the effectiveness of inspection and enforcement approaches to improve compliance in
the drinking water program. This investment includes $361.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$645.0 / +0.5 FTE) This program increase will support implementation of OECA's
Climate Adaptation Implementation Plan. Resources will support completion of priority
actions including continued staff training to build climate change knowledge and
consideration of climate change in all aspects of the Agency's enforcement program. This
investment includes $90.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$381.0 / +2.0 FTE) This program increases FTE to support agencywide implementation
of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and Evidence Act
data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes $361.0 thousand
for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (MARPOL
Annex VI); American Innovation and Manufacturing Act: Clean Air Act; Clean Water Act;
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act; Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act; Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act; Oil Pollution Act; Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act; Rivers and Harbors Act; Safe Drinking Water Act; Toxic
Substances Control Act.
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Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
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Children and Other Sensitive Populations: Agency Coordination
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
VoJYi
s W
SIJS'
Total Budget Authority
i>6,362
S7,749
SI, 387
Total Workyears
17.3
18.4
19.4
1.0
Program Project Description:
The Children's Health Program coordinates and advances the protection of children's
environmental health across EPA by assisting with developing regulations, improving risk
assessment and science policy, implementing community-level outreach and education programs,
and tracking indicators of progress on children's health. Children's environmental health refers to
the effect of the environment on children's growth, wellness, development, and risk of disease.
EPA strives for all parts of the Agency to apply and promote the use of the best available science,
policy, partnerships, communications, and action to protect children from adverse health effects
resulting from harmful environmental exposures. The Children's Health Program is directed by
the EPA ' Policy on Children's Health,72 Executive Order (EO) 13045: Protection of Children's
Health from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks,73 statutory authorities addressing
children's environmental health, and other existing guidance.74 The Program works to tackle the
climate crisis and advance environmental justice (EJ) by identifying and reducing inequitable
impacts of climate change and adverse environmental exposures on children, particularly children
in underserved communities.
In FY 2023, the Children's Health Program supported Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty
Units by providing programming on children's health in EJ communities;75 hosted a workshop to
provide technical assistance to grantees to support the improvement of school facilities with an
emphasis on underserved communities;76 implemented a partnership with the Association of State
and Territorial Health Officials to support inclusion of children's environmental health at the state
level; oversaw the publication of an interactive website based on a workshop by the National
Academy of Science to identify the latest priorities to protect children's health; conducted an
internal workshop to prioritize children's health research needs and the inclusion of research
findings in EPA decision-making; updated several documents used internally to enhance
incorporation of children's health protection in the EPA regulatory decision-making process;
developed a training course on children environmental health risk assessment for EPA rule
72 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/children/epas-policy-childrens-health.
73 For more information, please see: https://www. goviiTro.gov/coiiteiit/pkg/FR--1.997-04-23/pdf/97-1.0695 .pdf.
74 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/children/guidance-tools-and-glossarv-key-terms-regarding-childrens-
environmental-health.
75 For more information, please see: https://www.pehsu.net/.
76 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/children/childrens-health-grants-and-funding-opportunities.
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managers; published a national-scale, multi-sector report that quantifies projected health effects to
children from climate change; published an online toolkit that compiles educational and outreach
materials highlighting the risks from heavy metal exposure primarily to children from a variety of
cultural and religious products; began scoping work to enhance America's Children and the
Environment (a resource on children's environmental health indicator data trends); conducted two
plenary meetings of the Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee (CHPAC),77 and
received advice on 1) American's Children and the Environment, 2) Climate Change Priorities for
Children's Health; implemented CHPAC's recommendations on health learning environments,
pesticides and TSCA, and initiated a new request for advice regarding prevention of lead exposure
through enhanced community engagement; hosted a series of events to educate the public about
children's health protection, including webinars regarding the Pediatric Environmental Health
Specialty Units and ways to protect children from extreme heat; updated website pages and
conducted events and outreach to stakeholders to reinvigorate EPA's presence and voice, among
other initiatives. Together, EPA programs completed 298 actions toward its children's health long-
term performance goal in FY 2023 having set a target of 163 actions at the beginning of the year.
The Program supported several Interagency Policy Councils on Child and Maternal Health to assist
their development of all-of-government approaches for protecting children's health in schools and
improving maternal health outcomes. EPA's Office of Children's Health Protection (OCHP)
contributed to the Lead Exposure and Prevention Advisory Committee and the National
Committee on Children, Climate and Disasters hosted by the Department of Health and Human
Services, the Cancer Moonshot, and others.
The Children's Health Program has a successful track record of collaboration with non-
governmental organizations, state, local and tribal governments, and other federal agencies. To
further protect children in EJ communities, and those affected by climate change, the Program led
the steering committee of the President's Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and Safety
Risks to Children to develop interagency work plans to span the next five years. OCHP played a
key role in implementing EPA's Strategy to Reduce Lead Exposures and Disparities in U.S.
Communities and prepared the draft of a companion high-level update to the interagency Federal
Lead Action Plan to Reduce Lead Exposures report for OMB review. Within EPA, OCHP and the
regional coordinators collaborate closely with EPA's national program managers and regional
offices, as well as with EPA's Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights, to
develop effective tools and messages in support of children in underserved communities who
disproportionately suffer from adverse environmental exposures, and to advance information and
messaging to address health risks to children from climate change. In EPA's 2023 Equity Action
Plan, EPA included as priority action #4, Protect Children Equitably from Exposure to
Environmental Contaminants.
In FY 2024, the Children's Health Program will contribute to the development of regulations,
scientific assessments and/or policies, including actions under the Toxic Substances Control Act,
Safe Drinking Water Act, Food Quality Protection Act and Clean Air Act, among others. To
implement EPA's Policy on Children's Health,78 OCHP will continue to train children's health
champions in each EPA program office, use the newly updated guidance documents to support
77 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/children/chilclrens-health-protection-advisory-coiiimittee-chpac.
78 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa. gov/systeni/files/docmnents/2021. -1.0/2021. -policy-on-childrens-
health.pdf".
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program office work on protecting the health of children, and expand training on how to conduct
children's health evaluations. In FY 2024, OCHP also will implement the second year of its first
long-term performance goal for advancing protection of children's environmental health
applicable to relevant EPA national programs. Together, EPA programs will aim to complete 166
actions toward this long-term performance goal in FY 2024. OCHP continued a coordinated
national approach among regional Healthy Schools programs. With its newly updated webpages,
OCHP will reach stakeholders through more than 161,000 page views, and institute approaches to
better coordinate headquarters and regional children's environmental health activities.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests a total investment of $7.75 million and 19.4 FTE for the Children's
Health Program, which is approximately $1.4 million and 1.0 FTE over the FY 2024 annualized
continuing resolution Program budget. The Agency will continue to protect children in
underserved communities who suffer disproportionately from the effects of exposures magnified
by socio-economic determinants of health, and to address children's exposures, which are
exacerbated by climate change. EPA actions will be informed by two important considerations:
first, the scientific understanding of childhood as a sequence of life stages, and second, the
recognition that protecting children's health is necessary to protect human health, because every
adult was once a child.
In FY 2025, the Children's Health Program will work to tackle the climate crisis and advance EJ
by following up on recommendations from the National Academy of Science, which highlighted
the latest scientific advancement and challenges to protecting children's health. The Program will
continue to implement the EPA Policy on Children's Health and its associated long-term
performance goal to ensure that EPA consistently and explicitly considers early life exposures and
lifelong health in all human health decisions. OCHP will continue to engage with EPA national
programs to appropriately include assessment and consideration of risk to children's
environmental health in risk assessment, risk management decisions, regulations, policies,
guidance documents, program initiatives, and public engagement. As part of these activities and
in support of the Cancer Moonshot, the Program will continue to compile data and provide analysis
on children's health to reduce or prevent exposure to carcinogens and protect children from cancer
risks. Additionally, the Program will continue to compile national data on childhood cancer79 in
the America's Children and the Environment interactive online tool and promote its guidance to
assess children's susceptibility to early life exposure to carcinogens.
Further, EPA will improve its ability to monetize the economic benefits to children's health of
environmental rules by quantifying children-related health endpoints that are not currently
included in EPA benefit-cost analyses. This work will improve substantially EPA's ability to
communicate to the public the impact of its regulations.
79 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/americaschildrenenviromiient/health-childhood-cancer.
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The Program will convene the Steering Committee of President's Task Force on Environmental
Health Risks and Safety Risks to Children to report on progress across the federal government in
the areas of climate change and disasters, childhood lead; asthma disparities; and climate,
emergencies and disasters, exposure to toxic chemicals, and other topics. The Program also will
continue to build on partnerships with key stakeholders and leverage resources and work for
durable, nationally relevant improvements in children's health protection.
The Program will host a variety of activities to mark Children's Health Month in October to
educate parents, caregivers, teachers, and others on how to better protect children from adverse
environmental exposure and continue to modernize its social media presence to improve outreach
to affected communities. The Program also will coordinate two meetings of the CHPAC, with
delivery of expert responses to additional charge questions related to high priority children's
environmental health issues.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM CHOI) Number of EPA actions that concern human health that include assessment and consideration of
environmental health information and data for children at all life stages to the extent relevant data are
available.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
50%
163
166
TBD
Actions
Actual
N/A
298
(PM CH02) Number of EPA regional offices with stakeholder engagement on children's environmental
health designed to provide durable, replicable, and widespread results.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
3
6
9
10
Regional
Offices
Actual
6
9
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$884.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program increase supports EPA's efforts to improve the
Agency's cost benefits analysis for children's health. This investment includes $203.0
thousand for payroll and additional changes to fixed support costs.
(+$503.0) This program change is an increase to provide additional support for existing
programs and workforce in the Children's Health Program. This includes updating and
expanding indicators and trends in America's Children and the Environment by gathering
evidence to better represent impacts of environmental exposures on children in underserved
communities and by making improvements in the accessibility and presentation of the
underlying data.
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Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Safe
Drinking Water Act (SDWA); Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act (CERCLA); Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); and Food
Quality Protection Act (FQPA).
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Executive Management and Operations
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.S.i.Vo.-J
S 50,100
S 'J.JO'J
SI'J00
Total Budget Authority
s;;;
S56,160
S73,269
M7,ioy
Total Workyears
276.7
278.6
319.2
40.6
Total workyears in FY 2025 include 7.3 FTE to support Executive Management Operations working capital fund
(WCF) services.
Program Project Description:
The Executive Management and Operations Program supports various offices that provide direct
executive and logistical support to EPA's Administrator. In addition to the Administrator's
Immediate Office (10), the Program supports the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental
Relations (OCIR), Office of Administrative and Executive Services (OAES), Office of the
Executive Secretariat (OEX), the Office of Public Affairs (OPA), and the Office of Public
Engagement (OPE).
The Program also supports EPA's 10 regional offices. The Program's management, coordination,
and policy activities link the Agency's engagement with outside entities, including Congress, state
and local governments, tribes, nongovernmental organizations, national and community
associations, and the public.
Within the Program, key functions include responding to congressional requests for information;
coordinating and providing outreach to state and local governments, tribes, and rural communities;
and supporting press and other communications activities. The Program also resources mission
support functions, including but not limited to administrative management services involving
correspondence control and records management systems, human resources management, budget
formulation and execution, outsourcing, and information technology management services.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an additional $17.1 million and 40.6 FTE for the Executive
Management and Operations Program. These additional resources will strengthen engagement
with state and local partners; enhance training of healthcare providers in underserved communities
on the prevention, diagnosis, management, and treatment of children's exposure to lead;
implement and strengthen the Agency's ability to carry out effective risk communication; restore
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core capacity to the Executive Management and Operations Program; provide contract support for
the Agency's management operations and multi-media and risk communications; increase EPA's
efforts to address a range of environmental issues as they relate to youth through EPA's National
Environmental Youth Advisory Council established in 2023; and improve the Agency's public
engagement, partnership, and outreach initiatives at the regional level and across the Agency. This
investment also provides an annual payroll increase for existing FTE; essential workforce support
costs; support for critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity
requirements, electronic discovery for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and litigation support;
implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0; and FTE to support agencywide implementation of EPA's
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and EPA's Equity Action Plan,
which is required under various Executive Orders.
OCIR serves as EPA's principal point of contact for Congress, regions, states, and local
governments and as the coordination point for interaction with other agency offices and officials.
OCIR is comprised of two main components: the Office of Congressional Affairs (OCA) and
Office of Intergovernmental Relations (OIR). OCA facilitates all legislative activity and
interactions with Congress. OIR manages interactions with state and local governments and serves
as the liaison for the Agency with national associations for state and local officials.
In FY 2025, OCA will continue to prepare EPA officials for hearings, oversee responses to written
inquiries and oversight requests from members of Congress, and coordinate and provide technical
assistance and briefings on legislative areas of interest to members of Congress and their staff.
In FY 2025, OIR will continue to inform and consult with state and local governments on
regulations and other EPA activities. Additionally, OIR will continue to lead the Agency's efforts
to support and build partnerships with the states, local governments, and tribes on environmental
priorities through regular engagements with intergovernmental associations and state and local
officials, as well as through the National Environmental Performance Partnership System and the
increased use of Performance Partnership Agreements and Grants with a focus on addressing
climate change and ensuring underserved communities are considered throughout the process. OIR
also will continue to operate its Local Government Advisory Committee and Small Communities
Advisory Subcommittee, which provide crucial advice to the Administrator. OIR will continue to
enhance support for the Office of the Municipal Ombudsman (42 U.S.C. 4379j(a)(l)) to work with
communities on water and climate change and in leveraging diverse new federal funding sources
for optimal outcomes.
Additionally, OIR will enhance opportunities for internal policy/decision making through its
management of the Agency' s Executive Management Council and other venues dedicated to senior
level engagement. In addition, OCIR will continue to regularly review and evaluate its processes
for responding to congressional and intergovernmental correspondence and FOIA requests;
prepare for hearings or briefings; provide technical assistance; and coordinate with EPA's program
offices, regional offices, states, local officials, and associations. This will include modernizing
some of our operations to create more efficiency in the various functions and workflows within
the office.
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OPA facilitates the exchange of information between EPA and the public, media, Congress, and
state and local governments; broadly communicates EPA's mission; assists in public awareness of
environmental issues; and informs EPA employees of important issues that affect them. Annually,
OPA issues nearly 1,500 press releases; responds to approximately 8,000 media inquiries; and
oversees more than 150 audio-visual productions, 500 graphic productions, 2,700 event
photographs, and 40 portraits. In addition, in terms of digital media, OPA receives over 160 million
impressions on the internet, including www.epa.eov and EPA social media accounts, and posts
nearly 100 unique EPA homepage internet news banners. Also, to facilitate communications with
EPA employees nationwide, OPA annually posts over 200 intranet banners; issues 48 issues of a
weekly e-newsletter - This Week @ EPA - with a total of 240 articles; and sends more than 100
agencywide employee Mass Mailers from EPA's Administrator, Deputy Administrator, and other
senior leaders. In FY 2025, OPA will continue to inform the media of agency initiatives and deliver
timely, accurate information. The Office will continue to update the Agency's internet site to
provide stakeholders with transparent, accurate, and comprehensive information on EPA's
activities and policies. OPA will continue using social media, multimedia, and new media tools to
provide stakeholders with information. The Office also will work with EPA's program and
regional offices to improve employee communication; external communication on relevant
environmental and human health risks; collaboration and engagement with internal and external
stakeholders; updates to the Agency's intranet site; and the use of other communication tools.
OPA also is responsible for ensuring that EPA carries out effective risk communication by sharing
critical information on how we are addressing human health and environmental risks with the
American public, communities, public officials, and other stakeholders in a way that it is tailored
to their needs, reaching a wide audience, and providing meaningful actions they can take to reduce
risk. This is integral to most of the work done across the Agency's offices and regions and is
essential to carrying out EPA's mission of protecting human health and the environment.
EPA will keep working to ensure that risk communicators at the Agency are connected to best
practices from the field, high quality training opportunities, and agencywide efforts underway to
improve risk communication. Further, EPA regularly faces intractable risk communication issues
that often need sustained focus by highly trained staff who can apply evidence-based practices.
Addressing these issues and meeting the challenges of the future requires creating sustained culture
change, building agency knowledge and a robust community of practice, and developing strong
relationships with the academic community and our federal, state, and tribal partners.
In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to strengthen EPA's ability to carry out effective and
consistent risk communication and position the Agency to meet the risk communication challenges
of the future by:
(1) Significantly expanding training across the Agency and with its partners, to create a
community of practice and increase staff knowledge in a meaningful and sustainable way.
This will increase the number of staff at the Agency and among partners who are using the
same best practices in their risk communication efforts while at the same time building a
network of staff located across all regions and offices who are well-positioned to share
their risk communication expertise.
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(2) Launching an internal risk communication fellowship program to increase EPA's progress
on the most difficult risk communication issues. The fellowship program will be open to
EPA employees and will provide 10 weeks of intensive risk communication study and
training followed by 10 to 13 weeks of applying the knowledge gained to an intractable
risk communication problem facing the home office or region.
(3) Developing academic partnerships to study EPA's risk communication challenges and
improve the Agency's reliance on evidence-based practices. This includes increasing
research partnerships to develop a research portfolio with the explicit goal of studying
EPA-relevant risk communication questions, and then translating findings into usable
tools, applications, and best practices for use across the Agency.
In FY 2025, the President's Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks will
convene to report on progress across the federal government in the areas of climate change and
disasters, childhood lead, asthma disparities, and exposure to toxic chemicals. The Lead
Subcommittee will continue to focus on an all of government approach to reducing exposures to
lead. There is an opportunity to improve the environmental education and training of healthcare
providers and medical professionals in identifying and communicating the causes and impacts of
childhood lead exposure in underserved communities in an effort to prevent and reduce exposures.
EPA will work with healthcare providers and families to address this problem directly. To further
support the Administration's Lead Exposure Reduction Initiative, and in coordination with EPA's
program and regional offices, in FY 2025, the Agency will continue to lead ongoing efforts to: 1)
strengthen EPA's communications with the public on the risks of lead exposure by working with
external leaders in the field to build upon the way the Agency conducts its outreach; and 2)
leverage EPA's existing relationship with Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units
(PEHSUs)80 to enhance and support training of healthcare providers in underserved communities
to prevent and reduce children's exposure to lead.
There are several unique risk communication challenges regarding lead, but also unique assets for
the Agency to deploy to reduce risk to the American publicespecially to children. Lead exposure
to children can result from multiple sources and can cause irreversible and life-long health effects.
There is no level of lead exposure which is safe. This means that anything the Agency can do to
reduce exposure and lower children's blood lead levels will lead to significant improvements in
public health and brighter, more productive futures for America's children. The specific goals for
FY 2025 include implementing coordinated federal strategies to prevent lead exposure and
associated effects; disseminating information to diverse audiences, including policy makers, health
care providers, the general public, and other stakeholders; and coordinating and disseminating an
inventory of federal actions to reduce childhood lead exposures.
As the central mission support administrative management component of the Administrator's
Office (AO), the OAES provides advice, tools, and assistance to the AO's programmatic
operations across 12 offices. In FY 2025, OAES will continue to conduct the following mission
80 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (littps: //www,pehsu.net/) provide expert information, training and consultation
for health care professionals and the public on evidence-based prevention, diagnosis, management, and treatment of children's
environmental health conditions. The PEHSU Program increases the ability of the general public to take simple steps to reduce
harmful exposures by raising awareness among parents, school officials and community leaders.
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support functions: human resources management, budget and financial management, information
technology and security, outsourcing, facilities management, and Government Accountability
Office/Office of the Inspector General audit management.
In FY 2025, OEX will continue to provide critical administrative support to the Administrator,
Deputy Administrator, Chief of Staff, senior agency officials, and staff to comply with the statutory
and regulatory requirements under the Federal Records Act, Freedom of Information Act, Plain
Writing Act, Privacy Act, and related statutes and regulations. OEX will continue to manage the
AO's correspondence management, records management, records digitization, Privacy Act
implementation, Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), and FOIA response activities. OEX
also will continue to manage Quill, the EPA's enterprise correspondence tracking and workflow
management information technology application.
OEX also will continue to process correspondence for the Administrator and Deputy
Administrator; review and prepare documents for their signature; manage the Administrator's
primary email account; serve as custodian of the Administrator's, Deputy Administrator's, and 10
senior officials' records; oversee the records management program and CUI program for all AO
staff offices; and review and issue ethics determinations for gifts received by the Administrator
and Deputy Administrator. OEX also will manage the privacy program for the AO and monitor,
review, and audit AO systems of records. Finally, OEX will continue to manage the AO FOIA
program and respond to all requests for records held by any of the AO's five associate
administrator offices, seven staff offices, and the Immediate Office of the Administrator.
In FY 2025, OPE will continue providing advice to the Administrator and senior staff on activities
surrounding different stakeholder groups, including generating and distributing outreach plans for
most regulatory actions. Such plans often include meeting regularly with stakeholder groups to
communicate the Administration's agenda at EPA; providing advance notification
communications to relevant stakeholder groups on upcoming regulatory actions; facilitating in-
state visits by the Administrator and/or senior staff to collect regulatory feedback; communicating
key dates to stakeholders pertaining to opportunities to comment on EPA rulemakings; and
organizing conference calls on regulatory topics with impacted stakeholders.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional investment of approximately $6.2 million and 2.5 FTE.
OPE will work directly with the regional offices to coordinate, communicate, and enhance agency
public engagement initiatives [e.g., Justice40; Journey to Justice and other community tours;
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority Serving Institution (MSI)
engagements]. This investment will support the Administrator to ensure visibility with local
stakeholders, community members and greater coordination with the Regional Administrators.
OPE will continue to manage and plan the Administrator's Journey to Justice tours, highlighting
longstanding environmental justice concerns in under-severed communities at the forefront of
environmental burdens. OPE will continue to manage and convene at least one meeting of the
HBCU/MSI Consortium and Federal Advisory Committee to help develop the next generation of
environmental leaders. OPE also will explore, engage, and foster public and private partnerships
with outside stakeholders to elevate the Agency and the Administrator to non-traditional
stakeholders. In 2023, EPA established the National Environmental Youth Advisory Council
(NEYAC) to provide independent advice and recommendations to the Administrator on how to
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increase EPA's efforts to address a range of environmental issues as they relate to youth, with an
emphasis on communities below 29 years of age.81 OPE will engage the NEYAC to provide a
critical perspective on how the impacts of climate change and other environmental harms affects
youth communities. OPE also will work to enhance public engagement to amplify the
environmental education work that's happening on the local level.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$535.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE, adjustments to provide essential workforce support,
and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for critical agencywide infrastructure
for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and
litigation support, and implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$6,191.0 / +2.5 FTE) This program change is an increase to expand and improve the
Agency's public engagement, partnership, and outreach initiatives; explore the creation of
a National Environmental Youth Advisory Council; create anHBCU/MSI Consortium and
Federal Advisory Committee. This change includes a realignment of $875.0 thousand and
2.0 FTE from the Environmental Education Program. This investment includes
approximately $474.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$6,129.0 / +22.5 FTE) This program change is an increase to support engagement with
state and local partners, enhanced training of healthcare providers in underserved
communities on the prevention, diagnosis, management, and treatment of children's
exposure to lead, and increased funding to implement and strengthen the Agency's ability
to carry out effective risk communication. This investment includes $4.3 million for
payroll.
(+$2,550.0 / +8.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to support evidence building
activities in support of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018.
This investment includes $1.5 million for payroll.
(+$1,752.0 / +2.5 FTE) This program change is an increase to restore core capacity to the
Executive Management and Operations Program and provide contract support for the
Agency's management operations and multi-media and risk communications. This
investment includes $474.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$533.0 / +2.6 FTE) This program change increases FTE to provide executive and
logistical support and advance EPA engagement with partners, specifically for the
81 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/faca/national-environmental-youth-advisory-council-neyac.
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municipal ombudsman and for work on water grants. This investment includes
approximately $493.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$489.0 / +2.5 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes
approximately $474.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); and Environmental Research, Development,
and Demonstration Authorization Act (ERDDAA).
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Exchange Network
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
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$1,328
$1,328
$0
Total Budget Authority
$13,183
$16,323
$16,097
-$226
Total Workyears
23.2
30.2
30.2
0.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Environmental Information Exchange Network (EN) is a standards-based, secure approach
for EPA and its state, tribal, and territorial partners to exchange and share environmental data over
the internet. Capitalizing on advanced technology, data standards, open-source software, shared
services for EPA's E-Enterprise Digital Strategy (EEDS), and reusable tools and applications, the
EN offers its partners tremendous capabilities for managing and analyzing environmental data
more effectively and efficiently, leading to improved decision-making.
The Central Data Exchange (CDX) is the largest component of the EN Program and serves as the
point of entry on the EN for environmental data transactions with the Agency.82 CDX provides a
set of core shared services that promote a leaner and more cost-effective service framework for the
Agency by avoiding the creation of duplicative applications. It enables faster and more efficient
transactions for internal and external EPA clients, resulting in reduced burden.
Working in concert with CDX is EPA's System of Registries, which is a system of shared data
services designed to enhance efficiency, reduce burden on the regulated community, and improve
environmental outcomes, including environmental justice (EJ). EPA and EN partners routinely
reference these shared data registries, from commonly regulated facilities and substances to the
current list of federally recognized tribes. They identify the standard or official names for these
assets, which, when integrated into EPA and partner applications, foster data consistency and data
quality as well as enable data integration.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support core functions for the EN information technology (IT)
systems. The EN Program will continue to be a pivotal component of EPA's Digital Strategy that
82 For more information on the Central Data Exchange, please see: littps: //cdx. epa. gov/.
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supports business process change agencywide. Under this strategy and the 21st Century Integrated
Digital Experience Act,83 the Agency is streamlining business processes and systems to reduce
reporting burden on states and regulated facilities and to improve the effectiveness and efficiency
of environmental programs for EPA, states, and tribes. EPA also is responsible for managing EN
technical governance groups and administering the pre- and post-award phases of the EN grants
to states, tribes, and territories. These efforts support a standards-based, secure approach for EPA
and its state, tribal, and territorial partners to efficiently exchange and share environmental data
electronically. The Agency also administers and implements the Cross-Media Electronic
Reporting Regulation (CROMERR) that removes regulatory obstacles for e-reporting to EPA
programs under Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).
EPA aims to reduce burden and avoid costs while improving IT. With CDX's migration to the
cloud, the Agency will continue to carry out baseline support for data exchange services leveraged
by states and tribal partners. This also includes providing a technology framework - shared
CROMERR services - which reduces the burden on programs and external reporters by providing
CROMERR compliant solutions. For example, the shared electronic identity proofing and
signature services for CROMERR supports 31 partner regulatory reporting programs to date. EPA
estimates that partners adopting shared CROMERR services save $120 thousand in development
and at least $30 thousand in operations each year, which results in a cost avoidance of greater than
$2.5 million for EN partners.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to improve the functionality and use of the System of Registries.84
In addition to streamlining the Registries, EPA will continue to implement a broader effort across
the enterprise to engage organizations and facilitate the adoption of these data services through
cloud technology and Representational State Transfer (REST or RESTful) application
programming interfaces (API). Registries are shared data services in which common data are
managed centrally but shared broadly. They improve data quality in EPA systems, enable
integration and interoperability of data across program silos, and facilitate discovery of EPA
information. An example of the Agency's effort to promote the adoption of data services is the
integration of the tribal identification services (TRIBES) across EPA systems.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue implementing a solution related to shared facility identification
information. Centralized facility management also is fundamental to better environmental
management by bringing together EPA data across programmatic silos. Like facility data,
substance information also is regulated across EPA programs, with many EPA programs relying
on the Substance Registry Service (SRS) to improve data quality and reduce burden.
EPA tracks a wide range of data for each registry to measure customer usage and engagement. The
Agency also tracks web service hits to measure the number of users leveraging publicly available
APIs. For example, the SRS website has approximately 90 thousand pageviews per month; many
of these pageviews are users visiting the SRS web area to understand regulatory information about
chemicals. SRS also receives between 20 and 140 thousand web service hits per month (depending
on reporting cycles), mostly by EPA systems that have incorporated the web services into their
83 For more information on the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act, please refer to:
https://wvyw.c0ngress.g0v/l 1.5/plaws/publ336/.PLAW-1.1.5publ336.pdf.
84 For more information, please see: https://ofmpub.epa.gov/sor Jntemet/registry/sysofreg/about/about.jsp.
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online reporting forms. FY 2025 priorities for EPA registries include continually improving
registry technologies by migrating the registries to a cloud-based environment open-source
platform to make them easier to locate, access, and utilize.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to expand the number of EPA and partner systems that integrate
registry services into their online reports and systems, reducing burden and improving data quality.
This includes updating EPA's dataset registry to allow EPA scientists, external partners, and others
to share information and make information easier to find in the cloud.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work with the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) to maintain, utilize, and improve systems to facilitate the import and
export of legitimate goods and leverage big data and artificial intelligence tools to identify and
prevent or stop illegal goods from entering or leaving the United States. EPA supports over 16
data exchange types within EPA and with CBP to automate and streamline over 8 million annual
import and export filings. This automation is essential for managing a significantly increasing
number of imports and exports (due to e-Commerce) and allows coordinators/officers to focus on
compliance monitoring and high value targeting activities for non-compliant imports and exports,
and to better coordinate with CBP.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$732.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(-$958.0) This program change is a reduction to the Exchange Network to reflect the
completion of a one-time investment to migrate the TRIBES, SRS, and READ applications
to a cloud based open-source platform.
Statutory Authority:
Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA); Clean Air Act (CAA); Clean Water Act
(CWA); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide
Act (FIFRA); Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); Government Performance and
Results Act (GPRA); Government Management Reform Act (GMRA); Clinger-Cohen Act (CCA).
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Environmental Education
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Goal: Take Decisive Action to Advance Environmental Justice and Civil Rights
Objective(s): Promote Environmental Justice and Civil Rights at the Federal, Tribal, State and
Local Levels
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
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Total Budget Authority
$8,752
$9,500
$8,759
-$741
Total Workyears
8.9
11.2
9.2
-2.0
Program Project Description:
In 1990, the National Environmental Education Act (NEEA) was established with the objective of
improving the public's understanding and knowledge of the natural and built environment,
enabling people to effectively solve environmental problems. NEEA states "there is growing
evidence of international environmental problems, such as global warming...that pose serious
threats to human health and the environment."85 The Environmental Education Program
implements environmental education (EE) programming that helps EPA address these issues from
the local community to national and international levels with a focus on communities that are
pollution-burdened and as well as underserved communities. Staff manage the National
Environmental Education Act Federal Advisory Committee (NEEAC). Congress established the
Agency's NEEAC under the NEEA, to advise the Administrator on a wide range of environmental
education matters.
The Program provides management and technical support to these advisory committees. The
Committee provides EPA's Administrator with independent advice on environmental issues,
addresses environmental issues, like climate change, that impact frontline and underserved
communities, through education, a commitment to equity, and stakeholder grants authorized by
the NEEA. The Program supports the Agency's environmental and public health protection goals
by empowering communities with expanded access to quality environmental and climate
education, providing educational materials for teachers, hosting educational events, and engaging
stakeholders through the National Environmental Education and Training Program (teacher
training program), the Presidential Environmental Youth Award (PEYA) Program, and the
Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators (PIAEE) Program. These programs
promote civic action to reduce the impacts of climate change and promote environmental and
climate equity through an educational lens.
85 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/documents/neea.pdf
94
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Each year, our Nation's youth are recognized for their outstanding dedication to environmental
stewardship projects and teachers are honored for promoting environmental awareness and
education. The PIAEE awards recognize outstanding kindergarten through grade 12 teachers who
employ innovative approaches to environmental education and use the environment as a context
to engage their students. The PEYA honors and highlights a wide variety of projects developed by
K through 12th grade students, school classes and clubs, youth camps, and youth organizations to
promote environmental awareness and action in their schools and communities. Students in all 50
U.S. states and territories are invited to participate in the Program.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 2/Objective 2.1, Promote Environmental Justice and
Civil Rights at the Federal, Tribal, State, and Local Levels in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic
Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests approximately $8.8 million and 9.2 FTE for the Environmental
Education Program. The Program will implement the teacher training program and regional grant
program with a focus on fighting climate change and protecting public health through EE and
improved engagement with frontline communities that are pollution-burdened as well as
underserved communities.
In FY 2025, resources will:
Support career development through education by funding innovative EE grant projects in
frontline communities that can lead to inclusive, just, and pollution-free communities and
an economy that supports high-quality jobs.
Create a grant website tool for the public that provides detailed and valuable information
on all EE regional grants, including information on audience, project format and duration,
environmental topic, and the environmental and educational impacts achieved.
Ensure formal and non-formal educators have the knowledge and teaching skills necessary
to help advance environmental and climate literacy in America through the National
Environmental Education and Training Program.
Build strategic partnerships that include underserved and overburdened communities to
increase the conversation around using EE as a tool to achieve environmental protection
goals while achieving environmental justice, climate equity, and economic prosperity.
Request that the National Environmental Education Advisory Council (NEEAC) provides
a set of national recommendations on how frontline and underserved communities can use
EE to build capacity to become resilient to the effects of climate change.
95
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Continue the long-standing partnership with NEEF (National Environmental Education
Foundation) as we work collaboratively to identify opportunities to achieve environmental
education goals. EPA and NEEF will have an MOU to work together on water
infrastructure and safe drinking water, public health, climate change, environmental
justice, and citizen and climate science. EPA and NEEF will seek to work together on
additional education and public outreach efforts as appropriate.
Utilize an information management system that will track outputs and outcomes for each
grant to ensure program effectiveness, improve program efficiency, and improve overall
customer service. The information tracking system also will be used for the PEYA and
PIAEE Programs.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$134.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(-$875.0 / -2.0 FTE) This program change realigns resources from the Environmental
Education program to the Executive Management and Operations program to support
public engagement and partnership activities and proactively engage stakeholders and
organizations impacted by EPA policies and regulations.
Statutory Authority:
National Environmental Education Act (NEEA); Clean Air Act (CAA), § 103; Clean Water Act
(CWA), § 104; Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA), § 8001; Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), §
1442; Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), § 10; Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), § 20; and the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA).
96
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Small Business Ombudsman
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SI.J'V
S 2.250
S 2.2-12
-Sft
Total Budget Authority
^2,250
$2,242
-S8
Total Workyears
3.3
5.6
5.6
0.0
Program Project Description:
The Small Business Ombudsman Program includes the Asbestos and Small Business Ombudsman
(ASBO),86 housed within the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU).
It also includes the Small Business Advocacy Chair and other small business activities located
within the Office of Policy's (OP) Office of Regulatory Policy and Management. These activities
within OP collectively lead EPA's responsibilities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, as
amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act.87
The ASBO Program provides a suite of resources, technical assistance, and opportunities for small
business engagement, training, and advocacy for fair consideration. The ASBO Program operates
through two roles: EPA's Asbestos Ombudsman and EPA's Small Business Ombudsman. The Asbestos
Ombudsman role services a toll-free hotline, functioning as an informational liaison and guide in
responding to asbestos-related questions and concerns from the public. The Small Business
Ombudsman role provides informal guidance and support in the rulemaking process and offers
environmental compliance assistance and resources for small business. The ASBO advocates for a
fair process in working with small business, and in so doing, partners with a variety of internal and
external stakeholders, including EPA programs and regional offices, State Small Business
Environmental Assistance Programs (SBEAPs),88 and the U.S. Small Business Administration's
(SB A) Office of Advocacy, and Office of the National Ombudsman. The ASBO also engages with
various small business groups and associations.
Overall, the core functions of the ASBO Program include:
Assisting the public with hotline questions and complaints.
Improving access to federal and state environmental information and assistance.
86 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/resources-small-busiiiesses/asbestos-small-busiiiess-
ombudsman.
87 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.goV/aboutepa/about-office-policy-op#ORPM.
88 For more information, please see: https://nationalsbeap.org/.
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Supporting EPA in better understanding small business perspectives when considering
regulatory impacts or enforcement issues.
Advocating for and facilitating informal small entity engagement activities.
Developing recommendations or reports on EPA's asbestos and small business compliance
assistance programs.
Based on the Agency's overall small business regulatory and environmental compliance assistance
activities, EPA has earned a grade of "A" in the last 16 SB A Office of the National Ombudsman
Annual Reports to Congress.89
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Consistent with EPA's priorities for addressing climate change, equity, and Environmental Justice
(EJ) in FY 2025, the ASBO will:
Gather and manage ASBO program reporting data and activities to help guide the Agency
on issues related to asbestos, small business regulatory compliance questions and
adherence to the 507 Program requirements. The 1986 Asbestos Hazard Emergency
Response Act (AHERA) (15 U.S.C. §2641-2656) and the 1990 Clean Air Act (CAA)
Amendments' Small Business Stationary Source Technical and Environmental
Compliance Assistance Program (42 U.S.C. § 7661f), provide for ASBO monitoring and
reporting on the effectiveness of EPA's asbestos resources and small business
environmental compliance assistance programs. Consistent with the Program's integrated
strategy for carrying out those monitoring and reporting responsibilities, in FY 2023, the
ASBO issued an internal EPA ASBO Program Report on Fiscal Year 2022 Public Inquires,
and further posted a summary of the Report's "Quick Stats and Facts" on the ASBO
website.90 In FY 2025, the ASBO will continue to carry out these monitoring and reporting
activities in accordance with the strategy, to help identify opportunities to strengthen EPA's
asbestos program services and small business regulatory and compliance assistance.
Continue to strengthen and support state small business stakeholder engagement with
EPA's EJ activities through the ASBO's ongoing collaboration and cooperative assistance
agreement with the Kansas State University. ASBO funds the cooperative agreement in
support of the National SBEAP. SBEAPs are a key stakeholder on EJ activities as they
work directly with small businesses within the EJ community and provide environmental
compliance assistance to small and disadvantaged businesses within their state. In response
89 For more information, please see: https://www.sba.gov/document/report--national-ombudsmans-affliual-reports-congress.
90 The "Quick Stats and Facts" posting is accessible at: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-
06/ASBO%20Program%20FY22%20Stats%20and%20Facts%20508 O.pdf.
98
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to Executive Order (EO) 13985,91 the SBEAPs created an EJ Subcommittee to provide
targeted support to small and disadvantaged businesses located in underserved
communities and are in the process of finalizing EJ communication materials to support
small business engagement in EJ communities. In FY 2025, the ASBO will continue to
collaborate and support the SBEAP EJ Subcommittee efforts and engagement throughout
the Regions. Additionally, as part of the ASBO's cooperative agreement in support of the
National SBEAP, the ASBO will continue to support, enhance, and promote the SBEAP
foreign language webpage, which is a key EJ resource for assisting the underserved, non-
English speaking business community on environmental compliance.
Continue to strengthen small business access to and awareness of regulatory and
environmental compliance resources and updates. In FY 2025, the ASBO will leverage the
Program's monthly SmallBiz@EPA newsletter, using its new subscription management
and data analytics tools obtained in FY 2023, to help expand small business education and
familiarity with regulatory and environmental topics of interest to the small business
community.
Foster stronger internal communication and collaboration involving EPA rule writers,
especially EPA's Office of Air and Radiation, which has specific implementation
responsibilities for Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, under EO 14008.92
In FY 2025, ASBO will continue to develop resources to guide EPA rule writers in
conducting early and informal small business stakeholder engagement activities. This will
allow the Agency to better understand the most up-to-date industry practices and potential
business impacts for better informed decision making and consideration of available
options.
Under OP's Small Business Advocacy Chair, work with the SB A Office of Advocacy and
OMB to convene and manage Small Business Advocacy Review Panels. These Panels
develop recommendations to reduce the cost of EPA rules that may have a significant
impact on a substantial number of small entities.
Continue to provide analytical support for assessing the impacts of EPA rules on small
entities, which is critical in informing underserved, non-English speaking business
community on environmental compliance.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
91 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-
advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment/.
92 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/27/executive-order-
on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/.
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FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$8.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. The increase in fixed
and other costs is offset by a slight reduction to the Program. The Agency will prioritize
activities to continue to maintain compliance with its statutory obligations under the Small
Business Act.
Statutory Authority:
Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA), 1986 (adding Title II to the Toxic
Substances Control Act (TSCA)) (15 U.S.C. §2641-2656); Clean Air Act, Title 5, Section 507;
Small Business Stationary Source Technical and Environmental Compliance Assistance Program
(42 U.S.C. §7661f); Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, Pub. L. 104-
121, as amended by Pub. L. 110-28; Small Business Paperwork Relief Act, 44 U.S.C. 35; 42 U.S.C.
§ 766If; and 15 U.S.C. §§ 2641-2656.
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Small Minority Business Assistance
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.S 2,225
S 2J)5(>
S 2.0 IS
-S.i.V
Total Budget Authority
i>2,056
$2,018
-S38
Total Workyears
8.0
7.6
7.6
0.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) manages the Agency's
Small Business Contracting Program mandated under Section 15(k) of the Small Business Act,
15 U.S.C. § 644(k). As prescribed under that section, the Program provides expertise in
maximizing small business prime and subcontracting opportunities to help promote procurement
equity and expand EPA's competitive supplier base in carrying out the Agency's mission. Under
the Program, OSDBU provides EPA's contracting community statutorily required counseling and
training on all aspects of governing small business requirements throughout the federal acquisition
cycle. It also engages in statutorily mandated advocacy on behalf of the various categories of small
businesses, including disadvantaged businesses; small businesses located in Historically
Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones); service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses
(SDVOSBs); and women-owned small businesses (WOSBs). In accordance with Section 15(k),
OSDBU further hosts or participates in an average of one small business outreach and training
conference each month, providing needed technical assistance to hundreds of small and
socioeconomic businesses across the country.
In implementing the statutory responsibilities required under Section 15(k), OSDBU reviews
acquisition strategies to maximize small business prime and subcontracting opportunities; provides
expertise in conducting market research for EPA acquisitions; performs contract bundling reviews
to avoid unnecessary or unjustified limitations on small business utilization; reviews purchase card
transactions within the statutory threshold; and evaluates large prime contractor subcontracting
plans. In addition, OSDBU assists in the coordination of unsolicited proposals for agency
acquisitions and in the resolution of small business payment issues under EPA acquisitions. It
further provides a broad range of training, outreach, and technical assistance to new and
prospective small business contract awardees.
Historically, data reported in the Federal Procurement Data Systems (FPDS) indicates that EPA
awards an average of 40 percent of total acquisition dollars to small businesses annually - far
exceeding the government-wide goal of 23 percent. EPA most recently earned a grade of "A" on
the FY 2022 Small Business Procurement Scorecard.93 This represents the 14th consecutive year
93 For more information on the FY 2022 Small Business Procurement Scorecard, please see https://www.sba.gov/agency-
scorecards/scorecard.html?agency=GW&year=2022.
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that EPA has earned at least an "A" on the Procurement Scorecard. In addition, based on available
provisional data, in FY 2023 EPA awarded a record level of contracting dollars in four out of the
five small and socioeconomic business categories, including a record of $1 million in total small
business contract awards, amounting to 45.3 percent of the Agency's total contract spend.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Consistent with EPA's priorities to advance Environmental Justice (EJ), further procurement
equity to support underserved businesses and communities, and expand the Nation's supplier base,
in FY 2025, the Program will:
Leverage technology to foster more efficient and effective vendor engagement as a pivotal
component in expanding small and socioeconomic business participation in EPA
acquisitions. Industry has specifically indicated in various EPA listening sessions and
reverse industry day events that ensuring small business access to federal procurement
opportunities and the corresponding responsible officials is indispensable to furthering
procurement equity. In FY 2025, OSDBU will capitalize on a new system, slated for
deployment in FY 2024, to simplify matching small and socioeconomic vendors with EPA
contracting opportunities and responsible EPA officials. Utilizing matchmaking
technology will take advantage of available technology to ensure small and disadvantaged
businesses have meaningful access and opportunities to market their solutions, experience,
and capabilities to EPA officials. This will help streamline acquisition planning and market
research, resulting in reductions in the overall procurement action lead time.
Continue engagement in more dynamic acquisition planning and market research by
strengthening OSDBU's role as an essential member of the Agency's integrated acquisition
team. In FY 2025, OSDBU will continue to strengthen agencywide compliance with
internal vendor engagement metrics to expand EPA's market intelligence and familiarity
with socioeconomic small business sources available in the federal marketplace. OSDBU
will assume a leading role in providing small business expertise and counsel in tailoring
and coordinating innovative vendor engagement strategies to maximize meaningful small
and socioeconomic business procurement opportunities.
Assist in the implementation and training on a new policy to expand large business
utilization of small and socioeconomic businesses in the performance of prime contracts.
The utilization strategy is intended to incentivize prime contractors to maximize small
business contracting teaming arrangements consistent with the efficient performance of
prime contracts. In FY 2024, OSDBU in partnership with EPA's Office of Acquisition
Solutions (OAS) began to develop a formal policy to mandate application of the strategy
to defined EPA acquisitions. In FY 2025, OSDBU will continue this partnership to ensure
effective policy implementation and training. Significantly, implementing the mandatory
strategy will encourage large business joint venture, mentor-protege, and subcontracting
relationships with small businesses. This will help build small and socioeconomic business
102
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capabilities, capacity, and experience, and thereby diversify and expand the federal
supplier base in accordance with governmentwide procurement equity directives94 on
expanding procurement equity.
Conduct robust EPA in-reach activities to educate the Agency's acquisition workforce on
structuring acquisitions to expand small business contracting opportunities and reduce
barriers to procurement equity. OSDBU also will continue collaboration with OAS to
provide bootcamp training to enhance small business proficiency in competing for EPA
contract awards and in complying with contract administration requirements.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM SB1) Percentage of EPA contract spending awarded to HUBZone businesses.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
3.0
3.2
3.4
3.7
Percent
Actual
2.4
2.2
2.0
4.9
3.1
3.1
Numerator
37.5
35.0
30.3
75.6
59.6
69.3
Millions of
Dollars
Denominator
1,500
1,500
1,500
1,500
1,900
2,265
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$38.0) This change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation of base
workforce costs for existing FTE, adjustments to provide essential workforce support, and
changes to benefits costs.
Statutory Authority:
Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C § 644(k).
94 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-
advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment/and
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/M-22-Q3.pdf.
103
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State and Local Prevention and Preparedness
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Prepare for and Respond to Environmental Emergencies
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 14.124
SI 5.440
S 24.HK,
SHJtftO
Total Budget Authority
$14,124
$15,446
$24,106
$8,660
Total Workyears
55.1
67.1
93.1
26.0
Program Project Description:
The State and Local Prevention and Preparedness Program establishes a structure composed of
federal, state, local, and tribal partners who work together with industry to protect emergency
responders, local communities, facility workers, the environment, and property from chemical
accident risks through accident prevention and emergency response programs, community and
facility engagement, and improved safety systems. This framework provides the foundation for
community and facility chemical hazard response planning and reduction of risk posed by
chemical facilities.
Under Section 112(r) of the 1990 Clean Air Act (CAA) Amendments, chemical facilities that store
more than a threshold quantity of listed extremely hazardous substances are required to implement
a Risk Management Plan (RMP) program. These facilities, known as RMP facilities, take
preventive measures, report data, mitigate and/or respond to chemical releases, and work with
communities, first responders, and planning groups to increase understanding of risks.95
The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986 was enacted to
help communities plan for chemical emergencies and to inform the public about chemicals in their
community. Under EPCRA, facilities are required to report about the chemicals they produce, use,
and store to state and local governments. States, tribes, and local governments use this information
to prepare communities for potential chemical releases from these facilities through the
development of local emergency response plans.96
Under Section 31 l(j)(5) of the Clean Water Act (CWA), EPA is required to issue and implement
regulations requiring certain facilities to develop plans to respond to worst case discharges of
hazardous substances that could threaten navigable waters.
95 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/rmp.
96 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/epcra.
104
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.3, Prepare for and Respond to
Environmental Emergencies in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional investment of approximately $8.7 million for the State
and Local Prevention and Preparedness Program. The Program will perform the following
activities:
Support inspection of RMP and EPCRA facilities to ensure compliance with accident
prevention and preparedness regulations, and work with chemical facilities to reduce
chemical risks and improve safety. There are approximately 11,600 chemical facilities that
are subject to the RMP regulations. Of these, approximately 1,800 facilities have been
designated as high-risk based upon their accident history, quantity of on-site dangerous
chemicals stored, and proximity to large residential populations.97 EPA prioritizes
inspections at high-risk facilities.
The Program aims to conduct approximately 300 inspections a year, or three percent of all
RMP facilities. EPA will focus on high-risk facilities located in communities with
environmental justice concerns and communities with increased climate-related risks (e.g.,
extreme weather, flooding, wildfires, etc.). Additional resources requested in this program
will help enable the Program to meet the target number of 300 inspections and support the
Agency's Chemical Accident Risk Reduction National Enforcement and Compliance
Initiative (NECI).
Additional resources also will address outstanding recommendations from the US
Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, such as developing an inspection
database to track common deficiencies found during inspections, including any related to
natural hazards and climate change, and use that information to target compliance
assistance.
Protect fenceline communities through regulatory updates and outreach, compliance
assistance, and inspections at regulated facilities, thereby reducing risks to human health
and the environment by decreasing the likelihood and impacts of chemical accidents.
Provide basic and advanced RMP and EPCRA inspector training for federal and state
inspectors.
Maintain and upgrade the RMP national database, which is the Nation's premier source of
information on chemical process risks and contains hazard information on all RMP
facilities. Industry electronically submits updated RMPs to this secure database. Using
funding requested in FY 2025, EPA will continue improvements to the RMP national
database to accommodate new risk management plan submission elements resulting from
97 Located in EPA's RMP database.
105
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recent regulatory changes and providing increased public access to non-sensitive portions
of the RMP database and subsequent analytics.
Develop updates to the Computer-Aided Management of Emergency Operations
(CAMEO) software suite (i.e., the CAMEO Chemicals, CAMEO//??, Areal Locations of
Hazardous Atmospheres, and Mapping Application for Response, Planning, and Local
Operational Tasks applications), which provides free and publicly available information
for firefighting, first aid, emergency planning, and spill response activities.
Implement the changes made in the RMP Safer Communities by Chemical Accident
Prevention final rule, which the Agency expects to complete before Spring 2024. This rule
will initiate the updating of EPA interpretive guidance and training of EPA, state, and local
inspectors on new and updated regulatory provisions to address Administration priorities
on environmental justice and climate change.
EPA is under a consent decree to complete a final rulemaking under CWA section 31 l(j)(5)
by September 2024. The final rule will establish a new regulatory program requiring certain
facilities to develop plans for responding to a worst-case discharge, or to a substantial threat
of such a discharge, of CWA-listed hazardous substances. EPA requests $300 thousand
and 2.0 FTE in FY 2025 to begin implementation efforts for this new regulatory program,
as no current resources are associated with this effort. These additional funds and staff will
be used to develop implementation guidance and training and outreach materials and begin
training regional staff on conducting inspections and exercises for the new regulatory
provisions.
Conduct outreach to regulated industry concerning changes or updates to RMP and EPCRA
regulations and interpretive guidance.
Coordinate and collaborate with state, tribal, and local response entities on emergency
response plans and procedures to ensure cohesive and effective responses to chemical
releases.
Performance Measure Targets:
Work under this program directly supports performance results in the Superfund: EPA Emergency
Preparedness program under the Superfund appropriation.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$661.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support
for critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity
requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of
Trusted Vetting 2.0.
106
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(+$7,499.0 / +26.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to support a multi-pronged
approach to protect fenceline communities at risk from nearby chemical facilities,
including providing increased outreach and inspections at regulated facilities to ensure
facilities have measures in place to prevent chemical accidents. This investment includes
$4.6 million for payroll.
(+$500.0) This program increase is to upgrade and support operations and maintenance of
the existing RMP database.
Statutory Authority:
The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA); the Clean Air Act (CAA)
§ 112(r); Clean Water Act (CWA) § 3 11
-------
TRI / Right to Know
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Promote Pollution Prevention
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.S/ / .'AS' ~
S 15.052
SI-1.12 J
-S92V
Total Budget Authority
$11,987
$15,052
$14,123
-$929
Total Workyears
36.9
37.0
37.0
0.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's success in carrying out its mission to protect human health and the environment depends
on collecting and making available timely, accurate, and relevant information to communities,
non-governmental organizations, industry, academia, and government agencies at the local, state,
tribal, federal, and international levels. EPA's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) Program98 supports
the Agency's mission by annually collecting and publishing in a publicly accessible form: release,
other waste management (e.g., recycling), and pollution prevention (P2) data on over 800 TRI-
listed chemicals and chemical categories that include almost 200 per- and polyfluoroalkyl
substances (PFAS).99 Approximately 21,000 industrial and federal facilities report to TRI
annually.
EPA's TRI Program is a premiere source of cross-media toxic chemical information for
stakeholders. Using technological advances, the TRI Program has developed several analytical
tools that provide the public with easy access, mapping, and analysis of information on TRI
chemicals released or otherwise managed as waste at facilities in communities across the United
States and its territories. Some of these tools incorporate demographic indicators such as low
income, people of color, unemployment, education level, linguistically isolated households, and
young and elderly populations, as well as tribal land and risk indicators.
The TRI Program collaborates with other EPA programs on data analyses to describe relevant
trends in releases, recycling, treatment, energy recovery, and implementation of P2 practices with
respect to toxic chemicals and to support innovative approaches by industry and other partners to
reduce pollution. As a robust, community-focused, annual, cross-media dataset on toxic chemical
information, the TRI lends itself to comparative analyses with other program-specific data
managed by the Agency, providing insights that may not be apparent when viewing the datasets
independently. Such insights are especially valuable for 1) identifying opportunities based on TRI-
reported, location-specific release trends to reduce toxic chemical releases in disadvantaged
98 For additional information, please visit: http://www.epa.gov/tri/.
99 Many per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) were added to the TRI chemical list as a component of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (NDAA) when the Act was signed into law on December 20, 2019. The first year of TRI
reporting these PFAS was calendar year 2020.
108
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communities in accordance with the Administration's environmental justice (EJ) priorities, and 2)
promoting TRI-reported pollution prevention (P2) practices that reduce the release of toxic
chemicals and/or emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs).
The TRI Program serves as a central component of EPA's strategy to increase access to
environmental pollution information and enable communities, scientists, policymakers, and other
stakeholders to apply the information in their decisions and engagements to address impacts and
deter adverse burdens, particularly to low-income and disadvantaged communities.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.2, Promote Pollution Prevention in the
FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to build upon the regulatory foundation of TRI to ensure that
communities have access to timely and meaningful data on toxic chemical releases and other waste
management and pollution prevention activities at facilities. As part of this effort, the TRI Program
will continue to update toxic chemical reporting requirements as appropriate, pursue additional
chemical listings, expand the scope of industry coverage (as applicable), respond to petitions,
improve the reporting experience, take steps to further optimize the quality of TRI data, explore
enhanced access and analytical capability with respect to this valuable information, identify
opportunities to reduce toxic chemical releases, and share and promote pollution prevention
approaches with industry.
This work supports the Administration's EJ priorities as the TRI Program will play an important
role in conducting analyses to support EPA's goals for disadvantaged communities with EJ
concerns. Additionally, the Program may conduct analyses in support of the Administration's
climate priorities such as review of TRI-reported P2 practices implemented to reduce or prevent
releases, waste management of TRI chemicals and chemicals identified by EPA as greenhouse
gases.
EPA also will continue to provide its online reporting application, the TRI-MEweb (TRI Made
Easy web) reporting tool, to assist reporting facilities with electronic preparation and submission
of TRI reports through EPA's Central Data Exchange (CDX),100 which manages TRI access and
authentication services and provides identity proofing. TRI-MEweb has built-in functionality to
help prevent facilities from making reporting errors. In addition, the TRI data collected by EPA
are shared with states, tribes, and territories that are partners of the TRI Data Exchange (TDX).101
EPA will continue to maintain TRI-MEweb and the TDX throughout FY 2025. The Agency also
will continue to support the TRI Processing System (TRIPS) database, which is the repository for
TRI data.
In FY 2025, as a key element of its data quality assurance strategy, the Program will conduct at
least 650 data quality checks to help optimize the accuracy and completeness of the reported data
and thereby improve the Program's analyses and the utility of the data to the public. EPA also will
100 To access the CDX, please visit: https://cdx.epa.gov/.
101 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/toxics-release-inventory-tri-program/tri-data-exchange.
109
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continue to improve its systems, processes, and products based on feedback from users {i.e.,
communities; academia; industry; and state, tribal and local governments). Additionally, EPA will
explore opportunities to streamline the process it uses to determine whether chemicals should be
added to the TRI chemical list, to enhance efficiencies in the TRI Program.
The Program also will continue to publish English and Spanish versions of the annual TRI National
Analysis,102 which provides, among other things, up-to-date trends in releases and other waste
management practices of toxic chemicals and highlights innovative approaches by industry to
reduce pollution. The Analysis will include industry sector profiles, parent company analyses, and
TRI information reported from facilities in specific urban communities, watersheds, and tribal
lands. The TRI Program also will continue to make the preliminary data available to the public
shortly after the reporting deadline as downloadable data files and through online analytical tools
such as Envirofacts.103 The Program will continue to provide support to EPA's Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance programs by supplying facility target lists developed through the
comparison of TRI reporting with facility reporting to other EPA programs {e.g., air permits
required by the Clean Air Act). The TRI Program will continue to foster discussions and
collaborations in analyzing and using its data with stakeholders such as industry, government,
academia, non-governmental organizations, and the public. Engagement will include organizing
targeted webinars and, if resources permit, hosting an in-person TRI National Conference.
Section 7321 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2020 requires EPA to assess
certain PFAS to determine whether they meet Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-
Know Act (EPCRA) Section 313 chemical listing criteria. The NDAA automatically added seven
additional PFAS to the TRI list, effective January 1, 2024. EPA expects similar automatic additions
of PFAS to the TRI list over calendar year 2024, which will be implemented in FY 2025. Also in
FY 2024, EPA finalized a rule that designates NDAA-added PFAS to the TRI list of chemicals of
special concern; among other reporting changes, this eliminates the use of the de minimis
exemption as well as the option for facilities to use the Form A certification statement.
Additionally, in FY 2025, EPA expects to finalize a rule to list additional PFAS to TRI based on
their hazard characteristics, pursuant to section 7321 of the FY 2020 NDAA. EPA will publish the
proposed rule in FY 2024 and expects to respond to comments and promulgate the final rule in FY
2025.
Further, the TRI Program's information, data, and analyses will support the Toxic Substances
Control Act (TSCA) Program, helping to identify conditions of use and to evaluate and estimate
occupational, general population, and potentially exposed and susceptible subpopulation exposures
for those chemicals undergoing risk evaluation and that are included on the TRI chemical list. This
work will assist agency chemical programs in their prioritization work, from the identification of
candidate chemicals for future risk evaluations to the support of other chemical assessments across
program and regional offices, advancing the work of chemical safety agencywide.
The TRI Program will additionally pursue chemical listings, including TSCA Work Plan chemicals
and other substances of interest to the Agency that are not included on the TRI chemical list, as
102 To access the TRI National Analysis, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/trinationalanalysis. EPA publishes each National
Analysis approximately six months after that year's data are reported.
103 EnviroFacts may be accessed at: https://enviro.epa.gov/.
110
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well as respond to TRI chemical listing petitions. Additional chemicals or sectors may be assessed
for TRI listing suitability and associated listing actions, and as required by EPCRA, the Agency
will respond to EPCRA chemical petitions regarding TRI within 180 days after receipt.104 The
quantity and complexity of petitions are unknown until submitted to EPA. EPA will continue to
respond to any TRI chemical petitions received during FY 2025.
Because electronic systems that collect and disseminate TRI data largely have been developed, FY
2025 work will focus on the operations and maintenance of TRI-MEweb, TRIPS, and processes
that contribute to quality control in the development of the annual TRI National Analysis. By
leveraging agency cloud services, the TRI systems will improve system performance, reliability,
efficiencies, portability, and administrative services (security, upgrades, patches, etc.). This also
will improve integration/consistency with other cloud-based systems and applications and will
provide quicker data processing. Moreover, this will enhance the capabilities of EPA's public-
facing TRI analytical tools.
In FY 2025 the TRI Program will identify facilities and sectors that released TRI-listed substances
proximal to disadvantaged communities (using functionalities within EPA's analytical tools, such
as TRI Toxics Tracker and EJ Screen). The Program also will develop maps and other products to
help facilitate exploration and understanding of potential impacts from chemical releases to
surrounding communities, including those that might be more susceptible to climate change
impacts (i.e., sea level rise and facilities located along the coasts of major bodies of water).
Additionally, TRI reporting includes information on institutional/firm environmental stewardship,
pollution prevention (P2), and other sustainability practices and activities (e.g., voluntary climate
mitigation-, adaptation- or resilience-oriented work) undertaken by facilities during the reporting
year. TRI's P2 reporting data105 include thousands of instances of source reduction implementation
and other sustainability activities by facilities, which often reflect economic benefits coupled with
improved environmental performance. TRI's P2 data tools have a wide range of capabilities to
help identify and amplify improvement to environmental practices, and the Program will continue
to conduct analyses of these practices and to develop profiles of these environmental
improvements, which can be useful for P2 practitioners including those seeking to advance
sustainability and strengthen the resilience of facilities near disadvantaged communities with EJ
concerns. The Program also will continue to support the Agency's P2 Program, and other Agency
source reduction and sustainability programs, specifically efforts to advance P2 best practices
among national emphasis areas, including tools to advance priorities such as the P2-EJ Facility
Mapping Tool.106
104 Additional information on current petitions may be found at: https://www.epa.gov/toxics-release-inventorv-tri-program/toxics-
release-inventory-laws-and-regulatory-activities.
105 For additional information, please visit: https//www. epa. gov/tri/p2.
106 To access the P2 EJ Facility Mapping Tool, please visit https://www.epa.gov/p2/p2-ej-facility-mapping-tool.
Ill
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Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$316.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation
of base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(-$1,245.0) This program change is a decrease in contract resources to support IT analytical
tools.
Statutory Authority:
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) § 313; Pollution Prevention
Act of 1990 (PPA) § 6607.
112
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Tribal - Capacity Building
Program Area: Cross-Agency Coordination, Outreach, and Education
Goal: Take Decisive Action to Advance Environmental Justice and Civil Rights
Objective(s): Promote Environmental Justice and Civil Rights at the Federal, Tribal, State and
Local Levels
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 12.010
S 1-1.-15
SJ5M.S
S 20J'Ji
Total Budget Authority
$12,619
$14,715
$35,088
$20,373
Total Workyears
70.4
78.6
166.9
88.3
Program Project Description:
EPA is responsible for protecting human health and the environment under federal environmental
statutes and the Tribal Capacity Building Program serves a critical role in advancing this mission
working with tribal communities. Under the Agency's 1984 Indian Policy, 107 EPA works with
federally recognized tribes on a government-to-government basis, in recognition of the federal
government's trust responsibility to tribes, to implement federal environmental programs in Indian
Country.
To do this, EPA will:
Use key environmental justice principles, such as equity for underserved communities,
strong, meaningful tribal engagement, and fair treatment as it prioritizes
implementation of EPA directly implemented programs, and for other activities;
Fully consider ways in which program funding can best be used to address climate
change concerns to build climate resiliency for federally recognized tribes; and,
Work to enhance the consideration and integration of tribal treaty rights and reserved
rights into EPA decision-making and regulatory development.
This program also supports the Categorical Grant: Tribal General Assistance Grants Program.
EPA's American Indian Environmental Office leads the agencywide effort to ensure
environmental protection in Indian Country.108
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 2/Objective 2.1, Promote Environmental Justice and
Civil Rights at the Federal, Tribal, State, and Local Levels in the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic
107 EPA Policy for the Administration of Environmental Programs on Indian Reservations, available at
https://www.epa.gov/tribal/epa-policy-admiiiistration-enviromiiental-programs-iiidian-reservatioiis-1984-iiidian-policy.
108
Please see http://www.epa.gov/tribal for more information.
113
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Plan. To support this work, EPA is requesting $18.5 million in additional resources and an increase
of 87.3 FTEs to focus on advancing environmental justice in Indian Country by ensuring full and
robust implementation of the laws that EPA administers in all areas where EPA has the authority
and responsibility to ensure protections while simultaneously honoring the federal trust
responsibility to the hundreds of federally recognized tribes EPA works with throughout the United
States in FY 2025.
Overall, the Agency continues to make steady progress toward strengthening human health and
environmental protection in Indian Country. In FY 2025, EPA will further the following priorities:
Strengthen tribal partnerships and engagements, including through EPA's revised
Tribal Consultation Policy and tribal engagement strategies;
Build tribal capacity to administer and meaningfully participate in environmental
programs;
Directly implement programs in Indian Country for equitable environmental
protection, especially for underserved tribal communities; and,
Enhance the protection of tribal treaty rights in EPA activities through the revised
Tribal Treaty Rights Guidance.
The strategic investment will directly result in the following enhancements and deliverables:
Improve public health by reducing disparities in compliance rates between Indian
Country and the national average through greater Office of International and Tribal
Affairs support and leadership to EPA programs and regions for planning and
measuring EPA direct implementation actions in Indian Country.
Continue the General Assistance Program (GAP) oversight and evaluation process
to ensure GAP funds are being efficiently distributed and used.
Continue national coordination with intertribal consortia for technical assistance
and GAP planning.
Provide support for EPA Direct Implementation Tribal Cooperative Agreement
(DITCA) funding to Tribes for direct implementation activities that are excluded
or restricted from GAP.
Fully implement the revised EPA Tribal Consultation Policy and Implementation
Guidance to improve consultation practices in conformance with Executive Order
13175 on Tribal Consultation and train EPA staff. Review and improve access to
and quality of tribal data and information held in EPA information management
systems to enable informed management and budget decisions on tribal matters.
Provide technical assistance for tribes to support delegation of federal authority to
the tribal government that allows tribes to implement EPA-overseen programs.
Improve the availability of EPA regulatory tribal information available to tribal
members and the public on EPA's data systems through technical changes to
existing EPA data systems to allow improvements to a registry of EPA regulated
facilities and entities in Indian Country that is publicly available.
Improve and disseminate best practices for engagement of communities by tribal
governments with delegated federal authority.
Reduce the ratio of grants per project officer for tribal GAP grants.
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Support tribes and EPA regions in negotiating EPA-Tribal Environmental Plans
(ETEPs) and all aspects of the National Environmental Performance Partnership
System (NEPPS), including Performance Partnership Grants (PPGs).
Provide greater regional liaison work to strengthen partnerships with tribes with
"more time per tribe" for GAP technical assistance.
Provide greater and earlier meaningful engagements with tribes on actions that
require consultation.
Improve efficiency and use of the EPA GAP grant performance management
system to measure, evaluate, and improve how well GAP is meeting its statutory
purposes and establish benefits for tribes and EPA.
Work as national program coordinator and connector for regional Environmental
Justice Thriving Communities Navigators.
Work as the liaison to the Office of Policy's Climate Adaptation Program to
strengthen regional liaison work to implement tribal-related climate and treaty right
priorities in the EPA Strategic Plan and Climate Adaptation Implementation Plans
including consideration of a whole government approach to implement Tribal
Climate Adaptation Implementation Plans.
Tribal Consultation: EPA revised the EPA Policy on Consultation and Coordination with Indian
Tribes (Consultation Policy) 109 in 2023. The Consultation Policy builds on the EPA Indian Policy
and establishes clear agency standards for a consultation process promoting consistency and
coordination. From FY 2011 through FY 2025, EPA expects to have completed over 1,270 tribal
consultations, including an anticipated 125 tribal consultations in FY 2025. EPA will continue to
support the Agency's web-based Tribal Consultation Opportunities Tracking System (TCOTS), a
publicly accessible database used to communicate upcoming and current EPA consultation
opportunities to tribal governments. EPA's work increases access to public benefit programs and
advances environmental justice through simplified access to TCOTS information. The system
provides a management, oversight, and reporting structure that helps ensure accountability and
transparency.
Capacity Building: EPA will continue to support mechanisms for tribes to pursue developing and
implementing federal environmental programs, including the "treatment in a manner similar to a
state" (TAS) process and the use of the Direct Implementation Tribal Cooperative Agreement
(DITCA) authority. The Agency will continue to provide technical and financial assistance to tribal
governments to build their capacity to meaningfully participate and engage in environmental
protection activities. At the beginning of FY 2024, EPA had approved 107 TAS regulatory
program delegations to tribes, including 21 approvals for compliance and enforcement authority.
EPA had 14 DITCAs with tribes in place at the beginning of FY 2024.
Indian Environmental General Assistance Program Capacity Building Support: GAP grants
to tribal governments help build the basic components of a tribal environmental program. The
Agency manages GAP grants according to its Indian Environmental GAP Guidance on Financial
Assistance Agreements. 110 In FY 2025, EPA will continue to administer GAP financial assistance
to build tribal capacity and address environmental issues on tribal lands under new GAP guidance
109 Please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/tribal/consultation-tribes.
110 Please refer to https://www.epa.gov/tribal/gap-guidance-financial-assistance-agreements for further information.
115
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and training. EPA's work in FY 2025 also will continue to enhance EPA-tribal partnerships
through development and implementation of ETEPs with a continued focus on tracking and
reporting measurable outcomes and results of GAP-funded activities. GAP funding also continues
to support EPA PPG goals. EPA will strive to incorporate environmental justice and climate
change considerations in these activities.
GAP Performance Measurement: EPA will use, and adjust as needed, the performance
management application to align with the 2022 GAP Guidance and begin compiling and analyzing
data. The information technology-based performance application will provide a data-driven basis
for supporting funding decisions, funding priorities, and contribute to program accountability.
Increased GAP performance will complement tribal capacity in media programs including efforts
for CWA and SDWA SRF tribal set-asides.
Direct Implementation: EPA will continue to provide federal environmental program protections
in Indian Country by directly implementing programs. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to evaluate
its direct implementation responsibilities and activities on a program-by-program basis in Indian
Country and make the data and information it relies upon available through EPA's data and
information applications.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM E21) Number of significant actions taken by EPA programs with direct implementation authority that
will result in measurable improvements in Indian country.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
20IX
201<)
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
No Target
Established
25
20
15
Significant
Actions
Actual
25
25
(PM EC41) Percentage of EPA Tribal consultations that may affect Tribal treaty rights that consider those
rights as part of the consultation.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
20
25
80
100
Percent
Actual
100
100
Numerator
19
10
Tribal
Consultations
Denominator
19
10
FY 2025 Change from FY 2023 Annualized CR Budget (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$1,715.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted Vetting
2.0.
116
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(+$183.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements.
(+$2,524.0 / +12.0 FTE) This program change provides initial FTE and associated
resources to stand-up a national direct implementation program specifically to work with
tribes, tribal members, and others residing in Indian Country in carrying out EPA
responsibilities for environmental and human health programs under EPA statutes in Indian
Country. EPA's goal is to ensure that environmental programs implemented inside Indian
Country are as robust and protective as those same programs implemented outside of Indian
Country. This includes $2.38 million in associated payroll.
(+$15,951.0 / +75.3 FTE) This program change increases FTE and resources to advance
equitable implementation of EPA authorities and directives in Indian Country. This
increase will allow the Agency to work effectively with tribal governments and
communities, administer tribal grants and critical technical assistance, and fulfill the
federal trust responsibilities that align with the environmental statutes. Support will be
provided to priority commitments made in EPA and Tribal Climate Adaptation
Implementation Plans and allow additional incorporation of Indigenous Knowledge into
climate change efforts. This includes $13.81 million in associated payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
117
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Enforcement
118
-------
Civil Enforcement
Program Area: Enforcement
Goal: Enforce Environmental Laws and Ensure Compliance
Objective(s): Hold Environmental Violators and Responsible Parties Accountable
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SI
.S 205.V-12
.S 250.252
S50J10
Leaking Underground Storage Tanks
$594
$661
$690
$29
Inland Oil Spill Programs
$2,580
$2,565
$2,699
$134
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$15
$0
$0
$0
Total Budget Authority
$181,048
$209,168
$259,641
$50,473
Total Workyears
904.4
998.1
1,096.7
98.6
Program Project Description:
The goal of EPA's Civil Enforcement Program is to protect human health and the environment by
ensuring compliance with the Nation's environmental laws and regulations. The Civil
Enforcement Program works in partnership with its federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial
regulatory partners to encourage compliance, compel regulated entities to correct and/or mitigate
violations, mitigate past harm, and assess appropriate penalties for violations, including removing
any economic benefit that a violator gained from noncompliance.
The Civil Enforcement Program works closely with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), state
and local governments, tribal governments, territories, and other federal agencies to ensure
consistent and fair enforcement of all major environmental statutes and regulations. Millions of
public, federal, and private regulated entities are subject to one or more of these statutory
requirements. The Civil Enforcement Program develops, litigates, and settles administrative and
civil judicial cases against violators of environmental laws. The Agency's National Enforcement
Investigations Center (NEIC) provides field investigation, laboratory analysis, toxicology,
chemistry, engineering, and regulatory support to the Civil Enforcement Program. In FY 2023,
because of EPA civil enforcement actions, over 73 million pounds of air, water, and toxic
pollutants and over 1.1 billion pounds of waste were treated, minimized, or properly disposed.111
EPA is responsible for direct implementation of programs that are not delegable or where a state
or tribe has not sought or obtained the authority to implement a program (or program components).
Examples of programs that are not delegable include the Clean Air Act (CAA) mobile source and
Ozone Depleting Substances programs; pesticide labeling and registration under the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); the new and existing chemicals program
under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); and enforcement in Indian Country (except
111 For additional information on EPA's FY 2023 enforcement and compliance assurance program results, please
visit:https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/enforcement-and-compliance-amiual-results-fiscal-year-2023.
119
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where the Program has been delegated to the tribe). Many statutes have programs or regulations
that states have not obtained authority to implement, including the American Innovation and
Manufacturing (AIM) Act, as well as portions of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), the Toxic
Substances Control Act (TSCA) (lead-based paint program), and the Clean Air Act (CAA)
(chemical accident prevention) where EPA must play this role.
Even where a state is authorized or has delegated program implementation responsibility, EPA
retains concurrent enforcement authority. The Agency and authorized states have a joint
responsibility to achieve and maintain high levels of compliance with the Nation's environmental
laws. EPA works with authorized states and tribes to ensure a level playing field and assists states
and tribes in their implementation of delegated/authorized programs when needed, such as in cases
where the Agency maintains a unique expertise or capability, or where direct federal action is
necessary to take timely or appropriate steps to address threats to public health and the
environment. The Agency also carries out its statutory oversight responsibilities to ensure states
and tribes are meeting national compliance monitoring standards and taking timely and appropriate
actions to return facilities to compliance. EPA's work to protect communities with Environmental
Justice (EJ) concerns and to address violations that contribute to climate change are priorities for
the Agency and represent shared goals of EPA and partner agencies. For the Program to carry out
statutory oversight responsibilities, a robust inspection and enforcement program is essential to
advancing the promise of clean air, land, and water to many communities across the country,
especially in overburdened communities and communities impacted by climate change.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 3/Objective 3.1, Hold Environmental Violators and
Responsible Parties Accountable in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. The Civil
Enforcement Program advances other goals in the Agency's Strategic Plan, with a particular focus
on the cross-cutting goals: Goal 1: Tackle the Climate Crisis and Goal 2: Take Decisive Action to
Advance Environmental Justice.
A robust inspection and enforcement program is essential to advancing the promise of clean air,
land, and water to the many communities across the country that have not received the full benefits
from EPA's decades of progress. Staff on the ground that can identify public health concerns and
potential environmental regulatory violations are critical to protecting communities that are
vulnerable or overburdened. Travel funding for inspections is essential to getting inspectors into
the field to conduct increased inspections in all of EPA's ten regional offices. EPA's inspection
programs have been under-resourced for over a decade leading to a loss of agency expertise and a
decline in the numbers of inspections. To meet EPA's EJ goals and its mission to protect human
health and the environment, the Agency must rebuild and strengthen its inspection program with
increased hiring and training of new and existing inspectors, including in-person basic inspector
trainings and travel funding for the trainings for the following programs: CAA; SDWA; CWA;
RCRA; FIFRA; and TSCA. The increase in funding is needed to purchase health and safety
equipment and inspection monitoring equipment such as Forward Looking InfraRed (FLIR)
cameras, Data Acquisition Real-Time (DART), flame ionization detectors/photo ionization
detectors, fenceline monitors, and Smart Tools software and hardware for inspectors. These tools
120
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will modernize the process of collecting, inspecting, and recording inspection data to increase
enforcement results.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an increase of approximately $19.6 million and 41.4 FTE to
advance the Agency's Strategic Plan goals of tackling the climate crisis, taking decisive action to
advance EJ, and enforcing environmental laws and ensuring compliance by 1) Focusing resources
on the most serious environmental problems by implementing the FY 2024 through FY 2027
National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives (NECIs) and 2) Supporting other EPA
agency wide priorities such as reducing children's exposure to lead and increased community
engagement.112
In FY 2025, EPA will focus its enforcement resources on the most serious environmental
violations by implementing NECI priorities that seek to mitigate climate change, improve air
quality, provide for clean and safe water, and ensure chemical safety. The Agency has selected the
following six NECIs for FY 2024 - 2027: 1) Mitigating Climate Change, 2) Addressing Exposure
to per - and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), 3) Protecting Communities from Coal Ash
Contamination, 4) Reducing Air Toxics in Overburdened Communities, 5) Increasing Compliance
with Drinking Water Standards, and 6) Chemical Accident Risk Reduction. For the first time, the
Program will have a national focus of enforcement and compliance resources on mitigating climate
change, addressing exposure to PFAS, and protecting communities from carcinogenic coal ash
contamination. The Agency will strengthen its efforts to address hazardous air pollution in
overburdened communities focusing on communities facing high levels of toxic air pollution from
hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), such as benzene, ethylene oxide and other pollutants. This
focused initiative will include the corollary benefit of reducing concentrations of criteria air
pollutants such as ozone and particulate matter and addressing climate change impacts directly.
EPA will continue the FY 2020 - 2023 national initiatives focused on providing safe drinking
water and reducing the risk of deadly chemical accidents. Each of these initiatives addresses urgent
environmental and public health challenges that would be difficult for EPA and its state partners
to tackle without additional resources and concerted effort. These initiatives incorporate EJ
considerations to ensure that the benefits of our Nation's environmental laws can be shared by
everyone living in the United States.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an increase of $4.6 million and 20.0 FTE to advance the Office
of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance's (OECA's) expanded role in water sector emergency
response. In addition to this expanded role, as water systems continue to be adversely impacted by
climate change and aging infrastructure, there is an increase in the number of systems across the
country that are challenged to provide safe water to its residents. The Agency plays an important
role in providing a safety net where states are not able to act in a timely or effective way to ensure
safe water. This can include inspections to ensure compliance, enforcement efforts to compel
corrective actions, or require entities (e.g., public water systems or private facilities) to distribute
bottled water, filters, or testing kits. It also can include the Agency acting to directly distribute
and/or provide water, filters and testing kits on a short-term basis. This investment will allow
OECA to respond to the increasing number of water incidents across the Nation, many of which
affect EJ communities as evident from past incidents in Flint, Michigan; Jackson, Mississippi;
112 For additional information on the NECIs, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/national-enforcement-and-
compliance-initiatives.
121
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Benton Harbor, Michigan; and Coachella Valley, California. Two factors are expected to increase
the future likelihood of EPA intervention in water incidents. First, the aging of America's water
infrastructure has been well documented by EPA and other sources over the last twenty years (e.g.,
Water Infrastructure Gap Analysis, EPA 2002; 7th Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey
and Assessment, EPA 2023).113 Second, with the increasing frequency and severity of extreme
weather events (drought, flooding, hurricanes) due to climate change, water systems will be subject
to more disruptive events.
All of OECA's national civil enforcement initiatives focus on protecting overburdened and
vulnerable communities. The NECIs provide an opportunity to address widespread, high priority
violations in areas that have a strong nexus with the goals set forth in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA
Strategic Plan. By prioritizing and concentrating enforcement efforts and resources in alignment
with the Agency's Strategic Plan, the enforcement program can advance the Agency's broader
environmental and public health goals. To meet these goals, additional staff (e.g., inspectors, field
investigators, attorneys, and chemists) and extramural support (e.g., contract support, travel, and
training) are needed.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an increase of $8.2 million and 19.9 FTE to enforce the AIM Act
by preventing the illegal importation and use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), potent greenhouse
gases, in the United States, facilitating a transition to next-generation technologies, and managing
HFCs in existing equipment. Enforcing the phase down of HFCs is essential to tackling climate
change. HFCs can have negative impacts on the climate hundreds to thousands of times greater
than the same amount of carbon dioxide.114 The Program's job will be exponentially more
challenging in FY 2025 as additional requirements come into effect, increasing the universe of
regulated products as a result of new phasedown requirements and restrictions on the import,
manufacture, and use of certain products. As a result of these expanded restrictions, enforcing the
AIM Act in FY 2025 will require more than double the level of effort as compared to enforcing
the 2021 HFC Phasedown regulations. EPA requests this additional infusion of FTE and
extramural resources for equipment, training, and other important tools to lead the HFC Task Force
and to catch and deter potentially widespread illegal imports in FY 2025. The HFC Task Force
will identify, intercept, and interdict illegal HFC imports, share data to support allowances, train
customs officers and enforcement personnel, and address common HFC import experiences with
other countries. The Program will implement new HFC allowance modules and expand its ozone
depleting substances (ODS) tracking system to assess ongoing compliance. Additionally, in FY
2025, training on the new enforcement techniques and support for implementation of both the AIM
Act and HFC enforcement will be needed. As a result, EPA's Civil Enforcement Program needs
additional attorneys and inspectors to ensure adequate personnel are trained to develop and take
enforcement actions against violators. The additional FTE for case development will assist in
developing enforceable AIM Act rulemakings planned for FY 2025 and beyond. Without
additional staff, the Program will be hindered in its efforts to increase enforcement of HFC imports.
113 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-
04/Final FAQ DWINSA 4.4.23.vl.pdf
114 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction/frequent-questions-phasedown-
hydrofluorocarbons#overview.
122
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In FY 2025, EPA will continue to protect overburdened communities at risk from cumulative
impacts of large chemical manufacturing facilities, petrochemical operations, and refineries.
Through coordinated assessment of noncompliance in multiple statutory areas, EPA's Civil
Enforcement Program will plan inspections, case development, and enforcement actions to
integrate RCRA, CWA, SDWA, CAA (including Section 112(r)), TSCA, and the Emergency
Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) to ensure comprehensive compliance with
environmental regulations, thereby reducing risk to human health and the environment by
decreasing the likelihood of excess emissions, releases, and discharges.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an increase of $4.0 million to incorporate EJ and climate change into
every aspect of Civil Enforcement. EPA will continue to integrate EJ and climate change
considerations (including HFCs) throughout the Program. This work will answer the President's
call to "strengthen enforcement of environmental violations with disproportionate impact on
underserved communities through the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance" [EO
14008, sec. 222(b)(i)\ and to "combat the climate crisis with bold, progressive action" (EO 14008,
sec. 201).115 To address climate change, the Program will implement the Climate Enforcement
and Compliance Strategy,}16 which directs all EPA enforcement and compliance offices to address
climate change, as appropriate, in every matter within their jurisdiction. The strategy recognizes
the urgency of the climate crisis and prioritizes enforcement and compliance actions to mitigate
climate change and include climate adaptation and resilience in case conclusions whenever
appropriate. The strategy builds on existing efforts underway to implement the OECA Climate
Adaptation Implementation Plan and EPA's first-ever Mitigating Climate Change enforcement
initiative targeting methane emissions from oil and gas facilities and landfills as well as illegal
importation of HFCs. The Program will focus on strengthening enforcement and resolving
environmental noncompliance through remedies with tangible benefits for disadvantaged
communities by preventing further pollution due to noncompliance; mitigating past impacts from
pollution; securing penalties to recapture economic benefit of noncompliance and deter future
violations; seeking early and innovative relief (e.g., fenceline monitoring and transparency tools);
and incorporating Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) in settlements, where appropriate
and to the extent permitted by law and policy. Additionally, EPA will continue its strong emphasis
on identifying and resolving CAA noncompliance in the oil and gas sector and requiring
compliance with the Renewable Fuel Standard regulations.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an increase of $437 thousand and 2.2 FTE to expand PFAS enforcement.
The Program will utilize resources to focus on implementing EPA's PFAS Strategic Roadmap and
holding responsible those who significantly contribute to the release of PFAS into the
environment, such as major manufacturers and users of manufactured PFAS, federal facilities that
are significant sources of PFAS, and other industrial parties. PFAS released into the environment
can present an urgent public health and environmental threat. The Program will continue to
investigate releases, address imminent and substantial endangerments, and prevent exposure to
PFAS, under multiple environmental statutes. OECA is using its resources to 1) Issue corporate-
wide information requests and analyze responses, 2) Create site profiles and information databases
115 For additional information on the Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, please visit:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-rooiii/presidential-actions/2021/01/27/executive-order-on-tackling-the-cliiiiate-crisis-at-
home-and-abroad/.
116 For more additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-
09/epasclimateenforcmentandcompliancestrategy.pdf.
123
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on specific facilities, 3) Obtain site-specific data such as PFAS sampling of private drinking water
wells in communities with EJ concerns located near military installations, and 4) Use
administrative and judicial authorities to require sampling to characterize nature and extent of
PFAS contamination and compel response actions to protect human health and the environment.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an increase of $3.4 million and 7.0 FTE to expand efforts to enforce the
Coal Combustion Residuals (CCR) Rule. EPA's review of publicly posted CCRRule compliance
information suggests widespread noncompliance with CCR regulations. In enforcing the CCR
Rule, coal ash units would be made more resilient to extreme weather events and reduce
contamination in communities near coal ash units. CCR evaluations are technically complex and
require review and analysis of facility assessments that cover corrective action measures and
facility plans to permanently close units (the units can sometimes be hundreds of acres in size).
EPA needs to conduct CCR compliance reviews to ensure that facilities properly address the
significant health risks posed by these units and bring enforcement actions when violations are
found. This work is identified as a priority in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM 434) Millions of pounds of pollutants and waste reduced, treated, or eliminated through concluded
enforcement actions.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
325
325
325
325
325
325
No Target
Established
No Target
Established
Millions of
Pounds
Actual
810
347
2,058
7,864
195
1,214
(PM 436) Number of open civil judicial cases more than 2.5 years old without a complaint filed.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
129
120
99
99
96
95
94
Cases
Actual
94
74
66
65
50
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$7,628.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes
resources for critical agency wide infrastructure support for Executive Order 14028
cybersecurity requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and
implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$19,653.0 / +41.4 FTE) This program increase will advance enforcement efforts on the
most serious environmental violations through the NECIs that seek to improve air quality,
provide for clean and safe water, and ensure chemical safety. Additional FTE and resources
will support continued efforts to rebuild EPA's civil enforcement inspector cadre for
inspections, case development, training, and travel budget. This funding also will enhance
EPA's civil enforcement programmatic capabilities to boost efforts to address pollution in
124
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overburdened and vulnerable communities. This investment includes $7.8 million for
payroll.
(+$8,250.0 / +19.9 FTE) This program increase will allow EPA to expand the work of the
Interagency HFC Task Force, which is focused on ensuring compliance with the AIM Act.
Additional FTE will allow EPA to build this major Congressional priority program from
the ground up, address existing requirements, and prepare for both additional new
regulatory requirements and expansion of the Program into EPA's regional offices. This
investment includes $3.75 million for payroll.
(+$4,602.0 / +20.0 FTE) This program increase will provide additional support to the water
NECI as EPA works to become the lead federal agency for responding to water
emergencies. These resources will help EPA build capacity to address multiple water
emergencies and provide regional staffing of field support and oversight during water
emergencies. This includes $3.77 million for payroll.
(+$4,000.0) This program change will support increased focus on EJ and climate change
considerations by developing and implementing a comprehensive action plan for
integrating climate and EJ considerations throughout all aspects of the Civil Enforcement
Program (e.g., private parties and federal facilities) in Headquarters and across EPA's ten
regional offices.
(+$3,420.0 / +7.0 FTE) This program change will strengthen capacity to enforce the
CCR/coal ash rule. The requested resources are needed to provide technical and legal
support with noncompliant facilities. This investment includes $1.32 million for payroll.
(+$954.0 / +4.0 FTE) This program change will increase protection for fenceline
communities, including from industrial accidents caused by the increased frequency and
intensity of extreme weather events from climate change. Increased resources will support
CAA section 112(r) inspections and enforcement actions to prevent industrial accidents.
This investment includes $754.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$649.0 / +0.5 FTE) This program change will support implementation of OECA's
Climate Adaptation Implementation Plan. Resources will support completion of priority
actions including expanding headquarters and regional communication about climate
change resources, tools and guidance; establishing a repository of climate examples; and
continued staff training to build climate change knowledge and consideration of climate
change in all aspects of enforcement. This investment includes $94.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$617.0 / +3.1 FTE) This program increase supports additional FTE for the Agency's
Regional laboratories and their support of the Civil Enforcement Program, which is critical
in building strong cases. This investment includes $585.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$437.0 / +2.2 FTE) This investment will increase EPA's effort to focus on implementing
EPA's PFAS Strategic Roadmap and holding responsible those who significantly
contribute to the release of PFAS into the environment, such as major manufacturers and
125
-------
users of manufactured PFAS, federal facilities that are significant sources of PFAS, and
other industrial parties. This investment includes $415.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$100.0 / +0.5 FTE) This program increase supports the agencywide implementation of
EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and Evidence Act data
stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes $94.0 thousand for
payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (MARPOL
Annex VI); American Innovation and Manufacturing Act; Clean Air Act; Clean Water Act;
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act; Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act; Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act; Oil Pollution Act; Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act; Safe Drinking Water Act; and Toxic Substances Control Act.
126
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Criminal Enforcement
Program Area: Enforcement
Goal: Enforce Environmental Laws and Ensure Compliance
Objective(s): Hold Environmental Violators and Responsible Parties Accountable
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
V)-\ '0-1
Vi~, ,s'jv
S 5.125
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$6,766
$7,999
$8,876
$877
Total Budget Authority
$64,140
$70,703
$76,705
$6,002
Total Workyears
252.7
269.3
299.4
30.1
Program Project Description:
EPA's Criminal Enforcement Program enforces the Nation's environmental laws through
investigation of criminal conduct, committed by individual and corporate defendants, that
threatens public health and the environment. EPA's criminal investigators (special agents)
investigate violations of environmental statutes and associated violations of Title 18 of the United
States Code such as fraud, conspiracy, false statements, and obstruction of justice.
The Criminal Enforcement Program collaborates with other EPA Program offices, the
Environmental Justice (EJ) Program, and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to ensure
enforcement work addresses the impacts of illegal environmental pollution activities nationwide
and especially in overburdened communities.
Criminal Enforcement special agents are supported by forensic scientists, attorneys, technicians,
engineers, and other experts. EPA's criminal enforcement attorneys provide legal and policy
support for all program responsibilities, including forensics and expert witness preparation, to
ensure program activities are carried out in accordance with legal requirements and EPA policies.
The Agency's National Enforcement Investigations Center (NEIC) provides field investigation,
laboratory analysis, toxicology, chemistry, engineering, and regulatory support to the Criminal
Enforcement Program. These efforts support successful environmental crime prosecutions by U.S.
Attorneys' Offices and the DOJ's Environmental Crimes Section. In FY 2023, the criminal
enforcement program opened 199 new cases. The conviction rate for criminal defendants charged
because of EPA criminal investigations in FY 2023 is 100 percent, with sentences totaling 106
years of incarceration.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 3/Objective 3.1, Hold Environmental Violators and
Responsible Parties Accountable in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
127
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In FY 2025, EPA will continue to focus on the most egregious cases (e.g., significant human
health, environmental, and deterrent impacts). The Agency will continue expanding its capacity to
support the criminal enforcement program, with an emphasis in several priority areas, including
communities with EJ concerns, mitigating climate change [including the enforcement of
unauthorized imports, production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)], addressing
methane emissions from the oil, natural gas and landfill sectors, criminal enforcement initiatives,
and preventing the illegal importation, sale, and distribution of unregistered pesticides. Program
goals and priorities include the following:
In FY 2025, EPA requests an investment of $5.0 million and 26.6 FTE to continue to prioritize
and to dedicate additional criminal enforcement resources for investigations which involve
vulnerable communities or those that have historically been overburdened by pollution,
including communities with Environmental Justice (EJ) concerns. This effort has been part of
the National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives (NECIs), with an emphasis on
addressing environmental crimes and crime victims in these areas.117 The Criminal
Investigation Division (CID) works with partners at the DOJ to jointly prosecute wrongdoing
and reduce the impact pollution has on these areas through investigation, judicial actions, and
settlements while maintaining case initiation standards.
In FY 2025, EPA's Environmental Crime Victim Witness Assistance Program will continue
to closely align its implementation of the Criminal Victims' Rights Act and the Victims' Rights
and Restitution Act with EPA's EJ work.118 Activities include data mining and mapping to
identify where communities with EJ concerns, environmental crime victims, and public health
impacts overlap. This strategy will aid the Program in identifying sources of pollution
impacting these communities to better focus criminal enforcement resources on the Nation's
most overburdened or vulnerable populations and, where appropriate, use the crime victim
program resources and emergency funds to assist individuals in such communities. EPA
conducts outreach to environmental crime victims and overburdened communities using the
social media platform Nextdoor, sharing information relating to EJ, sources of pollution, and
links to EPA's Report a Violation webpage directly to households in overburdened
communities.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an additional $719 thousand and 2.1 FTE to support efforts
to interdict the illegal import, manufacture, and use of certain HFC products, pursuant to the
American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act. This work will directly support
implementation of the NECIs to mitigate climate change. The Task Force will continue to
identify, intercept, and interdict illegal HFC imports, share data to support allowances, train
customs officers and enforcement personnel, and address common HFC import experiences
with other countries. The Program will continue to build its new enforcement and compliance
program, which includes training, outreach, and coordination with federal, state, and local
partners. This includes work with Customs and Border Protection (CBP), DOJ and other
federal partners to successfully enforce federal laws related to HFCs. Critically important to
117 For additional information, please see: https://www.goviiifo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2023-01-12/pdf/2023-00500.pdf.
118 For additional information, please see: https://www.justice.gov/usao/iesources/crime-victims-rights-ombudsman/victims-
rights-act.
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success in this media are dedicated analysts in the Criminal Enforcement Program to research,
assess, and coordinate with federal partners, private industry, and task force members.
In FY 2025, the Criminal Enforcement Program will continue to work with Interpol and other
federal partners to combat climate change through domestic and international law enforcement
collaboration. This work will include formalized information sharing related to preventing
illegal importation of prohibited products that contribute to global climate instability and
building capacity with other countries. Specifically, the Program will collaborate with Interpol
and other international law enforcement on cases that have a transnational organized crime
nexus.
In FY 2025, the Criminal Enforcement Program also will increase its collaboration and
coordination with the Civil Enforcement Program to ensure that EPA's Enforcement Program
identifies the most egregious cases by responding to them effectively and efficiently to ensure
compliance and deter future conduct. The Agency will continue to investigate violations of
environmental statutes and associated violations of Title 18 of the United States Code to protect
public health and the environment.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$687.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE, adjustments to provide essential workforce support,
and changes to benefits costs. It includes critical agencywide infrastructure support for
Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and
litigation support, and implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$5,093.0 / +26.6 FTE) The net program increase will support investigations related to
the NECIs, expands enforcement in communities with EJ concerns, enforcement of
climate-related regulations, and increases polluter accountability. The increase is offset by
a decrease in contractual support for criminal enforcement activities.
(+$719.0 / +2.1 FTE) This program investment will ensure EPA has the capacity and
technical expertise to investigate, analyze, sample, test, and transport HFCs. The increase
in FTE will allow analysts to research, assess, and coordinate with federal partners, private
industry, and task force members.
Statutory Authority:
Title 18 of the U.S.C.; 18 U.S.C. § 3063; Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as
amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485 (codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute);
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; Clean Water Act; Safe Drinking Water Act; Clean Air
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Act; Toxic Substances Control Act; Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act;
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act; Ocean Dumping Act; Rivers and Harbors
Act; Pollution Prosecution Act of 1990; American Innovation and Manufacturing Act.
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NEPA Implementation
Program Area: Enforcement
Goal: Enforce Environmental Laws and Ensure Compliance
Objective(s): Detect Violations and Promote Compliance
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S/.\/~/
S 20.611
S 20.0-IV
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Total Budget Authority
$15,171
$20,611
$26,049
$5,438
Total Workyears
80.3
104.9
115.9
11.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Implementation Program implements the
environmental requirements of NEPA and Section 309 of the Clean Air Act (CAA) to review other
federal agency environmental impact statements (EISs) and NEPA regulations. This work includes
engaging with officials throughout the federal government and across EPA while supporting
EPA's lead NEPA Official. EPA has special authority and responsibilities under CAA section 309
to review and publicly comment on NEPA environmental analyses for major projects across the
federal government. This work is substantially increasing in scope and importance given recent
legislation related to energy development and infrastructure and the need to incorporate
consideration of climate change and environmental justice (EJ) into these assessments.
Consistent with Executive Orders (EO) 13990119 and 14008,120 the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ) issued Interim NEPA guidance on Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions
and Climate Change121 in January 2023. CEQ is in the process of updating NEPA regulations and
key guidance for addressing impacts to communities with EJ concerns. Through a Memorandum
of Understanding (MOU) with CEQ,122 EPA regularly supports and assists CEQ in the
development of guidance and technical tools. EPA also provides technical assistance to other
federal agencies on implementing NEPA, including identifying potential programmatic options to
streamline NEPA analyses while maintaining quality environmental analyses and meaningful
engagement with the public.
119 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-protecting-public-health-and-environment-and-restoring-science-to-tackle-climate-crisis/.
120 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/01/27/executive-order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/.
121 For additional information, please refer to: Federal Register : National Environmental Policy Act Guidance on Consideration
of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Climate Change.
122 1977 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between CEQ and EPA addressed the allocation of responsibilities between the
two agencies for assuring government-wide implementation of NEPA. This includes the operational duties associated with the
administrative aspects of EISs. Through this MOU, EPA became the official recipient for all copies of EISs.
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EPA focuses on early engagement with other federal agencies consistent with NEPA principles
and uses interagency cooperation for early identification of issues and potential solutions to reduce
impacts and improve environmental outcomes. EPA's unique expertise helps other agencies
analyze and resolve complex NEPA issues. Through the review of other federal agencies' EISs
and the tools and training the program provides, EPA facilitates the robust consideration of impacts
related to climate change and EJ. EPA plays a critical role in identifying ways to mitigate negative
environmental impacts, including on overburdened and underserved communities.
In addition, EPA's NEPA Implementation Program manages e-NEPA, a web-based application
that serves as the official EIS filing system and clearinghouse for all federal EISs on behalf of
CEQ in accordance with the MOU with CEQ and 40 CFR Part 1506. The Program also oversees
EPA's actions subject to NEPA (40 CFR Part 6) and reviews of EISs for non-governmental
activities in Antarctica (40 CFR Part 8).
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 3/Objective 3.2, Detect Violations and Promote
Compliance in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $5.4 million and 11.0 FTE for the NEPA Implementation
Program to sustain the continued need for technical expertise in emerging subject matter areas.
This investment includes considering impacts associated with climate change and to communities
with EJ concerns. EPA plans to develop and update tools and training to equip NEPA/CAA 309
reviewers with ever evolving knowledge, strengthening its ability to provide recommendations to
improve environmental outcomes. Investing in EPA's responsiveness and technical assistance to
support other agencies in conducting environmental reviews will ensure the continued capacity
and expertise to improve environmental and community outcomes for priority infrastructure
environmental reviews subject to deadlines established in recent amendments to NEPA.
Additional funding will bolster EPA's commitment to assist and improve environmental reviews
while allowing the Program to continue to meet challenges, including rebuilding core capacity,
hiring of subject matter experts knowledgeable in various sector-based activities, and positioning
EPA to respond to national priorities and provide adequate succession planning and professional
development across EPA's NEPA/309 community. This strategic investment of subject matter
expertise provides new FTE in EPA's regional offices, which is critical as the majority of the
NEPA reviews and programmatic assistance to other federal agency field offices is conducted by
EPA regions. FY 2025 resource needs will be used to support economically beneficial initiatives.
For context, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act triggered a very similar substantial
increase in volume of NEPA reviews across the federal government. EPA's requested investment
to the NEPA Implementation Program will address current and anticipated future environmental
review workloads and provide increased staffing and resource support to meet the Nation's
infrastructure goals, particularly with respect to climate change and EJ.
CEQ has proposed revisions of its regulations for implementing NEPA procedures. EPA's NEPA
Implementation Program will make revisions accordingly to support the application of CEQ's
updates to NEPA regulations, guidance, and process improvements for priority federal projects. It
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is anticipated that in FY 2025 agencies also will update NEPA implementation procedures to be
consistent with updated CEQ regulations and guidance. EPA will be required under CAA section
309 to review these procedures for all federal agencies and must provide technical assistance to
CEQ and other agencies. This support will promote quality environmental review processes across
federal agencies to improve environmental and community outcomes.
In FY 2025 EPA will continue to work with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), CEQ,
and other federal agencies to evaluate ways to coordinate, streamline, and improve the NEPA
process, as well as to incorporate robust science-based analyses of project-related impacts and
potential measures to minimize and mitigate those impacts. Federal agencies received a substantial
increase in funded actions that will likely require EISs and thus necessitate EPA environmental
reviews due to the increase in projects funded by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L.
117-2),123 the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the Creating Helpful Incentives to
Produce Semiconductors for America Act (CHIPs Act), and other economic recovery and federal
investment actions, as well as policies and initiatives, such as EO 14017 America's Supply
Chains124 and the Energy Act MOU between the Bureau of Land Management and EPA. EPA
anticipates its existing workload will likely double based on interagency discussions hosted by
CEQ and OMB. This continued substantial increase in priority actions will require early
engagement and may require expedited reviews. With the additional resources requested in FY
2025, EPA will work with other agencies to prioritize and support the increase in environmental
review of Federal EISs. These initiatives support other federal agencies establishment of clear
timeline goals and will improve EPA's responsiveness, technical assistance, and support to other
agencies to enhance the overall environmental and community outcomes in other agency
environmental reviews.
EPA's commitment to engage early with federal agencies, as part of the Administration's
Permitting Action Plan, highlights the Agency's commitment to improved quality of EISs and
minimize delays. Early engagement helps accelerate robust environmental reviews through early
cross-agency coordination; supports the establishment of clear timelines and tracking; facilitates
early and meaningful outreach and communication with states, tribes, territories, and local
communities; provides technical assistance in areas of subject matter expertise; and promotes
interagency cooperation to improve environmental and community outcomes. As part of the
Permitting Action Plan, EPA has been updating its Policies and Procedures Manual for conducting
NEPA/309 reviews in FY 2023. In FY 2023, EPA also started developing and updating a limited
set of technical review guidance documents for priority sectors and topics to help NEP A/3 09
reviewers be more efficient and effective in their reviews that will be finalized in FY 2024. In FY
2025, EPA will continue to update technical review guidance documents on priority sectors and
topic areas. EPA also plans to continue to expand training curricula for NEP A/309 reviewers to
incorporate recent changes in CEQ regulations and guidance for NEPA related topics. In FY 2025,
EPA will continue to provide early engagement and identify improved approaches for effective
and streamlined environmental reviews from the start of the NEPA review through completion to
meet deadlines established in the 2023 amendments to NEPA. Updating actions associated with
the Permitting Action Plan will help improve EPA's responsiveness, technical assistance, and
123 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.congress.gov/1.1.7/bills/hrl 31.9/BILLS-1.1.7hr 1.31.9enr.pdf.
124 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefiiig-room/presidential-
actions/2021/02/24/executive-order-on-americas-supply-chaiiis/.
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support to other agencies with the obj ective of improving environmental and community outcomes
based on environmental reviews.
Executive Order (EO) 14096 of April 21, 2023, requires EPA in carrying out its responsibilities
under CAA section 309, to assess whether agencies analyze and avoid or mitigate disproportionate
human health and environmental effects on communities with EJ concerns. Further, the EO
requires EPA to submit an annual report to CEQ and the White House Environmental Justice
Interagency Council (WHEJAC). In FY 2024, EPA will be developing recommendations to
automate the data collection process to support the development of the annual report. In FY 2025,
EPA will implement the approved automation strategy that will allow for efficient and effective
annual reporting to CEQ and the WHEJAC.
EPA will support and collaborate with other federal agencies on priority actions and emerging
sectors, such as critical minerals mining, carbon sequestration, renewable energy, and energy
storage. In FY 2025, EPA will provide staff with specialized expertise at both headquarters and
the regional offices to facilitate timely interagency coordination on environmental reviews and
permitting actions. As part of this specialized expertise, EPA will support development of analytic
tools to help NEPA/309 reviewers and other agencies implement CEQ Interim NEPA Guidance
on Consideration of GHG and Climate Change. This support will improve EPA's technical
assistance capacity to help support improved environmental and community outcomes in review
of other federal agency NEPA documents.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$1,581.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$3,857.0 / + 11.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to build core capacity, support
the increase in environmental reviews of Federal EISs, hire and train new staff and subject
matter experts, and facilitate timely interagency coordination on environmental reviews
and permitting actions. This investment includes $2.0 million for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA); Clean Air Act (CAA) § 309; Antarctic Science,
Tourism, and Conservation Act; Clean Water Act § 511(c); Endangered Species Act; Fishery
Conservation and Management Act; Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act; and Title 41 of the Fixing
America's Surface Transportation Act.
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Environmental Justice
135
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Environmental Justice
Program Area: Environmental Justice
Goal: Take Decisive Action to Advance Environmental Justice and Civil Rights
Objective(s): Embed Environmental Justice and Civil Rights into EPA's Programs, Policies, and
Activities
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.s/««..?-/"
.S 102,15V
SM - '12
S 2I5.55J
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$890
$5,876
$5,901
$25
Total Budget Authority
$110,237
$108,035
$323,613
$215,578
Total Workyears
116.4
223.6
264.6
41.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Environmental Justice (EJ) Program coordinates the Agency's efforts to address the needs
of overburdened and vulnerable communities by decreasing environmental burdens, increasing
environmental benefits, and developing collaborative partnerships with all stakeholders to build
healthy, sustainable communities based on residents' needs and desires. In 2022, EPA reorganized
its Office of Environmental Justice into a new national program along with the External Civil
Rights Compliance Office and the Conflict Prevention and Resolution Center. This new national
program is the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Right (OEJECR). OEJECR
focuses on collaboration as a central principle and method of advancing justice. The Program's
core philosophy is that EJ challenges need strong collaborative partnerships that include federal,
state, local, and tribal governments along with the private sector, academia, and philanthropy to
support communities in addressing multifaceted problems and positively changing conditions on
the ground. The Program provides grants, technical assistance, and expert consultative support to
communities, partners at all levels of government, and other stakeholders such as business and
industry, to achieve protection from environmental and public health hazards for people of color,
low-income communities, and indigenous communities.
Work in this program directly supports Administrator Michael Regan's message in the memo titled
"Our Commitment to Environmental Justice" issued on April 7, 2021.125 In addition, this work
supports implementation of Executive Order (EO) 14096: Revitalizing Our Nation's Commitment
to Environmental Justice for All,126 EO 14091: Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for
Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government EO 13985: Advancing Racial
125 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2Q21-04/documents/regan-
messageonconunitmenttoenvironmentaliustice-april072021.pdf.
126 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2Q23/Q4/26/2Q23-Q8955/revitalizing-
our-nations-commitment-to-environmental-justice-for-all.
127 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2Q23/Q2/22/2Q23-03779/further-
advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal.
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Equity and Support for Under served Communities Through the Federal Government,128 and EO
14008: Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad.129 In accordance with the America's
Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA) of 2018 (P.L. 115-270), every EPA regional office employs a
dedicated EJ coordinator, and the Agency maintains a list of these persons on EPA's website.130
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 2/Objective 2.2, Embed Environmental Justice and
Civil Rights into EPA's Programs, Policies, and Activities in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic
Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $215.6 million and 41.0 FTE for the Environmental Justice
Program in the EPM appropriation. This investment will provide unprecedented levels of capacity-
building grants and technical assistance to more communities, governmental partners, and
academic institutions. To ensure greater opportunity for investment and the resulting outcomes for
communities, EPA will offer more grant trainings and methods of technical assistance to help
underserved and under-resourced communities and their partners apply for competitive grant
opportunities and provide robust new levels of support to help communities and their partners
navigate the array of federal assistance programs to maximize the ability of programs to leverage
positive change on the ground. For example, this enhanced assistance will support broader
investment in climate initiatives in communities with EJ concerns as well as provide critical
support to community-based organizations, indigenous organizations, states, tribes, local
governments, territorial governments, and state and local EJ advisory councils, in pursuit of
identifying and addressing EJ issues through multi-partner collaborations. EPA also will continue
to support and engage grantees from previous years' competitions to ensure successful project
completion.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue funding existing grant programs:
1) $33.0 million for the Environmental Justice Community Grants Program (formerly named
Environmental Justice Small Grants) which competitively awards funding to a network of
external grant recipients to issue subgrants to non-profit, community-based organizations
to reduce the disproportionate health impacts of environmental pollution in communities
with EJ concerns;
2) $31.5 million for the Environmental Justice Government to Government Grant Program
(formerly named State, tribes, and Territories Environmental Justice Grants) which
provides funding for states, tribes, local governments, and territories to create or support
community-driven partnerships and associated environmental justice partnerships;
3) $15.0 million for the competitive, community-based Participatory Research Grant Program
which awards competitive grants to higher education institutions that develop partnerships
128 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federa1register.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-01753/advanciiig-
racial-equitv-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment.
129 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/02/01/2021 ckling-the-
climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad.
130 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/forms/contact-us-about-environmental-
justice.
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with community entities to improve the health outcomes of residents and workers in
communities with EJ concerns; and
4) $3.0 million for the competitive, Environmental Justice training program which awards
competitive grants to community-based nonprofit organizations and partnerships between
community-based nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education.
Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights (EJECR) National Program
In FY 2025, EPA's EJECR National Program will continue leading the integration of EJ in agency
decision making and implement a comprehensive framework for considering cumulative impacts
in relevant EPA decisions. Implementation of the cumulative impacts framework, as part of EPA's
FY 2024-2025 Agency Priority Goal, will position EPA to consider and address cumulative
impacts that affect community health and well-being in its decisions, thus fundamentally
integrating EJ issues within the core regulatory decisions of the Agency. The EJECR National
Program will continue to provide essential support across all EPA programs to consider EJ in
environmental permitting, rulemaking, enforcement and compliance, emergency/disaster response
and recovery, and climate change priorities.
The FY 2025 Budget proposes to invest $69.7 million and 39.3 FTE to continue to enhance its
engagement with communities by building out community-centered technical assistance hubs, the
Thriving Community Technical Assistance Centers (TCTACs) established in FY 2023 and
ensuring that the network provides coverage across the United States. The TCTACs will be
instrumental in providing dedicated EPA staff, hands-on facilitation of connecting underserved
communities and their partners directly with fundamental technical assistance and capacity
building EPA program resources in addition to resources available through other federal partners.
The EJECR National Program will ensure that all community support activities provide a stream
of tools, data, and methods back to the Agency to help other EPA programs analyze the EJ
implications of policy decisions and program implementation, such as through National
Environmental Policy Act processes or the consideration of costs and benefits in economic
analyses.
The FY 2025 resources also will continue to provide capacity to integrate EJ and civil rights
compliance principles across all programs and regularly engage with and support community and
state, tribal, and local partners. This will ensure the elimination of barriers to participation in EPA
programs and other activities by the public. Specific focuses will be on strengthening EPA's
language assistance and other services to improve access for people with Limited English
Proficiency and implementation of EPA external disability program as required under Section 504
of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Additionally, the EJECR National Program will monitor
indicators developed to track EPA's performance in eliminating disparities in environmental and
public health conditions, as directed by the Agency Priority Goal for the first two years in the FY
2022 -2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Engagement with Partners, Stakeholders, and Communities
In addition to the TCTACs, EPA will continue to pursue a broad array of activities to support
efforts by partners, stakeholders, and communities to advance EJ. The EJ Program will continue
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to build and support trainings for an increasingly broad array of program development and learning
resource areas for other governmental agencies, communities, and other partners. This will
primarily be accomplished through the "EJ clearinghouse" mandated in EO 14096. These trainings
focus on the integration of equity and justice from communities through all levels of government,
as well as the private sector, with special focus on state agencies, tribal governments, Indigenous
populations, territorial governments, and insular areas such as Pacific Island Nations. During FY
2023, this included ongoing partnership with the Environmental Council of States to provide
additional and more finely tailored resources to support state efforts to advance equity and justice
in their agencies and the establishment of an unprecedented foundation of learning tools and
knowledge management resources available publicly through EPA's EJ Program.
EPA will continue to host regular National EJ Community Engagement calls.131 These calls will
continue to focus on a wide spectrum of topics related to EJ, the Justice40 Initiative,132 and EJ
mapping and screening tools, and will reach thousands of participants. Each call will feature
opportunities, such as expansive listening sessions, during which speakers interact with comments
and questions from participants. EPA also will continue to host "office hours" for users of
EJScreen to engage with the EPA EJScreen team with questions and feedback for further
enhancements to the tool. The EJ Program also will have greater communications presence with
more focused content, targeted communications, and other ways to reach communities and those
not yet engaged through both headquarters and regional EJ program activities and direct outreach
and support.
EPA also continues to directly engage community organizations and leaders while supporting
internal EPA efforts to integrate EJ considerations into all EPA policies, programs, and activities.
Work with the National Environmental Justice Advisory Committee (NEJAC) will continue to
help EPA advance and further integrate EJ into agency decision-making. In addition to the NEJAC,
EPA will report on progress to the Science Advisory Board, National Tribal Caucus, Children's
Health Protection Advisory Committee, Local Government Advisory Committee, and other
regular public engagement forums.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to develop education, training, and outreach resources associated
with EJ to answer the ever-increasing demand for such resources, particularly from other federal
agencies and state and local governmental partners. These resources include: 1) an EJ Training
Program to increase the capacity of residents in communities with EJ concerns to identify and
address negative impacts; 2) an EJ educational curriculum to broaden understanding of EJ to more
of the American public; and 3) an EJ Clearinghouse to serve as an online resource for EJ
information.
EJ Grants Program
EPA's EJ Grants Program funding has grown significantly due to the additional $3 billion Inflation
Reduction Act133 resources received in FY 2022. The Program includes the EJ Thriving
Community Grantmakers Network and the innovative new EJ Community Change grant to directly
131 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/community-outreach-and-engagement.
132 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/enviromiientaljustice/iustice40/.
133 Inflation Reduction Act: https://www.congress.gOv/l 1.7/plaws/publ1.69. iM1.69.pdf.
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fund community-driven collaborative efforts to implement change-making projects on the ground
in communities. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support the EJ Thriving Community
Grantmakers network to efficiently provide subgrants to communities and their partners, the EJ
TCTACs to provide technical support to community-based organizations and their partners such
as tribes and local governments, and to award and support the implementation of collaborative EJ
community Change grants across the United States. This holistic approach to grant funding and
technical assistance will support development of the capacity of community-based organizations
and their partners to build strong collaborative efforts to effectively identify and address
community concerns in addition to providing funding to governmental partners to support their
integration of EJ considerations into their policies, programs, and activities. EPA also will continue
to provide grants to states, local governments, tribes, and territories through the EJ Government to
Government grant program. These grants will support our governmental partners' effort to engage
local communities and further equity and justice priorities of their partnerships.
The EJ Grants Program priorities funded in FY 2023 included the new, larger EJ Community
Change implementation grant program that funds projects that implement solutions to long-
standing EJ challenges, development of cumulative impacts assessments, public education,
engagement of communities with state and federal processes, training, emergency planning and
preparedness, and addressing climate and disaster resiliency. EPA's EJ Program will continue to
focus support primarily for small community-based nonprofit organizations and their local partners
in an attempt to ensure EJ funding reaches lower-capacity and new organizations with the most
acute capacity building and environmental public health needs. The EJ Grants Program also will
work to minimize barriers for applicants by working with EPA's Office of Grants and Debarment
to develop submission flexibilities to help applicants from underserved communities and other
low-capacity institutions such as tribes and rural local governments apply for competitive grant
opportunities.
Interagency Coordination
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support the efforts of the NEJAC as referenced above in addition
to supporting the efforts of the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council (WHEJAC)
established by EO 14008.134 EPA also will support the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ)
as it leads the Interagency Council on Environmental Justice as well as a suite of EPA bi- and
multi-lateral initiatives to support and partner directly with other federal agencies. EPA also will
continue to co-chair with the Department of Transportation the federal interagency Thriving
Community Network which focuses on aligning and leveraging federal agency resources such as
technical assistance, grants, and the efforts of regional/field staff across the United States.
EJScreen
The FY 2025 Budget provides an investment of $8.9 million, EPA will continue to support and
improve our national EJ screening and mapping tool (EJScreen). Efforts will focus on identifying
and adding valuable new data sources to the tool to include potential cumulative impacts index
score(s) for areas facing disproportionate environmental burdens in addition to inclusion of new
134 For more information, please visit: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/02/01/2021-Q2177/tackliiig-the-climate-
crisis-at-home-and-abroad.
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climate-relevant data and enhancing user interface elements. EPA will enhance EJScreen based
upon user requests and feedback - from both within EPA and from external users - to further
inform equitable decision making across the federal government in addition to providing more
robust and diverse data to effectively prioritize communities in need and will ensure that EPA
programs develop guidance on using EJ tools such as EJScreen to support their decision making.
These enhancements will enable EPA to further focus program design to benefit communities with
EJ concerns and those most at risk to the effects of climate change.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM EJCR01) Percentage of EPA programs and regional offices that provide capacity-building resources to
communities with environmental justice concerns to improve how the public's feedback and comments
influence the Agency's decision-making process.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
25
50
75
Percent
Actual
N/A
Numerator
Programs
Denominator
(PM EJCR04) Percentage of new grant workplans submitted by states that include commitments to address
disproportionate impacts.
FY
20IS
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
5
25
50
Percent
Actual
N/A
Numerator
Agreements
Denominator
(PM EJCR08) Percentage of significant EPA actions with environmental justice implications that respond to
environmental justice concerns and reduce or address disproportionate impacts.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
40
50
60
Percent
Actual
N/A
Numerator
Actions
Denominator
(PM EJCR09) Percentage of EPA programs that have developed guidance on the use of environmental justice
and equity screening tools.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
50
75
100
Percent
Actual
N/A
Numerator
Programs
Denominator
141
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(PM EJCR13) Percentage of EPA national programs and regions that have established environmental justice
and external civil rights implementation plans.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
100
100
100
Percent
Actual
100
Numerator
17
Regions
and
Programs
Denominator
17
(PM EJCR18) Number of information sharing sessions and outreach and technical assistance events held
with overburdened and underserved communities and environmental justice advocacy groups on civil rights
and environmental justice issues.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
8
90
650
1,100
Sessions
and Events
Actual
40
30
235
(PM EJCR19) Percentage of EPA national programs and regions that have created a new meaningful
involvement plan for a specific agency project or decision with potential impacts in communities with
environmental justice concerns.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
45
60
Percent
Actual
Numerator
Programs
Denominator
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$8,506.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support
for critical agency wide infrastructure support for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity
requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of
Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$85,621.0) This program change increases support for EJ work across the Agency. This
investment supports the significantly expanded base activity and agencywide coordination
required across the EJ Program.
(+$69,715.0 / +39.3 FTE) This program increase will fully build out the Thriving
Community Technical Assistance Centers to support basic capacity building of
communities and their partners to advance equity and justice in their communities and
support agencywide implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and
Accessibility Strategic Plan and Evidence Act data stewardship and governance
requirements. This investment includes $6.8 million for payroll.
(+$13,500.0) This program change increases support for the community-based
Participatory Research Grant Program. Eligible recipients would be higher education
142
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institutions that aim to develop partnerships with community entities to improve the health
outcomes of residents and workers in communities with EJ concerns.
(+$13,000.0) This program change increases the Environmental Justice Community Grant
Program to non-profit, community-based organizations to reduce the disproportionate
health impacts of environmental pollution in communities with EJ concerns.
(+$8,500.0) This program change increases support for the Environmental Justice
Government to Government Grant Program.
(+$8,900.0) This program change increases support for EJScreen to improve how the
Agency utilizes nationally consistent data that combines environmental and demographic
indicators to map and identify communities with EJ concerns. In addition, resources are
included to update EPA's IT systems to support the Climate and Economic Justice
Screening tool and the EJ Clearinghouse, which would serve as an online resource for
information on EJ.
(+$6,000.0) This program change increases support for the National Environmental Justice
Advisory Council; other federal advisory council activities; and the White House
Environmental Justice Advisory Council.
(+$1,500.0) This program change increases support for the competitive, EJ training
program which awards competitive grants to community-based nonprofit organizations
and partnerships between community-based nonprofit organizations and institutions of
higher education.
(+$311.0 / +1.7 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes
$294.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Pub. L.
117-2).
143
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Geographic Programs
144
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Geographic Program: Chesapeake Bay
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S -10
S'J 2,000
S V2.000
SO
Total Budget Authority
$74,640
$92,000
$92,000
$0
Total Workyears
35.7
41.2
41.2
0.0
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) includes $47.6M for this program in FY 2025.
Program Project Description:
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States, with a drainage area that covers
six states and the District of Columbia in the mid-Atlantic. The Bay is not only treasured for
recreational purposes but also serves as a vital resource for ecological and economic activities in
the region and beyond. The Chesapeake Bay Program operates under the authority of Section 117
of the Clean Water Act and includes the seven Chesapeake Bay watershed jurisdictions (Delaware,
Maryland, the District of Columbia, New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia), the
Chesapeake Bay Commission, and the federal government. EPA coordinates and supports the
activities of the partnership and represents the federal government on the partnership's Chesapeake
Executive Council. On June 16, 2014, the Chesapeake Bay Program partners signed the most
recent Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement (Agreement).135 The Agreement establishes 10
goals and 31 outcomes including restoration of wetlands and riparian forest buffers, sustainable
fisheries, water quality, vital habitats, climate change, and toxic contaminants, with Management
Strategies and two-year Logic & Action Plans guiding the work of each outcome. Progress toward
the Agreement commitments is updated regularly and publicly available for evaluation.
EPA, the watershed jurisdictions, and other key federal agencies set two-year water quality
milestones that measure progress made in achieving the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily
Load (Bay TMDL) and the jurisdictions' Watershed Implementation Plans.136 The Bay TMDL
satisfies a requirement of the Clean Water Act and EPA commitments under Court-approved
consent decrees for Virginia and the District of Columbia dating to the late 1990s.137 The Bay
TMDL is designed to ensure all nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment pollution control efforts
needed to restore the Bay and its tidal rivers are in place by 2025.
135 The Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement (2014) as amended in 2022, available at:
https://dl81evlok51eia.cloudfront.net/chesapeakebay/Chesapeake-Bay-Watershed-Agreement-Amended.pdf.
136 The federal and jurisdictional milestones related to water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed are available at
https://www.epa.gOv/chesapeake-bay-tmdl/chesapeake-bay-milestones#2022.
137 The Chesapeake Bay TMDL, available at: http://www.epa.gov/chesapeake-bay-tmdl/.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to focus on supporting implementation of the two-year Logic and
Action Plans for the 25 management strategies developed under the Agreement, with particular
focus on improving performance toward achieving outcomes where progress is lagging. While the
2014 Agreement does not have an end date, many of the Agreement's outcomes have target dates
of 2025. In FY 2024, the Chesapeake Bay Program will evaluate progress made toward the
outcomes of the current Agreement to determine the focus of the work beyond FY 2025, while
considering recent advances in science and restoration. The Program also will conduct an overall
program evaluation to ensure our operations and organization are effective and efficient. The
Program is increasing focus on environmental justice, ensuring the benefits of the Chesapeake Bay
Program are distributed equitably. In addition, the Program is increasing efforts in the climate
change space by focusing initiatives on the resiliency of the watershed. Specific emphases include:
At the Fall 2022 Executive Council meeting, it was acknowledged that although the
jurisdictions met their sediment reduction goals ahead of schedule, the current outlook was
that necessary nitrogen and phosphorus reductions would not be met on time. At the
following Executive Council meeting (Fall 2023), recommendations to accelerate progress
were accepted, which include considerations for geographic targeting, social science,
robust monitoring networks, and climate-induced water temperature changes.
Accelerating implementation of outcomes that help keep the watershed resilient in the face
of climate change (e.g., forest buffers, urban tree canopy, wetland protection and
restoration, and land conservation).
Increasing community engagement in achieving program outcomes and initiating efforts
to garner partnership commitment to outyear priorities to achieve a restored Chesapeake
Bay, considering current scientific understanding and emerging issues, and ensuring
consideration of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.
Maintaining and expanding the historically strong submerged aquatic vegetation, and tidal
and non-tidal water quality monitoring programs implemented through grants with
jurisdictional partners and federal interagency agreements.
Ensuring the most up-to-date science is used throughout the Chesapeake Bay Program to
support decision-making, implementation, and future condition assessment (for example,
improving computer models to help predict the impact of climate change on the
Chesapeake Bay Program's ability to meet water quality standards in the tidal waters of
the Chesapeake Bay); and
Increasing investment and tracking of investments in diversity, equity, inclusion, and
justice in Chesapeake Bay Program restoration efforts, including implementing EPA
CBPO's 2023 Equity Strategy and the Chesapeake Bay Program partnership's 2021
Diversity Equity Inclusion Justice (DEIJ) action strategy, and supporting local level actions
targeting disadvantaged communities. This includes working with the EPA's National
Center of Environmental Economics to develop a methodology for understanding and
tracking benefits to disadvantaged communities from Bay restoration work.
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Environmental results, measured through data collected by the jurisdictions and shared with the
federal government, show the importance of the investment that federal, state, and local
governments have made in providing clean and safe water. Every year, the Chesapeake Bay
Program uses available monitoring information from the 92 segments of the Chesapeake Bay to
estimate whether each segment is attaining criteria for one or more of its designated uses. EPA,
along with other federal, state, and academic partners, are using this information to demonstrate
progress toward meeting water quality standards and the Bay TMDL.
The seven Chesapeake Bay jurisdictions have reported that, as of 2022, best management practices
to reduce pollution are in place to achieve 51 percent of the nitrogen reductions, 60 percent of the
phosphorus reductions, and 100 percent of the sediment reductions needed to attain applicable
water quality standards when compared to the 2009 baseline established in the Bay TMDL.138 In
FY 2025, EPA will evaluate progress toward meeting the 2024 - 2025 milestone commitments of
the jurisdictions. The two-year milestones are intended to demonstrate how the jurisdictions will
meet their pollution reduction goals by 2025 through the major source sectors (e.g., agricultural
sector, urban stormwater, and wastewater).
EPA will continue to provide the Chesapeake Bay Program partnership with funding and technical
assistance, expand our ability to track and report progress across our suite of outcomes, and
coordinate and facilitate partnership efforts to reach our mutual goals of a healthy Bay and
watershed. While continuing progress toward restoring the Bay watershed, EPA and other
Executive Council members signed and released the historic Statement in Support of Diversity,
Equity, Inclusion and Justice.13,9 This statement reaffirmed the Executive Council's commitment
to recruit and retain staff and volunteers that reflect the diversity of the watershed, foster a culture
of inclusion and respect across all partner organizations, and ensure the benefits of our science,
restoration, and partnership programs are distributed equitably without disproportionate impacts
on disadvantaged communities.
Additionally, EPA is working to accelerate integration of climate change in Bay restoration efforts.
EPA and other Executive Council members signed and released the Collective Action for Climate
Change directive.140 One key activity is the launch of a Climate Directive Pilot Project which
prioritizes implementation projects that advance progress towards multiple Agreement outcomes
in disadvantaged and/or climate vulnerable communities. EPA also is addressing climate change
by: 1) starting in 2025, predicting the impact of 2035 climate changes on water quality and
adjusting pollution targets; 2) understanding adaptations needed in the watershed and coastal
regions; and 3) maintaining or improving the watershed's resiliency to climate change. Work is
underway to develop state-of-the-science models of the Chesapeake airshed, watershed, and tidal
waters to refine the 2035 climate risk assessment. Also, EPA and the Bay Program partnership are
actively investigating best management practices to better protect the watershed and tidal Bay
against the observed increased precipitation volumes and intensity brought about by climate
change in urban and agricultural regions.
138 For more information, please see https://www.chesapeakeprogress.com/clean-water/watershed-implementation-plans.
139 For more information, please see https://www.chesapeakebav.net/channel files/40996/deii statement final all signatures.pdf
140 For more information, please see https://dl81evlok51eia.cloudfront.net/chesapeakebay/documents/climatedirective_final 3.pdf.
147
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In addition, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) includes $47.6 million
for this program in FY 2025. In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that will
provide funding under this program as no-year funds.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
There is no change in program funding.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act, Section 117; Estuary Restoration Act of 2000; Chesapeake Bay Accountability
and Recovery Act of 2014; Clean Air Act; Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Pub.
L. 117-328.
148
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Geographic Program: Gulf of Mexico
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 22.550
S 2x52-1
S 25.000
S "71
Total Budget Authority
$22,550
$25,524
$25,600
$76
Total Workyears
16.1
21.7
21.7
0.0
Program Project Description:
The Gulf of Mexico is an iconic and important body of water, providing ecological, economic,
cultural, and recreational opportunities for millions of residents and visitors to the region. The Gulf
of Mexico is heavily impacted by the Mississippi River, the main river system which drains into
it. The Mississippi River watershed captures drainage from 41 percent of the land area of the
contiguous United States (includes nearly 1.5 million square miles over parts of 31 states).
Through the Gulf of Mexico Division (GMD), EPA collaborates with federal, state, and local
partners to restore the Gulf, and ultimately improve the health of the coastal area, benefiting
approximately 16 million Americans.141
The mission of the EPA's GMD is to facilitate collaborative actions that protect, maintain, and
restore the health and productivity of the Gulf of Mexico in ways consistent with the economic
and ecological well-being of the region. The GMD competitively funds projects and uses
interagency agreements and strategic partnerships to accomplish its mission. All GMD projects
and partnership work are linked to one or more of the following performance measures: 1) improve
and/or restore water quality; 2) protect, enhance, or restore coastal and upland habitats; 3) promote
and support environmental education and outreach to inhabitants of the Gulf watershed; and 4)
support the demonstration of programs, projects, and tools which strengthen community
resilience.142 The GMD provides significant leadership and coordination among state and local
governments, the private sector, tribes, scientists, and citizens to align efforts that address the
challenges facing the communities and ecosystems of the Gulf Coast. The GMD is committed to
voluntary, non-regulatory actions and solutions based on scientific data and technical information
underpinning the Agency's work with the stakeholders.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
141 For more information please see: https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/visualizations/2019/demo/coastliiie-
anieri ca-print. pdf.
142 For more information please see: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-12/GMD2022AR%20FINAL_0.pdf.
149
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In FY 2025, the Agency will continue supporting specific actions and solutions designed to
improve the environmental and economic health of the Gulf of Mexico region through cooperative
efforts and partnerships. Specifically, the Agency will address nutrient reduction on working lands
with targeted habitats. Additionally, GMD will center its focus on sustainable agriculture and
resilience in the farming community. EPA will continue to expand Science, Technology,
Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) experiential education and workforce development
to underserved communities. Through green infrastructure practices such as artificial reefs,
riparian buffers, prairies, and living shorelines, GMD will continue to build the adaptive capacity
of ecosystems and communities. The GMD projects are competitively funded and coordinated
with and complement ongoing Resource and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities,
Revived Economies (RESTORE) and Natural Resource Damages Assessment (NRDA) activities
related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The GMD continues to seek broad participation and
input from the diverse stakeholders who live, work, and recreate in the Gulf Coast region.
The GMD directly funds assistance agreements, interagency agreements and partnerships, which
support the following activities:
Environmental Education and Outreach
In FY 2025, the GMD will continue to promote the use of best available science and sustainable
environmental practices by developing programs, establishing partnerships, and competitively
funding projects that increase environmental literacy. The GMD will enhance experiential learning
opportunities for Gulf residents and visitors alike.
To ensure that environmental education and outreach efforts extend to overburdened and
underserved populations, GMD will work with various sectors of government, community leaders,
and academia on projects that promote capacity building and lead to behavioral changes in
communities with environmental justice concerns. Education and outreach are vital to
accomplishing the Agency's mission to protect human health and the environment, to inform and
provide actionable information to communities with environmental justice challenges, and to meet
the GMD-specific goals of promoting healthy and resilient coastal communities.
GMD will evaluate success of this work by tracking the number of participants involved in
environmental literacy and stewardship activities. Recipients of competitively funded projects are
required to report on this data quarterly and personnel must input direct engagement efforts into
the GMD's quarterly metrics tracking database.
Strengthen Community Resilience
Coastal and inland communities continuously face a range of natural and man-made challenges,
including storm risk, land and habitat loss, depletion of natural resources, compromised water
quality, and resulting economic instability. In FY 2025, the GMD will continue to emphasize
robust partnerships and extensive community engagement to strengthen coastal and near-shore
community preparedness. Through actions, activities, partnerships, and projects, communities
throughout the Gulf will be more resilient, and thus better prepared for natural disasters or other
150
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emergencies. The GMD will leverage its Community Resilience Index Tool to provide
municipalities with a method to assess vulnerabilities and take steps to mitigate risks.
GMD will evaluate success of this work by tracking the number of communities informed on
vulnerabilities and risks and those with programs, projects, and tools developed and/or
demonstrated to identify vulnerabilities and to manage risks as a way of improving the social well-
being, the economy, and/or the environment. Recipients of competitively funded projects are
required to report on this data quarterly and personnel must input direct engagement efforts into
the GMD's quarterly metrics tracking database.
Improve Water Quality
The Clean Water Act provides authority and resources to protect and improve the water quality in
the Gulf of Mexico and all waters of the United States. The GMD supports projects and works
with partners, such as the Hypoxia Task Force, to improve water and habitat quality throughout
the Gulf of Mexico watershed. In FY 2025, the GMD will fund projects which improve water
quality on a watershed basis through monitoring nutrient reduction, analyzing data, and assessing
changes.
GMD will evaluate success of this work by tracking the number of water segments/bodies with
improved understanding of water quality conditions and/or water quality parameters through
competitively funded projects and partnerships with stakeholders. Recipients of competitively
funded projects are required to report on this data quarterly and personnel must input direct
engagement efforts into the GMD's quarterly metrics tracking database.
Enhance. Protect, or Restore Coastal Habitats
Managing critical ecosystems is widely recognized as a fundamental environmental priority
throughout the Gulf Coast region. Critical issues include, but are not limited to, sediment
management, marsh/habitat loss due to subsidence, the continued reduction of freshwater in-flow,
and climate change. For decades, the Gulf Coast has endured extensive natural and man-made
damage to key habitats such as coastal wetlands, estuaries, barrier islands, upland habitats, seagrass
vegetation, oyster reefs, coral reefs, and offshore habitats. In FY 2025, the GMD will continue to
fund projects and work with partners to enhance coastal ecosystems, improve sediment
movement/management, restore acreage where feasible and cost-effective, and reverse the effects
of long-term habitat degradation.
GMD will evaluate success of this work by tracking the number of habitats restored, improved, or
enhanced through competitively funded projects and partnerships with stakeholders. Recipients of
competitively funded projects are required to report on this data quarterly and personnel must input
direct engagement efforts into the GMD's quarterly metrics tracking database. This work will be
further reported on to assess commitments as part of the Evidence and Evaluations Act.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that will provide funding under this
program as no-year funds.
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Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$519.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs.
(-$443.0) This program change is a decrease to offset fixed and other costs.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Pub. L. 117-328.
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Geographic Program: Lake Champlain
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S25..S23
S 25.01)1)
S 2.\()(H)
SO
Total Budget Authority
$25,823
$25,000
$25,000
$0
Total Workyears
0.1
1.0
1.0
0.0
Program Project Description:
The trans-boundary region of Lake Champlain is a resource of national significance and home to
more than 600,000 people, about 35 percent of whom depend on the lake for drinking water. The
8,234-square mile basin includes areas in Vermont, New York, and the Province of Quebec. Lake
Champlain draws millions of visitors annually. The Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin Program
(LCBP) supports implementation in Vermont and New York of a comprehensive pollution
prevention, control, and restoration plan for protecting the future of the Lake Champlain Basin.
Through the LCBP, EPA is addressing various threats to Lake Champlain's water quality,
including phosphorus loadings, invasive species, and toxic substances.143
The Program's goal is to achieve clean waters that will sustain diverse ecosystems, vibrant
communities, and working landscapes. These ecosystems should provide clean water for drinking
and recreation and support a habitat that is resilient to extreme events and free of aquatic invasive
species.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
EPA's budget request will allow the Program to address high levels of phosphorus by
implementing priority actions identified in the Opportunities for Action Management Plan to
reduce phosphorus loads.144 The 2016 Vermont Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for
Phosphorus for Lake Champlain is central to the planning and implementation work within the
Lake Champlain Basin to reduce phosphorus loads and meet the wasteload and load allocations
specified in the TMDL. Phosphorus reductions from the New York portion of the basin continue
to be subject to the TMDL approved in 2002, and the state is expected to release an updated Lake
Champlain Watershed Implementation Plan in 2024. The Program also seeks to prevent the
143 For additional information please see: https://www.epa.gov/tmdl/lake-champlain-phosphorus-tmdl-commitment-clean-water
and littp: //www. Icbp. org,
144 For additional information please see: https://www.lcbp.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/OFA_2022_Full-Plan.pdf.
153
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impacts of aquatic invasive species and to restore habitat across its basin. The LCBP also will
increase efforts to better understand how to address harmful algal blooms (HABs) and prevent the
introduction and spread of invasive species.
In FY 2025, EPA will focus on the following activities:
Ninety-three percent of the total phosphorus load to the lake is from stormwater or nonpoint
source runoff, and seven percent is from wastewater treatment plant sources in Vermont,
New York, and Quebec. EPA and its partners will continue to reduce phosphorous
pollution from stormwater runoff, nonpoint sources, and wastewater treatment facilities to
meet reductions specified in the Vermont and New York TMDLs. Specifically, EPA will
focus on:
o Implementing stormwater planning, design, and construction of green stormwater
infrastructure at Vermont public schools and state universities, including
implementing best management practices on rural roads in both Vermont and New
York, thereby increasing their resiliency to climate impacts,
o Addressing agricultural nonpoint sources including continued research to
determine the efficiency of agricultural best management practices; evaluating farm
practices to identify where improvements to practices are needed; and
decommissioning former agricultural lands better suited for habitat and floodplain
restoration efforts.
The Program also aims to restore healthy ecosystems to provide clean water for recreation and
drinking water and intact habitat that is resilient to extreme events and invasive species. In FY
2025 the Program will support:
Biodiversity, by preventing habitat fragmentation and improving resilience to changing
weather conditions.
Prevention of aquatic invasive species that harm the environment, economy, or human
health, including aquatic plants, animals, and pathogens. EPA will continue to work with
partners to understand the impact of any potential spread. The Agency also will continue
to monitor invasive water chestnuts and fund efforts to reduce their density and
distribution. Additionally, EPA and its partners will continue to implement the activities
identified in the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain Invasive Species Program Report
submitted to Congress under requirements of the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act.145
Collection of cyanobacteria data that will increase public awareness of bloom conditions,
the effects of excessive phosphorus in the Lake, and continue to document where algal
blooms are prevalent across the basin to inform management decisions.
The LCBP will continue to support the development of new ways to understand the high
seasonal concentrations of harmful algal blooms, report on their potential health impacts,
and provide necessary information to the health departments of New York and Vermont to
close beaches, protect drinking water intakes, or take other actions. In addition, the
Program will investigate developing new approaches for urban and agricultural stormwater
control.
145 For more information please visit: https://www.epa.gov/greatlakes/great-lakes-and-1ake-champlaiii-invasive-species-program-
report.
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The Lake Champlain Basin Program will continue to address environmental justice
concerns in the basin through implementation of its strategic plan, and implementation of
the program's approved Equity Strategy for the Justice40 Initiative.
The Program's 2022 management plan includes new metrics to expand tracking and
reporting of implementation efforts. In FY 2025 the Program will continue development
of a new project tracking database to better analyze, visualize, and share program results
with stakeholders and the public.
The triennial State of the Lake and Ecosystem Indicators Report from the Lake Champlain
Basin Program will be published in FY 2025 presenting the most recent information on the
conditions of Lake Champlain and its watershed.
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (Public Law 117-58) appropriations includes
$8 million for the Program in FY 2025. LCBP will continue implementation of priority
projects funded via IIJA including a competitive aquatic organism passage grant program,
strategic land acquisition of priority parcels for water quality, aquatic habitat and /or
climate change mitigation, wetland and floodplain restoration in New York, and aquatic
invasive species management and spread prevention in the Lake Champlain basin.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriation language that will provide funding for the Lake
Champlain Program in no-year funds.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
There is no change in program funding.
Statutory Authority:
Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909; Clean Water Act §120; Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023
(Pub. L. 117-328).
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Geographic Program: Long Island Sound
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S-10.00 2
S 40,000
-S2
Total Budget Authority
$36,429
$40,002
$40,000
-$2
Total Workyears
3.6
8.0
8.0
0.0
Program Project Description:
The Long Island Sound Program protects wildlife habitat and water quality in one of the most
densely populated areas of the United States, with nearly nine million people living in the
watershed. In total, the Long Island Sound watershed comprises more than 16 thousand square
miles, including virtually the entire state of Connecticut, and portions of New York, Rhode Island,
Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire. The Long Island Sound provides recreation for
millions of people each year and provides a critical transportation corridor for goods and people.
The Long Island Sound continues to provide feeding, breeding, nesting, and nursery areas for
diverse animal and plant life. The ability of the Long Island Sound to support these uses is
dependent on the quality of its waters, habitats, and living resources. The Long Island Sound
watershed's natural capital provides between $17 and $37 billion in ecosystem goods and services
146
every year.
Improving water quality and reducing nitrogen pollution are priorities of the Long Island Sound
Program. The Program is making measurable differences in the region. Through State Revolving
Fund and local investments of more than $2.5 billion to improve wastewater treatment, the total
nitrogen load to the Long Island Sound in 2022 decreased by more than 49 million pounds from
1990 levels, a 70 percent reduction in the effective load of nitrogen. This and other investments
have enabled the EPA-State partnership to attain the pollution reduction targets set in the nitrogen
total maximum daily load (TMDL) 2000. As a result, water quality is improving. The average
maximum area of waters not attaining dissolved oxygen criteria protection of aquatic life has
decreased by more than 50 percent since 2010.
The Program also is focused on habitat protection and restoration. Program partners have restored
593 acres of coastal habitat between 2015 - 2022, well ahead of the pace needed to achieve the
goal of restoring 1,000 coastal acres by 2035. In 2022, program partners completed 25 projects in
coastal habitats, restoring 134.3 acres. An average of 50 acres a year is needed to meet the 2035
target. The Program is currently averaging 89.6 acres a year. The Program also is ahead of schedule
in meeting its Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) target of reopening
146 For more information please see: Kocian, ML, Fletcher, A., Schundler, G., Batker, D., Schwartz, A., Briceno, T. 2015. The
Trillion Dollar Asset: The Economic Value of the Long Island Sound Basin. Earth Economics, Tacoma, WA.
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200 miles of river migratory corridors by 2035 for fish passage to Long Island Sound. The initiative
has so far reconnected 125.2 river miles, 62.7 percent of the way toward meeting the target.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the Program will continue to oversee implementation of the Long Island Sound Study
(LISS) CCMP by coordinating the cleanup and restoration actions of the LISS Management
Conference. The LISS CCMP is organized around four major themes:147 1) clean waters and
healthy watersheds; 2) thriving habitats and abundant wildlife; 3) sustainable and resilient
communities; and 4) sound science and inclusive management. Throughout the four themes, the
CCMP incorporates key challenges and environmental priorities including resiliency to climate
change, long-term sustainability, and environmental justice. The plan also set 20 quantitative
ecosystem recovery targets to drive progress. In 2020, the LISS updated the CCMP with 136
implementation actions covering the period 2020 - 2024. In FY 2025, EPA will focus on the
following:
Finalize a revised CCMP that sets new ecosystem targets and establishes a new five-year
action plan for the period 2025 - 2029.
Continue to reduce nitrogen pollution through implementing the Nitrogen Reduction
Strategy. EPA will work cooperatively with Connecticut and New York to expand
modeling and monitoring to develop numeric nitrogen targets that are protective of
designated uses and set local nitrogen reduction targets where necessary.
Coordinate priority watershed protection programs such as increasing streamside buffer
zones as natural filters of pollution.
Support community sustainability and resiliency through the Sustainable and Resilient
Communities Work Group to help communities plan for climate change impacts while
strengthening ecological health and protecting local economies.
Coordinate the protection and restoration of critical coastal habitats to improve the
productivity of tidal wetlands, inter-tidal zones, and other key habitats that have been
adversely affected by unplanned development, overuse, land use-related pollution effects,
and climate change (e.g., sea level rise, warming temperatures, changes in salinity, and
other ecological effects).
Integrate environmental justice considerations across program decision-making and
implementation through the new LISS Environmental Justice Work Group.
Conduct targeted outreach and engagement efforts to understand community needs in areas
with environmental justice concerns.
Increase the participation of new and diverse partners in LISS programs and decision-
making.
Continue program evaluations in response to GAO-Report 18-410 Long Island Sound
Restoration: Improved Reporting and Cost Estimates Could Help Guide Future Efforts.148
147 For more information please visit: https://longislandsoundstudy.net/2015/09/2015-comprehensive-conservation-and-
management-plan/.
148 To read the report, visit: https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-18-410.
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The purpose of the evaluation is to assess progress made toward meeting the goals, actions,
and schedules of the LISS CCMP, including quantifiable targets of ecosystem condition.
Finalize the Long Island Sound Office's biennial report to Congress summarizing the
progress made in implementing the CCMP, highlighting any modifications to the CCMP,
and recommendations concerning the CCMP.
Continue coordinated water quality monitoring, modeling, and research.
Support community partnerships to reduce pollution, protect and restore habitats, and
increase sustainability and resiliency through the Long Island Sound Futures Fund.
Conduct focused scientific research into the causes and effects of pollution on the Sound's
living marine resources, ecosystems, water quality, and human uses to assist managers and
public decision-makers in developing policies and strategies to address environmental,
social, and human health impacts.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that will provide funding under this
program as no-year funds.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$42.0) This change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation of base
workforce costs for existing FTE, adjustments to provide essential workforce support, and
changes to benefit costs.
(+$40.0) This program change is an increase to resources available to restore Long Island
Sound.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act § 119.
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Geographic Program: Other
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
s/o.-iso
SI-1.200
S / 4.200
SO
Total Budget Authority
$10,486
$14,200
$14,200
$0
Total Workyears
5.4
6.7
6.7
0.0
In addition, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) includes $30.2 million for this program
in FY 2025.
Program Project Description:
EPA targets efforts to protect and restore many of the unique communities and ecosystems across
the United States through the geographic programs. To protect and restore these treasured
resources, the Agency develops and implements approaches to mitigate sources of pollution and
cumulative risks posed by a variety of geographically distinct environmental stressors. These
approaches improve water resource quality in ecosystems and the health and economic vitality of
residents that rely on them. While substantial progress has been made in all these programs, more
work is required to further reduce toxins, lower nutrient loads into watersheds and water bodies,
increase ecologically and economically important species, restore habitats, and protect human
health. The programs also are focused on targeting investments and benefits to disadvantaged
communities within their reach, consistent with the goals of the Justice40 initiative, and
prioritizing investments with climate adaptation and mitigation outcomes.
The Northwest Forest Program
The Northwest Forest Program addresses water quality impairments in forested watersheds and
works to improve the quality and quantity of surface water to meet beneficial use and drinking
water/source water protection goals. Climate change is increasing the demands on the Program
due to the increase of catastrophic wildfires and resulting impacts to water quality and municipal
drinking water.
The Northwest Forest Program supports monitoring of watershed conditions across 72 million
acres of forest and rangelands in the Northwest. In Oregon and Washington, 40 to 90 percent of
the land area within national forests supply drinking water to communities west of the Cascade
Range crest. This Program provides the data communities need to help manage these drinking
water resources. Funding allows EPA to provide critical support to the Aquatic Riparian
Effectiveness Monitoring Program and the Pacfish/Infish Biological Opinion Effectiveness
Monitoring Program. These regional scale watershed monitoring programs are essential to
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determining the effectiveness of riparian management in meeting aquatic/riparian habitat,
ecosystem function, and water quality standards.
The Northwest Forest Program also helps EPA respond to tribal trust and treaty responsibilities.
EPA staff are key to protection and restoration of watersheds and water quality important to tribes.
EPA has tribal trust responsibilities in the Northwest for tribes reliant on salmon and shellfish.
Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program (PRP)
The purpose of PRP is to restore the ecological health of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin by
developing and funding restoration projects and related scientific and public education projects.
The basin comprises 16 Louisiana parishes and four Mississippi counties. The land use of the basin
ranges from rural to urban and is the most densely populated region in Louisiana, including
metropolitan New Orleans and Louisiana's capitol, Baton Rouge. The basin provides a home and
natural habitat to over 2.1 million people and is one of the largest estuarian systems in the United
States. The basin's topography ranges from rolling woodlands in the north to coastal marshes in
the south, with the 630 square mile Lake Pontchartrain, the second largest saltwater lake in the
United States, as its centerpiece.
Projects funded under this program maintain, protect, and restore the water quality and ecosystems
of the basin. These projects reduce the risk of pollution, increase protection of fisheries and
drinking water sources and enhance recreational opportunities for the citizens of Louisiana.
Southeast New England Program (SNEP)
Southeast New England (from Westerly, Rhode Island, to Pleasant Bay, Massachusetts) faces
environmental challenges that are both unique and highly representative of critical national
problems, especially in coastal areas. Typical problems include rivers hydrologically disconnected
by dams and restrictions, lost wetland functions, urbanization, and centuries-old infrastructure, all
compounded by the increasing impacts of excess nutrients from wastewater, stormwater runoff,
and atmospheric deposition. Excess nutrients have contributed to severe water quality problems
including algal blooms, low dissolved oxygen conditions, fish kills, impaired benthic
communities, and habitat loss (e.g., sea grass and salt marsh) in estuaries and near-coastal waters
of this region and worldwide. The impacts of climate change, especially the likelihood of extreme
weather events and increased precipitation, will further stress these systems in coming years, not
only environmentally but also socially and economically. The Program seeks to link environmental
quality to economic opportunity and jobs by delivering local solutions in a regional and watershed
context. Taking up and successfully addressing these issues will enable the Program to serve as a
model for other areas.
SNEP serves as a hub to enable protection and restoration of the coastal watersheds of Southeast
New England. Protecting these watersheds and the ecosystem services they provide will help
sustain the region's communities and environmental assets into the future. SNEP draws upon
networks of stakeholders and experts to seek out and support innovations in practices, technology,
and policies that will enable better and more effective watershed protection and restoration. The
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goal is to create a sustainable path for change and to lead the next generation of environmental
management by:
Developing and investing in innovative, cost-effective restoration and protection practices,
as well as new regulatory, economic, and technology approaches.
Providing technical assistance to tribes, municipalities and local organizations.
Supporting local restoration efforts.
Integrating delivery of programs to the public by our fellow agencies and partners.
Focusing on ecosystem services.
Improving technology transfer and delivery of restoration programs across the region.
Developing regional approaches to collate water quality and habitat data in order to provide
a report on regional trends.
Developing and implementing metrics to track the impact of SNEP proj ects throughout the
region.
Columbia River Basin Restoration Program (CRBRP)
The Columbia River Basin is one of North America's largest watersheds, covering approximately
260 thousand square miles, originating in British Columbia, Canada, with seven states including
significant portions of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. The basin provides
environmental, economic, cultural, and social benefits and is vital to many entities and industries
in the Pacific Northwest, including tribal, recreational, and commercial fisheries; agriculture;
forestry; recreation; and electric power generation.
Human activities have contributed to impaired water quality that impacts human health and fish
and wildlife species survival. Tribal fish consumers, other high fish consumers and subsistence
fishers are exposed to known toxic contaminants and increased human health risks. Beginning in
2004, EPA has made a priority commitment to reducing toxics in the basin reflecting a
responsibility to environmental justice for tribal people to protect human health and help restore
and protect fish and wildlife populations. There are several endangered fish and wildlife species
throughout the basin. A major salmon restoration effort is underway that has expended millions of
dollars to restore salmon throughout the basin. Additionally, this is a part of EPA's contribution to
support the September 2023 President's Memorandum of "Restoring Healthy and abundant
Salmon, Steelhead, and Other Native Fish Populations in the Columbia River Basin."149
In 2016, Congress adopted the Columbia River Basin Restoration Act as Section 123 of the Clean
Water Act (CWA), which directs EPA to lead a basin-wide collaboration and competitive grant
program to assess and reduce toxics in the basin. Section 123 also directs EPA to establish a
Columbia River Basin Restoration Program (CRBRP) to assess trends in water quality; collect and
assess data to identify possible causes of environmental problems; provide grants for projects for
specific purposes; and establish a voluntary Columbia River Basin Restoration Working Group.
149 For more information please see: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2Q23/10/02/2023-21882/restoriiig-healthy-and-
abundant-salmon-steelhead-and-other-native-fish-populations-in-the-columbia.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Funding will be split amongst the Northwest Forest Program, Lake Pontchartrain Program,
Southern New England Program, and Columbia River Basin Program for restoration of the four
geographic programs with an emphasis on initiatives that advance environmental justice and
address the threats exacerbated by climate change.
Northwest Forest Program
In FY 2025, the Program will support the following activities:
Monitoring and assessment of wildfire impacts to water quality, including ongoing efforts
in watersheds impacted by the catastrophic 2020 Labor Day fires in Oregon.
Table-top exercises with federal, tribal, and state, land management, water quality and air
quality experts to address barriers to implementing the Wildfire Crisis Strategy.
Aquatic and Riparian Effectiveness Monitoring Program (AREMP) of the Northwest
Forest Plan and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Western Oregon Resource
Management Plan to help maintain and restore watersheds across 24 million acres of
federal lands in western Washington and Oregon, and northern California.
The PacFish/InFish Biological Opinion Effectiveness Monitoring Program to monitor
stream and riparian habitats for both inland fish species and anadromous fish like salmon
that rely on both the Pacific Ocean and freshwater rivers to ensure conservation strategies
are working effectively to sustain fish populations.
The Drinking Water Providers Partnership an annual public-private funding opportunity
for water providers and watershed restoration practitioners in Oregon and Washington to
implement riparian or in-stream restoration actions to restore and protect the health of
watersheds and drinking water.
States' implementation of forestry non-point source programs and development of Total
Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) and Best Management Practices for forestry.
Development of Spatial Statistical Network models to evaluate impacts of forest practices
and climate change on stream temperatures across entire watersheds. Further support for
watershed management and development and implementation of TMDLs.
Collaboration with partners and local water providers to address sediment and temperature
impairments in forested watersheds.
Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program (PRP)
In FY 2025, the Program will help restore the ecological health of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin
by:
Implementing the current Lake Pontchartrain Basin Program Comprehensive Management
Plan (CCMP) and Comprehensive Habitat Management Plan (CCHP), including
implementation of restoration projects.
Revising the CCMP/CCHP to meet the current needs of the basin and updating
recommendations to meet current best management practices and technology.
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Working with the executive committee and management conference to expand the reach
of the Program to communities who have not participated in the past and to reinvigorate
participation in the management conference.
Incorporating Justice40 into the PRP through:
o identification of key areas for investments;
o development of robust protocols for proposal review and project review;
o outreach to eligible applicants to include investments and benefits to disadvantaged
communities in their projects; and
o tracking and reporting the investments and benefits of PRP projects to
disadvantaged communities in the basin.
Continue to evaluate (1) the suitability of the management conference and the Program's
organizational structure in achieving the Program's objectives; (2) the grantee's
performance related to PRP grants; and (3) the program's progress toward achieving the
PRP equity strategy goals. This evaluation is partially in response to GAO Report-23-
105547 Lake Pontchartrain Basin: Additional Transparency and Performance
Management Could Improve EPA 's Restoration Program.150
Southeast New England Program (SNEP)
In FY 2025, the Program will support technical assistance, grants, interagency agreements, and
contracts to spur investment in regionally significant and/or landscape-scale restoration
opportunities, more fully integrate restoration actions, build local capacity, promote policy and
technology innovation, encourage ecosystem (water quality and habitat) approaches, and enact the
Southeast New England Program's Five-Year Strategic Plan.151 SNEP is tracking community
engagement and is striving to provide funding or technical assistance to 70 percent of regional
municipalities (93 out of 133) and all of the federally-recognized tribes (3) by the end of FY 2025.
Specific activities include:
Investing in on-the-ground environmental restoration/protection projects through the
SNEP Watershed Implementation Grants (SWIG) Program.
Building capacity of municipalities and other organizations to actively participate in
implementing restoration projects and effectively manage their environmental programs
through the SNEP Network.
Promoting the development of next-generation watershed management tools.
Collaborating amongst the Narragansett Bay and Buzzards Bay National Estuary
Programs, the states of Rhode Island and Massachusetts, the Cape Cod and Martha's
Vineyard Commissions and other Cape and Island organizations, municipalities, and key
stakeholders to identify, test, promote, and implement approaches that can be replicated
across Southeastern New England, with a focus on the nexus between habitat, nutrients,
and stormwater and ecosystem and community resilience.
Funding pilot projects and research to introduce innovations and practices that accelerate
and guide ecosystem restoration and avoid or reduce nutrient impacts.
Continuing the SNEP Pilot Watershed Initiative which seeks to concentrate and
quantitatively evaluate the effectiveness of coordinated environmental restoration projects
150 For more information visit: https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-23-1.05547.
151 For more information visit: https://www.epa.gov/snep/snep-strategic-plan
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at a sub-watershed scale. Leveraging for efficiency and effectiveness by coordinating
operations, resources, and funding principles amongst restoration partners, including
federal and state agencies.
Supporting efforts to restore ecological health and build resiliency in disadvantaged
communities.
Continuing development of a regional water and habitat monitoring strategy that
incorporates current monitoring efforts to tracks environmental restoration progress and
inform the public about the health of the SNEP region.
Funding vital applied research efforts related to eelgrass restoration, permeable reactive
barriers, and remote sensing of lake and pond water quality.
Continuing updates to the SNEP Dashboard grants tracking system to better understand the
environmental, social, and economic impacts the Program has on the region through
selected metrics.
Columbia River Basin Restoration Program (CRBRP) - Section 123 of the Clean Water Act
EPA CRBRP's vision is to be a catalyst for broad toxics reduction work efforts and basin-wide
collaboration to achieve a healthy ecosystem with significantly reduced toxic levels in fish,
wildlife, and water, thus enabling communities to access unimpaired watersheds with healthy fish
and wildlife habitat. The major FY 2025 plans for EPA's CRBRP include:
Continuing to manage the implementation of the CRBRP Funding Assistance Program
awards to monitor and reduce toxics in the basin.
Competing a sixth round of CRBRP funding assistance in support of the statutory directive
to provide voluntary competitive grants.
Providing technical assistance and communication products for the Columbia River Basin
Restoration Working Group and the public.
Continuing to update EPA Columbia River Basin website, which serves as a source of
technical references and other information on understanding and reducing toxics in the
basin.152
Integrating Environmental and Tribal Justice and Treaty Rights into the Program.
Supporting climate adaptation strategies and resilience as it relates to toxics reduction.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that will provide funding under this
program as no-year funds.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
There is no change in program funding.
152 For more information visit: https://www.epa.gov/columbiariver.
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Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act.
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Geographic Program: South Florida
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
Vi.,m
.S.S .500
.S.S.500
SO
Total Budget Authority
$6,806
$8,500
$8,500
$0
Total Workyears
1.2
3.0
3.0
0.0
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) includes $3.2 million for this program in FY 2025.
Program Project Description:
The South Florida Program ecosystem extends from Chain of Lakes near Orlando, Florida to the
full extent of the Florida Keys including the Dry Tortugas which is over 250 miles south. Nine
million people, two federally recognized Native American tribes: Seminole and Miccosukee, three
national parks, 15 national wildlife refuges, Big Cypress National Preserve, the Florida Keys
National Marine Sanctuary, the Everglades, and unique coastal resources: St. Lucie and
Caloosahatchee Estuaries, Indian River Lagoon, Biscayne Bay, Florida Bay, Florida Keys, and
coral reefs make up this unique and sensitive ecosystem. These ecosystems support a multi-billion-
dollar economy through outdoor tourism, boating, recreational and commercial fishing, coral reef
diving, and world-class beaches.
Challenges faced include: the long-term sustainability of sensitive natural areas, agriculture, and
the expanding human population; balancing the region's often conflicting flood control, water
supply and water quality needs; and mitigating and adapting to extreme weather events and sea-
level rise.
EPA's South Florida Program (SFP) coordinates research and restoration activities in south Florida
where water quality and habitat are directly affected by development, pollution, and climate
change. The SFP has developed an equity strategy that includes an emphasis on addressing the
dual burdens of pollution and climate in disadvantaged communities. EPA implements,
coordinates, and facilitates activities through a variety of programs in the region including: the
Clean Water Act (CWA); the Everglades Water Quality Restoration Strategies Program; the
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Water Quality Protection Program; the Florida Keys
National Marine Sanctuary Water Quality Monitoring Program; the Coral Reef Environmental
Monitoring Program; the Benthic Habitat Monitoring Program; the Southeast Florida Coral Reef
Initiative, as directed by the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force; and other programs. 153>154
153 For more information please see: http://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/about-epa-region-4-southeast.
154 For more information please see: https://www.epa.gov/everglades.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
The SFP supports efforts to protect and restore ecosystems impacted by environmental challenges.
In FY 2025, EPA will focus on the Florida Keys Water Quality Protection Program, Florida Coral
Reef Tract, impacts of Everglades Restoration, nutrient reduction to reduce harmful algal blooms,
and CWA implementation.
Through the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Water Quality Protection Program, the
SFP will engage stakeholders across the breadth of the Florida Keys (and beyond) to review
long-term monitoring projects of water quality and ecosystems related to water quality in the
Keys. Data generated by EPA partners informs these programs which have documented
periodic oceanographic events such as algal blooms, seagrass die-offs and coral diseases.
These monitoring programs have provided the foundational data for the development of
nutrient numeric criteria. The long-term status and trend collected by the Coral Reef
Environmental Monitoring Program is tracking the ongoing Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease
that continues to decimate reef building coral species of the Florida Reef Tract. To date, the
SFP has provided more than $3 million to support coral research to hinder or halt the disease
destroying corals reefs that are vital to Florida's eco-tourism industry and that serve as a natural
barrier to storms and hurricanes. The SFP will continue to support these efforts.
The SFP will complete study reports associated with the Everglades Regional Environmental
Monitoring and Assessment Program (REMAP) in 2024 and 2025 based upon monitoring
completed in 2023 and 2024. This is an EPA conducted extensive assessment of the
Everglades' health which has been performed since 1993. Federal agencies, tribes, state
agencies, agriculture, the public, non-governmental organizations, and the National Academies
of Sciences use the data to understand water quality and ecological conditions and to assess
restoration progress. The data also help to explain the effectiveness of pollution control
programs.
EPA will continue CWA and National Environmental Policy Act coordination with the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, South Florida
Water Management District, and tribes for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan
(CERP) and Western Everglades Restoration Plan planning and Implementation. CERP is a
$20 billion federal-state restoration effort with over 60 projects that affect aquatic resources
throughout south Florida.
The SFP will continue implementation of the Florida Keys Wastewater Master Plan to provide
advanced wastewater treatment or best available technology services to all homes and
businesses in the Florida Keys through the EPA and state co-chaired Florida Keys National
Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) Water Quality Protection Program. The goal is to remove from
service all non-functioning septic tanks, cesspits, and non-compliant wastewater facilities.
More than 90 percent of Florida Keys homes and business are on advanced wastewater
treatment systems and more than 30 thousand septic tanks have been eliminated. The SFP will
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also consider the impacts of wastewater dischargers on nearshore waters affecting the Keys
and the Florida's Reef.
The SFP will continue support for restoration, monitoring, and modeling of seagrass
communities within St. Lucie Estuary, the Caloosahatchee Estuary, Indian River Lagoon,
Biscayne Bay and Florida Keys to address of loss of seagrass meadows from phosphorus
enrichment and chlorophyll increases resulting in dying seagrass beds, increasing harmful algal
blooms, fish kills, and manatee deaths.
EPA will continue work with state and local governments, universities, and non-governmental
organizations to implement on-the-ground and satellite water quality monitoring programs for
the Florida Keys, Biscayne Bay, St. Lucie Estuary, Florida Bay, and Caloosahatchee Estuary.
EPA has provided more than $4 million to support water quality that includes water quality
monitoring; harmful algal blooms detection, nutrient source identification and tracking;
bacteria (enterococcus) tracking for healthy beaches; and submarine groundwater discharge to
evaluate groundwater as a potential nutrient source.
The FY 2025 budget request continues support for oysters, seagrass, mangroves, and sponge
restoration efforts that reestablish and rehabilitate these natural systems; identify and map
habitat areas for protection, restoration and management; and develop conservation/ restoration
plans for these resilient ecosystems that provide habitat, food, nutrient removal, water
filtration, storm attenuation, carbon storage and shoreline stabilization in South Florida.
EPA will develop an annual Request for Applications for FY 2025 funds and continue
management of more than $20 million in South Florida prior-year projects enhancing water
quality, coral and seagrass monitoring; restoring coral, seagrass and sponge ecosystems;
developing models to identify pollutant sources; investigating emerging contaminants and
researching water quality environments conducive to algal blooms.
EPA will begin to draft a multi-year management plan specific to the entire region that
identifies the areas where impacts from EPA programs will have the greatest impact in
protecting and restoring waters in the region.
EPA will continue to work with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, local
municipalities and grantees to quantifying the impact of shallow wastewater effluent injection
on groundwater nutrient fluxes to surface waters in the FKNMS.
The program will support CWA Section 404 implementation, including wetlands conservation,
permitting, dredge and fill, and mitigation banking strategies through collaboration with U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers and Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
EPA will continue to work with the State of Florida on Everglades Water Quality Restoration
Strategies to address pollution. Part of this work will be tracking progress on the National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits and consent orders within the Everglades,
including discharge limits for phosphorus and corrective actions that are consistent with state
and federal law and federal court consent decree requirements.
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In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that will provide funding under this
program as no-year funds.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
There is no change in program funding.
Statutory Authority:
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Protection Act of 1990; National Marine Sanctuaries
Program Amendments Act of 1992; Clean Water Act; Water Resources Development Act of 1996;
Water Resources Development Act of 2000; National Environmental Policy Act.
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Geographic Program: San Francisco Bay
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
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Total Budget Authority
$45,061
$54,500
$54,500
$0
Total Workyears
2.6
7.8
7.8
0.0
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) includes $4.8 million for this program in FY 2025.
Program Project Description:
The San Francisco Bay-Delta Estuary is recognized as an estuary of national importance by EPA,
other federal agencies, state partners, and local stakeholders. The Bay Area, home to more than
seven million people, is one of the densest urban areas in the nation. While historically, San
Francisco Bay had about 200 thousand acres of mudflats and tidal marshes, over 90 percent of that
was lost to diking and filling for agriculture and urbanization. San Francisco Bay supports 500
species of wildlife, more than a quarter of which are either threatened or endangered. Investing in
wetland restoration is pivotal to the bay's resiliency to rising sea levels and other hydrologic
changes.
Since 2008, EPA has received an annual appropriation for a competitive grant program, the San
Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund (SFBWQIF), to support projects that protect and
restore San Francisco Bay and advance the Estuary Blueprint/Comprehensive Conservation and
Management Plan (CCMP) restoration goals.155 Funding for the SFBWQIF is specifically targeted
for the watersheds and shoreline areas of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties that drain into
the Bay. Since 2008, the SFBWQIF has invested over $128 million in 83 grant awards to restore
wetlands and improve stormwater quality around San Francisco Bay. SFBWQIF grants have
leveraged $248.5 million in funding from partners; the grant program represents a collaborative
investment with local partners guided by the Estuary Blueprint/CCMP. The San Francisco Estuary
restoration community is working rapidly to meet its goal of restoring 100,000 acres of wetlands
that can provide flood protection, recreation, water quality improvement, and habitat for
surrounding communities. SFBWQIF has invested $62 million of the total $128 million to restore
over 11,400 acres of wetlands around the Bay, including tidal wetlands.
The FY 2025 request will support increased investments in projects around San Francisco Bay that
are designed for resiliency considering a wide range of climate change impacts. The program will
increase focus on historically underserved and overburdened communities through continued
outreach and capacity building with partner organizations.
155 For more information, please see: https://www.sfestuary.org/estuary-blueprint/.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the Program will focus on the following activities:
Issue a Request for Applications soliciting proposals to restore wetlands, restore water quality,
and implement green development practices that use natural hydrologic processes to treat
polluted runoff around San Francisco Bay.
Issue a Request for Applications soliciting proposals to support underserved populations in the
Bay Area to improve the habitat and water quality in their local communities and improve the
ease in which underserved community voices are included in the planning for regional
environmental projects.
Continue to administer the SF Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund and gather evidence of
progress, consistent with the San Francisco Estuary Partnership's Comprehensive CCMP.156
Continue to build the resilience of San Francisco Bay ecosystems, shorelines and communities
to climate change and sea level rise.
Continue to use EPA grants to fund climate resilient projects and improve access to funds for
underserved communities.
Provide funding and technical support to implement a new regional monitoring program for
San Francisco Bay wetlands. The Wetlands Regional Monitoring Program (WRMP) will
provide baseline data and include the following: 1) monitoring site network; 2) open data
sharing platform; 3) comprehensive science framework. Building upon the WRMP Plan
released in April 2020, EPA will continue to provide additional funding to SFEP/San Francisco
Estuary Institute (SFEI) and partners for implementation of the WRMP.
Continue technical support for the San Francisco Bay Regional Monitoring Program (RMP), a
28-year-old partnership between regulatory agencies and the regulated community to provide
a long-term data set and scientific foundation to make water quality management decisions.
The RMP monitors water quality, sediment quality and bioaccumulation of priority pollutants
in fish, bivalves, and birds. To improve monitoring measurements or the interpretation of data,
the RMP also regularly funds special studies.
Seek to leverage other sources of funding such as the Clean Water State Revolving Fund and
Federal Emergency Management Agency's pre-hazard mitigation funds in support of priority
CCMP projects such as SFEP working with municipal partners on the Hay ward Shoreline
horizontal levee pilot project and the related "First Mile" project.
Continue EPA's participation in the Bay Restoration Regulatory Integration Team (BRRIT), a
five-year, multi-agency pilot effort to facilitate the complex permitting of restoration projects.
The goal of BRRIT is for agencies with permitting jurisdiction over multi-benefit habitat
restoration projects to improve the permitting process. BRRIT agencies use dedicated staff
time to conduct early design review, provide written guidance and comments, identify Agency
requirements that need to be met, and resolve regulatory issues early in the project planning
and design phase. This permitting effort enables the accelerated implementation of BRRIT
funded restoration projects. EPA will continue to provide agency staff support to the technical
156 Please see the SFEP Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (2016) atlittps://www.sf"estuary.orgAvp-
content/uploads/2017/08/CCMP-v26a-all-pages-web.pdf.
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and managerial aspects of the regulatory improvement process to benefit wetlands restoration
projects in the Bay.
Continue to increase the reuse of dredged material for wetlands restoration, which is critical in
preparing and responding to sea level rise in San Francisco Bay.
Establish funding for new ocean acidification monitoring through the Nutrient Management
Strategy to establish baseline data that expands the relevant datasets the wastewater sector
depends on in making infrastructure upgrade decisions. Regular SF Bay water quality surveys
(USGS/Nutrient Management Strategy) currently miss key ocean acidification metrics
including, partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pC02), alkalinity, and dissolved inorganic
carbon, that are high priority parameters identified through regional ocean acidification
workshops.
Key actions include continued partnerships with state and federal agencies to implement and
track fourteen TMDLs,157 provide technical assistance when asked by Delta stakeholders to
sustain the Delta Regional Monitoring Program (RMP), and work towards continued
integration of long-term data sets in the Bay and Delta, such as the Bay Regional Monitoring
Program for water quality (RMP) and the Interagency Ecological Program.
Continue setting up the San Francisco Bay Program Office as authorized by the Water
Resources Development Act of 2022 as part of the National Defense Authorization Act.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that will provide funding under this
program as no-year funds.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
There is no change in program funding.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (Pub. L. 117-328). Section 125 of the
Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1276a
157 For more information, please see the SF Bay Delta TMDL Progress Assessment at
http://www.epa.gov/sfbay-delta/sf-bay-delta-tmdl-progress-assessment.
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Geographic Program: Puget Sound
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
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Total Budget Authority
$48,317
$54,000
$54,000
$0
Total Workyears
6.7
9.0
9.0
0.0
In addition, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) includes $17.8 million for this program
in FY 2025.
Program Project Description:
Puget Sound is the southern portion of the international Salish Sea and is the largest estuary by
water volume in the United States. The Sound is an economic and cultural engine for the region's
more than 4.7 million people, including nineteen federally recognized tribes. Nearly 71 percent of
all jobs and 77 percent of total income in Washington State are found in the Puget Sound Basin.
By 2040, the population is projected to grow to seven million, the equivalent of adding
approximately four cities the size of Seattle to the watershed.
Puget Sound's beneficial uses are significant. In 2017, the value of Puget Sound commercial
fishing (finfish and shellfish) was $114 million, and the gross domestic product from Puget Sound-
related tourism and recreation activities was $4.7 billion. Puget Sound's shellfish industry is
considered the Nation's most valuable and is an important source of family wage jobs in
economically challenged rural communities.
Development and land use conversion have adversely impacted the beneficial uses of Puget
Sound's waters. For example, pollution and agricultural runoff reduce the safe harvest and
consumption of shellfish across 143 thousand acres of shellfish beds and cause the closure of
popular swimming beaches and recreational sites annually. Southern resident killer whales and 59
populations of Chinook salmon, steelhead, and bull trout are listed under the Endangered Species
Act. Tribal nations also are unable to sustain their culture and way of life.
A healthy and functioning Puget Sound benefits all who live, visit, or recreate in the Sound or have
a connection to the region. A properly functioning ecosystem provides residents with food, water,
and raw materials; regulates and moderates harmful elements; and provides cultural, spiritual and
recreational experiences.
Federal support of Puget Sound recovery comes from many programs, most of which are
administered by EPA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. Department
of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Interior, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
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Since 2010, Congress has appropriated over $470 million using Clean Water Act Section
320 authority for Puget Sound. Under Section 320, EPA has provided the National Estuary
Program and Geographic Program funding and support to help communities make on-the-ground
improvements for clean and safe water, protect, and restore habitat, allow for thriving species and
a vibrant quality of life for all, while supporting local jobs.
EPA's work with the Puget Sound Partnership, tribes, state agencies and other partners has
supported important gains in recovery. Examples include:
Comprehensive regional plans to restore the Sound;
More than $1 billion of non-federal dollars leveraged for recovery;
Partnerships with 19 federally recognized tribes;
Transboundary collaboration with Canada;
Scientific gains on toxic effects of urban stormwater (such as 6PPD-quinone) and related
mitigation actions;
Development and use of funding and decision-making tools to integrate environmental
justice and climate adaptation plans and projects;
Since 2007, a net increase of harvestable shellfish beds;
Over 41 thousand acres of habitat protected and/or restored (cumulative from 2006); and
More than six thousand acres of shellfish harvest bed upgraded (cumulative from 2007).
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Key FY 2025 activities for EPA's Puget Sound Program include:
EPA will fund assistance agreements with the 19 federally recognized tribes in Puget
Sound, three Tribal consortia and the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission. EPA
proposes to provide funding to tribes for both capacity building and implementing priority
tribal projects in the Puget Sound basin.
EPA will fund over $7 million in tribal projects to support key local watershed science and
monitoring; local partnerships in restoration projects to support habitat and water quality;
and enhancement of ongoing programs and policies for recovery.
EPA is a co-chair of the overall federal effort to address Tribal Treaty Rights at Risk
consistent with the roles assigned by the Council on Environmental Quality. This is an
essential role for EPA and other federal leaders in the region to meaningfully engage and
develop actions with Puget Sound tribes to address their treaty rights.
The Program will continue to implement actions under the Puget Sound National Program
Office and the Puget Sound Federal Leadership Task Force as outlined in the new Clean
Water Act amendment for Puget Sound (Section 126 of the CWA). This includes a report
to Congress in December 2023.
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The Program will enhance Federal Task Force leadership, including leadership and
implementation of the FY 2022 - 2026 Puget Sound Federal Task Force Action Plan,158
This will leverage hundreds of millions of dollars in federal investments in Puget Sound
and provides alignment of program and policies for recovery.
The Program will build on over 20 years of international cooperation with Canada
implementing the Canada - U.S. Cooperation in the Salish Sea: 2021-2024 Action Plan.159
The Program will participate in a series of workshops on topics of shared interest in
transboundary work including joint efforts for southern resident killer whales, science
collaboration and enhancing transboundary governance opportunities.
The FY 2025 budget request will help fulfill National Estuary Program responsibilities,
including support for the implementation of the Comprehensive Conservation and
Management Plan (CCMP) for recovering Puget Sound (the Action Agenda). The Program
received, reviewed, and approved the updated CCMP in FY 2022 that sets up the next four
years of collaborative implementation of recovery efforts in Puget Sound. In 2025 EPA
will work with the Puget Sound Partnership and the Puget Sound Management Conference
to develop the 2026-2030 Action Plan (CCMP).
The Program will continue to integrate climate adaptation and environmental justice while
supporting local jobs. The Program is building climate resiliency into the actions and
projects funded with Puget Sound assistance agreements for habitat, shellfish, and water
quality, which presents the opportunity to grow and integrate climate justice in all program
areas with federal, state, tribal and local partners.
The Program will be managing and awarding up to $100 million in projects from Puget
Sound funding over the next five years consistent with the EPA's 2021 Strategic Initiative
Lead Funding Model.160 The Program will fund over $17 million in shellfish, habitat and
stormwater projects and programs.
The program will continue to fund and coordinate cutting-edge science in the Salish Sea
with funding over $6 million in science projects from Puget Sound funding and programs
with federal, state, tribal and academic partners.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that will provide funding under this
program as no-year funds.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
There is no change in program funding.
158 For more information please visit: https://www.epa.gov/system/fLles/documents/2022-06/puget-souad-federal-task-force-
ac tion-pl an-2022-2026 .pdf
159 For more information please see: https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/actions-plans-us-canada-cooperation-salish-sea.
160 For more information please visit: https://snohomishcountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/87563/FY21-EPA-Funding-
(juidance-to-SILs FINAL.
175
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Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act. Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (Pub. L. 117-328).
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Great Lakes Restoration
Program Area: Geographic Programs
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
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FY 2024 Annualized
CR
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Total Budget Authority
$361,607
$368,000
$368,000
$0
Total Workyears
63.2
77.0
77.0
0.0
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) includes $200M for this program in FY 2025.
Program Project Description:
The Great Lakes are the largest system of surface freshwater on Earth, containing 20 percent of
the world's surface freshwater and 95 percent of the United States' surface freshwater. The
watershed includes two nations, eight states, two Canadian provinces, and 35 tribes.
Through a coordinated interagency process led by EPA, the implementation of the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative (GLRI) is helping to restore the ecosystem. This restoration effort provides
environmental and public health benefits to the region's thirty million Americans who rely on the
Great Lakes for drinking water, recreation, and fishing. The restoration and protection of the Great
Lakes also fuels local and regional economies and community revitalization efforts across the
basin.
This interagency collaboration accelerates progress, promotes leveraging, avoids potential
duplication of effort, and saves money. In accordance with the Clean Water Act (CWA), EPA and
its partners are accomplishing this restoration through the implementation of a five-year GLRI
Action Plan. The implementation of the GLRI Action Plan III, covering FY 2020 through FY
2024, began in October 2019. EPA and its partners are currently in the process of developing the
GLRI Action Plan IV, which will cover FY 2025 to FY 2029.
EPA and its partners have achieved significant results since the GLRI started in 2010,161 including:
Five Areas of Concerns (AOCs) delisted, including the Ashtabula River AOC in FY 2021.
(Prior to GLRI, only one Great Lakes AOC was delisted.) Ten others have had the cleanup
and restoration actions necessary for delisting completed.
112 Beneficial Use Impairments (BUIs) at 28 AOCs in the eight Great Lakes states have
been removed, more than eleven times the total number of BUIs removed in the preceding
22 years.
Over 4.3 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment have been remediated.
Over 265,000 acres on which invasive species control activities have been implemented.
161 For more information, please see https://glri.us/.
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Self-sustaining populations of Silver and Bighead carp have been kept out of the Great
Lakes.
Over 16 million pounds of invasive carp have been removed from the Illinois River,
reducing the potential for these species to invade the Great Lakes.
Loadings of over 2.3 million pounds of phosphorus were reduced through implementation
of conservation practices (phosphorus is a major driver of harmful algal blooms in Great
Lakes priority watersheds).
More than 500,000 acres of habitat have been protected, restored, or enhanced; and,
Over 685,000 youths have benefited from Great Lakes based education and stewardship
projects.
Under the GLRI, funds are first appropriated to EPA. After annual evaluation and prioritization
consistent with the GLRI Action Plan, EPA and its partner agencies collaboratively identify
proj ects and programs that will best advance progress under GLRI. EPA then provides a substantial
portion of those funds to its partner federal agencies to implement GLRI projects and programs in
partnership with EPA, states, and tribes. EPA and its partner federal agencies will directly
implement projects and fund projects performed by other entities such as states, tribes,
municipalities, counties, universities, and nongovernmental organizations. GLRI funding can
supplement each partner agency's base funding.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the GLRI will continue to support activities that target the most significant
environmental problems in the Great Lakes. Emphasis will continue to be placed on 1) cleaning
up and delisting AOCs, which will help to revitalize and generate community benefits in
environmental justice communities; 2) reducing phosphorus contributions that contribute to
harmful algal blooms and other water quality impairments; and 3) invasive species prevention
GLRI Action Plan III targets GLRI restoration within the focus areas, objectives, and performance
goals described below. In FY 2025, the GLRI also will continue to emphasize providing benefits
to underserved communities who are marginalized, underserved, or overburdened by pollution.
Under Action Plan IV, these and other investments in underserved communities will continue to
grow ensuring GLRI investments are just, equitable, and responsive to multiple voices and
viewpoints in planning and implementation.
Toxic Substances and Areas of Concern Objectives:
Remediate, restore, and delist AOCs: EPA, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS), U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers (USACE), United States Geological Survey (USGS), National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and other GLRI partners will continue accelerating
the pace the U.S. BUI removals. EPA and its federal partners will work with and fund
stakeholders to implement management actions necessary to remove the BUIs (indicators of
poor environmental health) that will ultimately lead to the delisting of the remaining AOCs on
the U.S. side of the border. Agencies target collective efforts under the GLRI to maximize
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removal of BUIs and delisting of AOCs. Agencies will support BUI removal through sediment
remediation under the Great Lakes Legacy Act (part of the GLRI) and other restoration
activities. FY 2025 targets are: ten BUIs (for a total of 138 BUIs cumulative since 1987)
removed in AOCs; and two AOCs delisted (for a total of 8 AOCs delisted since 1987).
Engage underserved communities and share information on the risks and benefits of
consuming Great Lakes fish, wildlife, and harvested plant resources with the people who
consume them: Federal agencies and their state and tribal partners will continue to help the
public make informed decisions about healthy options for safe fish consumption. Expansion
of successful pilot programs will increase the availability and accessibility of safe fish
consumption guidelines to vulnerable populations that consume Great Lakes fish. Additional
emphasis will be placed on the safe consumption of wildlife and harvested plant resources.
Increase knowledge about contaminants that have impacted or pose the potential to impact the
ecological and/or public health of the Great Lakes and its natural resources: Federal agencies
will coordinate with appropriate state and tribal partners to begin to fill critical monitoring and
data gaps for priority chemicals in the Great Lakes. Monitoring data from this process will
provide information on the magnitude and extent of these chemicals in the Great Lakes and
help in the evaluation of associated ecological, economic, and recreational consequences.
Invasive Species Objectives:
Protect native species and communities by preventing introductions of new non-native species:
GLRI federal agencies and their partners will implement a prioritized plan to significantly
reduce pathways by which non-native species may still enter the Great Lakes basin.
Coordination and planning with state, tribes, and other entities as well as feedback received by
the Great Lakes Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) Regional Panel will inform prioritized and
interjurisdictional projects that significantly address pathways including recreational boating,
bait release, organisms-in-trade, and others. GLRI will support efforts to test and implement
new technologies holding great promise to assess, block, or manage specific pathways. GLRI
will continue to help protect the Great Lakes from invasive carp, principally through high-
priority projects that prevent Silver and Bighead Carp introduction into the Great Lakes,
prevent Grass Carp establishment in the Great Lakes with an emphasis in Lake Erie, Lake
Michigan, and its tributaries, and better understanding the spread of Black Carp toward the
Great Lakes. In FY 2025, the goal will be to address one regional introduction pathways for
non-native species invasion through interjurisdictional, comprehensive approaches.
Reduce economic, ecological, and human health impacts to the Great Lakes by limiting range
expansion, including lake-to-lake transfers, of invasive species: GLRI federal agencies and
their partners will increase the probability of detecting invasive species through refinement of
current detection strategies and deployment of new sampling technologies and approaches.
Sustained funding to states and tribes will be a key strategy to ensure rapid response,
eradication, or containment efforts can occur after new detections of invasive species, impacts
of non-native species and deploy the latest control technologies and approaches. Great Lakes
partners will continue to efficiently distribute information on invasive species regionally
through GLANSIS and tailor educational products so that the public can play a large role in
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reducing the economic, ecological, and human health impacts of invasive species. In FY 2025,
the goal is to conduct eight rapid response exercises.
Provide ecosystem and human benefits through prioritized and collaborative invasive species
control efforts: GLRI federal agencies, states, tribes, and their partners will prioritize
maintaining the benefits of previously completed invasive species control projects by ensuring
staff capacity and tools are in place so that infestations do not reappear. Prioritization of
completed projects in upland and coastal habitat projects completed under previous GLRI
Action Plans will guide future investment so that benefits to fish and wildlife species as well
as residents are not lost over time and sites do not revert to previous degraded conditions.
Advancing the Great Lakes Sea Lamprey Control Program will continue to be a priority for
GLRI to ensure that lake trout restoration accomplishments made through past GLRI
investments are maintained and accelerated further. Technology development, testing, and
field trials will be prioritized to address critical, continuing pathways for non-native species to
enter the Great Lakes as well as battling invaders already established in the Great Lakes in
habitats highly valued for the ecosystem benefits provided. In FY 2025, the goal is to control
invasive species on 10,000 acres.
Nonpoint Source Pollution Impacts on Nearshore Health Objectives:
Reduce nutrient loads from agricultural watersheds to reduce harmful algal blooms (HABs):
GLRI federal agencies and their partners will continue to support direct farmer assistance and
outreach to reduce nutrient losses in agricultural watersheds as well as continue to strategically
target and design projects based on the latest science. EPA will do this by: (1) expanding
outreach and demonstration farm networks to improve adoption of on-farm nutrient
management practices; and (2) demonstrating practices that slow down and filter agricultural
stormwater runoff, such as expanding buffers to waterways, widening floodplains on drainage
ditches, and creating wetlands in receiving waterbodies. FY 2025 targets are:
Reduce 300,000 pounds of phosphorus from conservation practice implementation
throughout Great Lakes watersheds; and
Provide technical or financial assistance on 150,000 acres in priority watersheds.
Reduce untreated stormwater runoff to improve water quality: GLRI federal agencies and their
partners will continue to encourage and accelerate implementation of projects to reduce or
prevent stormwater runoff to protect nearshore water quality. EPA will continue to support
green infrastructure practices to infiltrate stormwater runoff, with a focus on implementation
in underserved communities. These projects will capture or slow the flow of untreated runoff
and filter out sediment, nutrients, toxic contaminants, pathogens, and other pollutants from
runoff before it enters Great Lakes tributaries, beaches, and nearshore waters. Federal agencies
and their partners also will continue to support implementation of watershed management
projects that slow and intercept runoff in urban and rural communities to prevent runoff and
erosion, now and in future conditions with a changing climate. FY 2025 targets are:
Capture or treat 75 million gallons of untreated stormwater runoff captured or treated;
and,
Restore or protect 13 miles of Great Lakes shoreline and riparian corridors restored or
protected.
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Improve effectiveness of nonpoint source control efforts to reduce HABs: EPA and its federal
partners will continue to adaptively manage to maximize nonpoint source control efforts.
Strategies will include 1) testing or piloting new/innovative ways to achieve nutrient
reductions, such as slow-release fertilizer and manure transformation technologies; 2)
assessing the ability of wetlands to capture nutrients; and 3) monitoring nutrient levels in the
major tributaries to the Great Lakes and nearshore areas experiencing algal blooms.
Habitats and Species Objectives:
Protect, enhance, and increase resilience of habitats necessary for sustaining native aquatic and
terrestrial species important to the future Great Lakes ecosystem: GLRI federal agencies and
their partners will build upon past restoration efforts targeted at critical habitat types, increase
access and use of project sites by residents, tribes, and underserved communities, and continue
to generate lessons learned from projects so that climate adaptation options for future projects
are identified upfront in the planning process. Projects will be largely based on the following
priorities:
o Watersheds predicted to retain cold-water habitat necessary for native fish populations.
o Coastal habitats that support productive fisheries, recreational and cultural uses by
communities, and protection of infrastructure against lake-level changes.
o Forest ecosystems, subtypes, and associated communities of species that provide
resiliency for insect and wildlife populations or enhance critical corridors for future
movement of species in response to changing climate.
FY 2025 targets are:
o Restore, protect, or enhance 10,000 acres of coastal wetland, nearshore, and other
habitats; and
o 200 miles of connectivity between rivers, streams, and lakes providing passage for
aquatic species.
Increase resiliency and representation of native species under future climate conditions: EPA
and its federal partners will continue to provide significant funding to agencies, entities, and
Tribal Nations that manage, stock, and restore populations of native species and incorporate
climate adaption options into their restoration strategies. Reintroduction of species important
to Tribal Nations will be planned and implemented to provide important food resources and
cultural uses. GLRI agencies will continue restoring the native top predator (lake trout) and
native prey fish species (e.g., cisco, bloater, kiyi, and others), bringing back critical elements
of the food web in Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, and additional locations in the Great Lakes.
Coastal wetland habitats and reefs important to native fish and breeding marsh birds will be
prioritized so projects provide increased resiliency and the habitat diversity needed for
breeding, nursery, and feeding. A subset of federally threatened and endangered species will
be identified for accelerated population recovery actions so that iconic species found here in
the Great Lakes not only persist, but are restored to self-sustaining populations, and are
downlisted in the future. In FY 2025, the target is to complete actions to significantly protect
or promote recovery of populations of one species.
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Foundations for Future Restoration Actions Objectives:
With a focus on underserved communities, (1) educate the next generations about the Great
Lakes ecosystem; and (2) teach people the skills needed to enter the environmental restoration
and protection workforce: EPA and its federal partners will continue to promote Great Lakes-
based ecosystem education and stewardship for K-12 school students and community members
(for example, courses at parks, nature centers, museums, zoos, and on-board vessels) while
investing in youth in underserved communities. GLRI agencies and partners will continue to
support activities centered on providing experience-based learning opportunities, with an
emphasis on youth, and continue to develop Great Lakes literate educators using the essential
principles and fundamental concepts included in the Great Lakes Literacy curriculum. These
activities will support the overall goal of educating students and next generations to foster
Great Lakes stewardship, promote conservation, and expose and prepare under-represented
youth for higher education opportunities in natural resource management. With enhanced
focus under Action Plan IV, GLRI agencies and their partners will implement workforce
development programs to teach people in underserved communities the skills needed to enter
the environmental restoration and protection workforce that supports GLRI projects.
Conduct targeted science to inform and assess Great Lakes restoration: GLRI federal agencies
and their partners will continue to support targeted science projects and implement programs
that will help track progress towards GLRI long-term goals and inform future restoration
actions. There will be a continued focus on priority issues such as HABs and coastal resiliency,
but also new efforts such as ecosystem monitoring in winter. There also will be continued
support for assessing the health of the Great Lakes through long-term monitoring programs
and CSMI.
In addition, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (Public Law 117-58) includes $200
million for this program in FY 2025. In FY 2025, EPA is requesting appropriations language that
will provide funding under this program as no-year funds.
GLRI Funding Allocations:
EPA leads the cooperative process to determine funding allocations for programs and projects of
the GLRI agencies. Under the CWA Section 118, EPA provides the appropriate authorizing and
appropriating committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives a yearly detailed
description of the progress of the GLRI and amounts transferred to participating federal
departments and agencies.
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Summary of FY 2018 - 2025 Allocations* by Focus Area
(Dollars in Thousands)
Focus Area
FY 2018
FY 2019
FY 2020
FY 2021
FY 2022
FY 2023
FY 2024
FY 2025
Toxic Substances
and AOC
$105,600
$107,400
$115,800
$118,500
$62,600
$95,200
$106,600
TBD
Invasive Species
$56,700
$57,000
$62,900
$66,000
$81,000
$69,200
$71,700
TBD
Nonpoint Source
Pollution Impacts on
Nearshore Health
$50,600
$51,200
$51,000
$55,400
$83,800
$78,100
$76,300
TBD
Habitat and Species
$52,400
$51,400
$54,500
$56,200
$79,500
$77,600
$72,100
TBD
Foundations for
Future Restoration
Actions
$34,700
$33,000
$35,800
$33,900
$41,100
$47,900
$41,300
TBD
TOTAL
$300,000
$300,000
$320,000
$330,000
$348,000
$368,000
$368,000
TBD
Allocations are based on budgets approved by Regional Working Group (RWG) agencies. The FY 2022 thru FY
2024 allocations reflect adjustments as a result of allocating BIL funding, principally to cleanup of AOCs. RWG
agencies develop allocations for future funding, such as FY 2024 and FY 2025, based on the authorized GLRI
funding level and will make adjustments upon appropriation.
Summary of FY 2017 - 2025 Allocations* by Agency
(Dollars in Thousands)
Aliono
I V 201"'
I V 20IS
I V 201')
I V 2020
I V 2021
I V 2022
I V 2023
I V 2024
I V 2025
dhs-uscc;
S1.5X0
$500
$1,661
$1,250
$1,300
$1,200
$1,300
TBD
TBD
DOC-NOAA
$12,027
$24,629
$29,405
$28,163
$16,621
$30,361
$22,789
TBD
TBD
DOD-USACE
$55,940
$43,559
$37,387
$30,599
$42,612
$29,067
$12,315
TBD
TBD
DOI-BIA
$10,904
$11,617
$9,842
$15,840
$15,765
$19,724
$21,244
TBD
TBD
DOI-NPS
$4,379
$3,940
$3,822
$3,794
$4,968
$7,816
$7,614
TBD
TBD
DOI-USFWS
$41,794
$52,902
$47,272
$53,523
$59,288
$86,082
$79,327
TBD
TBD
DOI-USGS
$26,817
$25,724
$21,603
$19,780
$19,790
$24,980
$22,875
TBD
TBD
DOT-MARAD
$800
$675
$803
$5,500
$8,000
$6,500
$2,100
TBD
TBD
HHS-ATSDR/CDC
$593
$590
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
TBD
TBD
USD A-APHIS
$1,262
$1,176
$1,312
$1,378
$1,459
$1,832
$2,138
TBD
TBD
USDA-NRCS
$22,072
$25,096
$20,697
$22,239
$24,374
$31,824
$33,091
TBD
TBD
USDA-USFS
$11,355
$10,153
$11,646
$9,921
$12,464
$12,958
$14,148
TBD
TBD
IA Totals:
$189,522
$200,560
$185,448
$191,988
$206,641
$252,343
$218,941
TBD
TBD
EPA and Misc IAs
$110,478
$99,440
$114,552
$128,012
$123,359
$95,657
$149,058
TBD
TBD
Totals:
$300,000
$300,000
$300,000
$320,000
$330,000
$348,000
$368,000
TBD
TBD
Allocations are based on budgets approved by Regional Working Group (RWG) agencies. The FY 2022 and FY 2023 allocations reflect
adjustments as a result of allocating BIL funding, principally to cleanup of AOCs. RWG agencies develop allocations for future
funding, such as FY 2024 and FY 2025, based on the authorized GLRI funding level and will make adjustments upon appropriation.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
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FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
There is no change in program funding.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act Section 118.
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Homeland Security
185
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Homeland Security: Communication and Information
Program Area: Homeland Security
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Prepare for and Respond to Environmental Emergencies
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 4.5V2
S 4.0V2
Sfi.ll'J
S 1.42'
Total Budget Authority
$4,592
$4,692
$6,119
$1,427
Total Workyears
11.8
13.3
15.3
2.0
Program Project Description:
There has been an evolution of the term and mission of national and homeland security since 9/11.
National security is now widely understood to include non-military dimensions, such as climate
and environmental security, economic security, energy security, and cybersecurity, as well as
traditional homeland security topics. Due to this, the homeland security roles and responsibilities
of the EPA have expanded and several areas (e.g., climate, natural disasters) now involve
engagement from the broader national security community. Systematic preparation is essential for
the threats that pose the greatest risk to the security of the Nation, including acts of terrorism,
climate change, pandemics, catastrophic natural disasters, cyber-attacks, and other national
security emergencies. The White House, Congress, and the Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) have defined responsibilities for EPA in several areas, including critical water infrastructure
protection and response to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear events, through a series
of statutes, presidential directives, and national plans.
In addition, EPA supports disaster recovery and mitigation and this essential work has been
steadily expanding to include climate change and climate security work identified in recent
Executive Orders. EPA's Mitigation and Recovery Order 2074 reaffirms our role using EPA
programs and resources and directs Regions to assign coordinators to support the agency-wide
efforts with mitigation and recovery. EPA's critical mitigation work prepares communities to
prevent or reduce impacts when natural (e.g., climate change) or human-made disaster (e.g., dirty
bomb, anthrax) occurs. Regions work with federal, state, territorial, tribal, and local communities
to provide technical assistance to reduce loss of life and environmental impact per the National
Mitigation Framework and the National Investment Mitigation Strategy. Climate change will
continue to increase the frequency, extent, and severity of natural disasters.
As our response roles are executed and the event continuum transfers to recovery, EPA then
focuses on how best to restore, redevelop, and revitalize the health, social fabric, economy, and
environment of the community using the six Recovery Support Functions of the National Disaster
Recovery Framework.
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EPA's Homeland Security: Communication and Information Program has two components. The
Office of Homeland Security (OHS) supports the Agency's coordination and communication
activities related to national security and homeland security. The Office of Mission Support, which
manages the Agency's Enterprise Security Operations Center (SOC), is responsible for the
centralized, integrated, and coordinated cybersecurity prevention, detection, response, and
supporting recovery capability for EPA networks.
OHS provides technical, policy, and intelligence advice to senior agency leadership related to
national and homeland security. OHS coordinates the Agency's intelligence activities, including
EPA's engagement with the White House, National Security Council (NSC), and other federal
departments and agencies on the development of new national and homeland security policies and
requirements. OHS also ensures that the NSC and other lead federal entities understand the impacts
of new national security initiatives and policies on existing EPA programs. OHS maintains
intelligence operations and analyses capabilities focusing on EPA's equities, including the
protection of critical infrastructure, specifically the water sector, climate change and security
issues, and biodefense and global health security issues. OHS serves as the Federal Intelligence
Coordinating Office (FICO) for EPA and coordinates with the Intelligence Community (IC) in
support of policy development and consequence management efforts. OHS also focuses on
coordination and integration of chemical, biological, and radiological preparedness and response
programs. More specifically, OHS focuses on the protection of air and water quality and the
prevention of land contamination, through external engagement with federal departments and
agencies and internal coordination with EPA program offices with homeland security
responsibilities. OHS also has developed a Classified Information Management Program to ensure
effective classified communications with all 10 EPA Regions in the event of a national security
emergency or incident. OHS coordinates with regional, state, and local Fusion Centers and Joint
Terrorism Task Forces to focus on integrating EPA regional offices with the information sharing
environment and DHS' intelligence sharing network. OHS also advances implementation of the
National Counterintelligence and Security Center's Enterprise Threat Mitigation Framework via
the following programs: EPA Insider Threat, Safeguarding Science/Research Security, National
Operations Security (OPSEC), and Defensive Counterintelligence. OHS also manages the program
that supports the Department of Treasury with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United
States (CFIUS) and Foreign Visitors to EPA.
In addition, OHS works closely with EPA's Water Program to coordinate and integrate water
security efforts internally and externally with stakeholders regarding physical threats and
contamination and cyber threats to operations. EPA serves as the Sector Risk Management Agency
(SRMA) for the water sector. The Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community
(IC) (February 2023)162 indicated that cyber threats from nation states and non-nation states remain
an acute growing problem threatening U.S. critical infrastructure. Cyberattacks across critical
infrastructure sectors are rapidly increasing in volume and sophistication, impacting both
information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) systems in the water sector.
EPA's Enterprise SOC provides a centralized, integrated, and coordinated cybersecurity incident
response capability that defends against unauthorized activity within computer networks, by
162 Please see the following for more information: https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/2020 10 06 homeland-
tlireat-assessiiient.pdf and https://www.dni.gov/files/ODM/documents/assessments/ATA-2023-Unclassified-Report.pdf.
187
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preventing, detecting, monitoring, analyzing, and responding to suspicious or malicious activity
through its Computer Security Incident Response Capability (CSIRC). The SOC and CSIRC also
provide situational and threat awareness, cyber network defense infrastructure, cybersecurity tool
engineering and support, vulnerability and risk assessments, and threat intelligence processing and
threat hunting capabilities. The SOC leverages an enterprise security information and event
manager, enterprise logging, endpoint detection and response, and other capabilities to perform its
mission, as well as maintain communications with DHS' Liaison Officers to respond to alerts that
have potential national security impact.
National and homeland security information technology efforts are closely coordinated with the
agencywide information security and infrastructure activities, which are managed by EPA's
Information Security and IT/Data Management programs. These IT support programs also enable
contact among localities, EPA program and regional offices, and laboratories in emergency
situations.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.3, Prepare for and Respond to
Environmental Emergencies in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. With the resources
requested in FY 2025, this program will:
Continue to promote a coordinated approach to EPA's homeland security activities and
support the alignment of resources with government-wide national and homeland security
priorities and requirements as defined by the NSC and the IC, including climate security,
cybersecurity, and biodefense.
Continue to build on and develop the Agency's cybersecurity intelligence capabilities to
provide a level of support that would enable EPA to better prepare for and respond timely
to specific threats, mitigate attacks, assess evolving water sector cyber intelligence
requirements, and assist in developing proposals to prevent/mitigate cyber incidents. By
further building these capabilities, the Agency will be able to increase research, analyses,
and engagement with the water and wastewater sector and partner agencies who deal with
cybersecurity {i.e., DHS' Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)) and
help EPA fulfill the requirements in Section 9002 of the FY 2021 National Defense
Authorization Act. All indicators suggest cybersecurity threats and requirements,
particularly those associated with the critical infrastructure sector, will only increase in
number, complexity, and potential consequences for the foreseeable future.
OHS and EPA's Water Program will continue to develop an integrated strategy to work
together more effectively to coordinate water and wastewater sector-wide cybersecurity
threat information and intelligence sharing efforts. Specific examples of OHS'
roles/responsibilities in this area include:
o Engaging with the Water Sector Coordinating Council and the Water Information
Sharing and Analysis Center (ISAC) to more closely work with CISA and the
intelligence and law enforcement communities to facilitate the identification of
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intelligence requirements and priorities of critical infrastructure owners and operators,
in the water and wastewater sector, in coordination with the Director of National
Intelligence and the heads of other Federal departments and agencies, as appropriate;
o Supporting risk assessment and risk management efforts by EPA in conjunction with
CISA; and
o Working with CISA to provide and facilitate awareness, within the water and
wastewater sector, of ongoing, and where possible, real-time awareness of identified
threats, vulnerabilities, mitigations, and other actions related to the security of the water
and wastewater sector.
Continue to develop new collaborative practices and methods, with Intelligence
Community agencies, to meet the cybersecurity needs of the water and wastewater sector,
along with other critical sectors, to address increasingly sophisticated and complex threat
actor tactics and techniques. EPA has coordinated with NSC, CISA, Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI), and water sector entities, on several occasions, regarding cyber-attacks
on the water sector's IT and OT systems, which has resulted in a renewed emphasis on
notification and communication efforts with the water utilities.
Continue to develop new collaborative practices and methods with Intelligence
Community agencies and the National Security Council to meet the requirement in
Executive Order (EO) 14008, Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,163 "to
place the climate crisis at the forefront of this Nation's foreign policy and national security
planning," and to address emerging domestic and global biological risks, including
pandemics and national bio-preparedness policies.
Provide more comprehensive support to the expanding collaborations with Department of
Energy (DOE), CISA, and other programs on cyber threat response.
Promote a coordinated approach to communicating classified and sensitive information to
EPA programs, laboratories, and regional offices via secure communications systems to
support timely intelligence and information sharing to enable safe and effective operational
preparedness and response.
Continue to develop a program, working with the Office of Policy, to support the regional
Disaster Recovery Coordinators, increasing national disaster mitigation and recovery
capacity and climate resilience. OHS also will support regional Mitigation Coordinators to
increase mitigation planning and advance policy to increase resilience in support of
Executive Order 14008, "Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. "
Support federal, state, tribal, and local efforts to prevent, protect, mitigate, respond to, and
recover from the impacts of natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other emergencies by
providing leadership and coordination across EPA's program offices and regions.
163 For additional information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/27/executive-
order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/.
189
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Provide technical, policy, and intelligence advice to senior agency leadership related to
biodefense and pandemic preparedness. For the Agency, track the targets and outcomes of
the National Biodefense Strategy (NBS) and its Implementation Plan. Serving as the EPA
Federal Intelligence Coordination Office, coordinate analytical intelligence support
capacity across the Agency to meet EPA's NBS requirements and whole-of-government
biological response obligations. Enhance focus on coordination and integration of
biological preparedness and response programs as they relate to protection of human health
and the environment through external engagement with federal departments and agencies
and internal coordination with EPA program offices.
Ensure appropriate agency representation in various White House and other federal
national security and homeland security policy activities. These efforts include serving as
EPA's representative for homeland and national security, national disaster response, and
mitigation and recovery policy in monthly meetings of the Homeland Preparedness and
Response Interagency Policy Committee (IPC), the Homeland Critical Infrastructure
Resilience IPC, chaired by the NSC, and in weekly NSC Cyber Response Group meetings
and other national security policy committees, including the Recovery IPC, Artificial
Intelligence IPC, and the Cyber IPC. In addition, OHS serves as EPA's representative in
monthly meetings of the Recovery Support Function Leaders Group, chaired by the Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the Mitigation Framework Leadership
Group, also chaired by FEMA, and on other interagency workgroups.
Expand Agency secure video telecommunications (SVTC) capabilities, in support of
agency representation in various White House and other federal national security and
homeland security policy activities.
Focus on filling critical policy, knowledge, and technology gaps that may be essential for
an effective EPA response, including working with our interagency partners to define
collective capabilities and resources that may contribute to closing common homeland
security gaps, including emerging chemical threats and cybersecurity concerns for critical
water infrastructure.
Provide EPA end-users with relevant, accurate, reliable, objective, and timely intelligence
bearing on matters of environmental policy and regulation and domestic threats and
counterintelligence, where EPA functions to preserve or assist in the restoration of human
health and the environment.
Continue phased implementation of EO 13587, Structural Reforms to Improve the Security
of Classified Networks and the Responsible Sharing and Safeguarding of Classified
Information164 to meet the main pillars of classified information protection with a focus on
the implementation of an Insider Threat Program to address and mitigate threats to national
security.
164 For more information, please see: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-ofFice/201 l/10/07/executive-order-13587-
structural-reForms-improve-security-classified-net.
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Track emerging national and homeland security issues, through close coordination with the
U.S. Intelligence Community, to anticipate and avoid crisis situations and target the
Agency's efforts proactively against threats to the United States.
Phase in National Security Presidential Memorandum 28 (NSPM-28) to support OPSEC
for the Agency.
Support the coordination and communication requirements of NSPM-32 to share
information on critical incidents in a timely and effective manner.
Phase in NSPM-33 to support other offices' work in Safeguarding Science/Research
Security for the Agency.
In FY 2025, EPA also will continue to support EO 14028, Improving the Nation's
Cybersecurity,165 implementation through monitoring across the Agency's IT infrastructure to
detect, remediate, and eradicate malicious activity/software from EPA's computer and data
networks. Specific activities include:
Continue to mature and enhance internal Computer Security Incident Response Capability
to ensure rapid identification and reporting of suspicious activity through increased training
and awareness of cybersecurity threats. Training opportunities (e.g., Annual Training,
Quarterly Phishing exercises, and Cybersecurity Awareness Month Activities) are
provided to individual users to identify the most recent cybersecurity threats along with
Quarterly Incident Response tabletop exercises to develop agency staff proficiency in
responding to cyber security incidents.
Improve threat intelligence sharing. EPA personnel are active participants in the United
States Computer Emergency Readiness Team, a DHS-led group of experts from incident
response and security response teams. Indicators and warnings are shared between EPA
incident responders and their cleared counterparts in other agencies and with the
Intelligence Community. This provides the ability to integrate actionable intelligence with
deployed systems to improve cybersecurity defensive capabilities.
Continue maturation and refinement of the Agency's Incident Response procedures in
compliance with EO 14028 and CISA's Playbook for Responding to Cybersecurity
Vulnerabilities and Incidents.
In compliance with OMB Memorandum M-22-01, Improving Detection of Cybersecurity
Vulnerabilities and Incidents on Federal Government Systems through Endpoint Detection
and Response,166 EPA will continue work to integrate End Point Detection and Response
(EDR) capabilities with the Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation Program to support
proactive detection of cybersecurity incidents within the EPA information environment,
supporting active cyber threat hunting, containment, remediation, and incident response.
165 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefiiig-room/presidential-actioiis/2021/05/12/executive-
order-on-improving-the-nations-cybersecurity/.
166 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/M-22-01.pdf.
191
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This work includes extensive coordination with CISA and deployment of capabilities
across the Agency.
Mature the security logging capabilities, as outlined in OMB Memorandum M-21-31,
Improving the Federal Government's Investigative and Remediation Capabilities Related
to Cybersecurity Incidents.167 This activity will build on implementation of Event Logging
Level 3 for Advanced Logging requirements at all criticality levels. It will focus on fully
implementing Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response tools to streamline threat
and vulnerability management, incident response, and security operations automation, as
well as User Behavior Monitoring analytics to enable early detection of malicious
behavior.
In compliance with OMB Memorandum M-22-09,168 Moving the U. S. Government Toward
Zero Trust Cybersecurity Principles, the SOC will support implementation of a Zero Trust
Architecture across the Agency to enable increased visibility and use of analytics to help
strengthen Information Security and Privacy governance.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$1,007.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change increases resources and FTE for
implementing the EPA Climate Adaptation Action Plan, supporting the increased
resilience of EPA programs, and strengthening the capacity of states, communities, and
businesses to adapt to climate change, with a particular focus on enhancing environmental
justice. This includes $213.0 thousand in payroll costs.
(+$446.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change increases resources and FTE for enhancing
homeland security coordination and communication efforts across the Agency. This
includes $213.0 thousand in payroll costs.
(+$25.0) This program change provides an increase in resources for the Agency to share
emerging bio-surveillance threat information and intelligence within the Agency, track and
coordinate environmental countermeasures development for National Biodefense Strategy
(NBS) quarterly reporting, and perform bio-surveillance integration with the interagency.
(-$51.0) This program change reflects efficiencies realized from streamlining homeland
security IT efforts across the Agency.
167 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/M-21-31-Improviiig-the-Federal-
Govemments-Investigative-and-Remediation-Capabilities-Related-to-Cybersecurity-Incidents.pdf.
168 For additional information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/M-22-Q9.pdf.
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Statutory Authority:
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, §§ 1001, 2001, 3001, 3005; Safe Drinking Water Act;
Clean Water Act, §§ 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 107; Clean Air Act, §§ 102, 103, 104, 108; Toxic
Substances Control Act, §§ 201, 301, 401; Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act,
§§ 136a-136y; Bio Terrorism Act of 2002, §§ 303, 305, 306, 307; Homeland Security Act of 2002;
Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act; Defense Against Weapons of Mass
Destruction Act; and Food Safety Modernization Act, § 208.
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Homeland Security: Critical Infrastructure Protection
Program Area: Homeland Security
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Prepare for and Respond to Environmental Emergencies
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S2-!<)
SO 23
S J.025
.S102
Science & Technology
$12,249
$10,852
$34,351
$23,499
Total Budget Authority
$12,498
$11,775
$35,376
$23,601
Total Workyears
26.2
26.6
57.6
31.0
Program Project Description:
The Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) Program supports EPA's efforts to coordinate and
provide technical expertise to enhance the protection of the Nation's critical water infrastructure
from terrorist threats and all-hazard events through effective information sharing and
dissemination. This program provides water systems with current information on methods and
strategies to build preparedness for natural and man-made threats.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.3, Prepare for and Respond to
Environmental Emergencies in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
This program also supports the Agency's Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)
implementation priorities including preparing for and responding to cybersecurity challenges so
that water systems are more resilient.
In FY 2025, EPA will build capacity, at water systems, to identify and respond to threats to critical
national water infrastructure by:
Providing timely information on contaminant properties, water treatment effectiveness,
detection technologies, analytical protocols, and laboratory capabilities;
Supporting effective communication conduits to disseminate threat and incident
information and to serve as a clearinghouse for sensitive information;
Encouraging information sharing between the water sector and environmental
professionals, scientists, emergency services personnel, law enforcement, public health
agencies, the intelligence community, and technical assistance providers. Through this
exchange, water systems can obtain up-to-date information on current technologies in
water security, accurately assess their vulnerabilities to terror acts, and work cooperatively
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with public health officials, first responders, and law enforcement officials to respond
effectively in the event of an emergency;
Providing water utilities, of all sizes, with access to a comprehensive range of important
materials, including the most current information, tools, training, and protocols designed
to enhance the security (including cybersecurity), preparedness, and resiliency of the water
sector (including addressing natural hazards and climate change); and
Ensuring that water utilities receive timely and informative alerts about changes in the
homeland security advisory level and regional and national trends in certain types of water-
related incidents. For example, should there be types of specific, water-related threats or
incidents that are recurring, EPA, in coordination with the Department of Homeland
Security and other appropriate agencies, will alert utilities of the increasing occurrence of
or trends in these incidents.
Providing this information, coupled with effective information sharing processes, allows the water
sector to improve its understanding of the latest water security and resiliency protocols and threats.
These protocols reduce risk by enhancing the water sector's ability to prepare for an emergency.
Performance Measure Targets:
Work under this program supports Safe Drinking Water Act implementation and compliance and
performance results in the Drinking Water Programs, under the EPM appropriation, to support safe
drinking water for the Nation.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$34.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$68.0) This program change provides increased resources to promote the protection of
critical water infrastructure.
Statutory Authority:
Safe Drinking Water Act, §§ 1431-1435; Clean Water Act; Public Health Security and
Bioterrorism Emergency and Response Act of 2002; Emergency Planning and Community Right-
to-Know Act, §§ 301-305.
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Homeland Security: Protection of EPA Personnel and Infrastructure
Program Area: Homeland Security
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Prepare for and Respond to Environmental Emergencies
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
Sf>.05'J
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Science & Technology
$625
$625
$501
-$124
Building and Facilities
$3,944
$6,676
$6,676
$0
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$1,167
$1,029
$1,530
$501
Total Budget Authority
$11,795
$13,518
$13,865
$347
Total Workyears
12.3
13.3
13.3
0.0
Total workyears in FY 2025 include 13.3 FTE to support Homeland Security Working Capital Fund (WCF) services.
Program Project Description:
Environmental Programs and Management resources for the Homeland Security: Protection of
EPA Personnel and Infrastructure Program supports EPA efforts to maintain a robust physical
security and preparedness infrastructure, ensuring that its facilities are secured and protected in
line with the federally mandated Interagency Security Committee (ISC) standards.
In order to secure and protect EPA's personnel and physical infrastructure, the Agency operates a
USAccess Personal Identity Verification (PIV) program, which adheres to the requirements as set
forth in Homeland Security Presidential Directive-12 (HSPD-12).169 This program ensures the
Agency complies with government-wide standards for the issuance of secure and reliable forms of
identification to federal employees and contractors who require access to federally controlled
facilities and networks. Additionally, EPA's National Security Information (NSI) program
manages and safeguards EPA's classified information for its federal workforce and contractors,
including conducting mandatory training and NSI inspections at EPA's accredited facilities. In
addition to the NSI program, EPA operates a Personnel Security Program that initiates and
adjudicates personnel background investigations, processes fingerprint checks, determines
individual eligibility to access classified NSI, and maintains personnel security records for all
federal and non-federal employees.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.3, Prepare for and Respond to
Environmental Emergencies in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
169 For additional information, please see: https://www.dhs.gov/homeland-security-presidential-directive-12
196
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As part of the nationwide protection of buildings and critical infrastructure, EPA performs physical
security vulnerability assessments on its facilities each year. Through this program, the Agency
also recommends security risk mitigations, reviews and manages access control measures,
determines physical security measures for new construction and leases, and manages the lifecycle
of security equipment.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to partner with GSA on implementing Enterprise Physical Access
Control Systems (ePACS). ePACS modernizes EPA's security infrastructure in compliance with
HSPD-121 and ensures that the Agency is enhancing safety, security, and efficiency with more
effective controlled access to EPA physical space and networks.
In FY 2025, EPA will complete security projects to ensure protection of occupants and compliance
with federal mandates and ISC standards, including:
Migrating to ePACS at the Research Triangle Park, NC Laboratory, Gulf Breeze, FL
Laboratory, the Newport, OR Environmental Laboratory, the Washington, DC EPA
Headquarters facilities, the Edison, NJ Region 2 Laboratory, and the New York City, NY
Region 2 Headquarters.
Upgrading closed-circuit television and physical security in response to vulnerabilities
identified in physical security assessments.
The Agency will continue to utilize GSA's Managed Service Office program, USAccess, for
Personal Identity Verification card enrollment and issuance. USAccess is a GSA managed, shared
services solution that provides EPA the ability to produce and maintain secure and reliable forms
of identification for all EPA employees and contractors as required per HSPD-12.
The Agency will continue to prioritize implementation of Trusted Workforce 2.0170 (TW 2.0). TW
2.0 is a whole-of-government background investigation reform effort overhauling the personnel
vetting process by creating one government-wide system that allows reciprocity across
organizations. This effort includes moving from periodic reinvestigations every five to ten years
towards a Continuous Vetting program, which protects the trusted workforce in real time.
Additionally, the Agency will expand continuous vetting enrollment to include Non-Sensitive
Public Trust (NSPT) personnel and report on performance metrics mandated in the Performance
Management Implementation Guidance, jointly issued by OPM and the Director of National
Intelligence in 2023.
In FY 2025, pursuant to the June 2023 Trusted Workforce Implementation Strategy, issued by the
Security, Suitability, and Credentialing Performance Accountability Council, EPA will complete
projects that support the transition to TW 2.0, including: enrollment of EPA personnel into the
continuous evaluation program managed by the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency
and integration of EPA processes with National Background Investigation Services (NBIS),171
continuing to implement a new personnel vetting IT system for the background investigation
process to deliver stronger security, faster processing, and better information sharing.
170 For additional information, please see: https://www.performance.gov/trusted-workforce/.
171 For additional information, please see: https://www.dcsa.mil/is/nbis/.
197
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EPA complies with 5 CFR 1400,172 which requires that federal and non-federal positions are
designated for both risk and sensitivity and that personnel have appropriate background
investigations commensurate with their position's risk and sensitivity designation. EPA will
continue to manage the personnel security, suitability, fitness, and NSI programs and conduct
background investigations following appropriate federal guidance, ensuring that personnel are
properly investigated for the positions they encumber and that classified material and activity is
properly handled. As federal guidelines and policies change or are introduced, the systems
supporting background investigations and the NSI Program will be updated and enhanced, as
needed.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$30.0) This net change reflects cost efficiencies associated with the continued adoption
of the Enterprise Physical Access Control System (ePACS) shared service across EPA
facilities.
Statutory Authority:
Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004; Privacy Act of 1974; REAL ID Act
of 2005; Homeland Security Act of 2002; Americans with Disabilities Act; Reorganization Plan
No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485 (codified at Title 5, App.)
(EPA's organic statute).
172 For additional information, please see: https://www.ecfr.gov/currenl/lifle-S/chapter-lV/parl-14(K).
198
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Indoor Air and Radiation
199
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Indoor Air: Radon Program
Program Area: Indoor Air and Radiation
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Reduce Exposure to Radiation and Improve Indoor Air
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
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$70
$199
$173
-$26
Total Budget Authority
$2,914
$3,563
$5,320
$1,757
Total Workyears
8.0
9.0
12.4
3.4
Program Project Description:
Title III of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) authorizes EPA to take a variety of actions
to address the public health risk posed by exposure to indoor radon. Under the statute, EPA studies
the health effects of radon, assesses exposure levels, sets an action level, provides technical
assistance to states, industry, and the public, advises the public of steps they can take to reduce
exposure, and promotes the availability of reliable radon services and service providers to the
public.
Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States - and the leading cause of
lung cancer mortality among non-smokers - accounting for about 21,000 deaths per year.173 EPA's
non-regulatory Indoor Air: Radon Program promotes actions to reduce the public's health risk
from indoor radon. EPA and the Surgeon General recommend that all homes be tested for radon
and if radon levels above EPA's guidelines are confirmed, elevated levels should be reduced by
home mitigation using proven, straightforward techniques. EPA also recommends that new homes
be built using radon-resistant features in areas where there is elevated radon. Nationally, risks from
radon have been reduced in millions of homes, but there are millions more that are still in need of
mitigation. Additionally, low-income families and tribal communities lack access to resources to
address radon. This voluntary program promotes partnerships among national organizations, the
private sector, and more than 50 state, local, tribal, and territory governmental programs to reduce
radon risk.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.2, Reduce Exposure to Radiation and
Improve Indoor Air in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
173 https://www. epa. gov/radon.
200
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EPA will continue to lead the federal government's response to radon and to implement the
Agency's own multi-pronged radon program. Work in this program supports the President's
priority of advancing environmental justice (EJ). EPA will drive action at the national level to
reduce radon risk in homes and schools through the National Radon Action Plan, partnerships with
the private sector and public health groups, technical assistance to states and industry, public
outreach, and education activities. The Agency will encourage radon risk reduction as a normal
part of doing business in the real estate marketplace, will promote local and state adoption of radon
prevention standards in building codes, and will participate in the development of national
voluntary standards (e.g., mitigation and construction protocols) for adoption by states and the
radon industry. EPA will continue to support the framework that ensures a quality, credentialed
radon workforce.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM LCD) Number of lung cancer deaths prevented through lower radon exposure.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
1,881
1,981
2,083
2,162
Deaths
Prevented
Actual
1,482
1,578
1,684
1,795
1,894
1,970
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$6.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$1,777.0 / +3.4 FTE) This increase in resources supports efforts to restore EPA's staff
expertise, analysis, and capacity in the indoor air radon program in order to better lead the
federal government's response to radon and to implement the Agency' s own multi-pronged
radon program. This investment includes $684.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Title III of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Title IV of the Superfund Amendments and
Reauthorization Act (SARA); Clean Air Act.
201
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Radiation: Protection
Program Area: Indoor Air and Radiation
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Reduce Exposure to Radiation and Improve Indoor Air
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
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$2,321
$1,683
$2,416
$733
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$2,081
$2,472
$3,144
$672
Total Budget Authority
$12,792
$13,243
$17,308
$4,065
Total Workyears
57.3
54.8
67.2
12.4
Program Project Description:
EPA has general and specific duties to protect human health and the environment from harmful
and avoidable exposure to radiation under multiple statutes. EPA's Radiation Protection Program
carries out these responsibilities through its federal guidance and standard-setting activities,
including: regulatory oversight and implementation of radioactive waste disposal standards for the
Department of Energy's (DOE) Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP); the regulation of airborne
radioactive emissions; general disposal standards for nuclear waste repositories; and the
development and determination of appropriate methods to measure and to model radioactive
releases and exposures under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act (CAA).174 The Radiation Protection
Program also supports EPA, state, local and tribal authorities by providing radiation protection
scientific analyses and recommendations needed to inform risk management policies, and the
necessary radiation risk communications expertise to support local community engagement on
issues related to legacy contamination and environmental justice (EJ) needs.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.2, Reduce Exposure to Radiation and
Improve Indoor Air in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
EPA will meet its statutory obligation to implement its regulatory oversight responsibilities for
DOE activities at the WIPP facility, as mandated by Congress in the WIPP Land Withdrawal Act
of 1992. In FY 2025, EPA anticipates concluding a detailed review of an initial DOE request for
expanding the WIPP repository to address needs for more waste disposal area, permitting disposal
of previously identified transuranic waste as well as more recently identified needs for disposal of
surplus plutonium. EPA will engage with stakeholders and community groups as part of the WIPP
review and will review and implement regulations or guidance, as necessary.
174 For more information on EPA's radiation protection program: http://www.epa.gov/radiation.
202
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Building on related efforts from FY 2023-24, EPA anticipates increased regulatory activity related
to the Clean Air Act and Atomic Energy Act. A key area for ongoing work is related to the
management of phosphogypsum wastes, including both requests for approval of alternate uses and
rulemaking. The increased interest in advanced nuclear reactors is expected to affect EPA's
regulatory programs and require reconsideration of rules related to nuclear power operations,
uranium recovery, and radioactive waste disposal.
The Agency will provide technical and policy analysis supporting scientific goals for space
exploration. EPA serves on the Interagency Nuclear Safety Review Board with the National
Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) to provide launch
safety analysis.175
EPA scientists will participate, as appropriate, in interagency working groups to examine issues of
low-dose radiation health impacts and identify any needed changes to existing technical and policy
guidance. EPA radiation risk communicators will provide radiation-related website and
communications product content that is clear and accessible to the general public, including those
with limited English proficiency.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$90.0 /+0.5 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements.
(+$2,570.0 / +7.3 FTE) This program change is an increase that supports efforts to restore
EPA's staff expertise, analysis, and capacity in the radiation protection program to provide
radiation protection scientific analyses and recommendations needed to inform risk
management policies. It also supports the necessary radiation risk communications
expertise for local community engagement on issues related to legacy contamination and
environmental justice needs. This investment includes $1.4 million for payroll and
additional fixed support costs.
Statutory Authority:
Atomic Energy Act of 1954; Clean Air Act; Energy Policy Act of 1992; Nuclear Waste Policy Act
of 1982; Public Health Service Act; Safe Drinking Water Act; Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation
Control Act (UMTRCA) of 1978; Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Act of 1992;
Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act; Clean Water Act.
175 For more information, please see: https://sma.nasa.gov/docs/default-source/sma-disciplines-and-programs/nuclear/insrb-
charter508d.pdf?sfvrsn=7862c7fB 2.
203
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Radiation: Response Preparedness
Program Area: Indoor Air and Radiation
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Reduce Exposure to Radiation and Improve Indoor Air
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 2. Ill
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S 3.1X5
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Science & Technology
$3,200
$3,596
$4,802
$1,206
Total Budget Authority
$5,311
$6,246
$7,987
$1,741
Total Workyears
29.6
33.3
41.4
8.1
Program Project Description:
EPA responds to radiological emergencies; conducts essential national and regional radiological
response planning and training; and develops response plans for radiological incidents or
accidents. EPA will continue to conduct assessment and preparedness for response to incidents
involving foreign and domestic nuclear technology used in space nuclear systems and advanced
reactor technologies. EPA generates policy guidance and procedures for the Agency's radiological
emergency response under the National Response Framework (NRF) and the National Oil and
Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). The Agency maintains its own
Radiological Emergency Response Team (RERT) and is a member of the Department of
Homeland Security/Federal Emergency Management Agency Federal Radiological Preparedness
Coordinating Committee (FRPCC), the Interagency Nuclear Safety Review Board, and leads the
Federal Advisory Team for Environment, Food and Health (the "A-Team"). The A-Team includes
radiation protection experts from EPA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the
Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Department of Agriculture (USDA); and their
function is to advise federal, state, local, and tribal authorities during radiological/nuclear
emergencies on public safety issues including evacuation, sheltering, and contamination concerns
for food, drinking water and other resources.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.2, Reduce Exposure to Radiation and
Improve Indoor Air in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to streamline activities and fill gaps in the expertise that is critical
for essential preparedness work, restoring critical capacity to meet EPA's core mission. The RERT
will maintain essential readiness to support federal radiological emergency response and recovery
operations under the NRF and NCP. EPA will participate in interagency training and exercises to
maintain readiness levels needed to fulfill EPA's responsibilities.
204
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Evaluation of Response Plans
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work with interagency partners, including those under the FRPCC
as well as those at the state, local, and tribal levels to examine and, as needed, revise radiation
emergency response plans, protocols, and standards. Under the NRF, EPA serves various roles
during nuclear incidents, for example, as a supporting agency for incidents in the United States and
as a coordinator for communicating with the U.S. public during foreign nuclear incidents, such as
the Fukushima accident. In FY 2025, EPA will maintain staff readiness and training needed to meet
the Agency's mission during such incidents. EPA will review and revise preparedness guidance to
ensure that the Agency's response efforts address the needs of the public, with special emphasis on
the most vulnerable.
EPA will support the U.S. Government assessment of foreign and domestic nuclear technology
used in space nuclear systems and advanced reactor technologies. Building on efforts in FY 2024,
EPA will continue work on the safety evaluations of the Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency's (DARPA) Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) mission and
the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Dragonfly mission for potential impacts to
human health and the environment from these space nuclear systems. EPA will continue
radiological contingency planning and preparedness for DRACO and Dragonfly mission launches.
Coordinating Preparedness Efforts
EPA will continue essential planning and will participate in interagency tabletop and field exercises,
including radiological accident and incident response and anti-terrorism activities with the Advisory
Team for Environment, Food, and Health, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of
Energy (DOE), the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS). The Agency also will provide technical support on priority issues to
federal, state, local, and tribal radiation, emergency management, solid waste, and health programs
responsible for implementing radiological emergency response and preparedness programs. The
Agency will continue to train and advise on the Protective Action Guidance176 and use lessons
learned from incidents and exercises to ensure the effective delivery of EPA support in coordination
with other federal, state, local, and tribal authorities.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM RAD2) Percentage of radiation emergency response program personnel and assets that meet functional
readiness requirements necessary to support federal radiological emergency response and recovery
operation.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
90
92
92
92
Percent
Actual
<>:
87.7
87.1
176 For additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2017-
01/docuiiients/epa pag manual final revisions 01.-1.1.-201.7 cover disclaimer_8.pdf.
205
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FY 2025 Change from 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$535.0 / +3.1 FTE) This program change is an increase that supports efforts to restore
EPA's staff expertise, analysis, and capacity in the radiation response program in order to
examine and, as needed, revise radiation emergency response plans, protocols, and
standards and continue essential planning for preparedness efforts. This investment
includes payroll and additional changes to fixed support costs.
Statutory Authority:
Homeland Security Act of 2002; Atomic Energy Act of 1954; Clean Air Act; Post-Katrina
Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (PKEMRA); Public Health Service Act (PHSA);
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act; Safe Drinking Water Act
(SDWA).
206
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Reduce Risks from Indoor Air
Program Area: Indoor Air and Radiation
Goal: Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for All Communities
Objective(s): Reduce Exposure to Radiation and Improve Indoor Air
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
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SI3JV3
S
.sivr"
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$27
$278
$185
-$93
Total Budget Authority
$13,309
$13,871
$47,755
$33,884
Total Workyears
35.3
39.2
71.4
32.2
Program Project Description:
Title IV of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA) authorizes EPA
to conduct and coordinate research on indoor air quality, develop and disseminate information,
and coordinate risk reduction efforts at the federal, state, and local levels. Poor indoor air quality
represents one of the most significant public health risks within EPA's responsibility.177 EPA uses
a range of strategies to reduce health risks from poor indoor air quality in homes, schools, and
other buildings through partnerships with non-governmental, professional, federal, state, and local
organizations. Through these partnerships EPA provides information, guidance, and technical
assistance that equips industry, the health care community, the residential, school, and commercial
building sectors, and the general public to take action. As technical experts working at the
intersection of the built environment and health, EPA is focused on policy and guidance to improve
building conditions, including for disproportionately impacted communities, to reduce indoor air
risk and achieve improvements in environmental and health outcomes.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 4/Objective 4.2, Reduce Exposure to Radiation and
Improve Indoor Air in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will promote actions and interventions to make improvements in public health
including efforts targeted to children, underserved communities, and other vulnerable populations.
The Program will include a particular focus on opportunities to accelerate the adoption of best
indoor air quality practices including ventilation, filtration, and air cleaning to help suppress the
transmission of airborne infectious disease and indoor exposure to wildfire smoke. EPA will
continue to lead on these issues by providing technical assistance and guidance for residential,
commercial, and public buildings, emphasizing that building improvements will be beneficial to
not only pandemic preparedness, climate change and disaster resilience, but also improved public
health in the long-term.
177 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/iaq.
207
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EPA will continue to equip school leaders and the school sector, through the Indoor Air Quality
Tools for Schools program, to put in place comprehensive indoor air quality management
programs that implement sustainable ventilation, filtration, and other indoor air quality
improvements to promote healthy school environments for students and staff. EPA will provide
and promote technical assistance, training, outreach, and other support to improve indoor air in
schools nationwide, including those in low-income and disadvantaged communities.
Additionally, EPA will collaborate with public and private sector organizations to provide clear
and verifiable protocols and specifications for promoting good indoor air quality and support
adoption of these protocols and specifications into existing healthy, energy efficiency, and green
building programs and initiatives to promote healthy buildings for a changing climate. EPA also
will equip the housing sector with guidance to promote the adoption of these best practices with
the aim of creating healthier, more energy efficient homes, including for low-income families.
In FY 2025, EPA will build the capacity of community-based organizations to provide
comprehensive asthma care that integrates management of indoor environmental asthma triggers
and health care services, with a particular focus on low-income, minority, and tribal communities.
As of FY 2023, EPA had equipped 2,954 programs to support the infrastructure, delivery, and
sustainability of comprehensive asthma care. In FY 2025, EPA's goal is to have equipped 3,155
programs.
EPA, in collaboration with other federal agencies, and partners will continue to work to ensure
access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all. EPA will continue to work
with partners to increase the sustained use of clean fuels and stoves and cleaner and efficient
biomass cookstoves worldwide, not only to address the more than three million premature deaths
worldwide attributed annually to cookstove emissions, but also as an important component of the
Administration's climate strategy. EPA, in collaboration with the Clean Cooking and Climate
Consortium, will continue to work to encourage national governments to include household energy
emissions reductions in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), or Paris Climate
Plans). In FY 2025, 115 countries will have household energy emissions reductions in their NDCs.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PMIA) Number of programs, annually, equipped to support the infrastructure, delivery and sustainability
of comprehensive asthma care.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
1,800
2,855
3,005
3,155
Programs
Actual
1,232
1,645
2,132
2,446
2,705
2,954
(PM NDC) Number of countries with household energy in their NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions
or Paris Climate Plans).
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
100
115
Countries
Actual
208
-------
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$33,977.0 / +32.2 FTE) This program change is an increase to restore EPA's staff
expertise, analysis, and capacity in the indoor air program. Funds also support efforts to
address indoor air quality during wildfires, reduce asthma disparities, promote healthy
school facilities in low-income communities in the U.S., and address the international
climate crisis by improving public health through the adoption of clean cookstoves. This
investment includes $6,154 million for payroll and additional changes to fixed support
costs.
Statutory Authority:
Title IV of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA); Title III Toxic
Substances Control Act; Clean Air Act.
209
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International Programs
210
-------
International Sources of Pollution
Program Area: International Programs
Goal: Tackle the Climate Crisis
Objective(s): Advance International and Subnational Climate Efforts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S -,214
S-J23
S20.IN.1
S/fi.MO
Total Budget Authority
$7,214
$7,323
$26,183
$18,860
Total Workyears
33.0
33.4
50.9
17.5
Program Project Description:
The United States works with international partners to address global sources of pollution,
including greenhouse gases (GHGs), as well as the impacts of pollution from the United States on
other countries, regions, and the global environment. International sources of pollution impact air,
water, land, the oceans, food crops, and critical supply chains. Healthy environments, ecosystems,
and communities provide the foundation for protecting human health and the environment and
creating sustainable economic development, job opportunities, and sustainable growth.
Tackling the Climate Crisis, Accelerating Environmental and Economic Justice
Through this program, EPA works with international partners, such as foreign governments and
international organizations, to deploy assistance for measures that can strengthen on the ground
action to tackle the climate crisis and reduce transboundary pollution that impacts local
communities and travels through the environment to impact other communities across the globe;
this assistance also can strengthen the fundamental environmental rule of law. EPA's international
mission is essential to addressing transboundary pollution and adverse environmental impacts in
the United States and helps facilitate a cleaner and healthier environment around the world.
Strengthening environmental protection abroad so that it is on par with practices in the U.S. helps
level the playing field for industry and creates incentives for innovation and deploying cleaner
technologies. EPA's international programs also play an important role in fulfilling national
security and foreign policy objectives and creating a platform for promoting U.S. innovation and
showcasing state and local breakthrough programs and policies.
An important example of this work is EPA's engagement with the Group of Seven (G7) and the
Group of Twenty (G20) through environment ministerial meetings, which negotiate outcomes on
key EPA issues such as climate change, food waste, marine litter, resource efficiency, lead
pollution, and air quality. EPA's engagement with international financial institutions, United
Nations (UN) entities, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
has helped advance recognition of the critically important role of environmental factors, including
air pollution and toxic chemicals, that contribute to the global burden of non-communicable
diseases (NCDs), and of the role that sound environmental laws can play in reducing these risks.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 1/Objective 1.3, Advance International and
Subnational Climate Efforts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. In FY 2025, EPA will
continue to engage bilaterally, regionally, and through multilateral institutions to improve
international cooperation to reduce greenhouse gases, increase resilience and adaptive capacity, as
well as prevent and address the transboundary movement of conventional pollution and waste.
Climate and Equity
Specifically, in line with the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan, EPA will provide technical
assistance through the transfer of tools and knowledge to address climate change with partner
countries, with the goal of leveling the playing field, addressing disproportionate adverse human
health and environmental impacts in vulnerable and underserved communities, and helping to
ensure that all countries make meaningful progress in implementing their nationally determined
contributions under the Paris Agreement. This helps fulfill EPA's commitment to implementing
at least 40 international climate engagements that result in an individual partner commitment or
action to reduce GHG emissions, adapt to climate change, or improve resilience in a manner that
promotes equity by 2026.
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting $18 million and 16 FTE above FY 2024 Annualized CR levels to
enhance capacity building governance programs for priority countries with increasing GHG
footprints and increase their capacity to implement partnerships as well as legislative, regulatory,
and legal enforcement efforts. These programs also will work to improve adaptive capacity and
mitigation strategies of pollution-burdened, vulnerable, and indigenous communities. Actions will
include partnering with the Secretariat of Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles (PCFV) to
assist project partners in transitioning to electric mobility solutions in key countries, particularly
in underserved and vulnerable communities, to finalize a high ambition work plan with the
Secretariat and work to develop or advance environmental standards for critical mineral supply
chains. They also will include technical assistance and capacity building to strengthen
environmental assessment processes and improve transparency and meaningful community
participation in decision making.
In FY 2025, the Agency will work with like-minded Arctic Council countries to identify external
resources and needs of indigenous Arctic communities and Alaskan Native Villages (ANVs) to
better understand pollution sources and management best practices that may impact local health
conditions. EPA also will continue to co-chair the Arctic Council expert group on short-lived
climate pollutants (SLCPs) to facilitate the development and implementation of projects to reduce
SLCP emissions, relying upon procedures for engagement developed by the White House and
Department of State.
EPA also will continue to share agency tools that can help partners increase their adaptive capacity
to climate change and understand the impacts of climate change on vulnerable and underserved
communities through the UN Environment Program's Global Adaptation Network, and existing and
new bilateral work programs with a focus on Africa.
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Marine Pollution
EPA will continue to engage internationally to prevent and reduce plastic pollution and marine
litter through sharing best practices and U.S. innovation as well as through the development of a
new global agreement. Marine plastic litter is a prominent global issue and one that can negatively
impact water quality, tourism, industry, and public health in the United States. EPA will provide
critical technical and policy expertise through a multilateral intergovernmental negotiating
committee (INC) process to develop a new binding international arrangement to end plastic
pollution.178 Since 80 percent of plastic marine litter comes from land-based sources of waste,179
countries with inadequate waste management contribute to the pollution in our shared oceans.
Improving integrated waste management and working on source reduction in these countries will
continue to be a priority.
Since the beginning of the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan, EPA has implemented 90 actions
overseas to mitigate marine litter and improve water quality and national air quality. In FY 2025,
EPA will continue to share tools and provide technical assistance, including through efforts related
to Trash Free Waters (TFW), to key contributing countries in Asia and Africa as well as building
on the results of past projects in Latin America and the Caribbean. In FY 2025, EPA will further
deploy TFW in Asia using materials that were translated into Thai, Vietnamese, and a common
Indonesian language. In Africa, EPA will help key countries develop and implement TFW projects
to prevent litter from entering the marine environment. EPA will continue to strengthen actions
with a regional focus on major source countries in Southeast Asia and key partners in Latin
America, the Caribbean, and Africa through bilateral relationships and/or partnerships with UNEP
leaders on implementing and disseminating governance measures, policies, and technology to
prevent marine litter.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work on the Kootenai Watershed, including with the regional
and national level governments in Canada, as a priority matter. EPA's work on reducing
transboundary mining pollution aims to improve human health and the environment in the
watershed and protect salmon, steelhead, and other fish in the Columbia River System (CRS).
Air Quality
EPA will engage with key priority countries and UN institutions to address air pollution that
contributes significant pollution to the domestic and international environment. For example,
several Asian countries (e.g., Thailand) are implementing national air quality monitoring,
planning, and control strategies with advice and lessons learned from the United States. In Africa,
EPA will continue its work to increase air quality monitoring and characterization, climate co-
benefit assessments, and air quality management planning. Environmental policies adopted and
implemented overseas will improve competitiveness for U.S. businesses, drive demand for U.S.
emissions control technologies, and expand exports of U.S. environmental goods and services,
which will create green jobs at home and improve air quality conditions in the United States.
178 For more information, please see: https://www.unep.org/about-un-enviromnent/iiic-plastic-pollution.
179 J. R. Jambeck, R. Geyer, C. Wilcox, T. R. Siegler, M. Perryman, A. Andrady, R. Narayan, and K. L. Law, "Plastic waste
inputs from land into the ocean," Science, 2015, Volume 347, Number 622.
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Food Waste
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to cooperate with the United Nations and the Office of
Management and Budget to ensure that methodologies used to track international progress on
reducing food waste accurately reflect U.S. progress and to better understand the climate benefits
of reducing food waste. Approximately eight to ten percent of global greenhouse gas emissions
are from food loss in the agricultural supply chain and consumer food waste.180 The Agency will
continue to advance food waste efforts, which is an increasing portion of landfill waste in rapidly
urbanizing cities in developing countries, and explore awareness raising work with Canada and
Mexico.
Chemicals
EPA also will maintain efforts to reduce environmental threats to U.S. citizens from global
contaminants impacting air, water, and land. EPA will continue technical and policy assistance for
global, regional, and bilateral efforts to address international sources of harmful pollutants, such
as mercury. Since 70 percent of the mercury deposited in the U.S. comes from global sources,181
both domestic efforts and international cooperation are important to address mercury pollution.
EPA will continue to work with international partners and key countries to fully implement
obligations under the Minamata Convention on Mercury to protect the U.S. population from
mercury emissions originating in other countries, including from artisanal and small-scale gold
mining. EPA also continues its leadership role within the United Nations Environment Program's
Global Mercury Partnership.
With respect to mercury, EPA continues to work with partner countries to develop National Action
Plans (NAPs) that demonstrate how they will reduce or eliminate the use of mercury in the
Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) sector. ASGM is the largest source of global
mercury releases182 and the development of NAPs called for by the Minamata Convention on
Mercury is a critical first step to help major emitters reduce the use and release of mercury into the
environment.
EPA will continue to play a leadership role in the Lead Paint Alliance to increase the number of
countries that establish effective laws to limit lead in paint, which remains a priority health concern
following successful efforts to eliminate lead in gasoline worldwide. In addition, EPA will
continue to work with International Arctic partners to further develop a joint project proposal on
per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). This effort will focus on aqueous film-forming fire-
fighting foams (AFFFs) in arctic airports through in-kind technical expertise.
180 For more information, please see: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPC) Special Report on Climate Change and
Land, Chapter 5 Food Security, pg 440, https://www.ipcc.cfa/site/assets/uploads/sites/4/2021/02/08 Chapter-5 3.pdf.
181 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/intemational-cooperation/miiiamata-conveiitioii-mercury
andwww.iiiercuiycoiiventioii.org.
182 For more information, please see: Global mercury assessment 11.JNEP - UN Environment Programme.
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Performance Measure Targets:
(PM E13a) Number of climate engagements that result in an individual partner commitment or action to
reduce GHG emissions, adapt to climate change, or improve resilience in a manner that promotes equity.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
X
10
10
10
Engagements
Actual
8
10
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$486.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation
of base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$304.0 / +1.5 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements.
(+$18,070.0 / +16.0 FTE) This program change increases FTE and resources to support efforts
for international climate change work, including greenhouse gas guidance, pilot programs,
and indigenous engagements on climate change. This increase will enhance capacity
building governance programs for priority countries with increasing GHG footprints to
increase their ability to implement partnerships as well as support legislative, regulatory,
and legal enforcement efforts. This includes $3,244 million in associated payroll.
Statutory Authority:
In conjunction with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) § 102(2)(F): Clean Air Act §
103(a); Clean Water Act § 104(a)(l)-(2); Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) § 1442(a)(1);
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) § 8001(a)(1); Federal Insecticide, Fungicide,
and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) §§ 17(d), 20(a); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) §10(a);
Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA) § 203(a)(1); E.O. 13547; E.O. 13689;
U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Implementation Act, 19 U.S.C. §§ 4501-4372.
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Trade and Governance
Program Area: International Programs
Goal: Tackle the Climate Crisis
Objective(s): Advance International and Subnational Climate Efforts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
linviroiimcii/ul I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
s
S5.5H)
S '.201
S I.Ml
Total Budget Authority
$7,390
$5,510
$7,201
$1,691
Total Workyears
13.9
15.3
18.0
2.7
Program Project Description:
EPA has played a key role in trade policy development since the 1972 Trade Act mandated that
the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) engage in interagency consultations. Specifically, EPA is
a member of the Trade Policy Staff Committee, the Trade Policy Review Group, and relevant
subcommittees-interagency mechanisms that provide advice, guidance, and clearance to the
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in the development of U.S. international trade and
investment policy. Trade influences the nature and scope of economic activity and therefore the
levels of pollutant emissions and natural resource use. EPA's role in trade negotiations is to ensure
that agreements have provisions that are consistent with the Administration's environmental
protection goals while not putting the United States at an economic disadvantage. EPA offers
technical assistance and environmental governance capacity building for trade partners to support
implementation of environmental commitments made in Free Trade Agreements. EPA also
provides technical expertise on environmental governance and policy for international financial
institutions, including environmental policy reviews and project-level environmental guidance.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 1/Objective 1.3, Advance International and
Subnational Climate Efforts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Free Trade Agreements and United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA)
In FY 2025, EPA will continue its participation in the North American Commission for
Environmental Cooperation (CEC), which provides regional and international leadership to
advance environmental protection, human health, and sustainable economic growth in North
America. EPA will continue to work on the implementation of the Environment Chapter of the
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and other free trade agreements. The CEC
work on border watersheds supports America the Beautiful (AtB); specifically, the Administration
is pursuing a national conservation goal to protect or conserve at least 30 percent of U.S. lands and
waters by 2030. Additional cooperation under the CEC is aimed at enhancing climate resilience in
environmental justice communities, contributing to the Agency's Justice 40 objectives. EPA
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activities will include monitoring and verifying provisions pertaining to global and national
environmental requirements in the agreement and providing subject matter expertise, including
activities that enhance capacity building governance programs in North America that increase the
capability to implement partnerships as well as legislative, regulatory, and legal enforcement to
reduce the overall GHG footprint.
EPA will continue active participation in the USTR-led Interagency Environment Committee for
Monitoring and Environment (IECME) established to access implementation and maintenance by
Mexico and Canada in compliance with their environmental obligations. EPA also will continue
to strengthen the environmental governance of trade partner countries so that they can implement
and enforce effective climate mitigation and adaptation activities and incorporate environmental
justice principles.
In addition, EPA will continue to play an active role in the negotiation of agreements with other
countries to facilitate trade and to promote good regulatory practices and anti-corruption measures,
and then provide technical assistance to support implementation of environmental commitments
within those agreements. At present, EPA is focused on collaboration through the USTR-led
interagency process to support the negotiation of a new trade arrangement between the U.S. and
Kenya, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity, and the U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on
21st Century Trade. Further, given the Biden Administration 2022 Trade Agenda emphasis on
achieving climate change objectives and supporting underserved and vulnerable communities,
including possibly through trade measures, EPA will continue to track and provide technical
advice and input for the negotiation of a sectoral agreement with the EU on steel and aluminum
that will lead to decarbonizing production and the development of new critical minerals
partnerships and agreements, and monitor measures to develop implicit or explicit carbon pricing
mechanisms across countries.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work with partners (including the Treasury Department, State
Department, U.S. Agency for International Development, and the U.S. International Development
Finance Corporation) to support the environmental performance of international financial
institutions such as the development of environmental safeguards, including climate performance.
In addition, EPA will endeavor to improve environmental governance of U.S. funded international
development projects that enhance capacity building governance programs for priority countries
with increasing GHG footprints and increase their capacity to implement partnerships as well as
legislative, regulatory, and legal enforcement.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$1,691.0 / +2.7 FTE) This program change supports an increase in resources to provide
support and capacity building for regional and international Trade and Governance programs
217
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and projects addressing climate change and environmental justice. This includes $530.0
thousand in associated payroll and additional changes to fixed support costs.
Statutory Authority:
In conjunction with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) § 102(2)(F): Clean Air Act §
103(a); Clean Water Act § 104(a)(l)-(2); Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) § 1442(a)(1);
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) § 8001(a)(1); Federal Insecticide Fungicide
and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) §§ 17(d), 20(a); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) §10(a);
Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA) § 203(a)(1); E.O. 12915; E.O. 13141;
E.O. 13277; U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Implementation Act, 19 U.S.C. §§4501-
4372.
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US Mexico Border
Program Area: International Programs
Goal: Tackle the Climate Crisis
Objective(s): Advance International and Subnational Climate Efforts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 2.512
S 2.VV3
S .\l.12
S2.I.W
Total Budget Authority
$2,512
$2,993
$5,132
$2,139
Total Workyears
10.9
12.4
17.4
5.0
Program Project Description:
The two-thousand-mile border between the United States and Mexico is one of the most complex
and dynamic regions in the world, where the benefits of international programs are perhaps most
apparent. This region accounts for three of the ten poorest counties in the U.S. and is characterized
by higher-than-average poverty, unemployment, uninsurance, and lower-than-average median
incomes.183 In addition, over 500 thousand of the 15 million people in the region live in colonias,184
which are unincorporated communities characterized by substandard housing and unsafe drinking
water or wastewater systems. Population growth indexes show a trend of increasing growth, related
among other factors to the influx of migrants from different regions. This trend has increased the
pressure on basic infrastructure and services in border cities, which struggle to keep up with
population growth. The adoption of the Border Programs has gone a long way to protect and
improve the health and environmental conditions along a border that extends from the Gulf of
Mexico to the Pacific Ocean.
The Border 2025 Program will continue to emphasize local priority-setting, focus on measurable
environmental results, and encourage broad public participation. Specifically, Border 2025 builds
on earlier program work, which includes project-promoted solutions or monitoring related to air
quality, used tire management, environmental health promotion, response to environmental
emergencies, and treatment of wastewater.185
The Border 2025 Program identifies four long-term goals to address the serious environmental and
environmentally related public health challenges, including the impact of transboundary transport
of pollutants in the border region. These strategic goals are: Goal 1) Reduce Air Pollution; Goal
2) Improve Water Quality; Goal 3) Promote Sustainable Materials and Waste Management and
Clean Sites; and Goal 4) Improve Joint Preparedness for and Response to Hazardous
Environmental Emergencies. Within the goals are specific objectives that identify actions that will
183 For additional information, please visit:
https://www.ruralhealth.us/NRHA/media/Emerge NRHA/Advocacy/Policy%20documents/05-11-18-NRHA-Policy-Border-
Health.pdf.
184 For more information, please see: https://www.dallasfed.Org/~/media/documents/cd/pubs/lascolonias.pdf.
185 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2021-
05/documents/final_b2020_acc report_mav 24_2021.pdf.
219
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be taken in support of the program's mission. The Border 2025 Program supports the President's
Executive Order on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workplace as
well as cross-agency efforts of tackling the climate crisis and advancing environmental justice.
Guiding principles support the mission statement, ensure consistency among all aspects of the
Border 2025 Program, and continue successful elements of previous binational environmental
programs. Prioritizing environmental equity and addressing disproportionate environmental
impacts in border communities by protecting, improving, and promoting environmental awareness
and environmental and human health is one of the Program's core principles. This principle aligns
with one of EPA" s priorities to promote equity for underserved communities and civil rights in the
U.S. border region.
The Border 2025 Program is under the Justice40 Initiative that has as its goal to ensure that 40
percent of overall benefits of federal investments are directed to disadvantaged communities. To
help support Justice40 implementation, activities may include developing benefits methodologies
and identifying, tracking, analyzing, and reporting Justice40 data. EPA and the Secretariat of
Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) will continue to closely collaborate with the
ten border states (four U.S./six Mexican), 27 U.S. federally recognized tribes, indigenous
communities including the afro-Mexican community in Mexico, and local communities in
prioritizing and implementing projects that address their particular needs.
Note: The border water and wastewater infrastructure programs are described in the State and
Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG) appropriation, Infrastructure Assistance: Mexico Border
Program.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 1/Objective 1.3, Advance International and
Subnational Climate Efforts in the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Air Pollution
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to focus on air pollution reductions in binational airsheds, work on
reducing emissions through implementing policy-based or technology-based programs, and
maintain effective air quality monitoring networks and timely access to air quality data along the
border region to help support the Administration's goal of reducing air pollution and the effects of
climate change. This effort to meet health-based air quality standards, especially for particulate
matter and/or ozone, is expected to mitigate negative effects on public health by deploying
innovative strategies or technologies and building public awareness of associated health risks to
protect public health and advance environmental justice.
EPA and SEMARNAT will continue to build on the successful air quality efforts conducted in the
Border 2020 Program, which resulted in complete greenhouse gas emissions inventories for each
Mexico border state, and improved public health, especially in underserved communities. In
addition, building upon over 20 years of binational air quality success within the New Mexico,
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Texas, and Chihuahua shared air basin, local coordinated efforts will advance work to address
mobile sources at two designated border cities.
EPA will assist in expanding technical training to promote standardized approaches and
improvements to emissions inventory development, improved compliance with vehicle emission
standards, establishment of and compliance with vehicle inspection and maintenance programs,
increased data-sharing on used vehicle emissions testing, and strengthened Green Freight
Programs such as Transporte Limpio (Mexico) and SmartWay (United States). Cooperation across
the border has a high positive impact in protecting U.S. citizens and vulnerable populations in
Texas' largest populated border city of El Paso, which makes up a metropolitan area with Juarez,
Mexico, that shares and breathes the same air. In addition, EPA will provide support to update
and/or complete climate action plans in each of the six northern Mexican Border States (as
appropriate) and build the necessary capacity to guarantee sustained implementation. Along the
U.S. border, California, Arizona, and New Mexico have completed Climate Change Action Plans.
Water Management
In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to address border water management in the Tijuana River
Watershed. The United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA) authorizes and directs
EPA to coordinate with specific federal, state, and local entities to plan and implement high priority
infrastructure projects that address transboundary pollution affecting San Diego County,
California. EPA will advance implementation of projects to prevent and reduce the levels of trash
and sediment entering high priority binational watersheds. Other projects that prevent/reduce
marine litter should primarily focus on preventing waste at the source through improvements to
solid waste management systems, education campaigns, and monitoring as well as reducing trash
entering the aquatic environment through the capture of litter using river booms in known
watershed litter hot spots. Additionally, EPA will improve access to transboundary water quality
data by developing spill notification protocols, increasing awareness of beach contamination,
displaying timely information on water quality in high-priority watersheds, and continuing the
work of the binational water quality improvement plan.
Sustainable Materials Management
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to collaborate and partner on sustainable materials management
demonstration projects to prevent waste and improve the recovery of materials, such as plastic, e-
waste, and scrap tires, through public-private partnership programs and infrastructure investments
in the border region to mitigate public health and environmental impacts and avoid costly cleanup
efforts. Additionally, EPA will work to increase institutional capacity for resource efficiency and
sustainable management of materials and develop/implement strategies to reduce illegal dumping
and landfill fires, maximize material recovery, and promote environmentally sound disposal
practices and clean sites. Each region of the border has different economic, social, and cultural
situations, with different capacities to mitigate the generation and management of waste and
secondary materials.
EPA will continue to work to increase institutional capabilities in planning and technical
assistance, enabling the development of programs, projects, or actions which consider the life cycle
221
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analysis on natural resource economics, manufacturing, transport, and other market factors to
effectively collect and use materials and avoid them being lost to landfills.
Emergency Preparedness and Response
Additionally, the United States and Mexico will work together to enhance joint preparedness for
environmental response and facilitate easier transboundary movement of emergency response
equipment and personnel by activities such as: updating Sister City Plans with preparedness and
prevention and providing training to emergency responders on preparedness and prevention related
activities. As part of the efforts for binational emergency preparedness and response, the Program
will continue updating the Mexico-U.S. Joint Contingency Plan in both Spanish and English as
well as conducting knowledge exchange and tabletop exercise activities to build partnership
capacity and provide locals with the opportunity to test and improve emergency plans in their
areas. In addition, both countries will coordinate binational efforts border-wide.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM E13b) Number of Border 2025 actions implemented in the U.S.-Mexico Border area to improve water
quality, solid waste management and air quality including those that address climate change, and advance
emergency response efforts.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
3
10
10
10
Actions
Actual
6
10
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$336.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation
of base workforce costs due to adjustments to provide essential workforce support and
changes to benefits costs.
(+$1,803.0 / +5.0 FTE) This program change increase supports efforts addressing pollution
and climate change related activities along the United States and Mexico Border. To
address the priority needs in the region and in support of the Border 2025 Program
priorities, this effort continues to focus on smaller scale sustainability and core capacity
building projects designed to improve the environment and protect the health of people
living along the U.S.-Mexico border. This includes $928.0 thousand in associated payroll.
Statutory Authority:
In conjunction with the 1983 Agreement between the United States of America and the Mexican
United States on Cooperation for the Protection and Improvement of the Environment in the
Border Area (La Paz Agreement) and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) § 102(2)(F):
Clean Air Act § 103(a); Clean Water Act § 104(a)(l)-(2); Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) §§
1442(a)(1); Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) § 8001(a)(1); Federal Insecticide,
Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) §§ 17(d), 20(a); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
§ 10(a); Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA) § 203(a)(1); U.S.-Mexico-
Canada Agreement (USMCA) Implementation Act, 19 U.S.C. §§ 4501-4372.
222
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IT/ Data Management/ Security
223
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Information Security
Program Area: IT / Data Management / Security
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S.S'./.SW
s'j.n:
S2.W
si-/, "yi
Hazardous Substance SupeiTund
SI,494
$1,062
$6,012
$4,950
Total Budget Authority
$9,682
$10,204
$29,949
$19,745
Total Workyears
10.3
14.1
17.1
3.0
Program Project Description:
Digital information is a valuable national resource and a strategic asset that enables EPA to fulfill
its mission to protect human health and the environment. The Information Security Program's
mission is to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of EPA's information assets. The
information protection strategy includes, but is not limited to, risk management, oversight, and
training; network management and protection; and incident management.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $14.6 million and 3.0 FTE to support enhancements to
protect the Agency's information technology (IT) portfolio. This investment will improve EPA's
IT resiliency and limit vulnerabilities in the event of a malicious attack. EPA will continue to work
toward full compliance with high priority directives (Adoption of Multifactor Authentication,
Encryption of Data At Rest, Encryption of Data In Transit, Cybersecurity Supply Chain Risk
Management, Zero Trust Architecture, and Event Logging) in Executive Order (EO) 14028:
Improving the Nation's Cybersecurity.186
1 Work in this program takes direction for IT implementation practices and priorities from the following:
EO 14028: Improving the Nation's Cybersecurity (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/05/12/executive-order-on-improving-the-nations-cybersecurity/).
OMB Memo M-19-26: Update to the Trusted Internet Connection (TIC) Initiative (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-
content/uploads/2019/09/M- 19-26.pdf).
OMB Memo M-21-30: Protecting Critical Software Through Enhanced Security Measures (https://whitehouse.gov/wp-
content/uploads/2021/08/M-2 l-30.pdf.
OMB Memo M-21-31: Improving the Federal Government's Investigative and Remediation Capabilities Related to
Cybersecurity Incidents (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/M-21-31-lmproving-the-Federal-
Governments-lnvestigative-and-Remediation-C-apabilities-Related-to-C.ybersecurity-Incidents.pdf).
OMB Memo M-22-01: Improving Detection of Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities and Incidents on Federal Government
Systems through Endpoint Detection and Response (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/M-22-
Ol.pdf).
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Improving the Defense and Resilience of Government Networks
Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA)
A key priority for EPA's information security will be implementing zero trust capabilities
addressing gaps identified by the Agency to enable the development of networks which can resist
malevolent actions regardless of their origin. ZTA will grant authorized users full access to the
tools and resources needed to perform their jobs but limit access to unnecessary areas. Proper
permissions for a given user's needs are a critical component of ZTA, and coding for more granular
control over the network environment is an information security priority. The Agency also will
focus addressing the need to ensure all devices in EPA's environment are compliant with
information security requirements prior to accessing network resources. EPA will continue efforts
to elevate awareness of and harden isolated environments with enhanced security measures by
integrating those environments with continuous monitoring capabilities to improve visibility and
reduce risk.
EPA will continue to improve defense and resilience of government networks in accordance with
ZTA security principles, which focus on virtual identity management capabilities. These
improvements ensure agency staff can access necessary software applications while providing
resistance to malicious phishing campaigns and sophisticated online attacks. For those system
environments not integrated into the larger enterprise system (i.e., those that may not be compatible
with the enterprise-wide identity management capabilities), EPA will continue efforts to harden
those systems with continuous monitoring capabilities to reduce risk.
The Agency will continue to implement cybersecurity enhancements necessary to support a larger
remote workforce, which includes strengthening cloud security monitoring and access to sensitive
data, cyber incident response, and cloud platform management services. These enhancements
allow agency staff to securely use systems and services in the cloud while also improving
application performance associated with Trusted Internet Connections (TIC). The Agency also
will pilot enterprise web application control tools to protect web applications by preventing
malicious traffic from accessing the web application or agency data. The Agency will continue to
build its Insider Threat Program for the unclassified network to monitor Privileged Users and
Systems Administrators activity, as recommended by several cybersecurity assessments,187 and to
monitor and report on EPA networks and systems.
OMB Memo M-22-09: Moving the U.S. Government Toward Zero Trust Cybersecurity Principles
(https://www.whitehouse.zov/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/M-22-09.pdf).
OMB Memo M-22-16: Administration Cybersecurity Priorities for the FY 2024 Budget (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-
content/uploads/2022/07/M-22- 16.pdf.
OMB Memo M-23-03: Fiscal Year 2023 Guidance on Federal Information Security and Privacy Management
Requirements (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/M-23-03-FY23-FISMA-Guidance-2.pdf).
OMB Memo M-23-18: Administration Cybersecurity Priorities for the FY 2025 Budget
(https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/M-23-18-Administration-Cybersecurity-Priorities-for-the-FY-
2025-Budget-s.pdf).
NIST 800-53 (https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/SpecialPublications/NIST.SP.80Q-53r5.pdf).
187 These assessments include Annual Assessments and Classified briefings with the Department of Homeland Security and
EPA's Office of Homeland Security, as well as a 2017 OIG Report, available at:
https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2017-10/documents/ epaoig_20171030-18-p-0031.pdf.
225
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IT Modernization for Federal Cybersecurity by Design
EPA will continue to strengthen IT assets and develop resiliency against potential cybersecurity
threats. This work includes enhancing Multifactor Authentication to strengthen access controls to
data and evaluating areas which still may require implementation of encryption for Data at Rest
and Data in Transit to protect data. EPA has prioritized investments to protect the most sensitive
systems and information. Additionally, EPA will work with the Department of Homeland Security
and the Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) Program to ensure up-to-date technologies
are implemented.
Cyberattacks are rapidly increasing in volume and sophistication, impacting both IT and
operational technology systems. EPA's Agency IT Security and Privacy (AITSP) Program enables
agencywide implementation, management, and oversight of the Chief Information Officer's (CIO)
Information Security and Privacy Programs through continuous monitoring functions; one
objective includes the maturation of the Continuous Authorization to Operate (ATO). These
capabilities serve to identify and address security vulnerabilities and incidents quickly, ensuring
that EPA's information environment remains safe.
EPA will continue to support the ongoing implementation of capabilities for data labeling and data
loss prevention, which will improve security information and event management by collecting,
synthesizing, managing, and reporting cybersecurity events for systems across the Agency.
The Information Security Program supports EPA's Enterprise Security Operations Center (SOC),
which manages the Computer Security Incident Response Capability (CSIRC) processes to support
identification, response, alerting, and reporting of suspicious activity. EPA will continue maturing
the system logging capabilities in Event Logging (EL) Level 3 for Advanced Logging
requirements at all criticality levels, leveraging Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response
tools to streamline threat and vulnerability management, incident response, and security operations
automation. Additionally, EL 3 will utilize User Behavior Monitoring analytics to enable early
detection of malicious behavior. Through CSIRC, EPA will continue to collaborate with other
federal agencies and law enforcement entities, as needed, to support the Agency's mission.
The Agency's Security Operations Center will continue maturing End Point Detection and
Response capabilities with the CDM Program to support proactive detection of cybersecurity
incidents, active cyber threat hunting, containment and remediation, and incident response. EPA
will continue modernizing its network and system logging capabilities (on-premises systems and
connections hosted by third parties, such as Cloud Service Providers) for both investigation and
remediation purposes.
EPA leverages CDM capabilities to address the Agency's cybersecurity security gaps and
efficiently identify and respond to government-wide cybersecurity threats and incidents. In FY
2025, as part of the work with the Department of Homeland Security to support implementation
of current and future Phase CDM requirements, the CDM Program will continue closing remaining
gaps in asset management. Privileged access to EPA's network will continue to provide critical
security controls for the Agency's cloud applications. The CDM Program also will review interior
226
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EPA network boundary protection from interconnections to external networks and expand
endpoint detection and response capabilities. EPA also will continue to mature and promote
utilization of the CDM dashboard to rapidly identify and respond to potential threats in the
information technology environment. EPA will continue collaborating with DHS on enhancing
threat hunting capabilities. In line with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and DHS
direction, the CDM Program will implement priority capabilities as they are identified. In FY 2025,
EPA estimates a $15 million budget for the CDM Program.
Strengthening the Foundations of our Digitally-Enabled Future
Securing Infrastructure Investments
The Agency collects Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) metrics and
evaluates related processes, tools, and personnel to identify gaps and opportunities for
improvement.188 EPA's CIO, who also is the Senior Agency Official for Privacy (SAOP), in
coordination with the Chief Information Security Officer, will continue to monitor and report on
these metrics. EPA will:
Modernize and automate the methodology and workflow for collecting Federal
Information Registry data supporting the System of Record Notice Management process.
Continue implementing Ground Truth Testing to validate security and find weaknesses
through manual and automated penetration testing and red team exercises.
The Agency continues to work on refinements to improve the ability to track and report on critical
software used by the Agency in compliance with Federal Information System Reporting and OMB
direction. EPA includes cybersecurity and privacy components in senior leadership program
reviews. These reviews enhance CIO oversight by enabling better risk area determination and
targeted improvement to system and mission program managers. While EPA program and regional
offices maintain responsibility for improving their performance in specific cybersecurity
measures, EPA's senior leadership routinely reviews performance results and potential challenges
for achieving continuous improvement.
The Agency will be making investments in securing mission activities from risks posed by leading
edge technologies such as Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), Robotic Process Automation
(RPA) and Quantum Computing.189 These investments will help to ensure that agency personnel
can perform their business mission activities efficiently and securely with the implementation of
the necessary controls to allow use of leading-edge technologies within the environment and
prevent malicious actors from leveraging these technologies to disrupt business operations.
188 Including those found in Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 and Federal Information Security
Cybersecurity Act of 2015.
189 OMB Memo 23-02: Migrating to Post-Quantum Cryptography: https://www.whitehouse.gOv/wp-content/uploads/2022/l 1/M-
23-02-M-Memo-on-Migrating-to-Post-Ouantum-Cryptography.pdf.
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Human Capital
EPA will further enhance agency-specific role-based training to ensure personnel in key
cybersecurity roles have a comprehensive understanding of modern, secure IT and cybersecurity
requirements, with the skills, knowledge, and capabilities to effectively support EPA's
cybersecurity posture.
Technology Ecosystems
EPA will build on efforts to fully implement the Agency's Cybersecurity Supply Chain Risk
Management Controls to comply with the Government Accountability Office findings.190 This
work includes coordinating across the Agency with personnel from Information Technology,
Information Security, and Procurement to update the policy and obtain the necessary tools to
address these critical security requirements. EPA will continue to implement standards,
procedures, and criteria to harden and secure software development environments, and investigate
the addition of automated tools to secure the development environment.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM ALR) Implementation of advanced event logging requirements (EL3) across EPA networks.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
ELI
EL3
EL3
EL3
Tier
Actual
EL0
EL0
(PM DAR) Percentage of EPA data at rest in compliance with encryption requirements.
FY
2018
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
90
95
100
Percent
Actual
93
Numerator
110
Systems
Denominator
118
(PM PIT) Percentage of EPA data in transit in compliance with encryption requirements.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
90
98
100
Percent
Actual
98
Numerator
116
Systems
Denominator
118
190 Government Accountability Office Report on information and communications technology (ICT) Supply Chain: GAO-21-
164SU.
228
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FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
75
85
100
100
Percent
Actual
48
79
Numerator
223
321
Applications
Denominator
463
406
(PM ZTA) Percentage of "Zero Trust Architecture" pro.
ects completed on time.
FY
20IX
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
100
100
100
Actual
50
Percent
Numerator
1
Denominator
2
Projects
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$149.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$14,646.0 / +3.0 FTE) This program change supports enhancements to protect the
Agency's information technology infrastructure portfolio and advance the implementation
of EO 14028: Improving the Nation's Cybersecurity. This investment will increase EPA's
information technology resiliency and limit vulnerabilities in the event of a malicious
attack. This investment includes $625.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); Cybersecurity Act of 2015; Federal Information
Security Modernization Act (FISMA); Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA);
Government Management Reform Act (GMRA); Clinger-Cohen Act (CCA).
229
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IT / Data Management
Program Area: IT / Data Management / Security
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SV.\ fi.il
svi.s:/
.s ins. oni
S If I. 'SO
Science ik Technology
S3,489
$3,197
$3,346
$149
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$22,040
$19,764
$19,645
-$119
Total Budget Authority
$121,160
$114,782
$131,592
$16,810
Total Workyears
457.5
490.9
510.9
20.0
Total work years in FY 2025 include 175.0 FTE to support IT/Data Management working capital fund (WCF) services.
Program Project Description:
This program supports the maintenance of EPA's Information Technology (IT) and Information
Management (IT/IM) services that enable citizens, regulated facilities, states, and other entities to
interact with EPA electronically to access, analyze and understand, and share environmental data
on-demand. The Information Technology/Data Management (IT/DM) Program also provides
support to other IT development projects and essential technology to EPA staff, enabling them to
conduct their work effectively and efficiently in the context of federal IT requirements, including
the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA); Technology Business
Management (TBM); Capital Planning and Investment Control (CPIC); and the Open, Public,
Electronic, and Necessary Government Data Act.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, in accordance with Executive Order 14110191 on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy
Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence, EPA will encourage the use of AI in the federal
space, and do so with transparency, responsibility, safety, and ethical standards. The Agency will
maintain EPA's current AI Inventory and develop a compliance plan, strategy, and AI governance
committee. EPA forecasts that workforce demand for AI tools and training will increase and is
addressing this need through the development of training and pilot programs. Security and privacy
risks are of utmost importance and governance channels already exist which are constantly
evaluating risks associated with AI. EPA will be working to integrate AI into these existing
governance channels.
191 For more information, please see: https://www.federalregister.gOv/documents/2023/l 1/01/2023-24283/safe-secure-and-
trustworthy-development-and-use-of-artificial-intelligence.
230
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In FY 2025, in line with OMB Memoranda M-23-15 Measuring, Monitoring, and Improving
Organizational Health and Organizational Performance in the Context of Evolving Agency Work
Environments, EPA will make investments in IT infrastructure to support meaningful, in-person
work across the Agency. Investments include modernizing and enhancing available tools to ensure
the workforce has the proper technology to operate as effectively as possible in a modern capacity
to implement the Agency's mission. Additionally, resources will be utilized to provide a high-
quality service delivery experience for the public.
Additionally, EPA requests $6.2 million in FY 2025 for the maintenance and modernization of the
Agency's enterprise network switch infrastructure. This funding ensures critical infrastructure is
replaced when it reaches end of life/end of support. Failure to replace switch infrastructure may
result in network degradation, which leaves EPA vulnerable to cybersecurity threats, and can
disrupt operations.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue implementation of its agencywide Digitization Strategy, which
includes the operation of two EPA digitization centers and the operation of the Agency Records
Management System (ARMS), which is necessary to meet the requirements of Memoranda M-19-
21 Transition to Electronic Records issued by the Office of Management and Budget and the
National Archives and Records Administration.192 In FY 2025, EPA will digitize, validate, and
upload electronic files into the ARMS. Additionally, EPA will leverage artificial intelligence and
machine learning to assist staff with appropriately scheduling electronic records that are saved to
ARMS. The Agency will operate the Paper Asset Tracking Tool (PATT) to track paper records as
they are submitted and processed through the digitization centers.
The Agency also will continue implementing the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act
(P.L. 115-336), which includes modernization of internal and public-facing websites and digital
services, as well as digitization of paper forms and non-digital services. EPA will continue
digitizing the Agency's public-facing paper forms in compliance with the 21st Century Integrated
Digital Experience Act and based on the completed inventory of the Agency's forms.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to maintain and manage its core IT/DM services, including
Information Collection Requests, the National Library Network, the Agency's Docket Center, and
EPA's Section 508 Program, which directly supports the requirements under Executive Order (EO)
14035: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce ,193
Key initiatives include:
Further strengthening the Agency's IT acquisition and portfolio review process as part of
the implementation of FITARA. In the most recent FITARA scorecard, released in
September 2023,194 EPA scored an overall B. EPA will continue to use the results of the
FITARA scorecard to drive agency priorities and investments.
192 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/M-19-21-new-2.pdf.
193 For more information, please refer to Executive Order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/06/25/executive-order-on-diversity-equity-inclusion-and-accessibility-in-the-federal-workforce/.
194 For additional information, please refer to: fattps://fitara.nieritalk.com/.
231
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Continuing work to convert internal administrative paper or analog workflows into modern
digital workflows to speed up routine administrative tasks, reduce burdensome paperwork
for EPA employees and managers, improve internal data collection and reporting, and
improve cross-agency data interoperability and delivery to the public. In FY 2025,
application development work will continue to automate processes identified in the Agency
high priority list.
Continuing to implement EPA's Controlled Unclassified Information Program to
standardize, simplify, and improve information management and IT practices to facilitate
the sharing of important sensitive data within the Agency, with key stakeholders outside of
the Agency, and with the public, meeting federal standards as required by Executive Order
13556: Controlled Unclassified Information.195
Increasing the use of registries, continue migration to a cloud infrastructure, and improve
registry quality by modernizing from custom built solutions to commercial off-the-shelf
tools with expanded capabilities. Registries are shared data services in which common data
are managed centrally but shared broadly; they improve data quality in EPA systems,
enable integration and interoperability of data across program silos, and facilitate discovery
of EPA information publicly and internally.
EPA's Customer Experience (CX) Program will focus on improving the mission support
experience of EPA staff to improve their ability to serve the public, in line with the guidance in
Executive Order 14058.196 The Program focuses on collaborations such as the Hiring and
Onboarding process, which collects feedback from IT professionals, hiring managers, regions,
programs, and other stakeholders to improve the experience for hiring authorities and new
employees at EPA. The CX Program collects customer feedback, conducts data analytics, assesses
priorities within a governing community of practice, and presents recommendations to senior
leaders to allocate resources to improve CX initiatives.
In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to support the essential capabilities of GeoPlatform, a shared
technology enterprise for geospatial information and analysis. By implementing geospatial data,
applications, and services such as the Facility Registry System, the Agency can integrate, interpret,
and visualize multiple data sets and information sources to support environmental decisions. The
Agency will continue developing and increasing capabilities of EPA's Data Management and
Analytics Platform, which has both internal and public facing elements, such as Envirofacts. EPA
will partner with other agencies, states, tribes, and academic institutions to propose innovative
ways to use, analyze, and visualize data through EPA's Data Management and Analytics Platform.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue implementation of a governance framework for enterprise data life
cycle approach for managing regulated facility data.
In FY 2025, Web Infrastructure Management will continue to modernize EPA's web presence to
support internal and external users with information on EPA business, support employees with
internal information, and provide a clearinghouse for the Agency to communicate initiatives and
195 For more information, please refer to Executive Order: https://www.federalregister.gOv/documents/2010/l 1/09/2010-
28360/controlled-unclassified-information.
196 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federa1register.gov/documents/2021/12/16/2021-27380/transfonning-
federal-customer-experience-and-service-delivery-to-rebuild-trust-in-govemment.
232
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successes. EPA also will continue to upgrade its web infrastructure to ensure that it meets current
statutory and evolving security requirements.
The EPA Chief Data Officer (CDO), with support from the Agency's Data Governance Council
(DGC) will continue to develop enterprise scale data governance, including data policies,
procedures, and standards to ensure all priority data assets are fully available. Additionally, they
will promote data management that emphasizes equitability and FAIR (Findable, Accessible,
Interoperable, and Reusable) data principles. EPA's enterprise data governance implementation
plans depend on coordination across the Agency's program offices and regions. Currently, EPA
relies on a network of data managers and stewards across the Agency to implement governance.
To facilitate effective communication between the DGC and responsible parties, as well as to
ensure development and implementation of the most effective data policies, procedures, and
standards, EPA has established a data officer position in each EPA program office and region.
These data officers fulfill essential communication and coordination functions and serve as
anchors for building a stronger culture of utilizing data to build evidence and support decision
making across EPA.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM GOP A) Number of priority internal administrative processes automated.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
1
1
3
Processes
Actual
1
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$695.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$6,200.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase to provide funding for the
enterprise network switch infrastructure necessary for the operations of the EPA network
including data centers. This funding ensures critical infrastructure is replaced when it
reaches end of life/end of support. Failure to replace switch infrastructure may result in
network degradation, leave EPA vulnerable to cybersecurity threats, and disrupt EPA
operations.
(+$3,878.0 / +16.0 FTE) This program change supports critical agencywide
implementation of Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements; Executive
Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements; electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation
support; and implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0. This investment includes $3.0 million
for payroll.
(+$4,000.0) This program change is an increase to provide the necessary support for a
modern workforce and will require the integration of facilities and infrastructure, human
233
-------
resources, and information technology programs to successfully re-envision the federal
work environment.
(+$2,007.0 / +4.0 FTE) This change is to implement Executive Order on Artificial
Intelligence. Activities including establishing a compliance plan, establishing an AI
governance committee, and implementing pilot programs to encourage the use of AI in a
secure and productive manner. This investment includes $751.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); Federal Information Technology Acquisition
Reform Act; Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA); Government
Performance and Results Act (GPRA); Government Management Reform Act (GMRA); Clinger-
Cohen Act (CCA); Rehabilitation Act of 1973 § 508; Foundations for Evidence-Based Policy
Making Act of 2018; Geospatial Data Act of 2018.
234
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Legal/ Science/ Regulatory/ Economic Review
235
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Administrative Law
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 5.22 J
Y\.W
Vi./'/i
smi
Total Budget Authority
S5,i95
S6,195
S800
Total Workyears
19.3
25.8
25.8
0.0
Program Project Description:
This program supports EPA's Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) and the Environmental Appeals
Board (EAB).
Administrative Law Judges
The ALJs preside in hearings and issue initial decisions in cases initiated by EPA's enforcement
program concerning environmental, civil rights, and government program fraud related violations.
Additionally, pursuant to an interagency agreement providing for reimbursement of services, the
ALJs also adjudicate enforcement actions brought by National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), primarily under statutes protecting marine mammals and endangered
species over which EPA and NOAA share jurisdiction, such as the Marine Protection, Research,
and Sanctuaries Act and Endangered Species Act. The Fifth Amendment of the Constitution of the
United States of America guarantees the regulated community the right to due process of the law.
The ALJs issue orders and decisions under the authority of the Administrative Procedure Act
(APA) and the various environmental, civil rights, and anti-fraud statutes that establish
administrative enforcement authority and implement the Constitution's guarantee of due process.
The ALJs preside in hearings in cases initiated at EPA Headquarters and in each of EPA's 10
regional offices. The ALJs also offer an opportunity for alternative dispute resolution to
completely resolve disputed issues or narrow the issues to be decided after a hearing, which may
further reduce costs. Parties participating before the ALJs include local and national community
groups, private parties, and federal, state, and local governments.
The ALJs promote public participation in the administrative hearing process through remote
hearings and prehearing conferences. They maintain an extensive, publicly accessible website,
containing all initial decisions and case filings.197 Additionally, to promote access to justice,
participants in cases pending before the ALJs may file documents electronically and are not
required to pay a filing fee or be represented by counsel. The ALJs maintain a "Citizen's Guide"
on its public website, which contains downloadable templates of common pleadings filed in
197 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gOv/alj#colorbox-hidden2
236
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proceedings before the ALJs. Together with the recently published "Practice Manual: A Guide to
Frequently Asked Practice Questions," the Citizen's Guide serves as an informal explanatory aid
to proceedings before the ALJs for parties unfamiliar with the administrative hearing processes.
The right of affected persons to appeal ALJ initial decisions is conferred by various statutes,
regulations, and constitutional due process rights. A small subset of the initial decisions issued by
the ALJs are appealed to the Environmental Appeals Board (EAB).
Environmental Appeals Board
The Environmental Appeals Board is a four-member appellate tribunal established by regulation
in 1992 to hear appeals and issue decisions in environmental adjudications under all major
environmental statutes that EPA administers. The EAB furthers the Agency's mission to advance
environmental justice (EJ) and address climate-related issues by ensuring the integrity of federal
decision-making and fairness in its adjudication of administrative appeals.
Since the 1994 Executive Order on Environmental Justice198 was issued, the EAB has played a
pioneering role in ensuring that the Agency meets its obligation with respect to EJ and, for
example, in the context of permitting, has remanded several permit cases where the record did not
support a finding that the permit authority reasonably considered the contested EJ issues in their
permit decision making process.
To promote access to justice, parties appearing before the EAB are not required to be represented
by counsel or pay a filing fee. Additionally, the EAB promotes public participation in the appeals
process through remote oral arguments and maintaining an extensive website, accessible to the
public, containing all final EAB decisions and case filings. Among others, parties participating
before the EAB include local and national community groups, tribal nations, private parties, and
state and local governments. The EAB also recently published a "Guide to the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's Environmental Appeals Board," which provides general information about
the Board including how to participate in the administrative appeal process.
The EAB also decides petitions for reimbursement under the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) Section 106(b); hears appeals of pesticide
licensing and cancellation proceedings under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide
Act (FIFRA); and serves as the final approving body for proposed settlements of enforcement
actions initiated at EPA. The EAB issues decisions in a fair and timely manner consistent with the
APA and the applicable environmental statutes, and under the authority delegated by the
Administrator and pursuant to regulation, ensuring consistency in the application of legal
requirements. In approximately 90 percent of matters decided by the EAB, no further appeal is
taken to federal court, providing a final resolution to the dispute. The EAB also offers an
opportunity for alternative dispute resolution.
198 Executive Order 12898 - Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income
Populations, https://www.archives.gov/files/federal-register/executive-orders/pdf/12898.pdf.
237
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the ALJs will continue to convene formal hearings either remotely or in the location
of the alleged violator or violation, as required by statute. As the Agency continues its focus on
reviewing FIFRA registrations and making determinations on certain claims against the Superfund
under CERCLA into FY 2025, the ALJs will support adjudication of these time-sensitive matters.
In FY 2025, the EAB will continue to efficiently and fairly adjudicate permit and enforcement
appeals under all statutes as well as petitions for reimbursement under CERCLA, and expediting
appeals such as Clean Air Act New Source Review cases and FIFRA licensing proceedings that
are particularly time sensitive. The EAB anticipates addressing a potential increase in
Underground Injection Control permits under the Safe Drinking Water Act related to carbon
sequestration projects. In FY 2025, the EAB will support the implementation of the American
Innovation and Manufacturing Act (AIM Act) of 2020, specifically administrative enforcement of
its provisions concerning hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are designed to phase down the
production and consumption of listed HFCs, manage these HFCs, and facilitate transition to next
generation technologies.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$726.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation
of base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$74.0) This program change is an increase to support programmatic investments relating
to advancing environmental justice through the Administrative Law Program.
Statutory Authority:
Administrative Procedure Act (APA); Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as
amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485 (codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute);
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA); Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); Clean Water Act (CWA); Clean Air Act
(CAA); Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA); Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA); Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA); Emergency
Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA); Marine Protection, Research, and
Sanctuaries Act (MPRSA); Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery Management Act
(MCRBMA); the Act to Prevent Pollution From Ships (APPS).
238
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Alternative Dispute Resolution
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Goal: Enforce Environmental Laws and Ensure Compliance
Objective(s): Hold Environmental Violators and Responsible Parties Accountable
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SH45
SO'2
s:.s:o
S/..SV.S'
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$758
$791
$1,841
$1,050
Total Budget Authority
$1,602
$1,763
$4,661
$2,898
Total Workyears
4.7
5.9
14.0
8.1
Program Project Description:
EPA's Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Program offers cost-effective processes for
preventing and resolving conflicts on environmental matters and some workplace conflicts as an
alternative to litigation and to support collaboration. The Program provides facilitation, mediation,
public involvement, training, and consensus building advice and support for the entire Agency.
The Program's ADR services especially support the meaningful engagement of EPA programs
with communities and other stakeholders, including states and tribes, by helping to develop
collaborative and effective partnerships.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 3/Objective 3.1, Hold Environmental Violators and
Responsible Parties Accountable in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $1.8 million and 5.7 FTE for the ADR Program. EPA will
continue to provide conflict prevention and ADR services to all EPA programs and external
stakeholders on environmental matters. EPA expects the need for these services to increase in FY
2025 in support of achieving the Agency's environmental justice (EJ) and equity goals. This
program will continue to support implementation of Executive Order (EO) 13985: Advancing
Racial Equity and Support for Under served Communities Through the Federal Government.199
This investment also will be used to build capacity to improve oversight and enforcement of civil
rights compliance and to prioritize and advance EJ concerns.
Specifically, the ADR Program will:
Administer its five-year Environmental Collaboration and Conflict Resolution (ECCR)
Services contract, which will be awarded in Spring 2024 and is expected to have an $85
199 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefiiig-room/presidential-actioiis/2021/01/20/executive-
order-advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment/.
239
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million capacity. The ADR Program provides most of its conflict prevention and resolution
services to the Agency through this contract. The contract supports facilitation and
mediation services for more than 150 active projects involving stakeholders across the
Agency and is expected to take on an additional 30 to 40 projects in FY 2025. The ADR
Program expects continued growth in the areas of EJ, climate change, and Title VI civil
rights cases. Contract support contributes to more productive engagement between EPA
programs and communities, especially underserved and overburdened communities.
Provide facilitation, mediation, and training services through the conflict resolution
specialists on staff and the Regional ECCR specialists, who perform environmental ADR
work as collateral duty with support from the ADR Program. The ADR Program expects
to provide support through conflict resolution specialists and ECCR specialists for agency
programs and stakeholders by providing facilitation, mediation, or other consensus
building support on 30 to 40 projects in FY 2025, including up to 10 Title VI civil rights
cases. The ADR Program provides facilitation services to resolve Title VI civil rights
complaints as part of the Informal Resolution Agreement process and the demand for
facilitation services to resolve complaints continues to grow. As with contract support,
direct staff support promotes greater collaboration among EPA and its stakeholders, as well
as greater inclusion of overburdened and underserved communities.
Provide training to EPA staff in conflict resolution concepts and skills. The ADR Program
offers this training through eight interactively designed courses to all national program
offices and regions. The ADR Program created virtual versions of its trainings during
COVID, which has expanded its reach throughout the Agency. In FY 2023, the ADR
Program and ECCR specialists delivered 17 trainings to more than 900 EPA employees.
The ADR Program expects a continued increase in training requests in FY 2025. Trainings
include the building of skills such as working across cultural divides and supporting
productive dialogue, which help EPA programs better engage with communities.
Help to achieve the goals of President Biden's Justice40 initiative by tracking the number
of ADR projects in which services are provided to underserved and overburdened
communities. From January to December 2023, the ADR Program initiated 22 new projects
that provide conflict prevention or ADR services to benefit underserved and overburdened
communities, and the Program expects to increase services in FY 2025.
The following are examples of FY 2023 accomplishments:
Successfully managed a $53 million Conflict Prevention and Resolution Services contract
and administered 410 contract actions valued at slightly over $50 million in the first four
years. Through contract support, the ADR Program provided conflict resolution services
for multiple projects and in dozens of communities to promote greater collaboration and
inclusion of underserved and overburdened communities.
Supported 106 environmental collaboration and conflict resolution cases nationwide,
including a community-led cumulative environmental health impact assessment in
Michigan, as well as training support for Community Lead Awareness Sessions in
underserved communities and on tribal lands. To support these projects, the ADR Program
provided design and facilitation support to gather public input on controversial issues,
supported community outreach efforts by facilitating listening sessions, and helped key
stakeholders to reach agreement.
240
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Provided facilitation services for eight Title VI civil rights cases to support the inclusion
of all parties in the development of Informal Resolution Agreements between EPA and
recipients of Title VI complaints.
Trained more than 600 EPA personnel in conflict resolution skills through 14 courses and
supported additional conflict resolution trainings, led by Regional ECCR
Specialists, for 300 EPA staff and managers.
Performance Measures Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$26.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of base
workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$1,796.0 / +5.6 FTE) This program change is an increase for the use of alternative
dispute resolution processes, such as mediation and facilitation, to promote equity by
including underserved communities in negotiations. This investment includes $1.1 million
for payroll.
(+$26.0 / +0.1 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes
$19.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Administrative Dispute Resolution Act (ADRA) of 1996; Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1996;
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
241
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Civil Rights Program
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Goal: Take Decisive Action to Advance Environmental Justice and Civil Rights
Objective(s): Strengthen Civil Rights Enforcement in Communities with Environmental Justice
Concerns, Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S UU4U
S12.M0
.S 32.22-
S IVJfil
Total Budget Authority
$10,146
$12,866
$32,227
$19,361
Total Workyears
52.9
66.4
145.6
79.2
Program Project Description:
EPA has long held and elevated three fundamental principles: to follow the science, follow the
law, and be transparent. In 2022, EPA also added a fourth foundational principle: advance justice
and equity. By so doing, EPA solidified its recognition that it was time to infuse the consistent and
systematic, fair, just, and impartial treatment of all individuals into all EPA policies, practices, and
programs. These principles form the basis of the Agency's culture and guide its operations and
decision making - whether with respect to the public and communities, or EPA's workforce.
EPA's Civil Rights Program enhances efforts to meet regulatory responsibilities under Title VI
and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended among other applicable civil rights statutes
and regulations, including 40 C.F.R. Parts 5 and 7, 29 C.F.R. § 1614.102(c)200 and U.S. Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Management Directive 110,201 which require
federal agencies to fully fund its civil rights program. The Civil Rights Program enforces federal
civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination against EPA employees and applicants for
employment and by applicants for and recipients of EPA federal financial assistance.
EPA is committed to strengthening external civil rights enforcement to address health and
environmental disparities, eliminate discriminatory barriers to clean air, water, and land, and
ensure the protection of human health and the environment for all persons in the United States.
There are two offices within the Agency's civil rights program, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR)
and the Office of External Civil Rights Compliance (OECRC). OCR has responsibility for the
internal enforcement of several civil rights laws related to equal employment opportunity (EEO),
and OECRC carries out the external enforcement of several civil rights laws that prohibit
discrimination in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance from EPA.
Together, both offices comprise EPA's civil rights program and its foundational commitment to
the advancement of justice, equality, and equity.
200 For more information, please see: https://www.ecfr.gov/curTent/title-29/subtitle-B/chapter-XIV/part-1614/subpart-A/section-
1.61.4.1.02.
201 For more information, please see: https://www.eeoc.gov/federal-sector/management-directive/management-directive-l 1.0.
242
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EPA's Civil Rights Program provides leadership, direction, and guidance in carrying out the
Agency's civil rights mission to all EPA employees, applicants, and recipients of federal financial
assistance in carrying out civil rights responsibilities. The Program provides counseling and
investigates discrimination complaints filed against EPA and EPA federal financial assistance
recipients. The Program identifies triggers and eliminates barriers to EEO and environmental
justice.
In addition, the Program promotes alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to resolve
discrimination complaints. The Program develops policy to clarify recipients' legal obligations. It
conducts training and accountability visits (TAVs) of EPA offices to encourage compliance with
civil rights laws and EPA policy against discrimination. It also conducts pre-award reviews and
affirmative post-award compliance reviews and audits of recipients of federal financial assistance.
EPA also provides technical assistance to recipients and enhances communication and engagement
with environmentally overburdened and disadvantaged communities. The Program also processes
accommodation requests due to disability that are made by employees and applicants and issues
final agency decisions in employment discrimination complaints.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 2/Objective 2.3, Strengthen Civil Rights Enforcement
in Communities with Environmental Justice Concerns in the FY2022- 2026 EPA Strategic Plan 202
Work in this program also directly supports progress toward the FY 2024-2025 Agency Priority
Goal: Implement guidance, tools, and metrics for EPA and its Tribal, state, local, and community
partners to advance environmental justice and external civil rights compliance. By September 30,
2025, advance cumulative impacts practice across agency programs, finalize, and deploy external
civil rights guidance, and apply at least 10 indicators to drive disparity reductions in environmental
and public health conditions. As highlighted in the strategic plan and FY 2025 Annual Performance
Plan, EPA must enforce applicable civil rights laws in the same manner as environmental statutes.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an additional $19.3 million and 79.2 FTE to strengthen its Civil
Rights Program. This investment will increase capacity to enforce the Nation's external civil rights
laws, advance EEO at EPA, support Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements,
and enable agency wide implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
Strategic Plan as required by Executive Order 14035.203
Internal Civil Rights
In FY 2025, EPA must ensure progress in affirmative employment as mandated by the EEOC with
the goal of making EPA a model EEO employer. EPA must meet statutory and regulatory
requirements to address potential barriers to employment and advancement and deliver training
and services to EPA employees. EPA endeavors to assess organizational EEO efforts through
listening sessions and during TAVs with program and regional offices. EPA typically has more
requests for these interactive TAVs than time and resources to support them all in a year.
202 It also provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across strategic goals and objectives in the FY
2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
203 For more information, please see: https://www.federa1register.gov/documents/2021/06/30/2021-14127/diversity-equity-
inclusion-and-accessibilitv-iii-the-federal-workforce.
243
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With the two additional FTE requested, EPA will address the increasing number of reasonable
accommodation requests204, more complex EEO complaints and Final Agency Decisions, and the
additional special projects that accompany the responsibilities of a model EEO program. EPA will
continue to prioritize its interagency agreements to ensure impartial investigations of EEO
complaints. Additionally, EPA will actively support and lead specific efforts and workgroups to
implement its DEIA Strategic Plan.
Employee Complaints and Resolution (ECR)
In FY 2025, the Internal Civil Rights Program will dedicate most of its resources to the processing
of discrimination complaints. It will market the benefits of the Alternative Dispute Resolution
(ADR) Program to address informal complaints. It also will continue to take proactive steps,
including educating through trainings, listening sessions, and community outreach. EPA is
expected to engage in the following activities:
Track and manage investigations, draft final agency decisions, and track compliance of
EEOC decisions within standard timelines set by the EEOC.
Evaluate the effectiveness of the revised procedures for processing final agency decisions.
Implement strategies for transparently communicating and addressing trends in formal
complaints at program and region offices.
Implement ADR training (for management and staff) to strengthen participants' knowledge
and to increase offers and participation in the ADR process.
Implement a communications campaign to educate the workforce on the benefits of ADR.
Conduct at least four region and program office TAVs.
Recruit and provide training, from the EEOC, to new collateral duty EEO Counselors.
Update and maintain the EEO Case Management database to effectively track EEO
complaints, ensure timeliness, and the ability to produce annual required reports to the
EEOC, Congress, OPM, and the Department of Justice.
Affirmative Employment, Analysis, and Accountability (AEAA)
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to focus on identifying and eliminating barriers to employment
and advancement at the Agency. EPA dedicates a significant amount of labor to assembling and
analyzing data and statistics for the Management Directive 715 Report (MD-715), EPA's annual
report to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The MD-715 highlights EPA's efforts to establish and maintain a model civil rights program,
identifies EEO priorities, and drives the State of the EEO briefing to the Administrator each year.
This effort will include guiding every region and program office through the collection of
enhanced data and investigating workforce data triggers. In FY 2025, EPA expects to engage in
the following activities:
204 On December 26, 2023, the EEOC sent out an email and attachment seeking to address concerns from the community about
return to office and the increase in reasonable accommodation requests.
244
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Analyze, complete, close and/or monitor, as appropriate, two other Barrier Analysis efforts:
"Upward Mobility of Hispanic Employees into the Senior Executive Service (SES)" and
"Upward Mobility of Employees into the Senior Executive Service (SES) based on the
EEO Categories of Race and Sex."
Continue to implement recommendations resulting from the EPA MD-715 priority
regarding the collection of applicant flow data for Career Development Opportunities.205
Evaluate the underrepresentation of EEO groups from MD-715 reports.
Monitor and assist the Administrator's Office and regional and program offices with
implementation of their workforce EEO Actions Plans.
Manage EPA's ten Special Emphasis Programs.206
Provide the National Special Emphasis Program Managers additional subject matter
training.
Recruit new collateral duty Special Emphasis Program Managers and train all Special
Emphasis Program Managers.
Collaborate in the planning of EPA's National Commemorative Programs.
Conduct at least four region and program office TAVs.
Provide effective training and tools for managers to report and carry out their
responsibilities under the MD-715.
National Reasonable Accommodations Program (NRAP)
In FY 2025, EPA will work to enhance the effectiveness of services through training, policy
development, and improving the support functions of the Local Reasonable Accommodation
Coordinators (LORACs). EPA expects to hire an Assistant Director for the National Reasonable
Accommodation Program to lead the National Reasonable Accommodation Coordinators
(NRACs) and LORACs. The Agency has a legal obligation to provide an effective accommodation
for employees and applicants with disabilities absent an undue hardship. In FY 2025, EPA expects
to engage in the following activities:
Receive, track, advise on response, and monitor requests for, and the delivery of reasonable
accommodations for all national program offices and oversee similar actions in every
region, including applicants to the EPA.
Evaluate the effectiveness of revised procedures for providing Personal Assistant Services.
Support the Agency's efforts to improve accessibility for persons with disabilities.
Evaluate the Reasonable Accommodations Management System (RAMS) and
upgrade/enhance features as necessary.
Conduct recertification training for LORACs.
Conduct at least four region and program office TAVs.
To be an effective internal civil rights program, it must be trusted by all EPA employees for its
impartiality and transparency.
205 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/EPA%20FY%202022%20MD-
71.5%20Report%20FINAL.pdf.
206 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gOv/ocr/affirmative-employment-analysis-and-accouatability#special.
245
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External Civil Rights
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $17.6 million and 76.5 FTE to enforce the Nation's
external civil rights laws through EPA's Headquarters program as well as the regional offices. This
investment will provide essential program support to investigate and resolve critical civil rights
complaints, initiate affirmative compliance reviews, and work toward achieving measurable
environmental, public health, and quality of life improvements in the most overburdened,
vulnerable, and underserved communities.
EPA will continue to elevate environmental justice and external civil rights within the Agency and
integrate environmental justice considerations and full compliance with civil rights obligations
across all of EPA's policies, programs, and activities. EPA also will continue to advance its
commitment to bring justice to frontline communities that experience the worst impacts of
environmental pollution.
Through the continued implementation of Goal 2 of EPA's FY 2022 - 2026 Strategic Plan: "Take
Decisive Action to Advance Environmental Justice and Civil Rights." EPA will promote further
the integration of environmental justice and external civil rights throughout EPA and carry out the
objectives, sub-objectives, and annual and long-term goals articulated in Strategic Plan Goal 2. In
particular, EPA's request includes critical FTE for external civil rights compliance activities in the
regional offices, including participation in pre-award reviews and post-award complaint and
compliance review investigations and resolutions.
Specifically, with respect to external civil rights, in FY 2025, EPA will:
Continue its shift to proactive activities, by initiating proactive pre-award and post-award
civil rights compliance reviews to address the impacts of potentially discriminatory
activities on overburdened communities.
Fully implement its authority to address actions, policies, and practices by recipients of
EPA funding that subject overburdened and disadvantaged communities to discrimination.
Continue to develop and implement clear and strong civil rights guidance and
corresponding training and technical assistance to increase recipients' compliance with
civil rights laws.
Conduct timely and effective civil rights complaint investigations and resolutions -
including investigations and informal resolution agreements that effectively address
discriminatory practices.
Continue to update and refine the Case Resolution Manual.to ensure it provides civil rights
staff with current and strategic tools and procedures for timely and effective investigation
and resolution of cases.
Fully implement the EPA Limited English Proficiency policy and procedures and Order,
revised in FY 2023, and develop and finalize an EPA Order to ensure meaningful access
for persons with disabilities to EPA programs services and activities.
Enhance communication and engagement with environmentally overburdened
communities to meaningfully inform EPA's civil rights complaint resolution work and to
empower and increase their participation in critical decision making.
246
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Increase transparency by continuing to affirmatively provide information and case-related
documents to the public through the interactive "Complaint Docket" online.207
Strengthen federal interagency collaboration and coordination on complaints, compliance
reviews, and policy guidance to enforce federal civil rights laws.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM EJCR06) Percentage of required civil rights procedural safeguard elements implemented by state
permitting agencies that are recipients of EPA financial assistance. i
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
20
40
70
90
Percent
Actual
33
58
Numerator
138
236
Elements
Denominator
408
408
(PM EJCR13) Percentage of EPA national programs and regions that have established environmental justice
and external civil rights implementation plans.
FY
20IS
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
100
100
100
Percent
Actual
100
Numerator
17
Regions
and
Programs
Denominator
17
(PM EJCR14) Percentage of EPA programs and regions that have implemented program and region-specific
language assistance plans.
FY
20IS
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
'0
35
60
80
Percent
Actual
(i
5
Numerator
(i
1
Programs
and
Regions
Denominator
:3
19
(PM EJCR15) Percentage of EPA programs and regions that have implemented program and region-specific
FY
20IS
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
No Target
Established
10
25
Percent
Actual
0
Numerator
0
Programs
and
Regions
Denominator
19
207 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/extemal-civil-rights/extemal-civil-rights-docket-2014-present.
247
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(PM EJCR16) Number of proactive post-award civil rights compliance reviews initiated to address
discrimination issues in environmentally overburdened and underserved communities.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
3
6
4
10
Compliance
Reviews
Actual
1
1
0
1
0
(PM EJCR17) Number of audits completed to ensure EPA financial assistance recipients are complying with
federal civil rights laws.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
:5
30
30
60
Audits
Actual
0
u
1
(PM EJCR18) Number of information sharing sessions and outreach and technical assistance events held
with overburdened and underserved communities and environmental justice advocacy groups on civil rights
and environmental justice issues.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
8
90
650
1,100
Sessions
and Events
Actual
40
30
235
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$1,162.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This increase includes
critical agency wide infrastructure support for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity
requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of
Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$17,625.0 / +76.5 FTE) This program change increases staffing and capacity to enforce
the Nation's external civil rights laws and to work toward the goal of achieving measurable
environmental, public health, and quality of life improvements in the most overburdened,
vulnerable, and underserved communities; supports activities including investigations into
claims of discrimination by underserved communities and pre-award reviews and post-
award compliance reviews and audits This investment includes $14.6 million for payroll.
(+$434.0 / +2.0 FTE) This program increase supports the Office of Civil Rights' internal
civil rights program to advance EEO at EPA. This investment includes $382.0 thousand
for payroll.
(+$140.0 / +0.7 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes
$133.0 thousand for payroll.
248
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Statutory Authority:
Equal Pay Act of 1963; Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
of 1964; Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967; Title IX of the Educational
Amendments of 1972; Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 § 13;
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 §§ 501, 504, 505, 508; Rehabilitation Act of 1973 § 504; Age
Discrimination Act of 1975; Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; ADA Amendments Act of
2008; and Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) of 2008; and Pregnant Workers
Fairness Act (2022).
249
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Integrated Environmental Strategies
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Goal: Tackle the Climate Crisis
Objective(s): Accelerate Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Change Impacts
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SV, 1)2
S 11.2 V
S 40.1V
S2S.VOO
Total Budget Authority
$9,702
$11,297
$40,197
$28,900
Total Workyears
43.8
55.5
79.0
23.5
Program Project Description:
The Integrated Environmental Strategies (IES) Program advances the Agency's mission of
protecting human health and the environment by focusing on cross-media environmental concerns.
The IES Program provides tools, training, advice, and resources to help EPA work as a more
effective organization. Nationally, IES is focused on: 1) partnering with states, territories, tribes,
local governments, businesses, other federal agencies, and others to adapt to and increase the
resilience of the Nation to the impacts of climate change, with a particular focus on advancing
climate justice; 2) providing for the development of efficient, accurate, and timely reviews for
permitting and approval processes that support automation, oversight, and integration of
environmental justice (EJ) and climate change in environmental permitting; 3) working with
industrial sectors to identify and develop innovative approaches to better protect the environment
and public health; 4) collaborating with partners, including federal, state, tribes, municipalities,
communities, businesses, and other stakeholders, to implement locally-led, community-driven
approaches to environmental protection through technical assistance, policy analysis, and training;
and 5) helping "energy communities" facing economic impacts from mine and power plant
closures with strategic planning, technical assistance and project implementation, and the
leveraging of private sector funding and federal resource matching for energy transformation and
economic diversification.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 1/Objective 1.2, Accelerate Resilience and
Adaptation to Climate Change Impacts in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests a total investment of $40.2 million and 79.0 FTE for the IES Program.
Within this amount, $19.3 million and 14.5 FTE are needed to accelerate the Agency's work in
the Climate Adaptation Program; $3.0 million and 6.0 FTE are needed to advance the coordination,
streamlining, oversight, automation, and integration of EJ and climate change into environmental
permitting; and $5 million dollars and 3.0 FTE are needed to enhance the Agency's assistance to
energy communities to transition from coal to green energy. The remaining resources will be used
to support core program work (including sectors and communities) and Administration priorities
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focused on achieving the goals of the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. The Program will
continue to focus on the five aforementioned major areas, each presenting unique opportunities to
improve delivery of environmental protection across multiple media and stakeholders.
Climate Adaptation Program
The impacts of climate change affect people in every region of the country, threatening lives and
livelihoods and damaging infrastructure, ecosystems, and social systems in communities across
the Nation. Climate change also challenges EPA's ability to accomplish its mission to protect
human health and the environment. The Climate Adaptation Program is taking action to ensure
that EPA continues to fulfill its mission even as the climate changes and is working with other
federal agencies to increase the resilience of the Nation.
The Program recognizes that certain parts of the population, such as communities of color, low-
income communities, children, the elderly, tribes and indigenous people, and small rural
communities, are often especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. To that end, the
Program will focus on engaging the most overburdened and vulnerable groups of people and
communities to improve their capacity to anticipate, prepare for, and adapt to or recover from
climate change impacts.
The Climate Adaptation Program's overarching goals and expected accomplishments are 1)
ensuring EPA continues to fulfill its mission of protecting human health and the environment even
as the climate changes and disruptive impacts increase; 2) meeting (or exceeding) the Long-Term
Performance Goals in Objective 1.2 of the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan; and 3) ultimately
empowering communities across the Nation and all 574 tribes to adapt to the risks of climate
change, with a particular focus on advancing climate justice.
In FY 2025, EPA requests approximately $19.3 million and 14.5 FTE for its work in the Climate
Adaptation Program. With this investment, EPA will continue to provide targeted assistance to
states, tribes and indigenous peoples, territories, local governments, communities, and businesses
to bolster these groups' climate resilience efforts. The National Tribal Caucus's (NTC) Climate
Subgroup collaborates closely with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ensure
that the EPA's Climate Adaptation Program is attuned to the unique needs of Tribal communities.
In the year 2025, EPA, in conjunction with the NTC Climate Subgroup, will sustain the Tribal
Climate Town Hall listening sessions, enhance tribal capacity through the Tribal Climate Intensive
Education events, and provide targeted support to tribesespecially those with high needs and
lower climate capacityvia direct assistance and a peer-to-peer mentorship program. The Agency
will focus resources on communities with environmental justice concerns to develop new
strategies that strengthen their adaptive capacity and increase climate resilience across the Nation.
EPA also will produce and deliver training, tools, technical assistance, financial incentives, and
information the Agency's partners indicate they need to adapt and increase resilience to climate
change.
In FY 2025, EPA will focus on achieving the priorities of a new FY 2024-2027 Climate Adaptation
Plan, while completing implementation of its 2021 Climate Adaptation Action Plan and the 20
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Climate Adaptation Implementation Plans developed by the Program and Regional Offices.208
EPA will leverage the additional resources provided in FY 2025 to support priority commitments
in the Climate Adaptation Implementation Plans; specifically, additional priority actions for which
funding is not currently available. These additional actions will enhance the adaptive capacity and
resilience of stakeholders by providing technical assistance through the Program and Regional
offices. These actions align with the National Climate Resilience Framework, which calls for
providing communities with information and resources needed to assess their climate risks and
develop the climate resilience solutions most appropriate for them as well as helping communities
become not only more resilient, but also more safe, healthy, equitable, and economically strong.
EPA will continue to monitor progress toward established targets for each of the Long -Term
Performance Goals in Objective 1.2 ("Accelerate Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Change
Impacts") of the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan. The baseline and additional priority actions
identified in the 20 Climate Adaptation Implementation Plans support EPA's efforts to continue
to fulfill its mission in the presence of climate change and associated impacts. This includes
analyzing each of EPA's programs for climate-related fiscal and programmatic risks, especially in
climate sensitive programs, and investing mitigation of the risks. The requested resources also will
be used to advance climate justice through the provision of technical assistance to protect
communities that are disproportionately affected by climate change. In FY 2023, EPA completed
177 priority actions committed to in EPA's Climate Adaptation Action Plan and in the Program
and Regional Implementation Plans, exceeding the annual target of 100. These actions are in
addition to the 151 priority actions completed in FY 2022.
In FY 2025, the Program will continue to modernize EPA financial assistance programs to
encourage climate-resilient investments across the Nation. Particular attention will be given to
ensuring that the outcomes of investments made with funds from the Infrastructure Investment and
Job Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to modernize the Nation's infrastructure will
be resilient to the impacts of climate change, as well as support climate mitigation goals. EPA will
implement practices provided by the Climate-Smart Infrastructure Interagency Working Group to
minimize the projected climate change impacts on federal infrastructure and all of EPA's
infrastructure programs.
The FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan commits the Agency to consider the current and future
impacts of climate change in its rulemaking processes. As such, EPA will continue to integrate
climate adaptation into regulations and permits to make its regulatory actions resilient and adaptive
to climate change and natural hazards. EPA is already making progress integrating considerations
of climate change risks into rulemakings. For example, in May 2023, EPA proposed a rule related
to Coal Combustion Residuals (CCR) from Electric Utilities, including CCR surface
impoundments, CCR management units, and CCR landfills that considers climate change impacts
on facilities.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to enhance the climate literacy of its workforce with respect to
adaptation and resilience by coordinating, facilitating, and sustaining peer-to-peer learning
2°8 por additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/climate-adaptation/climate-adaptation-plans.
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and engagement on climate adaptation across program and regional offices. EPA will continue to
track and coordinate its climate adaptation learning and training opportunities.
Permitting Strategies
EPA implements its statutory authority through various permitting programs. In FY 2025, EPA
requests an additional investment of $3.0 million and 6.0 FTE. The Agency continues to focus
efforts across EPA program and regional offices and with state and tribal co-regulators to support
coordination, efficiencies, oversight, automation, and integration of EJ and climate change for
environmental permitting. The Office of Federal Activities (OFA) coordinates across 13 other
federal agencies, the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, the Council on
Environmental Quality, and the Office of Management and Budget to coordinate on permitting
and meet EPA's Permitting Action Implementation Plan goals. EPA uses its EPA Permitting
Action Implementation Plan to help address the expansion of permitting for major infrastructure
projects, expanded FAST-41 covered sectors,209 and to address seven critical elements of the Plan:
Accelerating smart permitting through early cross-agency coordination.
Establishing clear timeline goals and tracking key project information.
Engaging in early and meaningful outreach and communication with stakeholders.
Improving agency responsiveness, technical assistance, and support.
Using agency resources and the environmental review process to improve environmental
and community outcomes.
Ensuring staffing levels are adequate to address anticipated environmental review and
permitting-related workloads.
Addressing, elevating, and resolving schedule delays, disputes, and other issues impacting
the environmental and permitting process in a timely manner.
Additionally, OFA addresses cross-cutting permitting and major infrastructure topics that are
identified as critical for infrastructure development. These topics, often new or cutting-edge
national priorities {e.g., critical minerals production, quantum processing/manufacture, etc.),
require integration of permitting policy, implementation, and evaluation.
EPA is working to transition the Agency's major permitting programs from paper submissions to
electronic processes through the automation of permit application review and issuance. The
benefits of permit automation will reduce the processing time on issuing permits, decrease the time
between receiving monitoring data and engaging in enforcement actions, and increase
transparency by allowing communities to search, track, and access permit actions easily. Permit
automation improves the integration of climate change and EJ considerations into permit processes
and ensures that climate change and EJ are evaluated and addressed appropriately within the terms
and conditions of the permit. For the regulated community, permit automation provides a
simplified, streamlined, and transparent permitting process, resulting in both time and cost savings.
To start physical permit automation, EPA had to complete a number of tasks, including defining
automation, inventorying existing automated processes, identifying processes that needed to be
209 Current covered sectors are renewable or conventional energy production, electricity transmission, surface transportation,
aviation, ports and waterways, water resource, broadband, pipelines, manufacturing, mining, and carbon capture sectors. FPISC
is currently undergoing rulemaking to add a critical mineral sector.
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automated, and establishing a baseline of processes to automate, all of which was completed in FY
2022. With those determinations made, EPA has automated one process out of the thirteen baseline
processes identified and is currently automating two other processes. EPA has committed to
automate an additional 30 percent of its baseline (or 3.9 processes) in FY 2024 and the same
amount in FY 2025, and is on track to achieving those commitments.
EPA's renewed focus on effective integration of EJ and climate change considerations within the
Agency's various decentralized permitting programs continues to play a leading role in
coordinated efforts aligned with the Administration's priorities including:
1. Coordinating permit support for major infrastructure projects, including carbon
capture/use/sequestration and renewable energy projects requiring a permit.
2. Supporting integration of EJ and climate change analysis into permit development.
3. Supporting EPA and FAST-41 oversight, permit quality, permit timelines, and permit program
integrity.
4. Documenting best practices and addressing cross-cutting permitting and policy issues (e.g.,
Endangered Species Act and National Historic Preservation Act coordination); and, in
partnership with other federal agencies, state and tribal permitting offices, continuing to
streamline and gain efficiencies in the review of all permits.
5. Expanding a successfully piloted e-permitting application tool to other permitting program
areas.
Smart Sectors
EPA's Smart Sectors Program (SSP) provides a platform for the Agency to collaborate with
industry to develop innovative approaches to protect the environment and public health from a
multi-media perspective. SSP serves as a hub for understanding and addressing sector-specific
environmental challenges and opportunities, facilitating dialogue with industry representatives and
other stakeholders, and managing a network of SSPs in all 10 EPA regional offices. The Program
will continue as a liaison to connect, convene, and facilitate discussions among agency experts and
business leaders to address discrete issues unique to each sector and help sectors drive
improvements that serve the Agency's greater mission of protecting human health and the
environment.
In FY 2025, SSP will continue to focus activities in three areas: broad multi-stakeholder
engagement, cross-agency coordination, and policy and program initiatives as they relate to
industry sectors. Multi-stakeholder engagements will provide a platform for working with industry
trade associations and leading companies, as well as other stakeholders on key issues such as
climate change, EJ, and fostering environmentally sustainable infrastructure development. In
addition to industry, the Program will work with non-governmental organizations, organized labor,
the academic community, state/local governments, and overburdened and vulnerable communities
with EJ concerns, as appropriate. The Program will coordinate or lead cross-agency, sector-based
projects and activities to address the Administration's priorities, including tackling climate change,
delivering EJ, advancing green procurement, and securing environmentally responsible and
resilient supply chains.
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Community-Driven Environmental Protection
The IES Program delivers technical assistance, training, and tools to economically distressed
communities and coordinates the Agency's work with communities to increase efficiency,
effectiveness, and accountability, leading to improved environmental and public health protection.
In FY 2023, the Program prioritized interagency collaboration towards the development of
community driven approaches to support reinvestment in underserved communities with water,
air, and infrastructure driven challenges. In FY 2025, the Program will continue to deliver direct
technical assistance to communities, especially in underserved areas of the country. EPA will
continue to deploy tools and expertise, through technical assistance delivery. These resources will
continue to strengthen EPA's efforts to leverage public and private sector investments in support
of improved economic development and environmental outcomes.
In FY 2025, the Program will continue to support community-driven solutions to local
environmental challenges, focusing on the Administration's priorities, such as leveraging private
investment and aligning federal investments to maximize benefits to vulnerable and underserved
communities, and increasing climate resilience. Technical assistance and training are the
cornerstones of EPA's cooperative approach to addressing environmental challenges in
communities, particularly communities that are economically distressed. In FY 2025, the Program
will continue to prioritize technical assistance, capacity building and training, and promote more
equitable approaches towards improved public health and environmental resilience. Where
appropriate, EPA will partner with stakeholders to help achieve locally led, community-driven
approaches towards protecting air, land, and water in parallel with supporting equitable
development and revitalization. In FY 2025, the Program will partner with EPA programs and
regional offices to support their delivery of outreach, resources, and assistance to communities in
ways that align with the principles of community driven solutions. The Program will continue to
expand on partnerships, like the Recreation Economies for Rural Communities initiatives in FY
2023, providing assistance to rural communities and small towns to help them leverage the power
of a growing outdoor recreation economy. EPA worked with the USDA Forest Service, the
Northern Border Regional Commission, and the Appalachian Regional Commission, to develop
and complete 25 workshops in FY 2023. This type of community-driven assistance, and others
like it, are focusing on technical assistance, capacity building and training, to promote more
equitable approaches towards improved public health and environmental resilience.
In FY 2025, the Program will continue analyses on emerging trends, innovative practices, and
tools that support equity, climate resilience, greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction, and clean air, land,
and water outcomes. EPA will continue to develop tools to help interested communities
incorporate innovative, equitable approaches to infrastructure and land development policies. This
assistance helps deliver multiple economic, community, and human health goals embedded in
EPA's core mission, including managing stormwater, improving local air and water quality,
cleaning up and reusing previously developed sites, and supporting revitalization and
redevelopment in economically distressed communities to create economic opportunities while
reducing GHG emissions and protecting the environment.
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Energy Communities
In FY 2025, EPA will continue its cross-government leadership role on the federal Interagency
Working Group on Coal & Power Plant Communities & Economic Revitalization (IWG). The
additional $5.0 million and 3.0 FTE will be used to support and increase the cross-government
number of Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) in energy communities from three in FY 2023 to at
least ten by the end of FY 2025. The RRTs will help energy communities in transition address
their critical redevelopment challenges. A desired outcome is the transition to low carbon
electricity generation as a competitive advantage for economic redevelopment.
Performance Measures Targets:
(PM AD07) Number of priority actions completed in EPA's Climate Adaptation Action Plan and Program
and Regional Implementation Plans.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
mo
100
105
105
Priority
Actions
Actual
151
177
(PM AD09) Cumulative number of federally recognized tribes assisted by EPA to take action to anticipate,
prepare for, adapt to, or recover from the impacts of climate change.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
mo
150
330
370
Tribes
Actual
1 10
Data
Avail
3/2024
(PM AD10) Cumulative number of states, territories, local governments, and communities (Le., EPA
partners) assisted by EPA to take action to anticipate, prepare for, adapt to, or recover from the impacts of
climate change.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
:5o
300
500
525
Partners
Actual
:42
Data
Avail
3/2024
(PM AD11) Number of tribal, state, regional, and/or territorial versions of the Climate Change Adaptation
Resource Center (ARC-X) or similar systems developed by universities with EPA support.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
3
6
7
8
Systems
Actual
i
7
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(PM AD12) Hours of appropriate subject matter expert time provided by EPA to help communities adapt to
climate impacts, build long-term resilience, and support the most underserved and vulnerable communities
after federally declared disasters.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY 2022
FY 2023
FY 2024
FY 2025
Units
Targel
No Target
Established
No Target
Established
No Target
Established
No Target
Established
Hours
Actual
9,763
7,130
(PM AD13) Number of capacity building trainings, tools, and events, developed or hosted by EPA, that serve
a unique purpose, unique audience, and/or provide new or updated information.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
27
32
Actions
Actual
r
(PM OCR02) Cumulative number of communities that, as a result of OCR assistance, have been able to
attract new investment and/or enact policies that produce improved public health and environmental
outcomes.
FY
20IS
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY 2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
No Target
Established
TBD
Communities
Actual
(PM PAT) Annual Percentage of EPA permitting processes automated.
FY
20IS
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
10
30
30
Percent
Actual
8
Numerator
1
Permitting
Processes
Denominator
13
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$700.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$19,300.0 / +14.5 FTE) This change is an increase provided for EPA's Climate
Adaptation Program to support increased resilience of EPA programs and strengthen the
adaptive capacity of states, tribes, territories, local governments, communities, and
businesses. This investment includes approximately $2.8 million for payroll.
(+$5,000.0 / +3.0 FTE) This program change will support additional cross-government
rapid response teams assisting energy communities challenged by mine and power plant
closures. It also with support EPA's interagency work as part of the Interagency Working
Group on Coal & Power Plant Communities & Economic Revitalization (IWG). This
investment includes $572.0 thousand for payroll.
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(+$3,000.0 / +6.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to integrate Administration
priorities to support the coordination, streamlining, oversight, automation, and integration
of EJ considerations and climate change within the scope of environmental permitting
decisions on all FAST-41 covered projects across the Agency's decentralized permitting
authorities. This investment includes $1.1 million for payroll.
(+$900.0) This program change is an increase to support core program capacity and build
the Program by addressing the Administration's priorities and adhering to the goals in the
FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); National Environmental Policy Act; CAA §
309; Endangered Species Act; National Historic Preservation Act; Archaeological and Historic
Preservation Act; Fishery Conservation and Management Act; Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act;
and Title 41 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act.
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Legal Advice: Environmental Program
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 00,20'
S(>0,0(,1
.SJYo.i-/
Hazardous Substance SupeiTund
$844
$599
$482
-$117
Total Budget Authority
$61,051
$60,660
$87,097
$26,437
Total Workyears
258.8
273.3
352.5
79.2
Total Workyears in FY 2025 include 8.3 FTE funded by TSCA fees and 22.0 FTE to support Legal Advice working
capital fund (WCF) services.
Program Project Description:
The Legal Advice: Environmental Program provides legal representational services, legal
counseling, and legal support for all the Agency's environmental activities. The legal support
provided by this program is essential to the Agency's core mission to protect human health and the
environment. The personnel assigned to this program possess essential expertise in critical fields
that EPA relies on for all decisions and activities in furtherance of its mission. The Program
includes the Office of General Counsel's (OGC's) Air and Radiation Law Office, Cross-Cutting
Issues Law Office, Ethics Office, National Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Office, Pesticides
and Toxic Substances Law Office, Resource Management Office, Solid Waste and Emergency
Response Law Office, and Water Law Office, as well as ten Offices of Regional Counsel (ORCs).
The Program provides legal counsel on nearly every major action the Agency takes. It plays a
central role in all statutory and regulatory interpretation of new and existing rules, as well as rule
and guidance development under EPA's environmental authorities. The Program also provides
essential legal advice for every petition response and emergency response. When the Agency acts
to protect the public from pollutants or health-threatening chemicals in the air we breathe, in the
water we drink, or in the food we eat, the Program provides counsel on the Agency's authority to
take that action. The Program then provides the advice and support necessary to finalize and
implement that action. When agency action is challenged in court, the Program defends it, in
coordination with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The Program also provides support and
legal counsel in adhering to court orders and mandates. The Program also supports EPA's National
FOIA Office and the Ethics Office as part of the legal services activity within the Agency's
Working Capital Fund.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
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In FY 2025, the Agency requests an additional investment of $26.6 million and 75.2 FTE for the
Program to provide legal advice and counsel and to defend EPA's environmental programs as the
Agency undertakes increased efforts to tackle the climate crisis, protect drinking water sources
and waters of the United States, and safeguard the public from harmful toxic substances, among
many other initiatives and responsibilities. This investment includes an increase of approximately
$5.8 million in fixed costs for existing FTE. The Program will continue to provide expert legal
counseling for agency programs and regional offices, as well as support for judicial and administrative
litigation, under all the environmental statutes administered by EPA. The Program also will
continue to provide cross-cutting legal advice and counsel on important administrative law
developments that are crucial to EPA's issuance of durable and defensible actions.
In FY 2025, the Program will use the additional resources to strengthen staffing and attorney
training for those who provide legal advice and counsel in furtherance of the Agency's mission to
protect human health and the environment. The Program will provide legal support to EPA's
environmental programs under the Clean Air Act (CAA), Clean Water Act (CWA),
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), Federal
Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA),
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), Toxic
Substances Control Act (TSCA), and other authorities within the Agency's purview. The Program
also will continue to strengthen its FOIA implementation to enhance transparency and work toward
achieving the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan long-term performance goal to eliminate the
backlog of overdue FOIA responses. The Program also will continue to lead the Agency's ethics
program.
Legal counseling resources continue to be highly sought after, and the Program has experienced
increasing demand for its services in the last ten years. The Program has seen a significant increase
in work on rulemakings related to the regulation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and toxic
substances such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), among many other high priority
agency matters that the Program supports. EPA OGC's and ORCs' workloads have significantly
outpaced staffing resources, particularly as the Program has added work on critical Administration
priorities, including climate change and environmental justice. Many of the FTE requested would
increase staffing for the Program's ORCs. The Program's FOIA workload (which is now within
the ORCs' purview) has increased and the ORCs' civil rights and environmental justice portfolios
also have increased exponentially in recent years, as has other environmental law work. Increasing
FTE for the ORCs, and the Program overall, is critical to ensuring continued legal support for the
Agency's headquarters and ten regional offices.
The following are examples of recent FY 2023 accomplishments and work being completed to
illustrate this program's role in implementing the Agency's core mission:
The Program provided critical legal and strategic counsel in developing the Heavy-Duty
Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) Rule, the strongest ever national clean air standards to cut smog-
and soot-forming emissions from heavy-duty trucks. Program attorneys were crucial to the
development of EPA's proposed New Source Performance Standards and Emission
Guidelines for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Fossil-Fuel-Fired Power Plants to help
ensure that the rulemaking is developed and implemented in a legally durable manner. The
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Program also continues to play a key role in implementing the American Innovation and
Manufacturing (AIM) Act, which requires the phase down of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs),
a potent class of GHGs.
The Program was EPA's legal advisor (at both the headquarters and regional level) on the
East Palestine train derailment. Program attorneys provided crucial legal advice on all
aspects of the response, including key issues related to interstate transportation of
hazardous waste, public disclosure of waste shipments, and other challenging issues. The
Program's critical legal advice concerning PFAS contamination has been central to
advancing the Agency's efforts on this top Administration priority; for example, Program
attorneys counseled on two ongoing RCRA rulemakings that will help promote cleanup of
PFAS contamination at RCRA hazardous waste management facilities. Program attorneys
also provided important legal counseling on multiple actions pertaining to coal combustion
residuals (CCR), including the Agency's issuance of a proposed rule to regulate legacy
CCR surface impoundments and management units.
Program attorneys provided significant legal support on development of the Agency's
latest rulemaking defining "waters of the United States," a key CWA term that defines the
limits of federal jurisdiction over discharges into, or filling of, surface waters throughout
the United States. The Program also played a crucial role in responding to the May 2023
Supreme Court decision in Sackett v. EPA, which was the most consequential decision the
Court has ever rendered regarding CWA jurisdiction. Program attorneys also provided
significant legal support for high profile agency actions under SDWA to address PFAS,
including through a new precedent-setting drinking water standard.
Program attorneys provided specialized legal and strategic expertise to programs and other
EPA attorneys on a wide range of cross-cutting legal issues. For example, Program
attorneys provided critical counseling on the Major Questions Doctrine. The Program
provided expert counsel on a range of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
activities, including support for EPA's responsibilities under CAA Section 309 to review
federal agency environmental impact statements. The Program also published the
Cumulative Impacts Addendum to EPA Legal Tools to Advance Environmental Justice
(EJ), which furthers the Agency' s Strategic Plan goals related to EJ and equity. In addition,
the Program continued to serve an essential role in counseling on the Agency's
international law efforts and initiatives.
Program attorneys provided key legal support to EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs on
an update to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) Workplan, which proposed interim
ecological measures intended to reduce exposure to non-target species. The Program
provided crucial legal advice in support of EPA's implementation of numerous high-
priority, time-sensitive actions under amended section 6 of TSCA, including the Agency's
development of the proposed risk management rulemaking on methylene chloride, one of
the first 10 chemicals that underwent risk evaluation under TSCA. The Program also
concluded a 12-year megasuit with a unique settlement that avoids the lengthy process of
ESA pesticide consultation for several of the remaining active ingredients.
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The Program continued to manage the overall agency ethics program to ensure that
employees carry out their duties ethically. The Program met programmatic goals for
confidential financial disclosure filing. Of the more than 7,700 confidential financial
disclosure reports filed across the Agency, nearly 96 percent were timely filed and nearly
89 percent of those were timely reviewed and certified. Program attorneys also continued
to provide excellent customer service to the Agency's 100 plus deputy ethics officials, as
well as to EPA employees and former employees. Program attorneys also continued to
deliver high quality trainings within and outside of EPA.
The Program continued to lead the Agency's implementation of the FOIA program and
nationwide FOIA policies. The National FOIA Office procured and deployed FOIAXpress,
the Agency's new FOIA case management system. The Program led EPA's efforts to
reduce the backlog of overdue FOIA responses by nearly 26 percent, reducing the backlog
from 950 down to 704 requests. The Program provided critical legal support for 70 of
EPA's most complex and high profile FOIA requests, including requests pertaining to the
East Palestine, Ohio train derailment and emergency response. The Program also
completed the initial review and assignment of 5,238 FOIA requests, processed 275
expedited FOIA processing requests and 769 applications for fee waiver, and processed
and closed more than 1,171 FOIA requests.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM FQ2) Number of FOIA responses in backlog.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
845
712
474
236
Responses
Actual
2,761
2,128
1,395
1,056
950
704
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$5,751.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$10,389.0 / +37.0 FTE) This program change addresses a need for increased demand for
legal counseling services, supporting the Agency on defensive litigation on all its
environmental programs in the regions and headquarters. The Program will provide legal
support to EPA's environmental programs under the Clean Air Act (CAA), Clean Water
Act (CWA), Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
(CERCLA), Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), Food Quality
Protection Act (FQPA), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), Safe Drinking
Water Act (SDWA), Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), and other authorities within
the Agency's purview. These additional resources also will assist EPA in tackling the
climate crisis and securing environmental justice. This investment includes $8.7 million in
payroll.
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(+$10,051.0 / +36.7 FTE) This program change addresses a need for increased demand of
legal counseling services, including in the Agency's Offices of Regional Counsel, which
support the Agency on defensive litigation, civil rights, and environmental justice-related
counseling. This investment includes $8.6 million for payroll.
(+$363.0 / +1.5 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes
$354.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
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Legal Advice: Support Program
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S l.\V22
.S/#.<*."
S 2H.5N-I
S 1.02 ~
Total Budget Authority
M-v1::
S18,y57
S20,584
SI,627
Total Workyears
73.4
83.7
93.7
10.0
Total Workyears in FY 2025 include 6.1 FTE funded by TSCA fees.
Program Project Description:
The Legal Advice: Support Program includes the Office of General Counsel's (OGC's) Civil
Rights and Finance Law Office (CRFLO) and General Law Office (GLO), as well as certain
positions in EPA's ten Offices of Regional Counsel (ORCs). The Program supports EPA, across
the Agency's headquarters and ten regional offices, in maintaining high professional standards
throughout the Agency and in complying with all laws and policies that govern EPA's operations.
The Program provides critical support for EPA's work under various civil rights statutes, including
comprehensive counseling on civil rights matters, such as equal protection. The Program provides
crucial legal representational services, legal counseling, and legal support for a wide variety of
activities necessary for EPA's operation and success, including providing legal counseling and
support on a range of employment, appropriations, intellectual property, national security, and
information law-related matters.
The Program's legal support is key to fulfilling the Agency's role in Executive Order 13985:
Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal
Government,210 and is instrumental in advancing the environmental justice (EJ) and civil rights
goals in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. The Program provides critical legal support for
EPA's newly formed Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights (OEJECR), which
was created in Fall 2022 to improve oversight and enforcement of civil rights and prioritize and
advance EJ concerns. The Program's employment law expertise is critical to ensuring fair and
impartial hiring and retention of a qualified workforce, and to supporting the Agency in adverse
employment actions. The Program also provides counsel and advice for settlement of Equal
Employment Opportunity (EEO) claims against the Agency. In addition, the Program's Freedom
of Information Act (FOIA) legal counseling and litigation support are key to ensuring transparency
and accountability.
210 Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal
Government, 86 Fed. Reg. 7009 (Jan. 20, 2021), available otf https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-
01753/advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-government.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the Agency requests an additional investment of $1.6 million and 7.0 FTE to
strengthen EPA's Legal Advice: Support Program. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to provide legal
support for the Agency's crucial civil rights work, which has expanded considerably in recent
years and continues to increase; will continue to provide legal counsel and support on legal advice
and support on matters related to contracts, grants, finance, appropriations, and employment law
matters for the Agency, including work related to the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), which has
increased in recent years and involves incredibly complex, billion-dollar cases; and will continue
to counsel and advise on information law matters. The requested investment also is critical to
ensuring that the Program has staffing resources sufficient to provide legal support for the new
OEJECR.
Legal counseling resources continue to be highly sought after, and the Program has experienced
increasing demand for its services in the last 10 years. EPA OGC's and ORCs' workloads in
program areas have significantly outpaced staffing resources. In particular, the Program has seen
a significant increase in workload related to providing critical legal support for the Agency on civil
rights matters, which support key Administration priorities. The Program also has seen an increase
in demand for legal counseling from certain agency programs related to implementation of
Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) and has seen increased demand for legal support related
to FTCA matters. The majority of the FTE requested would increase staffing for the Program's
ORCs. Additional resources also are necessary to provide legal support for the newly formed
OEJECR. Increasing FTE for the ORCs, and the Program overall, is critical to ensuring continued
legal support for the Agency's headquarters and ten Regional offices.
The Program is critical to ensuring the Agency's compliance with its legal obligations so that the
Agency can focus on fulfilling its core mission of protecting human health and the environment.
The additional resources for this program are crucial to ensuring that the Agency continues to
make legally sound decisions that advance EPA's mission, support EPA's operations, and serve
the American public. Increasing FTE for the ORCs' work in these program areas is critical to
ensuring continued legal support for the Agency's ten regional offices. Additional resources are
required to maintain staffing levels sufficient to keep pace with the increasing demands placed on
the Program and the ORCs' work in Program areas, and to support OEJECR.
The following are examples of FY 2023 accomplishments:
The Program completed over 3,770 Confidential Business Information (CBI)
determinations on CBI claims submitted pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act
(TSCA). Program attorneys also provided critical legal counseling and support on several
significant TSCA-related rulemakings. This determination rate represents an
extraordinarily successful effort to improve transparency and reduce litigation risk that
continues the significant achievements gained in FY 2022. The TSCA CBI team is now
working on some of the most complex and oldest pending determinations. In January 2021,
265
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the TSCA CBI team's backlog was at 1,160. This backlog was reduced to 207 at the end
of FY 2022. At the end of July 2023, the TSCA CBI team further reduced its backlog to
fewer than 28 TSCA CBI determinations and hopes to clear out its backlog by the end of
FY 2023.
The Program counseled the Agency on its Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
(DEIA) efforts, including the Agency's DEIA Action plan, DEIA data reporting, and
barrier analyses. This activity furthers the Agency's implementation of Executive Order
14035's directive to advance equity within the Federal Government and "cultivate a
workforce that draws from the full diversity of the nation." The Program facilitated the
completion of OGC's Equity Assessment contract, which advanced OGC's efforts to assess
equity in the workplace and captured suggestions for ways to improve the workplace. The
Program also is working to improve DEIA hiring, outreach, and recruitment efforts through
a new outreach program as well as informational interviewing.
Program attorneys successfully defended the Agency in both information law and
employment law litigation. Specifically, the Program skillfully defended EPA in 43 FOIA
cases and more than 90 employment law matters, including 15 district court cases or court
of appeals employment matters. In addition, the Program resolved more than 44 matters
through settlement or victory on the merits. The Program also timely completed 92 FOIA
administrative appeals.
The Program counseled the Agency's infrastructure programs on evaluating the
applicability of the Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act and implementation of
BABA requirements throughout the Agency. This BABA authority was included in the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and applied domestic preference requirements to
several EPA infrastructure program as well as Superfund. Program attorneys provided
comprehensive legal guidance to impacted agency programs The Program also helped to
develop government-wide BABA regulations promulgated in 2023.
The Program provided expert legal counsel to EPA's regional offices, as well as the Office
of Water (OW), Office of Land and Emergency Management (OLEM), and Office of
Research and Development, to support the Community Project Funding
(CPF)/CDS/Community Grants grant program. Program attorneys assisted OW with the
development and publication of the final implementation guidance for the newly formed
grant program, providing CDS recipients training on federal procurement requirements
under EPA assistance agreements; ensuring EPA's regional offices have the appropriate
delegations of authority in place to be able to approve grant awards; working with regional
staff regarding applicant and recipient questions pertaining to their projects; and resolving
cross-cutting legal issues involving the Davis-Bacon Act, National Environmental Policy
Act, and BAB A/American Iron and Steel compliance.
In FY 2023, the Program provided critical legal support for 66 external civil rights and
compliance cases and 47 EEO cases. The Program also developed and led 20 equal
protection law trainings for agency leadership and staff in programs including OW, OLEM,
266
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the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, and the Office of Air and Radiation,
as well as several regional offices.
Program attorneys analyzed the legal intersections between Clean Air Act's Section
110(a)(2)(E)'s requirement for State Implementation Plan submissions to demonstrate a
necessary assurance of compliance with federal laws and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act's
requirement that recipients of federal financial assistance must comply with all federal civil
rights laws. The Program collaborated on various policy deliverables regarding EPA's
Lead and Copper Rule and initiatives associated with lead service line replacements, which
included discussions about Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and due process legal risks that
may arise as well as risk mitigation.
Performance Measure Targets:
Work under this program supports performance results in the Legal Advice: Environmental
Program under the EPM appropriation.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$158.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$1,469.0 / +7.0 FTE) This net program change addresses a need for increased demand
for legal counseling services and support on defensive litigation; increased demand for
advising on FOIA and other information law matters; ensuring the Agency's work on
contracts, grants, and appropriations is handled in accordance with the law; and providing
sufficient legal support for the new OEJECR. This change will provide critical staffing
resources particularly to the Program's ORCs and includes $1.6 million in payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
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Regulatory/Economic-Management and Analysis
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Goal: Take Decisive Action to Advance Environmental Justice and Civil Rights
Objective(s): Embed Environmental Justice and Civil Rights into EPA's Programs, Policies, and
Activities
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S If>.03 2
SI'.-I"
S1V.520
S2.05I
Total Budget Authority
$16,032
$17,475
$19,526
$2,051
Total Workyears
71.4
73.7
77.2
3.5
Total workyears in FY 2025 include 0.2 FTE to support Regulatory/Economic, Management, and Analysis working
capital fund (WCF) services.
Program Project Description:
The Regulatory /Economic, Management, and Analysis Program is responsible for reviewing the
Agency's regulations to ensure that they are developed in accordance with the governing statutes,
executive orders, and agency commitments and are based on sound technical, economic, scientific,
and policy assumptions. Further, the Program ensures consistent and appropriate economic
analysis of regulatory actions, conducts analyses of regulatory and non-regulatory approaches, and
considers interactions between regulations across different environmental media. The Program
provides technical support on the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) to develop final social
cost of carbon (SC-CO2), social cost of nitrous oxide (SC-N2O), and social cost of methane (SC-
CH4)for use in regulatory and programmatic analysis, consistent with Executive Order (EO)
13990, Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science To Tackle the
Climate Crisis 211 The Program helps to implement EO 14094 Modernizing Regulatory Review212
and EO 14096 Revitalizing Our Nation's Commitment to Environmental Justice for All213 by
developing appropriate modeling, data, and analysis to inform the consideration of environmental
justice (EJ) concerns in regulatory and non-regulatory actions. The Program ensures the Agency's
regulations comply with statutory and EO requirements, including the Congressional Review
Act,214 the Regulatory Flexibility Act (as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement
Fairness Act),215 and EOs 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review216 , 13563, Improving
211 For more information on EO 13990, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-protecting-public-health-and-environment-and-restoring-science-to-tackle-climate-crisis/.
212 For more information on EO 14094, please see: https://www.federalregister.gOv/documents/2023/04/l 1/2023-
07760/modemizing-regulatory-review.
213 For more information on EO 14096, please see: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/04/26/2Q23-
08955/revitalizing-our-nations-commitment-to-environmental-justice-for-all.
214 For more information on the Congressional Review Act, please see Subtitle E: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-
1.04publ1.21/pdf/PLA W - KMpubt 1.21. .pdf.
215 For more information on the Regulatory Flexibility act, please see: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/STATUTE-
94/pdf/STATUTE-94-Pgl 164.pdf. and as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement and Fairness Act, please see:
https: //www, go vinfo. gov/content/pkg/PL A W -1.04publ 121. /pdf/PL A W -1.04publ 1.21. .pdf.
216 For more information on EO 12866 Regulatory Planning and Review, please see https://www.archives.gov/files/federal-
register/executive-orders/pdf/12866.pdf.
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Regulation and Regulatory Review217 , and 14094, Modernizing Regulatory Review218 regarding
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulatory review. The Program manages the
development and deployment of EPA's economy-wide model for analyzing the economic impacts
of environmental regulations and the macroeconomic impacts from climate transition and physical
risks. The Program also includes the Agency's Chief Statistical Official charged with
implementing major elements of the Foundations for Evidence Based Policy Act.219
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Strategic Goal 2/Objective 2.2, Embed Environmental
Justice and Civil Rights into EPA's Programs, Policies, and Activities in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA
Strategic Plan.
The Program assists the Administrator and other senior agency leaders in implementing regulatory
policy priorities. In FY 2025, EPA requests a total investment of $19.5 million and 77.0 FTE in
the Regulatory/Economic, Management, and Analysis Program. This includes an additional $2.1
million and 3.5 FTE in support of the Administration's goal to tackle the climate crisis. The
Agency will continue its efforts to assess and review the benefits and costs to communities,
businesses, government entities, and the broader economy associated with each economically
significant regulatory action to maximize the net benefits of policies protecting human health and
the environment. EPA will conduct and integrate analysis of EJ concerns in the rulemaking process
to address the Administration's priorities. EPA will collect data and build models to assess
regulatory proposals and their impacts on benefits, economic performance, and EJ. Planned key
program activities in FY 2025 include:
Conduct analysis, engage the public, stakeholders, and experts, as appropriate, and develop
tools to support the updating and application of the Social Cost of GHGs, including the
SC-CO2, SC-N2O and SC-CH4 to ensure that these costs are based on the best available
economics and science.
Represent EPA in recommending improvements to modernize the regulatory review
process to promote policies that reflect new developments in scientific and economic
understanding, fully accounts for regulatory benefits that are difficult or impossible to
quantify and does not have harmful anti-regulatory or deregulatory effects. Develop
procedures that consider the distributional consequences of regulations as part of any
quantitative or qualitative analysis of the benefits and costs of regulations, to ensure that
regulatory initiatives appropriately benefit and do not inappropriately burden underserved,
vulnerable, or marginalized communities across all life stages.
Support EPA's Chief Statistical Official, who will provide technical support for projects
under EPA's Learning Agenda, evaluation plan, and capacity assessment; design
217 For more information on EO 13563 Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review, please see:
https://obainawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2011/01/18/executive-order-13563-improviiig-regulation-and-regulatorv-
review.
218 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2023/04/06/executive-
order-on-niodeiiiizing-regulatoiY-review/.
219 For more information, please see: https://www.congress. gov/1.1.5/plaws/publ435/PLAW-1.1.5publ435 .pdf.
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statistically sound policy analyses and evaluations; assist in the continued development of
EPA's Learning Agenda; and promote a culture of evidence-based decision making.
Conduct training for EPA regulatory staff on a broad range of topics, including EPA's
internal Action Development Process, developing EJ analysis for rulemakings, Guidelines
for Preparing Economic Analyses, and Congressional Review Act requirements to help
ensure that rules meet policy goals and address legal and administrative requirements and
are informed by high quality EJ and economic analyses.
Expand analytic capabilities for conducting EJ analyses for rulemaking through
development of flexible analytic tools and novel datasets.
Implement EPA's updated Technical Guidance for Assessing Environmental Justice in
Regulatory Analysis, including training on new additions that address how the EJ analysis
can be used to inform policy options and newer techniques for conducting EJ analyses.
Provide updates to EPA's Guidelines for Preparing Economic Analyses, revised to
incorporate updated analytic requirements and practices developed under the President's
Memorandum on Modernizing Regulatory Review,220 updates to OMB's Circular A-4, and
the recommendations from the Science Advisory Board's peer review. The guidelines help
ensure that EPA's economic analyses provide a complete accounting of the economic
benefits, costs, and impacts of regulatory actions, including distributional consequences,
and are consistent across EPA programs.
Continue to deploy both long-run and near-term models of the U.S. economy to assess how
climate change impacts and the risk of extreme weather events affect Americans and the
economy. This includes assessing distributional impacts, costs, and broader
macroeconomic performance of the U.S. economy in the face of physical impact and
transition risks under EO 14030, Climate-Related Financial Risk.221
Continue to deploy and develop EPA's economy-wide model for analyzing the economic
impacts of environmental regulations.222 EPA will continue to update the model consistent
with recommendations from EPA's Science Advisory Board, deploy the model in
regulatory analyses where appropriate, and advance the development of open-source data
resources to support transparent analyses. This modeling capacity provides critical
evidence-based analyses to inform decision making.
Continue to manage EPA's response to recently issued EOs, including EO 14094,
particularly with an eye toward identifying regulatory actions that advance human health
and environmental protection for all people. Position EPA to effectively respond to recent
220 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefiiig-rooiii/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/modemiziiig-
regulatory-review/.
221 For more information on EO 14030, please see: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/05/25/2021-l 1168/cliinate-
related-fiiiancial-ilsk.
222 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/environmental-economics/cge-modeling-regulatory-analysis.
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OMB guidance on Broadening Public Participation and Community Engagement in the
Regulatory Process.
Review economic analyses prepared by EPA to ensure compliance with statutory and other
related requirements. Provide the Administrator and the public with high-quality analyses
of the costs, benefits, and impacts on jobs, businesses, and communities of major regulatory
proposals to better inform decision-making and ensure transparency about the
consequences of regulation.223
As the economy makes structural shifts to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions,
this program will use macroeconomic and sectoral models to assess the economic effects
of climate policy, to ensure equitable outcomes, spur well-paying union jobs and economic
growth, and identify regions and subpopulations that need additional assistance as the
economy transitions. Continue development of open-source data and economic models,
including sector-specific cost models, to support these efforts in a manner that maximizes
the transparency of these EPA analyses.
Continue development of a modeling platform capable of assessing the benefits of national
regulations that affect water quality. This effort will provide important evidence-based data
and analyses, consistent with economic science best practices, to inform decision making.
Strengthen available data and methods to estimate the monetized benefits of health
outcomes of chemical exposures, water pollution, and air pollution for use in EPA's benefit
cost analyses.
Lead EPA's support for the U.S. System of National Environmental Accounts in line with
the national strategy.224
Continue to develop EPA's semiannual unified Regulatory Agenda and manage EPA's
compliance with the Congressional Review Act.225
Manage EPA's internal Action Development Process and expand and upgrade regulatory
planning and tracking tools to facilitate timely decisions and coordination across programs,
on multimedia regulatory and policy issues such as Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances
(PFAS), climate, and EJ.
Review all regulatory actions prior to signature by the EPA Administrator to ensure agency
actions are of consistently high quality and supported with strong analysis.
Serve as EPA's liaison with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs within OMB.
223 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/enviromiiental-economics/guideliiies-prepariiig-economic-aiialyses.
224 For more information on the National Strategy to Develop Statistics for Environmental-Economic Decisions, please see:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Natural-Capital-Accounting-Strategy-final.pdf.
225 For more information on the Congressional Review Act, please see: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-
1.04publ1.21/pdf/PLA W - 104duM 1.21. .pdf.
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Serve as EPA's liaison with the Office of the Federal Register by reviewing, editing, and
submitting documents for publication, so that the public, states, other agencies, and
Congress are informed about EPA's regulatory activities in a timely manner.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$2,488.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation
of base workforce costs for existing FTE, adjustments to provide essential workforce
support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$1,442.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to supports the
Administration's goal to tackle the climate crisis and ensures consistent and appropriate
economic analysis of regulatory actions including advancements in the ability to model the
economic impacts of climate change for assessing the mitigation benefits and
macroeconomic effects. This investment includes $192.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$1,400.0) This program change will support the Climate-Macro Interagency Technical
Working Group and assessments of the Federal Financial Climate Risk Interagency
Working Group.
(+$1,001.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change is an increase for the National Center for
Environmental Economics and natural capital accounting work, in line with the national
strategy.
(+$696.0 / +1.5 FTE) This program change is an increase to support cross-agency
coordination, analysis, and review of regulatory activity across statutory programs in which
particular emphasis is to be placed on pending climate regulations. This investment
includes $288.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
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Science Advisory Board
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S-/.2IV
S -UK
s-un
.S 510
Total Budget Authority
H,2iy
HI 55
H671
S516
Total Workyears
19.3
18.7
18.7
0.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Science Advisory Board Staff Office (SABSO) manages two Federal Advisory
Committees. Congress established the Agency's Science Advisory Board (SAB) in 1978, under
the Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Act, to advise the Administrator
on a wide range of highly visible and important scientific matters. The Clean Air Scientific
Advisory Committee (CASAC) was established under the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1977 to
provide independent advice to EPA Administrator on the technical bases for EPA's National
Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The SAB and the CASAC, both statutorily mandated
chartered Federal Advisory Committees, draw from a balanced range of non-EPA scientists and
technical specialists from academia, states, tribes, independent research institutions, non-
governmental organizations, and industry. The Program provides management and technical
support to these advisory committees. The Committees provide EPA's Administrator independent
advice and objective scientific peer review on the technical aspects of environmental issues as well
as the science used to establish criteria, standards, regulations, and research planning, as
requested.226
Thus far in FY 2024, the SAB has finalized four scientific peer reviews of regulatory actions and
submitted two reports on the science supporting decisions regulatory reviews. As of January 2024,
the SAB also is actively working on three peer reviews and multiple regulatory action reviews.
Thus far in FY 2024, CASAC has been forming a panel to assess the Nitrogen Oxides NAAQS.
SABSO expects these totals to maintain at their current level in FY 2024 and FY 2025 as both
Committees have several current activities on-going that we anticipate completing this fiscal year.
In September 2024, the Program expects to announce new members for both the SAB and CASAC
to serve as expert advisors to EPA. This will include a new Chair of the CASAC. SABSO is
following a thorough and transparent public process and the new members will have scientific and
technical expertise that align with the Agency's strategic priorities. We anticipate the
Administrator will make his final membership selections in August 2024. Since SABSO provides
an in-house resource for EPA peer reviews, the Program costs are low in comparison to external
peer review conducted by groups such as the National Academy of Sciences (NAS).
226 For more information, please see: littp://www.epa.gov/sab/ and http://www.epa.gov/casac/.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Using the best available science and a credible, defensible, and transparent scientific approach,
SABSO supports EPA's mission by conducting independent, scientific, public, peer reviews of
some of the most challenging regulatory and science-based topics facing EPA and America. In FY
2025, SABSO anticipates SAB and CASAC will complete 16-18 peer reviews, consultations, and
regulatory reviews. In FY 2025, the CASAC is expecting completing reviews of NAAQS for
several critical NAAQS pollutants, including nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), ozone,
and lead. The SAB will conduct peer reviews on Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)
chemical reviews, risk assessment models, climate science reports, economic analyses,
Environmental Justice (EJ) reports, and other similar projects. In addition, SABSO also expects to
conduct four to seven regulatory reviews.
The SAB will directly support EPA Administrator Michael Regan's message "Our Commitment
to Environmental Justice" issued on April 7, 2021,227 in addition to supporting implementation of
Executive Order (EO) 13985: Advancing Racial Equity and Supportfor Underserved Communities
Through the Federal Government; 228 EO 14008: Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and
Abroad;229 and Strategic Goal 4, Ensure Clean and Healthy Air for all Communities. In FY 2024,
the EJ Science Committee and Climate Science Committee (both standing committees of the SAB)
expect to complete three climate and EJ risk analyses. Included in these reports will be an SAB
self-initiated report on how to best conduct EJ analyses to support rulemaking activities.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$58.0) This change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation of base
workforce costs for existing FTE, adjustments to provide essential workforce support, and
changes to benefits costs.
(+$574.0) This program increase supports the Science Advisory Board in conducting
independent, scientific, public, peer reviews of priority regulatory and science-based
topics, including PFAS and several critical pollutants.
227 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-admiiiistrator-regan-amiounces-new-iiiitiatives-
support-environmental-justice-and.
228 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-
order-advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment/.
229 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/27/executive-
order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/.
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Statutory Authority:
Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Authorization Act (ERDDAA);
Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA); and Clean Air Act (CAA).
275
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Science Policy and Biotechnology
Program Area: Legal / Science / Regulatory / Economic Review
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 1.02 ft
SI.Ml
S 1.6-12
-SIM
Total Budget Authority
$1,628
$1,811
$1,642
-$169
Total Workyears
5.1
4.6
4.6
0.0
Program Project Description:
The Science Policy and Biotechnology Program provides scientific and policy expertise supporting
independent, external scientific peer review of matters related to pesticides and toxic substances,
including biotechnology. The Program primarily supports two federal advisory committees: the
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Scientific Advisory Panel (FIFRA SAP), and
the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) established under the 2016 amendments
to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The FIFRA SAP and the SACC are both statutorily
mandated, chartered Federal Advisory Committees drawing from a balanced range of non-EPA
scientists and technical specialists from, for example, academia, other federal government
agencies, states, non-governmental organizations, and industry. These Committees provide the
EPA's Administrator independent advice and objective scientific peer review on the technical
aspects of pesticide and toxic substance issues as well as the science used to establish guidelines
and regulations, as requested. The scientific peer review conducted under this program promotes
coordination among EPA programs including but not limited to pesticides, toxic substances, air,
water, and research and development, facilitating coherent and consistent scientific policy from a
broad agency perspective.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.1, Ensure Chemical and Pesticide
Safety in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the Science Policy and Biotechnology Program will continue to support the peer
review of the scientific and technical issues associated with pesticide and chemical safety. In
addition, other science policy issues will be supported by the Program when decisions require
expert scientific advice from independent, external scientific peer reviewers (e.g., biotechnology
and new approach methodologies).
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FIFRA Scientific Advisory Panel
The FIFRA SAP, operating under the rules and regulations of the Federal Advisory Committee
Act, will continue to serve as the primary external independent scientific peer review mechanism
for EPA's pesticide programs. As the Nation's primary pesticide regulatory agency, EPA makes
decisions that require EPA to review scientific data on pesticide risks to wildlife, farmworkers,
pesticide applicators, sensitive and vulnerable populations, ecosystems, and the general public.
The scientific data involved in these decisions are complex. A critical component of EPA's use of
the best available science to address such issues is seeking technical advice and scientific peer
review from the FIFRA SAP.
The FIFRA SAP conducts reviews each year on a variety of scientific topics. Specific topics to be
placed on the FIFRA SAP agenda are usually confirmed in advance of each session and include
difficult, new, or controversial scientific issues identified in the course of EPA's pesticide program
activities. In FY 2024, EPA will address four vacancies that will occur on the FIFRA SAP as a
result of expiring membership terms. Three to six FIFRA SAP meetings are tentatively planned
for FY 2024. Consistent with the FIFRA SAP Charter, EPA anticipates convening approximately
five FIFRA SAP meetings in FY 2025. These meetings will focus on the impact of pesticides on
human health and the environment and include the peer review of scientific data, methodologies,
models, and assessments, as needed.
Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals
The SACC, operating under the rules and regulations of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, will
continue to serve as the primary external independent scientific peer review mechanism for EPA's
chemical safety programs. EPA makes decisions that require the Agency to review scientific data
on risks that chemicals pose to a variety of populations including women, children, and other
potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations. The scientific data, assessments,
methodologies, and measures involved in these decisions are complex. Many of EPA's tools and
models for examining exposures to industrial chemicals rely on inputs that are sensitive to climate
data. The SACC provides independent, expert scientific advice and recommendations to EPA on
the scientific basis for risk assessments, methodologies, and pollution prevention measures and
approaches for chemicals regulated under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and is a
critical component of EPA's use of the best available science to protect human health and the
environment.
The SACC conducts reviews each year on a variety of scientific topics. Similarly, to the FIFRA
SAP, specific topics to be placed on the SACC agenda include difficult, new, or controversial
scientific issues identified in the course of EPA's chemicals program activities. In FY 2024, EPA
will address nine vacancies that will occur on the SACC as a result of expiring membership terms.
Two SACC meetings are planned for FY 2024. Consistent with the SACC Charter, EPA
anticipates convening approximately four to six SACC meetings in FY 2025. These meetings will
focus on the impact of industrial chemicals on human health and the environment and include the
peer review of scientific data, methodologies, models, and assessments, as needed.
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Planned Committee Meetings
Based on the estimates reflected in the 2022-2024 committee charters,230 EPA anticipates
convening up to a total of nine to eleven meetings in FY 2025. These meetings will focus on the
impact of pesticides and chemicals on human health and the environment and include the peer
review of scientific data, methodologies, models, and assessments, as needed.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$169.0) This program change is a decrease that will reduce support of science advisory
committee oversight and reflects additional changes to fixed support costs.
Statutory Authority:
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics
Act (FFDCA), §408; Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Federal Advisory Committee Act
(FACA).
230 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/sap/fLfra-scientific-advisory-panel-charter and
https://www.epa. gov/tsca-peer-review/science-advisory-committee-chemicals-charter.
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Operations and Administration
279
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Acquisition Management
Program Area: Operations and Administration
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
s.WH-1
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M"-5
$181
$136
-$45
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$22,835
$27,247
$34,172
$6,925
Total Budget Authority
$56,042
$64,679
$76,393
$11,714
Total Workyears
268.9
307.7
355.7
48.0
Program Project Description:
Environmental Programs and Management (EPM) resources in the Acquisition Management
Program support EPA's contract activities, which cover planning, awarding, and administering
contracts for the Agency. Efforts include issuing acquisition policy and interpreting acquisition
regulations; administering training for contracting and program acquisition personnel; providing
advice and oversight to regional procurement offices; and providing information technology (IT)
improvements for acquisition.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $4.8 million and 20.0 FTE for this program. The Agency
will continue to strengthen EPA's capacity to process new, increased, and existing contract award
actions in a timely manner; advance EPA utilization of small and disadvantaged businesses;
support "Made in America" initiatives; and address supply chain risk management activities for
information and communication technology. EPA processes and awards contract actions in line
with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and guidance from the Office of Management and
Budget's (OMB) Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP).
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support the implementation of supply chain risk requirements
in Section 889 of the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act and the "Made in America Laws"
referenced in Executive Order 14005, Ensuring the Future Is Made in All of America by All of
America's Workers,231 while furthering Category Management. The Agency will develop a Made
in America Acquisition training curriculum to train EPA's acquisition workforce and will develop
a comprehensive EPA Made in America intranet site which includes resources on agency and
231 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefiiig-room/presidential-
actions/2021/01/25/executive-order-on-ensuring-the-future-is-made-in-all-of-america-by-all-of-americas-'workers/.
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Federal Market Resources, compliance requirements and process guidance for both procurement
and assistance agreements. EPA also will establish a Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM)
Program Management Office and task force to formally develop a comprehensive architecture for
the Agency's supply chain, as well as mechanisms to identify and mitigate risk.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to identify activities and resources to enhance and modernize its
acquisition process. This will allow the Agency to connect with a more diverse business base to
address inequities in the acquisition process and build domestic markets and capabilities. EPA will
leverage its three-year Acquisition Forecast database and existing spend data to engage in early
market research to ensure adequate time to thoroughly analyze the market for domestic vendors or
seek a waiver if none exist. The Agency will overhaul the Advance Procurement Planning
component of the Agency's requisition dashboard to easily gather data regarding the planning
phase of the procurement process. In FY 2023, EPA launched the Acquisition Lab Toolkits for
Agency Acquisition personnel. Furthermore, EPA will expand the Acquisition Portal to include
an up to date Made in America toolkit, a Contingency Planning toolkit, and a repository for vendor
marketing information.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue working to eliminate barriers to full and equal participation in
agency procurement and contracting opportunities for all communities and will continue serving
as an active member of the Procurement Equity Workgroup. The Agency will promote the
equitable delivery of government benefits and opportunities by making contracting and
procurement opportunities available on an equal basis to all eligible providers of goods and
services. This work aims to increase the percentage of EPA contract spend awarded to small
businesses located in Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones). These businesses
often lack dedicated resources and in-house capacity to capitalize on agency acquisition and
financial assistance opportunities.
EPA remains committed to leveraging Category Management principles and enabling Spend
Under Management (SUM) in each of its programs and purchasing areas to save taxpayer dollars
and improve mission outcomes. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to utilize data provided by OFPP
and the General Services Administration, to implement spend analysis, trend analysis, and data
visualization tools to measure progress toward EPA's Category Management goals.
OMB's SUM initiative focuses on managed total acquisition spend and agency activities which
transition spend to contract vehicles aligned with Category Management principles. Since FY
2023, EPA has elevated its focus on employing Category Management from purely strategic
sourcing to broader monitoring and management of EPA's primary spend categoriesFacilities
& Construction, Professional Services, IT, Industrial Products & Services, Office Management,
and Human Capital. Category Liaisons were established to oversee and improve progress with
EPA's development of Category-level strategies in the primary spend categories. In FY 2025, EPA
Category Liaisons will partner with Federal and EPA Category Managers to execute established
Category-level strategies to enable greater SUM and improve the Agency's ability to achieve its
Category Management goals.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement SUM principles to leverage pre-vetted agency and
government-wide contracts. Through SUM solutions, acquisition experts will optimize spending
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within the government-wide category management framework and increase the transactional data
available for agency-level analysis of buying behaviors. To modernize the acquisition process and
remove barriers to entry for obtaining government contracts, EPA has developed two innovative
tools available agencywide: the EPA Solution Finder, which provides solution and ordering
information for all EPA enterprise-wide contract solutions; and the SUM Opportunity Tool, which
recommends existing solutions to address newly identified agency requirements for commodities
and services and those supported on expiring contracts.
EPA also will elevate its focus on the Category Management approach to improve management
and results of its portfolio of contracts. EPA will continue to maximize considerations for
implementing Strategic Sourcing Initiatives (SSIs), thereby enhancing purchase coordination,
improving price uniformity and knowledge-sharing, and leveraging small business capabilities to
meet acquisition goals. EPA will continue to implement strategic sourcing initiatives first launched
in FY 2023 in the areas of Lab Equipment Maintenance; Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and
Accessibility; Organizational Development and Coaching; Business and Financial Services; and
Intellitrak software.
The Category Management Program allows the Agency to research, assess, and award contract
vehicles that will maximize time and resource savings. Long-term implementation of the Category
Management Program is transforming the Agency's acquisition process into a strategically driven
function, ensuring maximum value for every acquisition dollar spent. In FY 2023, EPA realized
approximately $20.3 million in cost avoidance in specific, measurable costs for twelve agencywide
solutions: Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificates; print services; cellular services; content and data
subscriptions; shipping; infrastructure services; office supplies; lab supplies; computers; furniture
and furniture management services; COVID-19 testing; and laboratory equipment maintenance.
Since the Category Management Program's inception in 2013, EPA has avoided approximately
$924 million in costs.
In support of the IT Category-level Strategy, EPA will continue to increase transparency and
visibility for IT purchases, including improving the Financial Information Technology Acquisition
Reform Act (FITARA) process.232 Since FY 2023, EPA developed a FITARA numbering system
and the FITARA Approval ID custom data field in the EPA Acquisition System (EAS) agency
contract writing system. The Agency can now track IT purchases from FITARA approval to
contract award, which expands the potential to build greater effectiveness in identifying trends in
IT acquisitions, streamlines the applicability of FITARA approvals to classes of contracts, and
enables the Agency to be responsive to audits and inquiries.
For the Professional Services Category, the Agency will continue to build understanding of
mission-critical services and explore opportunities to develop enterprise-wide solutions in mission
support areas nuanced to EPA's specific needs. In FY 2022, EPA established the Office of Air and
Radiation (OAR) Environmental, Analytical, Research, Technical, and Hybrid (EARTH) Support
Services Blanket Purchase Agreement, its first omnibus mission support acquisition solution
available for agencywide use. OAR EARTH has proven integral to the effective execution of EPA
activities funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act
232 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.congress.gOv/l 13/plaws/publ291/PLAW-
1.1. 3ituM29 1. ,pdf#page= 1.48%SI).
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(IRA). In FY 2025, EPA will expand its mission support solutions to the Office of Land and
Emergency Management and the Office of Water. These enterprise-wide mission support solutions
focus on small business utilization through use of total small business set-asides or support area
"tracks" restricted to small business awards, which furthers EPA's emphasis on small business
utilization and ensures continued alignment of federal category management and equity goals.
Performance Measure Targets:
Work under this program supports performance results in the Small Minority Business Assistance
Program under the EPM appropriation.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$700.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$4,134.0 / +20.0 FTE) This program change will strengthen EPA's capacity to process
new, increased, and existing award contract actions in a timely manner; advance EPA
utilization of small and disadvantaged business; support "Made in America" initiatives;
and support supply chain risk management activities for information and communication
technology. This investment includes $3.65 million for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
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Central Planning, Budgeting, and Finance
Program Area: Operations and Administration
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SH5.H40
SS'.O'J'J
.S HM.5V5
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s ;
$457
$474
$17
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$32,914
$31,338
$30,512
-$826
Total Budget Authority
$119,128
$118,894
$131,581
$12,687
Total Workyears
441.2
472.0
486.7
14.7
Total workyears in FY 2025 include 2.0 FTE funded by TSCA fees.
Total workyears in FY 2025 include 45.7 FTE to support Central Planning, Budgeting, and Finance working capital
fund (WCF) services.
Program Project Description:
Activities under the Central Planning, Budgeting, and Finance Program support the management
of integrated planning, budgeting, financial management, performance and accountability
processes, risk assessments and reporting, and financial systems to ensure effective stewardship of
resources. This includes managing and supporting the Agency's financial management systems.
The Program functions include financial payment and support services for EPA; general and
specialized fiscal and accounting services for many of EPA's programs; strategic planning and
accountability for environmental, fiscal, and managerial results; developing and executing an
Enterprise Risk Management Program to support mission delivery and decision-making; providing
policy, systems, training, reports, and oversight essentials for EPA's financial operations;
managing the agencywide Working Capital Fund (WCF); and managing the Agency's annual
budget process. This program supports agency activities to meet requirements of the Government
Performance and Results Modernization Act (GPRMA) of 2010,233 as amended by the
Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 ("Evidence Act"), with an emphasis
on Title I of the Act;234 the Digital Accountability and Transparency (DATA) Act of 2014;235 the
Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) of 2015;236 the Federal
Management Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA);237 the Inspector General Act of 1978.238
233 For more information, please see: https://www.congress.gOv/l 1.l/plaws/publ352/PLAW-l1. Ipubl352.pdf.
234 For more information, please see: https://www.congress. gov/1.1.5/plaws/publ435/PLAW-1.1.5publ435 .pdf.
235 For more information, please see: fattps://www.congress, gov/1.1.3/plaws/pubt 1.01./FLAW-1.1.3pubt 1.01. .pdf".
236 FITARA became law as a part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015 (Title VIII, Subtitle D),
https://www.congress.gOv/l 1.3/plaws/publ291/PLAW-1.1.3publ291. .pdf".
237 For more information, please see: fattps://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/ST 96/pdf/STATUTE-96-Pg814.pdf.
238 For more information, please see: fattps: //www, go vinfo. go v/content/pkg/U 5 012-title5/pdf/USCQDE-2012-title5-app-
inspector.pdf.
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the Program requests an additional $13.5 million and 13.1 FTE. This increase includes
an investment in a solution that would move the Agency forward in assessing enterprise and
programmatic risk, internal control and audit management; expands agency capacity for
conducting evaluations and provides for necessary fixed costs increases. The additional FTE will
support evidence and evaluation work, system enhancements, and agencywide implementation of
EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and Evidence Act data
stewardship and governance requirements. EPA will continue to provide resource stewardship to
ensure that all agency programs operate with fiscal responsibility, management integrity, and
efficient financial services are delivered nationwide. The Program will continue maintaining key
planning, budgeting, performance measurement, and financial management activities.
Additionally, the Program also will implement enhancements to technical training, outreach, and
reporting to assistance programs with the goal of reducing the barriers of managing complex
federal requirements. The Program will ensure secure operations and maintenance of core agency
financial management systems: Compass, PeoplePlus (Time and Attendance), Budget Formulation
System, which includes a Performance Module, and related financial reporting systems.
The Agency continues to modernize its financial systems to gain greater efficiencies through
leveraging the accounting system, providing accessible tools to manage resources and track agency
performance goals. In FY 2025, Robotics Process Automation (RPA) will be incorporated as a
part of the overall strategy to reduce manual work and improve efficiency of the Agency' s financial
management responsibilities. The Program will begin activities for maj or upgrades to the Agency' s
financial management system (Compass) based on an alternatives analysis conducted in FY 2024.
EPA will continue to expand and enhance easy to use financial dashboards for management and
other analysis work. Dashboards are now in place to support payroll and FTE management. The
dashboards support GPRMA performance planning and systematic tracking of supplemental
funding. The Program will continue to modify systems and data flows to meet Justice40 location
reporting needs. This will involve extensive evaluation of systems architecture to streamline and
modernize interconnections and to improve system performance for customer experience.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to standardize and streamline internal business processes. In FY
2023, EPA began processing new interagency agreements within G-invoicing, as per the Treasury
guidelines. This improved process and system implementation will continue to evolve over the
next few years as more agencies come online and start to do business with the Agency in G-
invoicing. EPA will continue to work transferring its entire catalog of interagency agreements to
G-invoicing by the end of FY 2025, however, this transfer is dependent on the trading partners'
ability to move into G-invoicing. In FY 2024, EPA will prepare to initiate the acquisition process
and transition planning for the Agency's Time and Attendance system based on the results of its
FY 2023 alternatives analysis.
In the current climate of cybercrime, data hacking and foreign interference, the Program is focused
on the Agency's ability to adapt network and data systems to meet increased transparency and
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cybersecurity needs. The DATA Act reporting will continue to evolve with more stringent
timelines, certification requirements, data standardization, validation checks, as well as additional
areas of federal financial spending. The Agency plans to be flexible to adapt to the new
transparency requirements and to provide timely and accurate spending information to the public
while ensuring appropriate security controls and data governance are in place.
In FY 2025, the Program will continue to support formal evaluations, improve critical data
collections and data sharing in priority areas as directed by the Evidence Act. In alignment with
the Act, EPA has been steadily building the capacity for this important work, and in FY 2022 the
Agency published its first Learning Agenda. The first Learning Agenda helped established the
policy framework for the Agency's evaluation program. In FY 2025, the Agency will continue
implementing the objectives of the Act. In alignment with the Act, EPA is strategically assessing
its capacity to engage in three areas of evidence-building activity - program evaluation, statistics,
and continuous improvement. In FY 2023 and 2024, all organizations will report the activities,
staff expertise, infrastructure, and resources that they have committed to each evidence-building
area, as well as their plans to expand these activities over the next three years. In FY 2025, the
results will be used to identify baseline skills and capabilities, offer resources, training, and tools.
The results will be used to inform the development of the FY 2026 - FY 2030 EPA Strategic Plan,
underscoring the Agency's progress in incorporating evidence into core management deliberations
and decision-making. The Act requires EPA to develop an evidence-building portfolio to support
policy and program implementation decisions by generating evaluation studies to help the Agency
improve, advance, or modify existing programs, policies, projects, or operations. In order to build
a portfolio of evaluation findings and build staff capacity to oversee and implement evaluations,
the Agency is funding evaluations that leverage administrative and other readily available data.
Evaluations will be conducted in FY 2024 and will be expanded in FY 2025 to support evaluation
studies for decision-making and continuous improvement. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to
execute the Agency's Learning Agenda, build evaluation and evidence-building into the planning
for new and enhanced programs, enhance strategic and annual planning, collaborate with external
evaluation experts, and implement EPA's evaluation policy framework. EPA will invest in
evaluation and other evidence-building activities addressing environmental justice (EJ), climate
change, community engagement, and diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA). With
a commitment to reversing decades of underinvestment in small, disadvantaged, and Tribal
communities that are most impacted by environmental hazards, pollution, and climate change. The
Program will offer cooperative agreement awards to help develop tools, strategies, and technical
assistance that will build knowledge and skills in the evidence-building process. The cooperative
agreement awards will enhance communities' evidence-building capacity to generate high-quality
information that supports learning and improvement of outcomes and impacts.
In FY 2025, the Program will continue to focus on core responsibilities in the areas of strategic
planning; performance measurement, assessment, and reporting; and enterprise risk management.
As the Agency lead in designing and implementing performance measurement and risk
management strategies that inform agency decision-making and advance mission results, the
Program will focus on driving progress toward the Administrator's priorities by regularly assessing
performance results against targets, monitoring and mitigating risks, and adjusting strategies as
needed. This includes convening Quarterly Performance Reviews (QPRs) to assess progress;
promoting an increased use of data analytics and evidence-based decision-making practices;
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working collaboratively with agency programs to assess and analyze performance and risk data;
and providing technical assistance on agencywide measures of governance to enhance data quality.
EPA also will continue to use the performance data evidence to answer fundamental business
questions and identify opportunities for service improvements.
During FY 2025, EPA will continue to leverage a management system that uses Lean Management
techniques and tools to promote continuous improvement. Lean Management techniques will
continue to complement EPA's performance framework to help the Agency meet the requirements
of the GPRMA. As of December 2023, EPA has improved more than 1,500 processes and
implemented over 11,500 employee ideas. Improvements and innovations have been made in a
variety of administrative areas, such as hiring and DEIA improvements.
EPA has made significant strides in recent years to strengthen programs considered susceptible to
improper payment. However, the Agency continues to be vigilant in reducing fraud, waste, abuse,
and strengthening internal controls over improper payments. In addition, as required by the
Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019 (PIIA) (P.L. 116-117)239 and OMB Memorandum M-
21-19 Appendix C,240 EPA conducts risk assessments of all its payment streams. Other
improvements include the recent implementation of upgraded systems used for payments and
invoice processing through which the Agency anticipates even fewer payment errors moving
forward. To strengthen our processes, the Program is developing risk assessment plans for
significant increases or new funding the Agency receives. These risk assessments will outline
potential areas that may require additional guidance for tracking and reporting, performance
measures, and internal controls to prevent and detect possible improper payment activities.
The Program will continue to conduct internal control program reviews and use the results and
recommendations from the Office of Inspector General to provide evidence of the soundness of
EPA's financial management program and identify areas for further improvement. Annually, the
Agency conducts internal control reviews of multiple programs. The Program will collect key
operational statistics for its financial management program to further evaluate its operations and
for management decision-making. In FY 2023, EPA enhanced their enterprise risk management
and risk assessment processes to help the collection and analysis of the Agency's risks and
mitigating controls. In future years, EPA will be enhancing its controls on payments by re-
evaluating and adjusting its Payment Integrity operations to allow for a broader reviews of
payment transactions.
With increased focused on internal controls, audit management, and enterprise risk assessment, in
FY 2025, the Agency will continue to expand the Program's efforts in this area including
implementing a new internal control tool. The new tool will allow the Agency to easily crosswalk
the anticipated increase in the number of audits for program integrity to the 600+ risks and internal
controls. The tool also will help the Agency to better monitor the effectiveness, impact and testing
of the internal controls set in place.
239 For more information, please see: https://www.congress.gOv/l 16/plaws/publl 17/PLAW-l 16publl 17.pdf.
240 For more information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/M-21-19.pdf
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The Program will continue to support FITARA requirements in accordance with EPA's
Implementation Plan.241 The Chief Information Officer will continue to be engaged throughout the
budget planning process to ensure that information technology needs are properly planned and
resourced in accordance with FITARA.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM OP1) Number of operational processes improved.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
25
50
72
500
200
200
200
200
Operational
Processes
Actual
N/A
66
502
507
208
236
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$5,018.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support
for critical agency wide infrastructure support for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity
requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of
Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$6,420.0 / +7.2 FTE) This program change supports implementation of the Evidence Act
to continue to support the data, reporting, and evidence-building capacity of EPA grant
recipients. In addition, this funding will boost support for EPA's central evaluation
function, including evaluation policy implementation activities and EPA's program
evaluation capacity. It also will support 3 to 4 comprehensive program evaluations and
allow for a higher degree of planning to better prioritize and integrate evidence-building
and evidence-based decision-making into agency programs. This investment includes $1.3
million for payroll.
(+$1,570.0 / +3.4 FTE) This investment supports a new management integrity tool to turn
manual data collection and analysis activities into a streamlined, customer-focused and
agencywide tool that meets the agencywide analytical needs supporting enterprise risk
management, internal control, and audit environments. The FTE will support system
configuration, training, on-going administrative functions and expanded agency analysis
activities. This investment includes $630.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$488.0 / +2.5 FTE) This investment supports additional FTE to help the agencywide
implementation process of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic
Plan and Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment
provides $463.0 thousand for payroll.
241 For more information, please see: http://www.epa.gov/open/fitara-mplementation-plan-and-chief-iiifoniiation-ofTLcer-
assignment-plan.
288
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Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified as Title 5 App.) (EPA's organic statute).
289
-------
Facilities Infrastructure and Operations
Program Area: Operations and Administration
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.S 2~.\f>l-l
S2X3J.W
S.WS. 13-1
S 24.H04
Science ik Technology
$65,328
$67,500
$72,906
$5,406
Building and Facilities
$17,502
$42,076
$98,893
$56,817
Leaking Underground Storage Tanks
$803
$754
$729
-$25
Inland Oil Spill Programs
$692
$682
$643
-$39
Hazardous Substance Superfund
$74,115
$65,634
$72,349
$6,715
Total Budget Authority
$434,054
$459,976
$553,654
$93,678
Total Workyears
304.7
321.8
331.1
9.3
Total work years in FY 2025 include 6.1 FTE to support Facilities Infrastructure and Operations Working Capital
Fund (WCF) services.
Program Project Description:
Environmental Programs and Management (EPM) resources in the Facilities Infrastructure and
Operations Program fund the Agency's rent, utilities, and security. The Program also supports
centralized administrative activities and support services, including health and safety,
environmental compliance and management, facilities maintenance and operations, space
planning, sustainability and energy conservation, property management, mail, and transportation
services. Funding for such services is allocated among the major appropriations for the Agency.
This program also supports the Agency's Protection Services Detail (PSD) that provides physical
protection for the Administrator through security for daily activities and events. The PSD
coordinates all personnel and logistical requirements including scheduling, local support, travel
arrangements, and the management of special equipment. The Program also provides personnel
and support for the Office of Federal Chief Sustainability Officer per Executive Order 14057
Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability, Section 501.242243
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
242 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.sustainability.gov/about.html.
243 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/12/08/executive-order-on-catalyzing-clean-energy-industries-and-jobs-through-federal- sustainability/.
290
-------
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $24.8 million and 8.8 FTE in the Facilities Infrastructure
and Operations Program to support agencywide climate sustainability and resiliency initiatives,
and EPA facilities' operating costs and projects. Investing in the reconfiguration of EPA's
workspaces enables the Agency to release office space and avoid long-term rent costs, consistent
with th q Federal Assets Sale and Transfer Act 244 Thesejesources are essential to help EPA reduce
the number of occupied leased facilities, consolidate and optimize space within owned facilities,
and reduce square footage. The Agency's space consolidation and energy efficiency efforts result
in cost avoidances due to projected rent and utility increases in out-years. For FY 2025, the Agency
requests $154.22 million for rent, $5.8 million for utilities, and $23.8 million for security in the
EPM appropriation. EPA uses a standard methodology to ensure that rent charging appropriately
reflects planned and enacted resources at the appropriation level.
EPA will continue conducting climate resiliency assessments at EPA-owned facilities to identify
critical upgrades that are necessary to improve facility resiliency against the impacts of climate
change, such as roof stabilization or seawall construction projects. EPA also will continue
incorporating natural hazard and climate vulnerability assessments into their real property risk
management process. In FY 2025, EPA will conduct climate assessments at the Andrew W.
Breidenbach Environmental Research Center, and Center Hill Research Facility in Cincinnati, OH,
and the National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory in Ann Arbor, MI. As a result of FY 2022
assessments, EPA initiated two high priority projects in FY 2023: a feasibility study to improve
the resilience of the causeway leading to the Gulf Ecosystem Measurement and Modeling Division
campus in Gulf Breeze, FL, and a solar array feasibility study at the research facility in
Narragansett, RI.
Space consolidation and reconfiguration enables EPA to reduce its footprint to create a more
efficient, collaborative, and technologically sophisticated workplace. In FY 2025, the Agency will
continue to reconfigure EPA's workplaces to ensure the space footprint can accommodate a
growing and hybrid workforce.245 EPA will consider all opportunities for supporting
organizational health, in line with OMB Memoranda M-23-15 - Measuring, Monitoring, and
Improving Organizational Health and Organizational Performance in the Context of Evolving
Agency Work Environments. Even if modifications are kept to a minimum, each move requires
initial funding to achieve long-term cost avoidance and sustainability goals. These investments
support sustainable federal infrastructure and the clean energy goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.
In FY 2025, EPA will implement energy, water, and building infrastructure requirements with
emphasis on environmental programs (e.g., Environmental Management Systems, Environmental
Compliance Programs, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Certification, alternative
fuel use, fleet reductions, telematics, and sustainability assessments). This funding will support
investments in infrastructure (e.g., architectural and design) and mechanical systems (e.g.,
Optimized Building Managements Systems for heating and cooling with load demand driven
244 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.congress.gOv/bill/l 14th-congress/house-bil1/4465. Federal Assets Sale
and Transfer Act of 2016.
245 Work in this program takes direction for climate change and sustainability related initiatives from the following: EO 14008:
Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/01/27/executive-order-on-tackling-the-climate-crisis-at-home-and-abroad/) and EO 14057: Catalyzing Clean
Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/12/08/executive-order-on-catalyzing-clean-energy-industries-and-iobs-through-federal-susta inability /).
291
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controls). Further, EPA will direct $4 million to continue transitioning to electric vehicles through
direct purchase (mobile lab vehicles) or lease with the General Services Administration (GSA),
and to build out the necessary charging infrastructure at EPA facilities. In line with federal
sustainability goals, EPA will work to utilize 100 percent carbon pollution-free electricity on a net
annual basis by 2030.
EPA also will meet regulatory Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
obligations determined through audits and assessments and will provide health and safety training
to field staff (e.g., inspections, monitoring, and on-scene coordinators). The Agency will continue
its partnership with GSA to utilize shared services solutions, USAccess, and Enterprise Physical
Access Control System (ePACS) programs. USAccess provides standardized HSPD-12 approved
Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card enrollment and issuance and ePACS provides centralized
access control of EPA facilities, including restricted and secure areas.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM CAA) Number of EPA-owned facility climate adaptation assessments completed.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
2
7
11
14
Assessments
Actual
1
7
(PM CRP) Perce
months of a com
ntage of priority climate resiliency Projects for EPA-owned facilities initiated within 24
pleted facility climate assessment and Project prioritization.
FY
20IX
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
100
100
100
Percent
Actual
100
Numerator
1
Projects
Denominator
1
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$2,764.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support
for critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity
requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of
Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$10,694.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to adjustments to rent,
utilities, security, and transit subsidy needs.
(+$5,646.0 / +7.8 FTE) This program change supports implementation of EO 14057:
Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability requirements
that will require EPA to increase facility resiliency against the impact of climate change
and to advance sustainability of EPA operations. EPA will invest in facility climate
assessments and Optimized Building Management Systems; EPA facilities projects to
292
-------
ensure EPA has optimal footprint to support the proposed FTE increase in the FY 2025
Budget request; and EPA's Climate Adaptation Action Plan. This investment includes $1.6
million for payroll.
(+$4,000.0) This program change supports the continuing implementation of transitioning
the Agency's Federal motor vehicle fleet to clean and zero emission vehicles, as well as
building out necessary charging infrastructure at EPA facilities.
(+$1,700.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change provides the Office of the Chief
Sustainability Officer additional FTE and resources necessary to lead implementation of
Executive Order 14057.
Statutory Authority:
Federal Property and Administration Services Act; Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat.
2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485 (codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
293
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Financial Assistance Grants / IAG Management
Program Area: Operations and Administration
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S2H.225
S.W.I ss
S.i-I. V5
S-/..V"
Hazardous Substance SupeiTund
s 1^"
$4,002
$4,660
$658
Total Budget Authority
$33,079
$34,190
$39,405
$5,215
Total Workyears
145.5
156.8
184.5
27.7
Program Project Description:
Environmental Program and Management (EPM) resources in the Financial Assistance Grants and
Interagency Agreement (IA) Management Program support the management of grants and IAs as
well as suspension and debarment activities for assistance and procurement programs. Grants and
IAs historically comprise a significant percentage of EPA's annual appropriations. Resources in
this program ensure EPA manages grants and IAs to meet the highest fiduciary standards and
achieve measurable results for environmental programs and agency priorities, and that the
government's financial resources and business interests are protected from fraud and
mismanagement.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $4.6 million and 23.0 FTE for this program. The Agency
will continue implementing the FY 2021-2025 Grants Management Plan, focusing on efficient
award and management of assistance agreements, enhancing partnerships within the grants
management community, promoting environmental justice (EJ), and ensuring effective grant
oversight and accountability.
EPA will continue to provide technical assistance and outreach to recipients of federal funding;
improve capacity for oversight and tracking of new and increased grant investments; and process
financial assistance agreements in a timely manner. EPA will conduct a robust training program
for EPA staff and grant applicants and recipients that will focus on:
1) Helping applicants find and apply for competitive and non-competitive grant
opportunities.
2) Providing compliance assistance to ensure applicants and recipients are prepared to
receive and administer funding from the annual appropriations as well as the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and Congressionally
Directed Spending.
294
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3) Ensuring recipients understand and comply with the federal requirements that apply to
them and primary recipients.
EPA will use and adapt the grant competition and grant-making processes to promote equity and
support for underserved communities. For example, EPA will provide technical assistance to
potential grantees from underserved communities on sound financial management practices to
reduce barriers to competition for EPA grant resources. EPA also will track grant place of
performance to help determine whether underserved communities realize the benefits of EPA grant
programs.
EPA also will continue to ensure compliance with the Build America, Buy America Act and
policies in its financial assistance programs, consistent with Executive Order 14005 and Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) Memorandum M-24-02.246'247 These efforts include establishing
appropriate terms and conditions, developing information to share with recipients, conducting
market research and industrial engagement, and, where absolutely necessary, providing limited
and targeted waivers consistent with statutory requirements and OMB directive.
In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to make use of discretionary debarments and suspensions
as well as statutory disqualifications under the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act to protect the
integrity of federal assistance and procurement programs. Congress and federal courts have long
recognized federal agencies' inherent authority and obligation to exclude non-responsible parties
from eligibility to receive government contracts and federal assistance awards (e.g., grants,
cooperative agreements, loans, and loan guarantees).
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$637.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$3,920.0 / +23.0 FTE) This net program change will support technical assistance and
outreach to first time recipients of federal funding; improve capacity for oversight and
tracking of new and increased grant investments; and the timely processing of financial
assistance agreements. This investment includes $4.2 million for payroll.
246 For more information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/28/2021-02038/ensuring-the-
future-is-made-in-all-of-america-by-all-of-americas-workers.
247 For more information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/M-24-Q2-Buy-America-
Iiiipleiiieiitatioii-Guidance-IJpdate.pdf.
295
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Statutory Authority:
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L. 98-80, 97 Stat. 485
(codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute); Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act;
Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act § 2455.
296
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Human Resources Management
Program Area: Operations and Administration
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
s5i.su:
S
V.,S'. 12-1
S/6.,SV).i
Hazardous Substance Superfund
s-^sC
$7,419
$9 }0^
$1,884
Total Budget Authority
$59,264
$58,680
$77,427
$18,747
Total Workyears
210.6
254.4
328.7
74.3
Total work years in FY 2025 include 1.5FTEto support Human Resources Management working capital fund (WCF)
services.
Program Project Description:
Environmental Programs and Management (EPM) resources for the Human Resources (HR)
Management Program support human capital management (HCM) activities throughout EPA.
HCM activities include diverse outreach, recruitment, hiring, employee development, performance
management, leadership development, strategic planning (including workforce planning,
succession management, employee acclimation and experience management), data analysis and
labor union engagement. These factors are critical for building, developing, and retaining a diverse
and talented workforce at EPA. Additional HCM activities supported by EPM resources include
personnel and payroll processing through the Human Resources Line of Business. EPM resources
also support overall federal advisory committee management and Chief Human Capital Officer
Council activities under applicable statutes and guidance, including the Agency's Human Capital
Operating Plan.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $18.75 million and 74.3 FTE across EPM and Superfund
resources for the HR Management Program to continue to implement EPA's Diversity, Equity,
Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) Strategic Plan, establish a centralized EPA intern program,
implement evidence-gathering and application under EPA's Learning Agenda, and strengthen
agencywide capacity to hire and onboard staff in a timely and equitable manner. The activities
supported by EPA's HR Management Program contribute to effective workforce management and
are critical for strengthening the workforce, retaining expertise, and capturing institutional
knowledge. EPA continues developing mechanisms to ensure employees have the right skills to
successfully achieve the Agency's core mission today and in the future.
297
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EPA is committed to advancing equity, in line with President Biden's Executive Orders (EOs)
13985,248 13988,249 14020,250 14035,251 and 140 75.252 In FY 2025, in line with EO 14035, EPA
requests an additional $7,826 million to implement the actions identified in the DEIA Strategic Plan
and to assess whether agency recruitment, hiring, promotion, retention, professional development,
performance evaluations, pay and compensation policies, reasonable accommodations access, and
training policies and practices are equitable. EPA will undertake an evidence-based and data-
driven approach to determine whether, and to what extent, agency practices result in inequitable
employment outcomes, and whether agency actions may help to overcome systemic societal and
organizational barriers. Further, the Agency's Chief Diversity Officer will oversee the assessment
of the status and effects of existing DEIA initiatives or programs and review the institutional
resources available to support human resources activities. For areas where evidence is lacking, the
Agency will propose opportunities to advance DEIA. EPA will continue to involve employees at
all levels of the organization in the assessment of DEIA initiatives and programs.
In FY 2025, EPA will manage and propose an additional $1.36 million investment in its Senior
Executive Service Candidate Development Program. The Program will focus on incorporating
DEIA strategies to ensure future executives reflect the diversity of the American population and
possess the skills necessary to lead a diverse and talented workforce operating in a hybrid work
environment. The Agency will continue to implement a centralized paid internship program and
with the additional funds requested, will expand on existing internship opportunities across the
Agency to strengthen talent and workforce acquisition. This paid internship program focuses on
expanding federal work experience opportunities for underrepresented and underserved
populations which may have experienced barriers to applying or fully participating in existing
opportunities. EPA's program will provide a total of approximately 180 four-month internship
opportunities across EPA Programs and Regional Offices. Additionally, EPA will implement a
plan to convert eligible interns to permanent federal service based on performance and completing
program requirements.
EPA has increased efforts to improve DEIA with virtual outreach events targeting diverse
networks such as veterans, persons with disabilities, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, and
Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other Minority Serving Institutions. To recruit
EPA's next generation of employees, EPA will continue outreach to new potential sources for
future employees and use all available hiring authorities including Schedule A and recruitment
incentives. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work with Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics-focused institutions and organizations such as the Society of Hispanic Professional
Engineers and National Society of Black Engineers. EPA also will participate in the President's
Management Council Interagency Rotational Program to create leadership development
248 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federa1register.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-01753/advanciiig-
racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment.
249 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/Ql/25/2021-Q1761/preventing-
and-combating-discrimination-on-the-basis-of-gender-identity-or-sexual-orientation.
250 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gOv/documents/2021/03/l 1/2021.-05183/establishment-
of-the-white-house-gender-policy-council.
251 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/Q6/30/2Q21-14127/diversity-
equity-inclusion-and-accessibility-in-the-federal-workforce.
252 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/06/21/2Q22-13391/advancing-
equality-for-lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-queer-and-intersex-individuals.
298
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assignments for GS 13-15 level employees. EPA will continue to review applicant flow diversity
data every quarter to assess progress and identify areas for improvement.
In FY 2025, in line with OMB Memoranda M-23-15 - Measuring, Monitoring, and Improving
Organizational Health and Organizational Performance in the Context of Evolving Agency Work
Environments,253 EPA will continue to implement, and update as necessary, its Work Environment
Plan in a manner that emphasizes meaningful in-person work and advances organizational health
and performance. EPA will continue to assess and implement any necessary investments in
information technology and real property necessary to implement its Work Environment Plan.
EPA also will continue to support front-line supervisor training for managing individuals and
teams working in hybrid environments and effectively delivering results to customers and
stakeholders. EPA will continue to support a data-driven culture which routinely uses performance
measures for measuring, monitoring, and improving organizational health and organizational
performance.
The Agency will continue to build Talent Teams to effectively expand recruitment and hiring to
meet critical agency skill needs, as well as continue to leverage childcare subsidies to support
retention. EPA also will continue to support and invest in evidence-building activities to carry out
a workforce strategy guided by data-driven decisions as part of its implementation of the Evidence
Act through the Workforce Planning learning priority area in EPA's Learning Agenda. This work
also addresses implementing OMB's Statistical Policy No. 15, Standards for the Classification of
Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity. This work includes determining Mission Critical
Competencies, enhancement of EPA's competency assessment tool, conducting a skills gap
analysis across the Agency, and implementing knowledge transfer strategies to support Succession
Management.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to operate and maintain the Talent Enterprise Diagnostic (TED)
tool to allow EPA to make data-driven, strategic workforce decisions. TED data will serve a crucial
role in EPA's Workforce Planning and Succession Management activities by identifying potential
competency gaps across the Agency and by increasing management's understanding of where
needed skill sets should reside within EPA. Additionally, EPA will continue to maintain and
operate dashboards related to Mission Critical Occupations, Workforce Demographics, and
Diversity. These dashboards provide data visualizations and easy-to-understand information about
the current workforce, assisting EPA with Succession Management by identifying workforce gaps
due to anticipated retirements and attrition trends. This is critical considering approximately 22
percent of EPA's workforce is retirement eligible and another 15 percent of the current workforce
will become retirement eligible over the next five years.
The Agency will continue to implement Executive Order 14003, Protecting the Federal
Workforce,254 issued on January 22, 2021. EPA reviewed its unions' agreements to identify and
eliminate provisions influenced by four revoked executive orders and will increase the focus on
pre-decisional involvement and interest-based bargaining. In FY 2025, EPA will continue working
to reset and repair relationships and involve unions in a collaborative way, promoting the Agency' s
253 For additional information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/M-23-15.pdf.
254 For additional information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/22/executive-
order-protecting-the-federal-workforce/.
299
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and the unions' shared goal of the positive and equitable treatment of newly empowered
employees.
Finally, EPA's advisory committees have proven effective in building consensus among the
Agency's diverse external partners and stakeholders. In line with President Biden'sMemorandum
on Restoring Trust in Government Through Scientific Integrity and Evidence-Based
Policymaking,255 EPA remains committed to ensuring highly qualified external experts serve on
agency committees and members and future nominees of EPA advisory committees reflect the
diversity of America in terms of gender, race, ethnicity, geography, and other characteristics.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM DEIA) Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility (DEIA) actions completed toward Maturity Level
"Leading and Sustaining" achieved.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
2
4
6
Actions
Actual
2
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$2,877.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, changes to benefits costs, and changes to workers
compensation and childcare.
(+$3,104.0 / +45.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to continue to develop and
diversify its new paid internship program to strengthen talent and workforce acquisition
and focus on expanding federal work experience opportunities for underrepresented and
underserved populations. This investment includes $2.6 million for payroll.
(+$7,257.0 / +5.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to support the implementation
of Executive Order 14035 - Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) in the
Federal Workforce, carry out the actions identified in EPA's DEIA Strategic Plan, and
assess whether agency recruitment, hiring, promotion, retention, professional
development, performance evaluations, pay and compensation policies, reasonable
accommodations access, and training policies and practices are equitable. This investment
includes $812.0 thousand for payroll.
(+$1,629.0 / +8.5 FTE) This program change strengthens agencywide capacity to quickly
increase staff levels in key offices and programs {i.e., environmental justice, climate,
infrastructure programs, etc.). This investment includes $1.4 million for payroll.
255 For additional information, please see: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-
actions/2021/01/27/memorandum-on-restoring-trust-in-government-through-scientific-integrity-and-evidence-based-
policymaking/.
300
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(+$1,000.0) This program change is an increase to support the continuation of the Senior
Executive Service Candidate Development Program with a goal that EPA senior leaders
reflect the diversity of the American people and will include a special focus on developing
diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusivity competencies.
(+$996.0 / +5.2 FTE) This program change is an increase in support of the Foundations for
Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018. Resources will be used for Learning Agenda's
evidence-gathering activities. This investment includes $844.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Title 5 of the U.S.C.; Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, 84 Stat. 2086, as amended by Pub. L.
98-80, 97 Stat. 485 (codified at Title 5, App.) (EPA's organic statute).
301
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Regional Science and Technology
Program Area: Operations and Administration
Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SI.S'V
S 1.55-1
.s -Jff~
Y\ ~v?
Total Budget Authority
SI, 879
SI,554
S7,287
S5,733
Total Workyears
0.3
1.7
16.7
15.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Regional Science and Technology (RS&T) Program provides direct regional support to
multiple Agency programs including implementing the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Clean Water Act (CWA); Safe Drinking Water
Act (SDWA); Clean Air Act (CAA); and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation
and Liability Act (CERCLA). The RS&T Program supports the Agency's strategic goals by
performing laboratory analysis, and mobile laboratory services to provide credible scientific data
on environmental pollutants and conditions for agency decision-makers. The RS&T Program also
assists state environmental agencies by providing specialized technical assistance including
assistance to vulnerable and highly exposed communities. Additionally, the Program assists tribal
communities to help build tribal capacity for environmental monitoring and assessment.
The RS&T Program provides essential expertise and scientific data for a wide array of
environmental media, including ambient air; surface, drinking, and groundwater; soil and
sediment; solid and hazardous waste; and biological tissue. This work focuses on the immediate
scientific information needed to make short-term local decisions. A strategic strength of the
regional laboratories is their ability to respond to events requiring surge capacity. In the event of
an emergency or project impacting a large area, regional laboratories work together to leverage the
strengths and capacities of individual lab facilities and deploy mobile laboratory services where
needed.
Extreme weather events often disproportionally affect vulnerable and highly exposed populations
including fence line communities most closely adjacent to chemical facilities. As extreme weather
events and related wildfires, flooding, and service interruptions increase in frequency due to
climate change, the public expectation for a rapid and effective response will continue to grow
over time. These events often require assistance from EPA's regional labs for quick turnaround
sample analyses as well as technical support. When extreme weather events occur, local area
laboratories can become overwhelmed. Each year, in response to natural and/or man-made
disasters across the county, the regions mobilize to provide critical support of urgent analytical
results to assist communities whose drinking water is threatened, air quality is impacted, or
properties are inundated. Regional laboratories have a strong record of backing up each other
during incidents when there is a high demand for services, such as 2021' s Winter Storm Uri, where
302
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Regions 4 and 7 assisted Region 6. Regional laboratories continue to stand ready to assist each
other during increasing wildfire events and other natural disasters.
The RS&T Program provides support for areas such as environmental biology, microbiology,
chemistry, field sampling, enforcement and criminal investigations, and quality assurance, as well
as support for special or non-routine analytical requests that EPA cannot readily obtain from other
sources within required timeframes. Funding for up-to-date scientific equipment and related IT
security investments under this program is essential for maintaining high-level capabilities in EPA
regional laboratories. New and improved technology strengthens science-based decision-making
for regulatory efforts, environmental assessment of contaminants, and the development of critical
and timely environmental data in response to accidents and natural or man-made disasters. As
technology improves, the sensitivity of equipment advances to detect lower levels of contaminants.
Newer, more advanced instrumentation improves environmental data collection, allows tight turn-
around-time frames to be met with more reliable equipment, and enhances laboratory analytical
capability for clients' needs.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program provides Cross-Agency Mission and Science Support and is allocated across
strategic goals and objectives in the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, resources will continue to support regional implementation of the Agency's statutory
mandates through fixed and mobile laboratory operations for environmental sampling, monitoring,
and enforcement compliance support. Resources improve timely decision-making in regional
program management and implementation of regulatory work across all media and enable the
Agency to address environmental issues specific to geographic areas (e.g., energy extraction,
mining, wood treating operations, specialty manufacturing), natural disasters and extreme climate
events such as flooding, drought and wildfires, and homeland security threats.
In FY 2025, regional laboratories will continue to coordinate within the Regional Laboratory
Network (RLN) to provide needed expert analytical services. The regional laboratories have the
capability to analyze a full suite of contaminants using an array of established methods, including
regulatory or guidance methods such as the RCRA, CWA, and SDWA methods. Laboratories also
utilize new methods and adapt methods based on immediate needs or circumstances. These efforts
help support the underserved communities that benefit from response times for both routine and
enforcement sample analyses related to contaminated sites in urban areas where legacy
contamination persists. As the Agency implements an ambitious agenda on climate change,
Environmental Justice, aging infrastructure, and emerging contaminants, the need for sound
analytical capabilities and capacity increases. Additional state-of-the-science instrumentation is
necessary to address these complex and interconnected challenges.
The RLN is experiencing an expansion of demands due to climate change, novel chemical threats,
and increased impacts on our vulnerable populations. The RLN must adapt to these changes and
be equipped to analyze emerging contaminants often at lower levels of detection. The FY 2025
investment will help the RLN adapt to these changing needs and provide necessary expertise and
services to our partners (e.g., other agency offices, states, and tribal communities).
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In FY 2025, the regional laboratories will continue to work toward the replacement and upgrading
of aging analytical equipment and the modernization of associated critical IT infrastructure. This
will support the risk identification and assessment associated with pesticides, organic chemicals,
and other high-risk chemicals. The Agency's mission to protect human health and the environment
often requires the availability of scientific data at lower detection levels, which requires specialized
equipment. Almost all scientific instrumentation is computer-controlled or interfaced. As
computer technology improves, instrument efficiencies and sensitivity also improve - these
advances in technology leading to lower detection levels of contaminants are essential for some
compounds where health-based risk levels are decreasing (e.g., hexavalent chromium and per- and
polyfluoroalkyl [PFAS] chemicals). When measuring these compounds, the instrument detection
levels need to be as low as technically feasible, requiring laboratories to modify an existing
method, modify existing equipment, or purchase newer instrumentation.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$83.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$5,650.0 / +15.0 FTE) This new investment will be used to replace and upgrade aging
analytical equipment, modernize associated critical IT infrastructure, and provide
additional staff necessary to meet increasing demands for immediate scientific information
needed to make short-term local decisions. This investment includes $2,627 million in
payroll.
Statutory Authorities:
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Clean
Water Act (CWA); Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA); Clean Air Act (CAA); Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); Pollution Prevention Act
(PPA); Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)
304
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Pesticides Licensing
305
-------
Pesticides: Protect Human Health from Pesticide Risk
Program Area: Pesticides Licensing
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S5v. ~-/n
SMi.JiS7
S
Science & Technology
$3,034
$2,894
$5,902
$3,008
Total Budget Authority
$62,774
$65,019
$72,183
$7,164
Total Workyears
398.6
385.6
385.6
0.0
Program Project Description:
Under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)256 and the Federal Food,
Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), as amended by the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996
(FQPA) and the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act of 2022 (PRIA 5),257 EPA is charged
with protecting people from the health risks that pesticide use can pose. FIFRA requires EPA to
register pesticide products before they are marketed for use in the U.S. Registration is based on
the review of scientific data sufficient to demonstrate that the product can perform its intended
function without unreasonable adverse effects on people or the environment. This program
emphasizes the use of reduced risk methods of pest control, including the use of reduced risk
pesticides and helping growers and other pesticide users learn about new, safer products and
methods of using pesticides.
Under FFDCA, if a pesticide is to be used in a manner that may result in pesticide residues in food
or animal feed, EPA must establish a tolerance, or maximum legal residue level, or an exemption
from the requirement of a tolerance before it can be registered. To establish a tolerance, EPA must
find that the residues are "safe," which, under FFDCA, means that there is a reasonable certainty
of no harm to human health from aggregate exposure to the pesticide residue in food and from all
other exposure except occupational exposure.258 EPA must periodically review the registration and
tolerances that the Agency issues to ensure that public health is adequately protected.
256 For additional information on FIFRA, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-federal-insecticide-
fungicidc-and-rodcnticidc-act.
257 On December 29, 2022, Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act of 2022 (PRIA 5) was signed into law, which
reauthorizes PRIA for 5 years through fiscal year 2027 and updates the fee collection provisions of the Federal Insecticide,
Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act.
258 Additional information related to pesticide registration, the setting of tolerance levels, and the pesticide risk assessment
process can be found at the following location: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-tolerances/setting-tolerances-pesticide-residues-
foods.
306
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.1, Ensure Chemical and Pesticide
Safety in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Pesticide Review and Registration
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to review and register new pesticides, new uses for existing
pesticides, and other registration requests in accordance with statutory requirements, making sure
exposure to infants and children is reflected in the human health risk assessments supporting these
regulatory determinations. Many assessments also address potential exposure to pregnant women.
In addition, the Agency will evaluate pesticides that are already in the market against current
scientific standards for human health. To advance EPA's work supporting environmental justice
(EJ) and children's health, EPA also will evaluate these registration requests with special
consideration for impacts on members of overburdened communities and sensitive life stages,
especially infants and children. Under the FQPA, EPA is statutorily required to ensure that its
regulatory decisions are protective of children's health and other vulnerable subpopulations. EPA
also will continue to emphasize the registration of reduced risk pesticides, including biopesticides,
to provide farmers and other pesticide users with new, safer alternatives. The Agency, in
collaboration with the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USD A), also will work to ensure that minor
use registrations receive appropriate support and that needs are met for reduced risk pesticides for
minor use crops. EPA also will assist farmers and other pesticide users in learning about new, safer
products and methods of using existing products through workshops, demonstrations, small grants,
and materials on the website and in print.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to review the registrations of existing pesticides with a focus on
assessing and ensuring that pesticides are used safely, without unreasonable adverse effects to
human health and the environment. The goal of the registration review process, as mandated by
statute, is to review pesticide registrations every 15 years to determine whether they continue to
meet the FIFRA standard for registration.259 With the reauthorization of PRIA 5 on December 29,
2022, the deadline to complete the initial registration review of each pesticide or pesticide case
was extended four years to October 1, 2026, and EPA will continue working on registration review
cases in FY 2025. For pesticides registered before October 1, 2007, EPA is required to make
registration review decisions by October 1, 2026. EPA will focus its FY 2025 resources on
completing decisions for cases with the FY 2026 statutory deadline and on cases with 15-year due
dates in FY 2025 and beyond. Regarding the 789 registration review cases due by October 1, 2026,
through FY 2023 Q4, there were 717 cases for which draft risk assessments were completed or not
needed, and 614 final or interim decisions completed, with 72 draft risk assessments and 175 final
or interim decisions remaining to be completed to meet the FY 2026 statutory deadline.
As EPA approaches the October 1, 2026 deadline, many of the remaining cases involve highly
complex scientific and regulatory issues, which have resulted in requests from stakeholders to
extend the comment periods for proposed decisions, lengthening the amount of time needed to
complete the necessary reviews. In addition, EPA continues to await data and/or registrant input
critical to finalizing several registration review decisions. Further ongoing challenges in
259 For additional information please visit the EPA Pesticide Registration Internet site: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-registration.
307
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completing actions that are due in October 2026 and beyond include: delayed registrant submittal
of additional data, the need for inter- and intra-agency coordination, and resource constraints.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue the transformation of the pesticide programs information
technology systems. Expanding the capabilities of the existing systems will reduce paperwork
burden and maximize efficiency, in accordance with the President's Management Agenda (PMA),
by converting paper-based processes into electronic processes and corresponding workflows for
the Pesticide Program's regulated entities. In addition, these enhancements will create an
iterative/inclusive, streamlined electronic workflow to support pesticide product registration,
chemical reviews, and assessments, and will be used as a centralized data repository to
electronically store associated data as they relate to regulatory decisions and scientific information.
Overall, the Agency projects that these efforts will improve over 150 existing business process
workflows supporting the implementation of PRIA. This digital transformation will consolidate
over 30 different custom-built systems into a single platform to track registration or re-registration
of a chemical from the moment EPA receives a case to the final regulatory decision. Being able to
track all reviews in a single system will eliminate the need for hundreds of spreadsheets or Access
databases that are currently used to track work at a team, branch, divisional, or office level. This
transformation focuses on improving both the employee's experience and the customer experience.
Reducing Pesticide Risks to People through the Registration of Lower Risk Pesticides
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to promote reduced-risk pesticides by giving registration priority
to pesticides that have lower toxicity to humans and non-target organisms such as birds, fish, and
plants; low potential for contaminating groundwater; lower use rates; low pest resistance potential;
and compatibility with Integrated Pest Management (IPM).260 Several other countries and
international organizations also have instituted programs to facilitate registering reduced-risk
pesticides. EPA works with the international scientific community and the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries to register new reduced-risk
pesticides and to establish related tolerances (maximum residue limits). Through these efforts,
EPA will help reduce risks to Americans from foods imported from other countries. In FY 2025,
EPA will continue to assist pesticide users in learning about new, safer products as well as safer
methods for using existing products. Through its Center for IPM, educational webinars, science-
based publications, informational social media outreach, and collaborations with federal partners,
states, commodity and other non-governmental organizations, the Agency also will encourage the
use of IPM tools, biological pesticides, and biotechnology where they present lower-risk solutions
to pest problems.
Protecting Workers from On-the-Job Pesticide Risks
Millions of America's workers are exposed to pesticides in occupations such as agriculture, lawn
care, food preparation, and landscape maintenance. A very large proportion of these workers are
members of communities with EJ concerns. EPA's work in this area will be guided by Executive
Order (EO) 13985: Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through
the Federal Government and, where regulatory action is taken, by the Agency's Guidance on
260For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-science-and-assessiiig-pesticide-risks/overview-risk-
assessment-pesticide-program. Please also see EPA's IPM website: https://www.epa.gov/safepestcontrol/integrated-pest-
management-ipm-principles#for_more-information.
308
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Considering Environmental Justice During the Development of an Action261 and its companion
Technical Guidance for Assessing Environmental Justice in Regulatory Analysis.262 Protecting
pesticide applicators, handlers and agricultural workers from potential effects of pesticides is an
important role of the Pesticide Program. Pesticide handlers in a number of sectors may be exposed
to pesticides when they prepare pesticides for use, such as by mixing a concentrate with water or
loading and applying the pesticide. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support the implementation
of the Agricultural Worker Protection Standard (WPS)263 and the Certification of Pesticide
Applicators (CPA)264 rule through regulation development, guidance development, education and
outreach, and grant programs. Efforts to implement the WPS include addressing EJ issues in rural
communities, especially by considering farmworkers and their families. In FY 2025, following the
anticipated FY 2024 publication of a final rule for the WPS's Application Exclusion Zone
provisions, EPA plans to develop and issue guidance and conduct outreach to support its
implementation. Programs include a subaward program that supports community-based projects
for the development of pesticide educational resources and training targeted toward agricultural
workers and pesticide handlers. Efforts include addressing the education needs of the target
audience to ensure trainings are effective and in the appropriate cultural context. PRIA 5 amended
FIFRA to require farmworker training and health care provider training grant programs. In FY
2025, EPA will manage these grants to further support the implementation of the WPS, protect
farmworkers from pesticide exposure, and to support healthcare providers in the recognition and
management of pesticide-related illnesses. The health care provider training grant program will
focus on training health care providers serving the migrant and seasonal farmworker community,
aiming to improve the treatment of agricultural workers and rural communities potentially exposed
to pesticides. Support also will include efforts to improve reporting of occupation-related pesticide
incidents. In addition, EPA will continue to support the development of resources, training, and
educational forums for applicators, including the ongoing development of a virtual pesticide
training for certification of private applicators in Indian Country covered under the EPA-
administered plan to meet the requirements of using restricted use pesticides in agriculture.
Implementation of the CPA rule also includes continued support of state Pesticide Safety
Education Programs, which play a crucial role in training and certifying pesticide handlers in
proper pesticide use, thereby enabling the handlers to protect themselves and other workers, as
well as the public and the environment. Certification plans were amended to comply with the 2017
revisions to the CPA rule and were to be approved by early FY 2024. In FY 2025, EPA will
continue to focus on implementation of amended state, tribal, and federal certification programs
based on the 2017 CPA rule. EPA will support that effort by providing technical assistance for
updates to state/tribal applicator training materials including manuals, exams, and other
recertification materials to meet the CPA rule requirements.
PRIA 5 also amended FIFRA to require bilingual labeling on end use pesticide products for those
parts of the label where translation exists in EPA's Spanish Translation Guide and provides a
261 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/enviromiientaljustice/guidance-consideriiig-enviromiiental-iustice-
during-development-action.
262 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/technical-guidance-assessing-environmental-
justice-regulatory-analysis.
263 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-worker-safety/agricultural-worker-protection-standard-wps.
264 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-worker-safety/revised-certification-standards-
pesticide-applicators.
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schedule for incremental implementation by registrants based on pesticide type and acute toxicity
categories. EPA is directed to work with states on implementation and with stakeholders on ways
to make these labels accessible to farmworkers, and to develop a plan to track adoption of the
bilingual labeling. In FY 2025 EPA will continue the implementation of these bilingual labeling
requirements.
Public Health Antimicrobials and Pandemic Preparedness
In FY 2025, the Pesticide Program will continue to update and modernize EPA's registered
disinfectant lists. There are currently 16 disinfectant lists, lists A-Q, with different target public
health microorganisms. The most viewed list, List N, contains disinfectants that are effective
against SARS-CoV-2. The newest list, list Q, includes products that are effective against emerging
viral pathogens including mpox (formerly monkeypox). Upcoming priorities include the
announcement of enhanced search and sort functions for each of the disinfectant lists to improve
usability and the creation of a new bloodborne pathogens list which will consolidate several
existing lists into one comprehensive resource. OCSPP also is co-leading a PPDC (Pesticide
Program Dialogue Committee) Emerging Pathogens Implementation Committee to develop
implementation strategies for stakeholder recommendations and revisions/proposed additions to
EPA's Emerging Viral Pathogen's guidance. In FY 2025, EPA expects to continue implementing
recommendations from the Workgroup including but not limited to education through webinars
and conferences on proper and effective antimicrobial pesticide use for different stakeholder
groups (e.g., schools, food service, hospitality, etc.)
In FY 2025, the Pesticide Program also is working on policy and method updates that will expand
the range of public health antimicrobial products available. We anticipate finalization of minimum
testing criteria to support chemical air treatment claims for unoccupied spaces and posting for
comment testing criteria for occupied spaces. There are very few registered antimicrobial products
intended to treat the air, an important route of transmission from public health pathogens. In
addition, the Pesticide Program anticipates finalization of a policy to expand virucidal claims to
sanitizer products which were previously not eligible to have these claims. Currently, revisions to
the policy are being considered after the public comment period.
General Pesticide Outreach and Education
In FY 2025, the Pesticide Program will continue environmental education and training efforts for
growers, pesticide applicators, and workers, as well as the public in general. Giving priority to
reduced risk and Integrated Pest Management (IPM) friendly pesticides are two steps toward
protecting human health. Also, the Pesticide Safety Education Program provides education through
training and is a key component to the implementation of applicator certification programs across
the nation, including on tribal lands and along the US-Mexico border, and helps ensure pesticides
are used in a manner to protect human health and the environment. In addition, EPA will continue
to make information easily accessible to the public and pesticide users, update safety information
on pesticides, support the National Pesticide Information Center265 that provides a bilingual hotline
for pesticide information and develop outreach materials for the public and incident reporting.
265 For additional information, please visit: littp: //npic.orst. edit/.
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Tribal Pesticide Program Council (TPPC)
The Pesticide Program also will continue to manage the Tribal Pesticide Program Council (TPPC)
cooperative agreement. This national partnership group was formed in 1999 as a forum for tribes
and Alaska Native Villages to work with EPA to address pesticide issues and concerns. The TPPC
also provides a forum for tribes and Alaska Native Villages to provide input in developing policies
that would strengthen their pesticide programs, provide guidance for tribes that do not have such
programs, and provide networking opportunities and support for tribal pesticide regulators. In FY
2025, EPA will continue to work with the TPPC to identify concerns related to EJ and climate
change that EPA can begin to address.
Reducing Animal Testing
In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to use its guiding principles on data needs266 to ensure that
it has sufficient information to support strong regulatory decisions to protect human health, while
reducing and, in some cases, eliminating unnecessary animal testing. EPA's Hazard and Science
Policy Council (HASPOC) plays an important role in the implementation of the vision of the 2007
National Academy of Sciences (NAS) report on toxicity testing in the 21st Centurywhich
recommended moving toward smarter testing strategies by waiving human health toxicity studies
that do not provide useful information. Since its inception, HASPOC has waived hundreds of
studies resulting in the saving of tens of thousands of animals and tens of millions of dollars
without compromising the integrity of the science supporting EPA's regulatory decision-making
for pesticides. In addition, the Agency will continue to develop and implement 21st Century
toxicology and exposure methods, including additional retrospective analysis of the reproductive
avian study, and the use of computer-modeling and in vitro testing techniques for acute oral
toxicity, skin and eye irritation, and inhalation toxicity. All of these activities advance more
efficient and effective human health risk assessments that support sound, risk-based, regulatory
decision-making.
Performance Measurement
EPA will be tracking metrics related to pesticide safety training of farmworkers funded through a
cooperative grant for the National Farmworker Training Program that runs through March 2026;
metric details will be provided by the grantee and will capture the number of farmworkers trained
and knowledge comprehension based on pre- and post-training assessment.
Performance Measures Targets:
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
20,000
12,000
13,000
13,000
Farmworkers
Actual
12,716
15,155
266 Additional information on reducing animal testing may be found at: https://www.epa.gov/pesticides/new-epa-guidance-testing-
pesticides-will-reduce-animal-testing.
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(PM WPSlb) Percentage of pesticide safety content knowledge demonstrated by farmworker/trainees upon
completion of EPA-supported WPS pesticide training.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
95
95
95
95
Percent
Actual
96
97
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$706.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0. requirements.
(+$3,450.0) This program change is an increase of resources for the modernization of the
pesticides incident database where the regulated community reports human health and
ecological incidents related to misuse of, or an unexpected adverse event related to
pesticide usage. EPA plans to make this data more accessible to the Public which requires
a rebuild of the database to safeguard Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and other
sensitive information.
Statutory Authority:
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic
Act (FFDCA) § 408.
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Pesticides: Protect the Environment from Pesticide Risk
Program Area: Pesticides Licensing
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S-/5.2I ~
.SViV, '0-1
S~.\W>3
S 2~.2SV
Science & Technology
$2,468
$2,334
$4,239
$1,905
Total Budget Authority
$47,685
$51,038
$80,202
$29,164
Total Workyears
299.4
259.6
282.1
22.5
Program Project Description:
The goal of this program, authorized under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act
(FIFRA), as amended by the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA) and the Pesticide
Registration Improvement Act of 2022 (PRIA 5), is to protect the environment from the potential
risks posed by pesticide use. To achieve this goal, EPA must conduct risk assessments before the
initial registration of each pesticide for each use, as well as re-evaluate each pesticide at least every
15 years, as required by FQPA. This periodic review is accomplished through EPA's Pesticide
Registration Review Program.267 In addition to FIFRA responsibilities, the Agency has distinct
obligations under the Endangered Species Act (ESA),268 which include ensuring that pesticide
regulatory decisions will not destroy or adversely modify designated critical habitat or jeopardize
the continued existence of species listed as threatened or endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (FWS) or the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (jointly, "the Services"). Most
EPA pesticide decisions do not comply with the ESA, creating significant legal vulnerability for
the Agency and frustration uncertainty about the continued availability of pesticides among
stakeholders. For these reasons, complying with the ESA is one of the pesticide program's top
priorities.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.1, Ensure Chemical and Pesticide
Safety in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Protection of Endangered Species
EPA is responsible for complying with the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and for ensuring that
federally endangered and threatened species are not harmed from exposure when it registers
pesticides. This presents a great challenge given that there are approximately 1,200 active
267 FIFRA requires EPA to register a pesticide if, among other things, the product "will also not generally cause unreasonable
adverse effects on the environment" when used in accordance with labeling and common practices.
268 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species.
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ingredients in more than 17,000 pesticide productsmany of which have multiple uses.
Endangered species risk assessments are extraordinarily complex, national in scope, and involve
comprehensive evaluations that consider risks to over 1,600 listed endangered species and 800
designated critical habitats in the U.S. with diverse biological attributes, habitat requirements, and
geographic ranges.
Given the complexity of evaluating potential effects to diverse listed species under ESA, EPA has
been subject to numerous successful litigation challenges to registration and registration review
actions. This litigation has impacted EPA's ability to carry out its mission of protecting human
health and the environment, including most recently in December 2023 where the court vacated
EPA's registration of a new use for a currently registered chemical because the Agency did not
meet its ESA obligations. In April 2022, EPA released its first-ever comprehensive workplan
describing priorities for coming into full compliance with ESA across the many types of pesticide
actions it completes each year. In the near term and given its existing resources, EPA prioritized
meeting its ESA obligations for all conventional new active ingredient applications whereby all
new active ingredient registrations will only be registered under conditions that comply with ESA.
EPA also continued to prioritize ESA determinations in response to litigation commitments and
court decisions. The increase that EPA received in the FY 2023 enacted budget serves as initial
funding, which supports a portion of EPA's near-term work in meeting these specific workplan
and court-ordered commitments.
In November 2022, EPA released a Workplan Update describing how it will incorporate additional
mitigations for listed and non-listed species into registration review processes. The update also
describes additional initiatives to expedite progress on some of our ESA goals. In particular, the
update describes multiple programmatic approaches that the Agency is currently developing and
will continue to be conducted and/or implemented in FY 2025 and beyond such as (1) developing
mitigations for listed species that are particularly vulnerable to pesticides and applying them across
pesticides (vulnerable species pilot), and (2) grouping pesticides such as herbicides for ESA
analyses and early mitigations; and developing region-specific strategies such as for Hawai'i.
In FY 2023 and early FY 2024, EPA made significant progress towards developing more efficient,
programmatic approaches. EPA released for public comment a draft: 1) vulnerable species pilot
white paper which proposes mitigations for 27 species that EPA identified as being particularly
vulnerable to pesticide exposure; 2) herbicide strategy that describes a framework to reduce
pesticide exposure to listed plants and listed species that depend on plants; and 3) rodenticide
(pesticides that target pest rodents such as rats and mice) strategy that identifies mitigations to
reduce exposure to listed species with direct consumption or secondary consumption (consumption
of poisoned prey) of rodenticides. The goal of the proposed mitigations in the vulnerable species
pilot and strategies is to minimize exposure to listed species and their designated critical habitat,
and thereby reduce potential population-level effects to listed species. In FY 2024 and 2025, after
considering public comments, EPA plans to finalize all three of these efforts. EPA also is
developing and plans to finalize a Strategy for the approximately 40 percent of the U.S. listed
species that occur in Hawai'i. In FY 2025, EPA will be in the early stages of applying these
frameworks to future pesticide registration and registration review decisions using existing
mechanisms it already uses to register and re-register pesticides. The Agency also will continue to
conduct outreach and develop and disseminate training materials to promote awareness and
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compliance with these new ESA efforts. EPA also will continue to develop and expand on these
programmatic approaches, which will ultimately reduce the Program's workload for future ESA
environmental assessments and identification of mitigations for listed species for pesticide
registration and registration review actions.269 EPA has already begun developing a strategy for
insecticides that will describe a framework to reduce pesticide exposure to listed insects (and
resulting impacts to species that rely on insects as prey or for pollination services) which EPA
plans to draft and release for public comment in FY 2024, and finalize and begin applying in FY
2025. EPA also continues to meet its court obligations for producing biological evaluations for
specific pesticides. In FY 2025, along with the rodenticide strategy, EPA has committed to
finalizing effects determinations for listed species as documented in biological evaluations for 11
rodenticide active ingredients. In addition to these efforts, EPA also has committed to drafting two
additional draft and final biological evaluations in FY 2025.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $27 million and 20 FTE for the Pesticide Program in order
to continue to support EPA's priority ESA commitments and increase the extent to which EPA
can integrate ESA mandates into the pesticide registration processes as described in the Workplan
and Update. As described above, these resources will enable EPA to make additional progress
towards complying with the ESA for more pesticide registrations and registration review decisions.
This includes resources to ensure EPA can implement the mitigations required in biological
opinions from the Services following completion of consultation and to develop tools to expedite
the incorporation of measures to protect listed species in pesticide decisions. These additional
resources are needed to continue to demonstrate measured progress and increase EPA's ability to
comply with its ESA obligations for all pesticides actions, and particularly to make progress in
meeting its obligations for hundreds of conventional new use pesticide applications.
In FY 2025, the Agency also will assess whether listed endangered or threatened species or their
designated critical habitat may be affected by use of pesticide products in a manner described in
reports to Congress.270 Where effects are identified in a biological evaluation, EPA will continue
to work with the Services in a consultation271 process to ensure these new or existing pesticide
registrations meet the ESA standard.272 As required by the 2018 Farm Bill, EPA will continue to
develop processes to protect listed species earlier in the regulatory and consultation processes, and
work with the Services, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and other agencies to
improve the consultation process and apply appropriate methods and exposure reduction measures
to selected pesticide risk assessments.273 EPA also will continue to work with the Services towards
developing approaches to conduct consultations programmatically, which also will increase
efficiency and reduce needed resources for EPA and the Services.
The Agency will continue to provide technical support for compliance with the requirements of
the ESA. In FY 2025, EPA also will continue the advancement and integration of state-of-the-art
269 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documeiits/2022-l 1/esa-workplan-update.pdf.
270 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/reports-congress-improving-consultation-
process-under-endangered-species-act.
271 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/assessing-pesticides-under-endangered-
species-act.
272 Additional information on how EPA protects endangered species from pesticides can be found at:
https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species.
273 For more information, please see: hUDs://www.epa.gov/endangCTBd-species/tg)as-woita)lan-an(i-progress-towani-betta--
pro lec ti on s-endan gered- sped es.
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science models, knowledge bases, and analytic processes to increase productivity and better
address the challenge of potential risks of specific pesticides to specific species. Interconnection
of the various databases within the Program also will provide improved support to the risk
assessment process during registration review by allowing risk assessors to analyze complex
scenarios more easily regarding endangered species. EPA also will continue to improve its system
used to implement spatially explicit protections for listed species, Bulletins Live! Two (BLT).274
EPA plans to continue to solicit and receive feedback on the usability of BLT, maintain and
improve the underlying data, and enhance the usability of the system based on feedback as more
bulletins continue to be created and released as part of registration and registration review
decisions.
Assessing the Risks Pesticides Pose to the Environment
To accomplish the goals set out in FIFRA, in FY 2025 EPA will continue to conduct ecological
risk assessments275 to determine what risks are posed by each pesticide to plants, animals, and
ecosystems that are not the targets of the pesticide and whether changes are necessary to protect
these resources.276 In FY 2025, EPA will continue to examine all toxicity and environmental fate
data submitted with each new pesticide registration application to determine what potential risks
the new active ingredient may pose to the environment. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to increase
the number of pesticide registrations that include protections for listed species. When complex
scientific issues arise, the Agency may solicit external review, such as consultation with the FIFRA
Scientific Advisory Panel,277 for independent scientific advice.
Ensuring Proper Pesticide Use through Labeling
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to use pesticide labels to indicate what uses are appropriate and to
ensure that the pesticide is used at the application rates and according to the methods and timing
approved.278
Pesticide Registration Review
In FY 2025, EPA's activities will involve increased efforts on comprehensive risk assessments to
protect the environment. With the reauthorization of PRIA on December 29, 2022, the deadline to
complete the initial Registration Review of each pesticide or pesticide case was extended four
years to October 1, 2026, and EPA will continue working on registration review cases in FY 2025.
For pesticides registered before October 1, 2007, EPA is required to make registration review
decisions by October 1, 2026. EPA will focus its FY 2025 resources on completing decisions for
cases that meet the FY 2026 statutory deadline and on cases with 15-year due dates in FY 2025
and beyond. Regarding the 789 registration review cases due by October 1, 2026, through FY 2023
Q4, there were 717 cases for which draft risk assessments were completed or not needed, and 614
final or interim decisions completed, with 71 draft risk assessments and 175 final or interim
decisions remaining to be completed to meet the FY 2026 statutory deadline.
274 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/bulletins-live-two-blt-tutorial.
275 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-science-and-assessing-pesticide-risks/factsheet-
ecological-risk-assessment-pesticides.
276 Additional information may be found at: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-science-and-assessing-pesticide-risks/overview-risk-
assessment-pesticide-program.
277 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/sap.
278 Under FIFRA, it is illegal to use a registered pesticide in a manner inconsistent with the label instructions and precautions.
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As EPA approaches the October 1, 2026, deadline, many of the remaining cases involve highly
complex scientific and regulatory issues, which has resulted in requests from stakeholders to
extend the comment periods for proposed decisions, lengthening the amount of time needed to
complete the necessary reviews. In addition, EPA continues to await data and/or registrant input
critical to finalizing several registration review decisions. Further ongoing challenges in meeting
the FY 2026 deadline include delayed registrant submittal of additional data, the need for inter-
and intra-agency coordination, and resource constraints.
Pesticide Registration and Risk Reduction Through the Use of Safer Pesticides and Methods
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to promote biopesticides and reduced-risk conventional pesticides
by giving registration priority to pesticides that have lower toxicity to people and non-target
organisms such as birds, fish, and plants; low potential for contaminating groundwater; lower use
rates; low pest resistance potential; and compatibility with Integrated Pest Management
(IPM).279'280 Several other countries and international organizations also have instituted programs
to facilitate registering reduced-risk pesticides. EPA works with the international scientific
community and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member
countries to register new reduced-risk pesticides and to establish related tolerances (maximum
residue limits). Through these efforts, EPA will help reduce risks to Americans from foods
imported from other countries. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to assist pesticide users in learning
about new, safer products as well as safer methods for using existing products. Through its Center
for IPM, EPA will provide support for educational webinars, science-based publications,
informational outreach, and collaborations with federal partners, states, commodity and other non-
governmental organizations to encourage use of IPM and resistance management tools. The
Agency also will increase its support for advancing biotechnology, where they present lower-risk
solutions to pest problems.
Reducing Animal Testing
In FY 2025, EPA will continue its efforts to promote the use of alternative methods to whole
animal toxicity testing for characterizing the effects of pesticide active ingredients on terrestrial
and aquatic vertebrates. EPA also will continue its partnership with the National Toxicology
Program Interagency Center for the Evaluation of Alternative Toxicological Methods
(NICEATM). A focus area will be the evaluation of Collaborative Acute Toxicity Modeling Suite
(CATMoS) estimates of acute oral toxicity to potentially replace mammal testing in ecological
risk assessment. EPA will continue an evaluation of the feasibility of reducing the number of tested
species of fish used to characterize acute effects, based on the published results of a collaboration
with NICEATM. This effort is expected to complement EPA's work with other federal agencies
to collect, describe, and develop performance-based evaluations for a suite of in-silico and in-vitro
methods for estimating acute lethal endpoints in fish. By addressing both the endpoint needs and
the available estimation tools concurrently, EPA expects to increase the efficiency of performance
evaluation and narrow the scope of needed estimation methods for consideration, thereby
279 Attaining risk reduction would be significantly hampered without availability of alternative products to these pesticides for
consumers. Consequently, the Registration Program's work in ensuring the availability of reduced risk pesticides plays a
significant role in meeting the environmental outcome of improved ecosystem protection. For additional information on pesticide
risk, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-science-and-assessing-pesticide-risks/overview-risk-assessment-pesticide-
program.
28° por additional information on IPM, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/safepestcontro1/integrated-pest-management-ipm-
principles.
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expediting the acceptance process. Additionally, through stakeholder discussions and participation
in intergovernmental working groups, the Agency will work to identify opportunities to reduce the
use of animals in ecological hazard testing. EPA also will reach out to non-governmental
organizations to collaborate on projects (e.g., to retrospectively analyze the results of ecological
hazard testing). Based on the results of those projects, EPA will then develop and disseminate
guidance materials for companies to clarify ecotoxicology testing requirements/needs.
Minimizing Environmental Impacts through Outreach and Education
Through public outreach, the Agency will continue to encourage the use of IPM and other practices
to maximize the benefits pesticides can yield while minimizing their impacts on the environment.
As a continued requirement of the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention's National
Program Guidance, regional pesticide offices will initiate specific IPM-related projects that target
disadvantaged communities, or vulnerable populations, such as children attending preschools and
tribal schools. The Agency also will develop and disseminate pesticide safety brochures, videos,
links, and webinars which provide education on potential benefits of IPM and promote outreach
through its Center for IPM on the success of IPM to encourage its use.281 To encourage responsible
pesticide use that does not endanger the environment, EPA also will reach out to the public through
its website and social media accounts, and to workers and professional pesticide applicators
through worker training programs. The Pesticide Safety Education Program282 provides education
to professional pesticide applicators through training and is a key component to the implementation
of applicator certification programs across the nation and helps ensure pesticides are used in a
manner to protect human health and the environment.
Pollinator Protection
Bees and other pollinators play a critical role in ensuring the production of food. USDA is leading
the federal government's effort to understand the causes of declining pollinator health and identify
actions that will improve pollinator health. EPA is part of this effort and is focusing on the potential
role of pesticides while ensuring that the pesticides used represent acceptable risks to pollinators
and that products are available for commercial beekeepers to manage pests that impact pollinator
health.
EPA continues to carefully evaluate potential effects that pesticides may have on bees through the
registration of new active ingredients and registration review, in cooperation with the Government
of Canada and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation. EPA is continuing to work with
USDA to identify and address factors associated with declines in pollinator health. EPA also has
been working with a wide range of stakeholders in the government and private sectors, both
domestically and internationally, to develop and implement strategies to address factors associated
with pollinator declines and to ensure that the best available science serves as a foundation for
regulatory decisions. EPA is working on advancing its scientific approaches and data needs for
assessing and mitigating pesticide risks to pollinators.
281 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/safepestcontrol/integrated-pest-management-ipm-principles.
282 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-worker-safety/pesticide-safety-education-programs-Q.
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In FY 2025, EPA also will continue to apply the best available science and risk management
methods to reduce potential exposures to pollinators from pesticides.283 In addition, some of the
endangered species protection work described previously will protect pollinators. For example, the
herbicide strategy is intended protect several pollinator species and plants that sustain pollinator
species. Similarly, the vulnerable species pilot includes several listed pollinating insects and plants
that depend on pollinators. As described earlier, EPA has already begun work on a similar strategy
for insecticides and potential impacts to listed insects and species that depend on insects, including
pollinators.
Protection of Water Resources
Reduced concentration of pesticides in water sources is an indication of the effectiveness of EPA's
risk assessment, management, mitigation, and communication activities. In FY 2025, the Agency
will continue to evaluate monitoring data as it prepares aquatic exposure assessments and will
continue to apply risk management measures, when appropriate, to reduce pesticide loadings in
water. EPA also will update aquatic benchmarks so that states and other stakeholders can
determine if measured pesticide levels might impact aquatic life. Water quality is a critical
endpoint for measuring exposure and risk to the environment and a key factor in assessing EPA's
ability to reduce exposure from these key pesticides of concern.284
Performance Measurement:
In FY 2025, the Agency will be measuring performance for the registration review cases with 15-
year due dates in FY 2024 and beyond, tracking intermediate stages such as docket openings, draft
risk assessment completion, and final registration review case completions under the 15-year cycle
of pesticide registration review. The Agency expects to improve protections to endangered species
by increasing the percentage of new active ingredient registrations and registration review risk
assessments that incorporate considerations of threatened and endangered species and leverage
those improvements for other related processes in subsequent years (e.g., new uses). EPA is only
registering new conventional and biopesticide active ingredients under conditions that address
potential impacts to endangered species. Increasing the extent to which EPA can incorporate ESA
into its registration review actions also is consistent with the 2022 Omnibus Appropriations Bill,
which states that "any covered interim registration review decisions shall include, where
applicable, measures to reduce the effects of the applicable pesticides on (A) species listed under
the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); or (B) any designated critical
habitat."
283 Additional actions EPA is taking to protect pollinators from pesticides can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/pollinator-
protection.
284 The most sensitive aquatic benchmarks for the chemicals are posted on the website: http://www.epa.gov/pesticide-science-
and-assessing-pesticide-risks/aquatic-life-benchmarks-pesticide-registration.
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Performance Measure Targets:
(PM ESAl) Percentage of risk assessments supporting pesticide registration decisions for new active
ingredients that consider the effects determinations or protections for federally threatened and endangered
species.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
40
80
90
90
Percent
Actual
50
62
100
100
Numerator
8
8
14
12
Risk
Assessments
Denominator
16
13
14
12
(PM ESA2) Percentage ol
effects determinations or
risk assessments supporting pesticide registration review decisions that include
protections of federally threatened and endangered species.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
20
30
20
50
Percent
Actual
:_
79
78
Numerator
:<>
27
7
Risk
Assessments
Denominator
iu:
34
9
(PM FIFRA3a) Number of pesticide registration review cases completed.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
15
8
4
5
Actual
16
15
CciSGS
(PM FIFRA3b) Number of pesticide registration review dockets opened for registration review cases.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
25
20
25
28
Actual
35
25
Dockets
(PM FIFRA3c) Number of draft risk assessments completed for pesticide registration review cases.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
J
16
4
4
Draft
Assessments
Actual
25
10
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$1,764.0) This change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll changes, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$478.0/ +2.5 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment also
includes $478 thousand in payroll costs and essential workforce support costs.
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(+$28,545.0 / +20.0 FTE) This program change supports an increase in resources for EPA
to increase its ability to meet its Endangered Species Act (ESA) obligations into pesticide
regulatory decisions beyond those prioritized in the near term. These additional non-pay
resources will allow EPA to continue to train employees across the Program, and develop
the regulatory processes, strategies, and approaches to allow EPA to better meet
requirements of the ESA and begin to close current gaps. This investment also includes
$3,816 million in payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); Endangered Species Act (ESA).
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Pesticides: Realize the Value of Pesticide Availability
Program Area: Pesticides Licensing
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S.\ "4
S "6.?"
,S.S\Jl<>
V» ~9
Science & Technology
$963
$925
$1,040
$115
Total Budget Authority
$6,738
$8,562
$9,356
$794
Total Workyears
30.0
35.8
35.8
0.0
Program Project Description:
This program seeks to realize the value of pesticides that can be used safely to yield many benefits,
such as killing viruses and bacteria in America's hospitals. These benefits also include guarding
the Nation's abundant food supply, protecting the public from disease-carrying pests, and
protecting the environment from the introduction of invasive species from other parts of the world.
In fulfilling its mission, the Program manages the following types of pesticide registrations and
regulatory actions under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA):285
Special Local Needs under FIFRA Section 24(c).
Federal registrations at the national level under FIFRA Section 3.
Experimental Use Permit Section 5.
Emergency, Quarantine, and Crisis Exemption Section 18; and,
Periodic review of existing chemicals under the Registration Review Program.286
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.1, Ensure Chemical and Pesticide
Safety in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Meeting Agriculture's Need for Safe. Effective Pest Control Products
With the passage of the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA), Congress acknowledged the
importance of and need for "reduced-risk pesticides" and supported expedited agency review to
285 The primary federal law that governs how EPA oversees pesticide manufacture, distribution, and use in the United States is the
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Originally enacted in 1947, FIFRA has been significantly amended
several times, including by the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA) and the Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension
Act of 2018 (PRIA). FIFRA requires that EPA register pesticides based on a finding that they will not cause unreasonable adverse
effects to people and the environment, taking into account the economic, social, and environmental costs and benefits of the use of
any pesticide.
286 Additional information may be found here: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-registration/types-registrations-uiider-fifra.
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help these pesticides reach the market sooner and replace other pesticides of higher risk.287 In FY
2025, EPA will continue to support and develop procedures and guidelines for expedited review
of applications for registration or amendments for reduced risk pesticides. EPA incentivizes this
project area by reducing the review service fee and decision time periods for evaluating these
actions. EPA expects to receive and review approximately 10 reduced risk pesticide applications
in FY 2025.
Registration of Generic Pesticides
FIFRA authorizes EPA to register products that are identical to or substantially similar to already
registered products (also known as "me too products"). Applicants for these products may rely on,
or cite data already submitted by another registrant. The entry of these new products into the
market can cause price reductions resulting from new competition and broader access to products,
benefitting farmers and consumers. The Agency will continue to prioritize and review generic
registrations consistent with the statutory decision-making schedule. Application submissions for
these actions can generally be reviewed in four months. The Agency completed 755 conventional
pesticide, 1,151 antimicrobial pesticide, and 358 biopesticide new products actions and
amendments in FY 2022. The Agency expects to complete a similar volume of registrations in FY
2025.
Outreach and Education
The Pesticide Program is invested in outreach and training efforts for people who use pesticides
and the public in general. In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to encourage Integrated Pest
Management (IPM), which emphasizes minimizing the use of broad-spectrum chemicals and
maximizing the use of sanitation, biological controls, and selective methods of application.
Providing on-the-ground assistance to our partners, EPA's regional offices work with states, tribes,
and territories to implement their pesticide programs and carry out IPM projects that inform
pesticide users about the pest control options, which pesticides to use, how to use them, and how
to maintain the site so pests do not return. In addition, the Pesticide Program and its Center for
IPM will provide outreach through webinars on a range of pest management and pollinator
protection topics, many of which are important in areas with environmental justice (EJ) concerns
and tribal communities.
Review and Registration
During FY 2025, EPA will continue to review and register new pesticides and new uses for existing
pesticides, and act on other registration requests in accordance with FIFRA and Federal Food,
Drug, and Cosmetic Act standards, as well as Pesticide Registration Improvement Extension Act
timeframes. Many of these actions will be for reduced-risk conventional pesticides and
biopesticides, which, once registered and used by consumers, will increase societal benefits,
including for infants and children as well as susceptible subpopulations. Working together with
the affected communities, through IPM and related activities, the Agency plans to accelerate the
adoption of lower-risk products.
287 The law defines a reduced risk pesticide as one that "may reasonably be expected to accomplish one or more of the following:
(1) reduces pesticide risks to human health; (2) reduces pesticide risks to non-target organisms; (3) reduces the potential for
contamination of valued, environmental resources, or (4) broadens adoption of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) or makes it
more effective."
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During FY 2025, the Agency will continue to make progress on meeting its Endangered Species
Act (ESA) obligations for registration and registration review. Per its policy released in January
2022, EPA will continue to only register new conventional active ingredients under conditions that
are compliant with ESA. Moreover, as detailed in the Agency's April 2022 ESA Workplan and
November 2022 ESA Workplan Update, EPA will continue to improve protections to non-target
species, including federally threatened and endangered (listed) species, earlier in the process
through pesticide registration review and other FIFRA actions. The Agency also will accelerate
protections for listed species impacted by conventional herbicide use and ensure protections across
conventional outdoor pesticides for some of the most vulnerable listed species as it implements its
final herbicide strategy and final vulnerable species pilot into applicable registration and
registration review actions.
The Agency's work to harmonize pesticide tolerance levels with its top trade partners will reduce
international trade barriers. For FY 2025, EPA will undertake regulatory decisions on a number of
new chemicals with food uses. For each of these evaluations, EPA will consider whether there are
existing Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) set by trade partners, and whether tolerance
harmonization will be a component of a portion of these decisions. Also, during FY 2025, EPA
will continue rulemaking and implementation efforts to improve its crop group system which
provides the regulatory definitions for crops which are in inter-state and international commerce.
Phase VI of this rulemaking project was completed in September 2022. The next steps for
additional crop group expansion for a new group of crops will be undertaken in 2024 and will
include a focus on harmonizing with Codex crop groups to further facilitate international trade.
Emergency. Quarantine, and Crisis Exemptions
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to prioritize emergency exemptions under FIFRA Section 18,
which authorizes EPA to allow an unregistered use of a pesticide for a limited time in the event of
an emergency, such as a severe pest infestation, public health emergency, or invasive pest species
quarantine. The economic benefit of the Section 18 Program to growers is the avoidance of losses
incurred in the absence of pesticides exempted under FIFRA's emergency exemption provisions.
In addition, exemptions serve as important public health controls to avert pests that may cause
significant risk to human health. In FY 2021, 2022, and 2023 the Agency received 76, 31, and 39
requests for emergency uses respectively; and EPA has received 5 requests for emergency uses in
FY 2024 to date. Although emergency exemption submissions cannot be precisely predicted, EPA
estimates it may receive approximately 45 requests in FY 2025.
Performance Measurement
In FY 2025, the Agency will be measuring performance for the registration review cases with 15-
year due dates in FY 2025 and beyond, tracking intermediate stages such as docket openings, draft
risk assessment completion, and final registration review case completions under the 15-year cycle
of pesticide registration review. The Agency will continue to track metrics on the percentage of
new active ingredient registrations and registration review risk assessments (conventionals,
biopesticides, and antimicrobials) that incorporate considerations of threatened and endangered
species and leverage those improvements for other related processes in subsequent years (e.g., new
uses). Additionally, EPA will be tracking metrics related to pesticide safety training of
farmworkers funded through a cooperative grant for the National Farmworker Training Program
that runs through March 2026.
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Performance Measure Targets:
Work under this program supports performance results in the Pesticides: Protect the Environment
from Pesticide Risk Program under the EPM appropriation.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$154.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(+$525.0) This program change is an increase that supports enhancement of pesticides
registration processes for the program.
Statutory Authority:
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic
Act (FFDCA) § 408.
325
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Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
326
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RCRA: Corrective Action
Program Area: Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Clean Up and Restore Land for Productive Uses and Healthy Communities
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S3'J '<>
S 40.512
S 42.105
S1.5V3
Total Budget Authority
$37,176
$40,512
$42,105
$1,593
Total Workyears
162.5
174.9
174.4
-0.5
Program Project Description:
To reduce risks from exposure to hazardous wastes, EPA's Resource Conservation and Recovery
Act (RCRA) Corrective Action Program ensures that contaminated facilities subject to RCRA
requirements are cleaned up by the responsible party, returns contaminated property to productive
use, and keeps costs from being transferred to the taxpayer-funded portion of the Superfund
Program. Implementing the Program's 2030 Goals288 and RCRA Corrective Action regulations
and administrative orders, EPA and authorized states will continue to oversee cleanups conducted
by facility owner/operators to ensure that the facilities meet their cleanup obligations and to protect
taxpayers from having to pay the bill. RCRA cleanups contribute many environmental and
economic benefits to their communities. A 2021 EPA analysis of 79 RCRA cleanups showed that
these facilities support 1,028 on-site businesses providing economic benefits including $39 billion
in annual sales revenue, over 82 thousand jobs, and $7.9 billion in estimated annual employment
income.289 A similar economic analysis is planned for FY 2025.
Approximately 118 million Americans live within three miles of a RCRA corrective action facility
(roughly 35 percent of the U.S. population),290 and the total area covered by these corrective action
sites is approximately 18 million acres.291 Additionally, a recent study has found evidence that the
completion of cleanup leads to an average six to seven percent appreciation in the value of homes
near treatment, storage or disposal facilities (TSDFs). A total capitalization of $295 million can be
attributed to the 195 TSDFs that were remediated since the inception of RCRA. The authors
estimate that the completion of cleanup yields an average lower bound, ex post benefit of about
$14,000 per household.292
288 U.S. EPA, Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, 2020. RCRA Corrective Action Program Vision/Mission/Goals for
2030. https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/fLles/2020-09/documents/rcra corrective action program_vision.pdf.
289 U.S. EPA, Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, 2022. Summary of 2021 RCRA Corrective Action Economic
Benefits Study and Research Methodology.
290 U.S. EPA, Office of Land and Emergency Management, 2023. Data collected includes: 1) RCRA CA site information as of the
end of FY 2022; and 2) population data from the 2017-2021 American Community Survey.
291 Compiled RCRAInfo data.
292 Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, May 2023, Hazardous Waste and Home Values:
An Analysis of Treatment and Disposal Sites in the U.S., Dennis Guignet and Christoph Nolte.
327
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EPA works in close partnership with 44 states and one territory authorized to implement the
Corrective Action Program293 to ensure that cleanups protect human health and the environment.
The Corrective Action Program allows for the return of properties to beneficial use, which benefits
the surrounding communities, reduces liabilities for facilities, and allows facilities to redirect
resources to productive activities. The Agency provides program direction, leadership, and support
to its state partners. This includes specialized technical and program expertise, policy development
for effective program management, national program priority setting, measurement and tracking,
training and technical tools, and data collection/management/documentation. In addition, through
work-sharing, the Agency serves as lead or support for a significant number of complex and
challenging cleanups in both non-authorized and authorized states.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.1, Clean Up and Restore Land for
Productive Uses and Healthy Communities in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests a total investment of $42.1 million and 174.4 FTE for the RCRA
Corrective Action Program. The Program will focus its resources on continuing cleanup of 3,983
priority contaminated facilities (the Corrective Action Progress Track), which include highly
contaminated and technically challenging sites, and on assessing others to determine whether
cleanups are necessary. As of the end of FY 2023, only 41 percent of these facilities have
completed final and permanent cleanups, leaving approximately 2,300 facilities still requiring
oversight and technical support to reach final facility-wide cleanup objectives. In FY 2023, EPA
approved 117 RCRA corrective action facilities as ready for anticipated use (RAU), bringing the
total number of RCRA RAU facilities to 2,043. In addition, in FY 2023, the Program achieved
remedy construction at 48 facilities, resulting in a total of 2,943 with remedies constructed; and
achieved performance standards attained at 58 facilities, resulting in a total of 1,716 facilities with
standards attained.294 The Program's goals are to control human exposures, control migration of
contaminated groundwater, complete final cleanups for the Corrective Action Progress Track
facilities, and identify, assess, and clean up additional priority facilities.
In FY 2025, EPA will:
Continue to make RCRA corrective action sites RAU, ensuring that properties are returned
to productive use and human health and the environment are protected into the future.
Assess its universe of cleanup facilities, priorities, and measures to ensure that resources
are directed to addressing those facilities that present the greatest risk to human health and
the environment and supporting environmental justice and climate resiliency.
Provide technical assistance to authorized states in the areas of site characterization,
sampling, remedy selection, reaching final cleanup goals, and long-term stewardship for
293 State implementation of the Corrective Action Program is funded through the STAG Categorical Grant: Hazardous Waste
Financial Assistance and matching state contributions.
294 For more information concerning RCRA 2020 corrective action baseline facilities, please refer to:
https://www.epa.goY/hw/lists-facilities-resource-conservation-and-recoYery-act-rcra-2020-correctiYe-action-baseline.
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cleanups with contamination remaining in place in order to support communities at risk
from multiple health stressors and/or climate change impacts.
Prioritize and focus the Program on completing site investigations to identify the most
significant threats, establishing interim remedies to reduce or eliminate exposure, and
selecting and constructing safe, effective long-term remedies that also maintain the
economic viability of operating facilities.
For high priority facilities, utilize oversight tools and work-sharing agreements to assist
with facilities that have complex issues or special tasks.295
Continue to improve cleanup approaches and share best practices and cleanup innovations
to speed up and improve cleanups.296
Update and maintain RCRAInfo, which is the primary data system that many states rely
upon to manage their RCRA permitting, corrective action, and hazardous waste generator
programs; and which EPA relies upon to track hazardous waste imports and exports.
RCRAInfo receives data from hazardous waste handlers for the National Biennial RCRA
Hazardous Waste Report. The data from the 2021 biennial reporting cycle showed there
were 19,141 generators of over 36 million tons of hazardous waste. RCRAInfo provides
the only national-level RCRA hazardous waste data and statistics to track the
environmental progress of approximately 20,000 hazardous waste units at 6,600 facilities.
Contribute to efforts ensuring the proper management, disposal, and cleanup of per- and
polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM CA5RC) Number of RCRA corrective action facilities with final remedies constructed.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
98
98
73
55
55
44
44
Facilities
Actual
70
80
64
57
55
48
(PM RSRAU) Number of RCRA corrective action facilities made ready for anticipated use.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
75
91
117
133
114
100
85
70
Facilities
Actual
117
127
169
146
124
117
295 For example, vapor intrusion, wetlands contamination, or extensive groundwater issues.
296 For more information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/hw/toolbox-corrective-action-resource-conservation-and-recoverv-
act-facilities-investigation-remedy.
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FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$2,101.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base payroll costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This includes an increase for
critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(-$508.0 / -0.5 FTE) This program change reduces FTE support for RCRA Corrective
Action activities including cleanups. This includes a reduction of $92.4 thousand for
payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
§§ 3004, 3005, 8001.
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RCRA: Waste Management
Program Area: Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Reduce Waste and Prevent Environmental Contamination
(Dollars in T
lousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A-
Muiiii^ciiwiit
s~o./2v
S "5,W»
SV 1.500
S 15.5-12
Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund
$10,962
$0
$0
$0
Total Budget Authority
$81,091
$75,958
$91,500
$15,542
Total Workyears
296.9
307.8
353.3
45.5
Total workyears in FY 2025 include 15.0 FTE funded by e-Manifest fees.
Program Project Description:
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) established EPA's role as a federal leader
in the conservation and recovery of resources. Under RCRA, EPA sets national standards for
managing solid and hazardous wastes and provides federal agencies, state, tribal, and local
governments, and industries with technical assistance on solid waste management, resource
recovery, and resource conservation. Approximately 60 thousand facilities generate and safely
manage hazardous waste in the United States.297 Eighty percent of the U.S. population live within
three miles of one of these facilities, making national standards and procedures for managing
hazardous wastes a necessity.298
The Waste Management Program safeguards the American people while facilitating commerce by
supporting an effective waste management infrastructure. Cradle-to-grave hazardous waste
management regulations help ensure safe management practices through the entire process of
generation, transportation, recycling, treatment, storage, and final disposal. The Program increases
the capacity for proper hazardous waste management in states by providing grant funding and
technical support.
The RCRA permitting program serves to protect the millions of people in surrounding
communities by facilitating clean closure where applicable and managing permits and other
controls to protect human health and the environment for the approximately 6,700 hazardous waste
units (e.g., incinerators, landfills, and tanks) located at 1,300 permitted treatment, storage, and
disposal facilities.299 Just as businesses innovate and grow, the waste management challenges they
297 Memorandum, February 18,2014, from Industrial Economics to EPA, Re: Analysis to Support Assessment of Economic Impacts
and Benefits under RCRA Programs: Key Scoping Assessment, Initial Findings and Summary of Available Data (Section 1), pages
5-11.
298 U.S. EPA, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response Estimate. 2014. Data collected includes: 1) site information as of
the end of FY 2011 from RCRAInfo; and 2) census data from the 2007-2011 American Community Survey.
299 As compiled by RCRAInfo.
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face also evolve; this requires new direction and changes in the federal hazardous waste program
through updated regulations, guidance, and other tools.
EPA directly implements the RCRA Program in Iowa, Alaska, in some territories, and on tribal
lands. EPA provides leadership, work-sharing, and support to the remaining states and territories
authorized to implement the permitting program. Additionally, the Toxic Substances Control Act
(TSCA) polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) cleanup and disposal program is implemented under the
Waste Management Program to reduce PCB exposure from improper disposal, storage, and spills.
The Program reviews and approves PCB cleanup, storage, and disposal activities. This federal
authority is not delegated to state programs. PCBs were banned in 1979, but legacy use and
contamination still exist, and PCBs can still be released into the environment from poorly
maintained operations and sites that contain them.
Maintaining updated permits and controls ensures that facilities: 1) have consistent and protective
standards to prevent release; 2) have proper standards for waste management to protect human
health and prevent land contamination/degradation; and 3) avoid future cleanups and associated
substantial costs. EPA will work with authorized states to ensure that permit decisions, including
decisions to issue, renew, or deny permits, reflect the latest technology and standards. EPA also
will work with authorized states to ensure that all communities, including those who are
marginalized and overburdened, have an equitable opportunity to engage in the permitting process.
States, tribes, territories, communities, and RCRA facilities are beginning to experience impacts
from climate change, such as extreme weather and wildfires, and these impacts are expected to
increase in the future. EPA is working to implement the EPA Climate Adaptation Action Plan;300
increase resilience of Corrective Action, PCB, and RCRA permitted facilities to extreme weather
events and sea level rise; assist municipalities with natural disaster preparedness and debris
management planning; and strengthen the capacity of states, tribes, territories, communities, and
businesses to adapt to climate change.
Where communities adversely impacted by environmental conditions are advocating for more
transparency or involvement in decision-making or where the trust is strained, providing enhanced,
tailored engagement through the Community Engagement and Technical Assistance (CETA)
Program will allow EPA to build a better bridge between the region, state, facility, and
community. The CETA Program serves as the vehicle to deliver risk communications, technical
assistance, and engagement support to fenceline and overburdened communities, ensuring
equitable access and the opportunity to participate in environmental decisions that impact their
health and wellbeing.
There continues to be increased public and congressional attention to issues around post-consumer
materials management, especially plastics, in the environment and EPA's role in addressing them
(e.g., marine litter prevention and reduction, environmental justice concerns in countries to which
the U.S. exports plastics, and the climate impacts of single-use plastics). Marine litter and plastic
pollution is an increasingly prominent global problem that can negatively affect public health, the
3°° por additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2021-09/epa-climate-adaptation-plan-
pdf-version.pdf. https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-10/bli508-
QLEM%20CAIP August%202022 POST OGCreview 9.12.2022.pdf.
332
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environment, and the economy. Most marine litter and plastic is from land-based sources and
makes its way into the Nation's waterways and ultimately to the ocean, creating a direct link
between waste management practices and ocean pollution.301 The Save Our Seas 2.0 Act,302
enacted in December 2020, was passed with bipartisan congressional support and provides EPA
with authority to further act on post-consumer materials management.
The Program also plays a central role in establishing and updating standards for analytical test
methods that are used across the country and the world to provide consistent, reliable
determinations as to whether waste is hazardous, as well as the presence and extent of hazardous
waste in the environment. This work provides the foundation that underlies waste management
approaches and ensures that method standards evolve with technology for conducting these
analyses.
In addition to overseeing the management of hazardous waste under RCRA Subtitle C, EPA also
plays a role in solid waste management under Subtitle D. While much of this area is delegated to
the states, EPA is actively working on aspects of coal combustion residuals (CCR) under this area
of the law, including the establishment and refinement of appropriate regulations and, as directed
by the 2016 Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (WIIN Act), the development
of a new federal permitting program for CCR surface impoundments and landfills. In
implementing regulations for CCR, EPA is taking action to ensure that the concerns of nearby
communities are addressed in a protective manner.
While the majority of the work is focused on domestic issues, the Program also is responsible for
issues related to international movement of wastes. EPA oversees the notification and consent
process for hazardous waste imports and exports. Most of these movements are for recycling and,
thus, are critical to resource conservation. In coordination with other agencies and departments,
EPA represents the U.S. Government in numerous international forums concerned with waste
issues. This type of representation is vital to protecting U.S. interests and furthering U.S. policy
goals.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.2, Reduce Waste and Prevent
Environmental Contamination in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $15.5 million and 45.5 FTE for the RCRA Waste
Management Recycling Program. The Program will:
Provide technical assistance, guidance, tools, and support to regions, states, and tribes
regarding the development and implementation of solid waste programs (e.g., the RCRA
hazardous waste generator, transporter, treatment, storage, and disposal regulations and
implementing guidance; the RCRA non-hazardous waste program; the TSCA PCB
disposal and cleanup program; and the hazardous waste import/export program).
301 U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Ocean Service, "Ten Things you
should Know about Marine Debris," https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/news/marinedebris/ten-things.htinl.
302 For additional information, please refer to: https://www.c0ngress.g0v/l 16/plaws/publ224/PLAW-l 16publ224.pdf.
333
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Enhance risk communications and deliver technical assistance support directly to
communities, particularly fenceline communities, with environmental concerns related to
RCRA facilities.
Provide technical and implementation assistance, oversight, and support to facilities that
generate, treat, store, recycle, and dispose of hazardous waste.
Review and approve PCB cleanup, storage, and disposal activities to reduce exposures,
particularly in sensitive areas like schools and other public spaces. Issuing PCB approvals
is a federal responsibility and is not delegated to states.
Manage and monitor the RCRA permitting program and ensure the issuance of permits
efficiently to achieve program goals. This includes progress towards meeting the Agency's
goal of increasing the percentage of permits kept up to date for the approximately 6,700
hazardous waste units (e.g., incinerators, landfills, and tanks) located at 1,300 permitted
treatment, storage, and disposal facilities.
Implement the EPA Climate Adaptation Action Plan and provide technical assistance and
guidance to strengthen the capacity of states, tribes, territories, communities, and facilities
to adapt to climate change.
Continue analysis of existing regulations to ensure protective standards for managing solid
and hazardous waste. In FY 2025, this includes assessment of RCRA regulations to reflect
current standards, policies, and practices.
Manage the hazardous waste import/export notice and consent process in order to make
shipping hazardous waste across borders more efficient. Managing hazardous waste
imports and exports is a federal responsibility, non-delegable to states.
Provide technical hazardous waste management assistance to tribes to encourage
sustainable practices and reduce exposure to toxins from hazardous waste.
Directly implement the RCRA Program in unauthorized states, on tribal lands, and other
unauthorized portions of state RCRA programs. Issue and update permits, including
continuing to improve permitting processes.
Establish and update standards for analytical test methods that are used across the country
and the world to provide consistent, reliable determinations as to whether waste is
hazardous, as well as the presence and extent of hazardous waste in the environment.
Take action to ensure protective management of CCR through the implementation of
existing regulations, promulgation of additional regulations to address legacy surface
impoundments, and the launch of a federal permitting program. The Agency promulgated
regulations specifying improved management and disposal practices to ensure people and
334
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ecosystems are protected. The Agency will continue to work with stakeholders through
technical assistance and guidance as it develops and implements regulations.
Implement applicable provisions of the WIIN Act, which enables states to submit state
CCR permit programs for EPA approval. The Agency will continue to work closely with
state partners to review and make determinations on state programs. Subject to
appropriations, EPA will implement a permit program for CCR disposal facilities in non-
participating states and on tribal lands.
As part of an EPA effort to reduce ocean pollution and plastics, the Program will provide
technical expertise and funding to support development and implementation of solid waste
management systems and infrastructure to help ensure that non-hazardous waste items are
appropriately collected, recycled, reused, or properly disposed of to prevent litter from
entering waterways from land.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM HW5) Number of updated permits issued at hazardous waste facilities.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
64
64
105
100
90
100
105
117
Permits
Actual
109
124
104
130
107
114
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$2,700.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base payroll costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for
critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$6,754.0 / +22.0 FTE) This program change will expand the Community Engagement
and Technical Assistance Program to help protect economically disadvantaged
communities from hazardous substance releases from facilities. This investment includes
$4.2 million for payroll.
(+$4,598.0 / +21.0 FTE) This program change is to provide sufficient staffing levels to
implement the coal combustion residual federal permitting program. This investment
includes $3.9 million for payroll.
(+$1,190.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change will help implement the EPA Climate
Adaptation Action Plan, support increased resilience at Treatment, Storage, and Disposal
Facilities and PCB Storage facilities, and strengthen the capacity of states, tribes,
territories, communities, and businesses to adapt to climate change. This investment
includes $190.0 thousand for payroll.
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(+$300.0 / +1.5 FTE) This program change increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements. This investment includes
approximately $285.0 thousand for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
§§ 3002, 3004, 3005, 3017; Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) § 6. Save our Seas 2.0, 2020,
Pub. L. 116-224.
336
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RCRA: Waste Minimization & Recycling
Program Area: Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Reduce Waste and Prevent Environmental Contamination
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SVJ'5
S 10.252
six ~vv
s.vvr
Total Budget Authority
$9,375
$10,252
$15,799
$5,547
Total Workyears
39.7
43.4
68.4
25.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Waste Minimization and Recycling
Program supports the sustainable management of resources, including managing materials that
sustainably promote economic growth, reducing environmental impacts, and advancing a circular
economy for all.
The U.S. recycling industry provides approximately 680 thousand jobs and $5.5 billion annually
in tax revenues and there is opportunity for greater contribution to the economy and
environmental protection, as recent data indicate materials worth as much as $9 billion are
thrown away each year.303 Recycling is an important part of a circular economy, which refers to a
system of activities that is restorative to the environment, enables resources to maintain their
highest values, and designs out waste. A circular economy approach provides direct, measurable
reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as natural resource extraction and processing
make up approximately 50 percent of total global GHG emissions.304
Further, living near waste and waste-related facilities can place burdens on communities when
waste is not properly managed, which can lead to higher levels of chronic health issues.
Communities whose residents are predominantly persons of color, Indigenous, or low-income
continue to be disproportionately impacted by high pollution levels, resulting in adverse health
and environmental impacts. It is critical to implement materials management strategies that are
inclusive of communities with environmental justice concerns as well as pursue innovations that
offer the benefits of cleaner processing of materials to all. Recycling is not enough to achieve a
circular economy, but it is an important part of addressing climate change, creating jobs, and
reducing environmental and social impacts.
EPA established a National Recycling Goal to increase the recycling rate from a rate of 32.1
percent in 2018 to 50 percent by 20 3 0,305 and finalized and released the National Recycling
303 For more information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/snnii/recycling-economic-iiifoniiation-rei-report.
304 U.N. Environment International Resource Panel, Global Resources Outlook, 2019, p. 8.
https://www.resourcepanel.org/reports/global-resources-outlook.
305 In 2018, in the United States, approximately 292 million tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) were generated. Of the MSW
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Strategy on November 15, 2021.306 The National Recycling Strategy is part one of a series of
strategies the Agency is developing to build a stronger, more resilient, and cost-effective recycling
system and a circular economy for all. Reducing waste helps alleviate burdens on populations that
bear the brunt of poorly run waste management facilities and transfer stations. When applied to
critical minerals, a circular economy approach facilitates end-of-life recycling and the recovery of
critical minerals in order to support a secure supply chain. In 2023, EPA released parts two and
three of the series, the Draft Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution, and the Draft National Strategy
for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics. Future strategies will focus on critical
minerals and electronics, textiles, and the built environment (e.g., construction and demolition
debris).
Congressional and public interest continues to grow regarding plastics in the environment and
EPA's role in addressing them (e.g., ocean plastics, environmental justice concerns in countries to
whom the U.S. exports plastics, and the climate impacts of single-use plastics). The Save Our Seas
2.0 Act,307 enacted in December 2020, was passed with bipartisan congressional support and
provides EPA with authority to further act on domestic recycling and address plastic waste through
new grant programs, studies, and increased federal coordination. Additionally, the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), as well as STAG annual appropriations, provide funding for
recycling infrastructure grants authorized by section 302(a) of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act. IIJA
also provided funding for education and outreach grants focused on improving material recycling,
recovery, and management and established new programs focused on battery recycling and
labeling. EPA also was charged with developing a model recycling program toolkit, increasing
coordination and review of federal procurement guidelines, and providing assistance to the
educational community to incorporate recycling best practices into school curriculum.
The RCRA Waste Minimization and Recycling Program also promotes the efficient management
of food as a resource. Reducing food loss and waste means more food for communities, fewer
GHG emissions and climate impacts, and increased economic growth. EPA works to meet the
national goal of reducing food loss and waste by 50 percent by 2030 by providing national
estimates of food waste generation and management; convening, educating, and supporting
communities seeking to reduce food waste; working collaboratively with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture and U.S. Food and Drug Administration to reduce food waste; and providing funding
to demonstrate anaerobic digester applications.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.2, Reduce Waste and Prevent
Environmental Contamination in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA requests an additional $5.5 million, including 25.0 FTE for the RCRA Waste
Minimization and Recycling Program to manage grants under the new Solid Waste Infrastructure
for Recycling (SWIFR) grant program. This investment also will focus on efforts to strengthen the
generated, approximately 94 million tons were recycled or composted, equivalent to a 32.1 percent recycling and composting
rate, https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2021-01/documents/2018 ff j'act sheet dec 2020 fill 508.pdf.
306 For more information, please refer to: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/docuiiients/2021-ll/fmal-national-recycliiig-
strategy.pdf.
307 For more information, please refer to: https://www.congress.gov/1.1.6/plaws/publ224/PLAW-1.1.6publ224.pdf.
338
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U.S. recycling system by investing in solid waste management infrastructure and consumer
education and outreach, address the global issue of plastic waste, engage communities, and prevent
and reduce food loss and waste. The Program will conduct the following activities:
Provide national leadership and direction on approaches to reduce environmental impacts
and increase the safe and effective reuse/recycling of materials, with a special focus on
plastic waste, food waste, and critical minerals and electronics.
Contribute towards global climate change efforts and demonstrate U.S. leadership
internationally through participation in resource efficiency dialogues.
Implement the National Recycling Strategy through the SWIFR grant program, the
Recycling Education and Outreach (REO) grant program, and other activities.
Develop, finalize, and/or implement additional strategies in key areas with the greatest
potential to reduce the lifecycle impacts of materials, including plastic waste, food waste,
critical minerals and electronics (e.g., batteries), textiles, and construction and demolition
debris.
Gather data and provide high-quality scientific information on materials management.
Information on the status of the Nation's solid waste generation and management will
provide evidence for prioritizing programs, grant monies, and policy development. This
information also will illustrate how the U.S. is striving toward the National Recycling Goal
to increase the nation's recycling rate to 50 percent by 2030 and the U.S. 2030 Food Loss
and Waste Reduction Goal to cut food loss and waste in half by the year 2030. To track
progress on these goals, EPA's efforts will focus on gathering data on national waste
management pathways, including recycling participation and food loss and waste
generation rates.
Continue to administer grants for state, territorial, tribal, and local governments to build
and enhance recycling capacity, infrastructure, and consumer education and outreach
around the country. The grant programs will continue to support state, territorial, and tribal
communities seeking to enhance their capacity to recover and recycle materials by
modernizing local waste management systems and improving education and outreach.
Provide technical assistance to communities to enhance their capacity to apply for federal
funding opportunities. Announce new funding opportunities for the SWIFR and REO grant
programs that are primarily funded by IIJA.
Administer and enhance the model recycling program toolkit developed for use in carrying
out the REO grant program funded by IIJA and provide assistance to the educational
community to promote the introduction of recycling principles and best practices into
public school curricula.
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Continue coordinating with federal agencies to reduce food waste in their facilities,
increase composting, complete food waste prevention pilot projects, and connect
stakeholders with food waste reduction technologies such as anaerobic digestion.
Enhance the Knowledge Management System for grant programs for recycling
infrastructure and education and outreach to assist in tracking funded project development
through completion and expedite result reporting.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$1,363.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base payroll costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. This includes an increase for
critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$4,184.0 / +25.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to assist EPA with
implementation of the National Recycling Strategy, oversight of the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act grants, and challenges on recycling and the circular economy.
This investment includes $4.5 million for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA);
Save our Seas 2.0 Act, 2020, Pub. L. 116-224; Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Pub.
L. 117-58
340
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Toxics Risk Review and Prevention
341
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Endocrine Disruptors
Program Area: Toxics Risk Review and Prevention
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
Sft.010
S "6/7
S '01
.S,V"
Total Budget Authority
$6,010
$7,614
$7,701
$87
Total Workyears
6.9
7.6
7.6
0.0
Program Project Description:
The Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program (EDSP) was established in 1996 under authorities
contained in section 408(p) of the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) and the Safe Drinking
Water Act (SDWA) amendments. Envisioned as a two-tiered screening and testing program, the
EDSP was developed to screen chemicals for their potential to disrupt the endocrine system of
humans and wildlife. Section 408(p) also requires EPA to "as appropriate, take action...to ensure
the protection of public health" for "any substance that is found...to have an endocrine effect on
humans." After over two decades of challenges in implementing the EDSP and other aspects of
section 408(p), EPA is now rebuilding the EDSP, especially by obtaining needed endocrine data
and by integrating the FQPA endocrine data and decisions into FIFRA decisions.
In October 2023, EPA issued new policies and scientific explanations to advance these objectives
and engage stakeholders in the process. These new policies will help ensure that EPA is meeting
its section 408(p) FQPA obligations and reducing litigation risk. EPA also will continue to advance
the science on screening and testing chemicals that may disrupt the endocrine system of humans
or wildlife. For example, EPA will continue to transition to using high throughput (HT) screening
and computational toxicology (CompTox)308 tools that can screen thousands of chemicals for
endocrine activity. This will allow EPA to more rapidly and meaningfully prioritize the evaluation
of chemicals for possible endocrine disrupting effects and integrate that information into
registration and registration review decisions, thereby ensuring chemical safety by protecting
human health and the environment from endocrine disrupting chemicals. Implementing EDSP
work into the Agency's risk assessment and risk management functions also supports EPA's
environmental justice (EJ) priorities, both by targeting substances based on effects to sensitive life
stages and deploying rapid methods for assessing disparate chemical exposures to vulnerable
communities.
For over two decades, EPA's progress in implementing the EDSP and other obligations in section
408(p) has been limited for several reasons. One reason is that the Agency did not arrive at clear
3°8 por additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/endocrine-disruption/use-high-throughput-assays-and-
computational-tools-endocrine-disruptor.
342
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internal decisions on how to address several complex science-policy issues, including what types
of data to require of pesticide registrants. This led to implementation of section 408(p) that was
largely separate from implementation of FIFRA. As part of rebuilding the EDSP, EPA is starting
with two overall approaches to address its historic challenges with the Program. First, EPA intends
to use the FIFRA registration and registration review processes to obtain needed endocrine data to
support the Agency's FIFRA determinations and its FQPA determinations related to endocrine
effects. This approach will allow EPA to efficiently use an existing process (FIFRA) to obtain
endocrine data as part of our FQPA mandates. Second, EPA will integrate FQPA endocrine
decisions into FIFRA decisions. Specifically, when EPA is registering a new pesticide active
ingredient or reevaluating an existing active ingredient as part of registration review, the Agency
will begin to integrate its FQPA endocrine data and decisions into the FIFRA decision. This will
help ensure that EPA is timely identifying endocrine data needs and making FQPA decisions.
On October 27, 2023, EPA published a Federal Register Notice (FRN), EDSP Near-Term
Strategies for Implementation (EPA-HQ-OPP-2023-0474; FRL-11384-Ol-OCSPP), that
describes these overall approaches in further detail and that describes three initial strategies to
support implementation. The strategies include prioritizing potential human endocrine effects
while EPA pursues other strategies to protect wildlife from chemical exposure; using existing
endocrine data to inform FIFRA and FQPA decisions and to inform whether additional endocrine
data are needed for conventional pesticide active ingredients; and through registration review,
phasing in any new data requirements to address potential human estrogen, androgen, and thyroid
effects for registered conventional pesticide active ingredients, starting with priority chemicals. In
conjunction with the FRN, EPA released a list of 30 priority chemicals for public comment and
intends to begin issuing FIFRA data call-ins for needed endocrine data for these chemicals in
spring 2024. In addition to identifying the 30 first priority chemicals, EPA identified 86 chemicals
for which it likely has sufficient estrogen and androgen data for human health, and listed second
priority (126 chemicals) and third priority (161 chemicals) groupings for determining additional
endocrine data needs. Finally, to further support the Near-Term Strategies, EPA released a science
document and an update on data recommendations for List 1 chemicals which had previously gone
through Tier 1 endocrine screening.
Embedded into the EDSP approach is a focus on sensitive life stages during the tiered testing and
assessment processes. As these data are incorporated into conceptual risk assessment models, they
can specifically inform decisions important to EJ and vulnerable subpopulations, including
children's health, women's health, and reproductive health more broadly. To advance endocrine
science, EPA continues to explore enhancements to existing test methods and has run thousands
of chemicals through HT assays, including the estrogen receptor (ER) and androgen receptor (AR)
pathway models and the HT steroidogenesis assay. The Agency continues to engage the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) in the
scientific peer review of endocrine screening methods including HT tools to evaluate their use in
chemical screening and testing. In some cases, these new methods may serve as alternatives to
existing guideline tests. Further, as EDSP prioritizes future chemical assessments, HT tools such
as ToxCast309 and ExpoCast310 may assist in the identification of priority chemical targets with
vulnerable subpopulations and EJ concerns for further investigation.
309 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/chemical-research/toxicity-forecasting.
310 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/chemical-research/rapid-chemical-exposure-and-dose-research.
343
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FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.1, Ensure Chemical and Pesticide
Safety in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Under the current tiered framework, imposing the EDSP Tier 1 battery for all 10,000+ substances
in the EDSP Universe of Chemicals would cost the regulated community more than $10 billion in
addition to EPA resources for staff to manage the regulatory infrastructure to order and review the
tests.311 Given the current national and international laboratory testing capacity, it would take
many years to complete, and involve the sacrifice of many millions of animals. To address these
issues, in FY 2025, the Agency will:
Continue implementing a multi-year plan for the EDSP for pesticide active ingredients and
inserts, focusing first on conventional pesticide active ingredients.
Make chemical-specific decisions on whether the Agency has enough data through Tier 2
testing or other scientifically relevant information to issue FQPA and FIFRA decisions for
potential human endocrine effects such that Tier 1 data are not required, consistent with the
policy that EPA announced in October 2023.
Continue collaborations with EPA's research programs to optimize available endocrine
screening and testing methods and increase scientific confidence in HT approaches, which will
support a more efficient, refined, and integrated approach to EDSP chemical screening and
assessment.
In collaboration with EPA's research programs, continue HT screening on pesticide substances
that were not part of the ToxCast chemical sets, considering the priority groupings that were
announced in October 2023.
In FY 2025, consistent with the implementation strategies announced in October 2023, these
efforts will address several key milestones in implementing EDSP evaluations of conventional
pesticide active ingredients to support pesticide registrations and registration review, in line with
Administration priorities on EJ. EPA will ensure that new, conventional pesticide active
ingredients have adequate data to address endocrine effects in humans and will phase any
additional human endocrine data needs for existing chemicals into the registration review process,
starting with 30 high priority active ingredients. The EDSP screening and testing framework
explicitly includes evaluations on vulnerable subpopulations such as differences among life stages
including pregnancy, infancy, and early childhood. Moreover, the EDSP Tier 1 battery is designed
to identify potential effects on reproduction, a key indicator for EJ. In FY 2025, EPA also will
continue research to develop and refine methods to evaluate endocrine effects in wildlife.
The EDSP will continue to collaborate with relevant bodies and international partners, such as the
Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative Methods (ICCVAM), the
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the World Health
Organization (WHO), and bilateral partners to maximize the efficiency of EPA's resources and
311 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0273230011000055?via%3Dihub. https://www.epa.gov/endocrine-
disruption/universe-chemicals-potential-endocrine-disruptor-screening-and-testing &
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/01/19/2023-0094Q/availability-of-new-approach-methodologies-in-the-
endocrine-disruptor-screening-program-notice-of.
344
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promote adoption of internationally harmonized test methods, particularly high throughput, or
computational approaches, for evaluating the potential endocrine effects of chemicals. EPA
represents the U.S. as either the lead or a participant in OECD and other international projects
involving pesticide regulation and the improvement of assay systems, including the development
of both animal and non-animal screening and testing methods.
Consistent with recommendations in the 2021 OIG report, the October 2023 release of the EDSP
Near-Term Strategies for Implementation represents the new strategic plan for the Program. EPA
is developing performance metrics to track implementation progress and intends to regularly
update the public via the EPA website and other outreach.312
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$101.0) This net change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation
of base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs.
(-$14.0) This is a programmatic decrease for endocrine disruption screening contractual
support.
Statutory Authority:
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), § 408(p); Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA),
§ 1457.
312 https://www.epa.gov/office-inspector-generaUreport-epas-endocrine-cUsmptor-screemng-program-has-iiiade-limited
345
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Pollution Prevention Program
Program Area: Toxics Risk Review and Prevention
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Promote Pollution Prevention
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
linviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SI2.5f»S
.S/.VAS'-
.sjv./y.i
S If 1.200
Total Budget Authority
$12,568
$12,987
$29,193
$16,206
Total Workyears
47.9
51.2
69.2
18.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Pollution Prevention (P2) Program is one of the Agency's primary tools for advancing
environmental stewardship and sustainability for federal, state, and tribal governments as well as
for businesses, communities, and individuals. The Program is the primary implementation
mechanism for the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA) of 1990. The P2 Program seeks to alleviate
environmental problems by helping businesses and others with developing and implementing
source reduction practices before pollution is created. As a result of these approaches, the P2
Program protects the environment by conserving and protecting natural resources while
strengthening economic growth through cost reductions and increased market opportunities. P2
approaches include, but are not limited to, reducing or eliminating hazardous releases to air, water,
and land; use of hazardous materials; generation of greenhouse gases; and/or use of water. The
Program's efforts advance EPA's priorities to pursue sustainability; to act on climate change; to
make a visible difference in communities, including advancing environmental justice (EJ) in
disadvantaged communities; and to ensure chemical safety. The Program includes a counterpart
P2 Categorical Grants Program in the State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG) account.313
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.2, Promote Pollution Prevention in the
FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan. FY 2025 funding will continue to support the following P2
programs:
P2 Technical Assistance
The P2 technical assistance program supports businesses, states, tribes, and other partners to
promote and facilitate the adoption of source reduction approaches that make good business sense
and to improve multimedia environmental conditions and climate impacts through reductions in
the release of hazardous materials and pollutants such as greenhouse gases. EPA invests in
analyses, tool development, training, outreach, and partnerships to provide the information and
tools needed to bring awareness to industries of P2 approaches and benefits and to enable their
313 For additional information about the EPA P2 Program, please visit: http://www.epa.gov/p2/.
346
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widespread implementation to prevent or reduce pollution. The P2 Program leverages the success
of EPA grantees and client businesses by amplifying and replicating environmental stewardship
and sustainability successes for similar businesses in other locales.314 Such economies of scale for
P2 are central to maximizing the effectiveness of the program.
To further advance EJ in FY 2025, EPA will use analyses of toxic chemical releases from the
Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and other chemical release data to identify facilities and industries
near communities with EJ concerns. These analyses will be combined with sector-specific case
studies, best practices, and outreach and training efforts to facilitate adoption of P2 practices in
such communities. In FY 2025, EPA also will continue efforts to work with stakeholders to
identify technically and economically feasible opportunities for small businesses to adopt safer
alternatives for uses of TSCA High Priority Substances undergoing risk evaluation.
P2 reporting under the TRI Program collects information on facility-level P2 practices associated
with reductions in use and release of toxic chemicals. With requested funding for a grant program
to facilitate small business transitions to use of safer chemicals in FY 2025, EPA will evaluate and
integrate P2 case studies and best practices relevant to TSCA risk management efforts by small
businesses, clarify technical and economic factors associated with such transitions, and develop
and deploy pilot programs to leverage training and ongoing support for small businesses expected
to make P2 transitions in response to TSCA risk management.
Safer Choice Program
Safer Choice is a voluntary program that certifies safer products so consumers, businesses, and
purchasers can find products that work well and contain ingredients safer for human health and
the environment, including helping reduce exposure to carcinogens in products. EPA certifies and
allows use of the Safer Choice label315 on products containing ingredients that meet stringent
health and environmental criteria and undergo annual audits to confirm the products are
manufactured in conformance with the Safer Choice Standard's rigorous health and environmental
requirements. Under the same stringent criteria, EPA certifies disinfectant products registered
under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) using the Design for the
Environment logo.
With hundreds of partner companies and about 1,800 certified products in the marketplace,
companies have invested heavily in this EPA partnership. Consumer, retailer, and industry interest
in Safer Choice and safer chemical products continues to grow across chemical product value
chains. Through a stakeholder engagement process started in August 2023, the Safer Choice
Program will expand into additional product categories and implement pollution prevention
approaches in seeking to increase consumer and commercial recognition of Safer Choice products,
including certifying products in categories that currently contain PFAS ingredients (and which
would have to avoid PFAS ingredients to gain Safer Choice certification). In 2023, EPA also
solicited comment on technical updates to the Safer Choice Standard to reflect the latest science
and will finalize these updates in 2024. In FY 2025, EPA will continue its Partner of the Year
314 For additional information, please see the Pollution Prevention Program narrative under the STAG account/appropriation.
315 For additional information about the Safer Choice Program, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice.
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Awards Program,316 which recognizes organizations and companies for their leadership in
formulating products made with safer ingredients and making them available to communities.
In FY 2025, Safer Choice will integrate and address EJ concerns through outreach and partnership
activities. Efforts to make Safer Choice-certified products more accessible to communities with
EJ concerns will expand with particular focus on low-income, tribal, and indigenous populations
and other vulnerable populations such as the elderly, children, and those with pre-existing medical
conditions. Safer Choice will work with retailers and product manufacturers to help them develop
even more products containing safer chemical ingredients that are easy to identify and purchase.
Safer Choice will work to empower custodial staff and house cleaning companies and enable
facilities through education to gain access to Safer Choice-certified products to improve indoor air
quality and reduce exposure-related asthma.317
To enhance transparency and to facilitate expansion and use of safer chemicals and products, EPA
has included on the Program's website a list of non-confidential chemicals that meet the Safer
Choice Program criteria and that are allowed in the Program's labeled products. In FY 2023, the
Safer Chemical Ingredients List (SCIL) contained 1,071 safer chemicals, and EPA will continue
to update this list in future years as the Program evaluates additional chemical ingredients and
chemical categories (including finalizing removal of PFAS from SCIL) and approves products for
the use of the Safer Choice label.
Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Program (EPP)
The Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP) Program318 implements direction provided to
EPA in the Pollution Prevention Act, the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act,319
Federal Acquisition Regulations, and Executive Orders that mandate and set goals for sustainable
federal procurement. The EPP Program assists all federal agencies in meeting these various
requirements and goals including through development and use of private sector sustainability
standards and ecolabels. In FY 2015 the EPP Program issued the EPA Recommendations of
Specifications, Standards, and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing (Recommendations) per direction
from E.O. 13693. The Recommendations help federal purchasers determine which private sector
standards and ecolabels are appropriate and effective in meeting various sustainability goals such
as net-zero emissions procurement, identification of products that do not contain or use substances
of concern such as PFAS reduction of single-use plastics, circularity, embodied carbon,
environmental justice and more. The Recommendations have been updated and maintained
through all subsequent fiscal years and now include over 40 private sector standards and ecolabels
covering over 30 product and service categories. Per the latest Executive Order 14057 and the
Federal Sustainability Plan, federal purchasers are required to use the Recommendations to the
"maximum extent practicable". In addition, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) is in the
process of being updated to align with the latest E.O. directives (FAR Case 2022-006).
316 For additional information on the Partner of the Year Awards program, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice/safer-
choice-partner-year-a wards.
317 For additional information, please see:
https://ioumals.lww.com/ioem/Fulltext/2003/05000/Cleaniiig Products and Work. Related Asthma. 17.aspx.
318 For additional information on the EPP Program, please visit:http://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/buying-green-federal-
purchasers.
319 For additional information on the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act, please visit:
https://www.nist.gov/standardsgov/iiatioiial-technology-traiisfer-and-advancement-act-1995.
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In FY 2023, the EPP Program began the process to expand and update the Recommendations to
continue to support the Biden-Harris Administration's federal sustainable procurement goals and
mandates. The Program received applications to assess over 80 standards/ecolabels from 42
organizations for potential inclusion in the Recommendations for federal purchasing. Based on
available resources, the Program moved forward with assessing standards and ecolabels in the
following five categories: Food service ware, laboratories, healthcare, professional services, and
uniforms/clothing. Any standards/ecolabels that pass the assessment process will be added to the
Recommendations in FY 2024 following a notice and comment period and input from an
Interagency Advisory Group. The Program will continue to expand into additional product and
service categories as time and resources allow.
The EPP Program also is working with the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), General
Services Administration (GSA) and Office of Management and Budget's Office of Federal
Procurement Policy (OMB OFPP) to complete a review of all Best in Class (BIC) contracts
through our Sustainability Check program. The Sustainability Check initiative will ensure that
language in the federal government's largest contracts align with federal sustainable purchasing
requirements. This work is ensuring effective integration of, and compliance with, the applicable
sustainable procurement requirements, which will further help to shift the market to offering more
sustainable products and services.
The EPP Program has generated significant cost savings and environmental benefits to the federal
government. For example, for electronics products, the federal government purchased nearly 9
million Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)-registered products in 2022,
resulting in a cost savings to the federal government of about $291 million and reduction of about
1.5 billion kilograms of C02 equivalents. EPEAT is just one of the over 40 private sector
sustainability standards and ecolabels included in the Recommendations that help federal
purchasers identify and procure environmentally preferable products and services.320
The EPP Program also coordinates closely with the General Services Administration, and other
federal agencies to implement the Recommendations and all other applicable sustainable
purchasing requirements into key federal procurement tools and contracts.
In FY 2023 and FY 2024, as a first step toward helping federal purchasers avoid the purchase of
products that contain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), the EPP Program published a
new webpage that describes whether and how the private sector standards/ecolabels included in
the Recommendations either restrict or eliminate PFAS in products. Additionally, EPA hosted a
webinar with the standard/ecolabel organizations included in the Recommendations to facilitate
the sharing of best practices to address PFAS through standards and encouraged the organizations
to update or develop new criteria to address PFAS.
In FY 2025, the EPP Program will continue to protect human health and the environment via
sustainable products and procurement through the following activities:
320 For additional information on Recommendations for Specifications, Standards and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing, please
visit: https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/recommendatioiis-specifications-standards-and-ecolabels-federal-purchasiiig.
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Continue to assess and recommend additional private sector ecolabels and standards in key
federal purchase categories that support the various sustainability goals including PFAS use
reduction321, climate impact mitigation, plastics use reduction, advancing circularity, EJ, and
more.
Continue to build, implement, maintain, and update tools for integrating EPA
recommendations into federal e-procurement systems and initiate identification and
monitoring of relevant government contracts for sustainable purchasing requirements. Initiate
and engage in private sector standards development activities in partnership with EPA's Office
of Resource Conservation and Recovery (ORCR) that will result in the significant reduction
of single use plastics.
Green Chemistry
The Green Chemistry Challenge Award Program322 encourages and recognizes the sustainable
design of chemical products and processes. This program serves a critical role in raising the profile,
importance, and credibility of innovative and market-ready green and sustainable chemistry
technologies. During the Program's more than 25 years of progress, EPA has received more than
1,800 nominations and presented awards to 133 technologies, demonstrating the interest among
stakeholders to be recognized at the national level for developing market-ready and/or market-
mature green chemistry solutions. The contribution of greener chemistries to addressing climate
change is clear. Winning technologies are estimated to eliminate 7.8 billion pounds of carbon
dioxide equivalents released to airthe equivalent of taking 770,000 cars off the road each year.323
In FY 2025 EPA will develop training materials to help state, tribal, local, and industry
stakeholders acquire information and understanding of the benefits from these innovations.324
In FY 2025 the Green Chemistry Program will continue to work with awardees and nominees to
pursue the goal of market-oriented environmental and economic progress through increased
adoption of these innovations. EPA will support and lead portions of EPA's responsibilities for
implementation of the Sustainable Chemistry Research and Development Act of 2020.
Climate Adaptation
An additional $1.6 million and 1.0 FTE will fund the implementation of activities to fulfill the P2-
related Long-Term Performance Goals of EPA's Strategic Plan (Objective 1.2), meet
commitments in the EPA Climate Adaptation Action Plan, support increased resilience of EPA's
programs, strengthen the adaptive capacity of states, tribes, territories, communities, and
businesses, and increase the resilience of the nation, with a particular focus on advancing
environmental justice. Resources will be used to oversee the integration of climate adaptation
planning into these programs, policies, rules, and operations (including ensuring EPA facilities
and supply chains are resilient to climate impacts).
321 For additional information, please visit:: https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/how-epas-recommended-standards-and-
ecolabels-address-and-polyfluoroalkyl-substances.
322 For additional information on the Green Chemistry Program, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/greenchemistry.
323 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/greenchemistry/information-about-green-chemistry-challenge.
324 P2 Training materials are available to the public on various EPA websites including but not limited to: 1)
https://www.epa.gov/p2/grant-programs-pollution-prevention (Grant Programs for P2); 2) https://www.epa.gov/p2/p2-grant-
program-resources-applicants (Resources for grant applicants [FAQs, application checklist, P2-EJ Facility Mapping Tool and a
recorded webinar]); 3) https://www.epa.gov/p2/pollution-prevention-tools-and-calculators (P2 Tools and calculators); and 4)
https: //www.epa. gov/p2/p2-resources-business (P2 resources for business).
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Providing needed resources for the P2 technical assistance program is an important part of the
Agency's efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change, and to support identification and
adoption of P2 practices that promote transitions to safer chemistry by small businesses, thereby
complementing and amplifying EPA's work under TSCA through a targeted grant program. The
environmental results of the P2 technical assistance program are numerous and varied. EPA's
strategic plan focuses on the impacts on the reduction of metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent
(MMTCChe) released attributed to EPA P2 grants. MMTCChe is calculated by using an online
tool to convert standard metrics for electricity, green energy, fuel use, chemical substitutions, water
management, and materials management into MMTCChe. In FY 2022, there was a reduction of
0.98 MMTCChe325. Providing needed resources for the P2 technical assistance program is an
important part of the Agency's efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM P2mtc) Reduction in million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTC02e) released per year
attributed to EPA pollution prevention grants.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
No Target
Established
1.2
1.2
1.2
1.2
MMTC02e
Actual
1.6
1.5
1.4
1.1
1.0
Data
Avail
10/2024
(PM P2sc) Number of products certified by EPA's Safer Choice program.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
1,950
2,000
1,792
1,795
Products
Actual
1,958
1,989
1,929
1,892
1,835
1,788
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$544.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$7,830.0 / +9.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to the grant program supporting
small businesses with transitioning to TSCA compliant practices and with mitigation of
economic impacts. This includes $1,757 million in associated payroll and essential
workforce support costs.
(+$6,180.0/ +8.0 FTE) This program change is an increase supporting analyses, tool
development, training, outreach, and partnerships to provide the information and tools
needed to bring awareness to industries of P2 approaches and benefits and to enable their
325 Source https://www.epa.gov/p2/TOllution-prevention-tools-and-calculators.
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widespread implementation to prevent or reduce pollution. This includes $1,562 million in
associated payroll and essential workforce support costs.
(+$1,652.0 / + 1.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to implement the EPA Climate
Adaptation Action Plan, support increased resilience of EPA's programs, and strengthen
the capacity of states, tribes, territories, communities, and businesses to adapt to climate
change. This includes $195 thousand in associated payroll and essential workforce support
costs.
Statutory Authority:
Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 (PPA); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
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Toxic Substances: Chemical Risk Review and Reduction
Program Area: Toxics Risk Review and Prevention
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
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Total Budget Authority
$91,216
$82,822
$131,900
$49,078
Total Workyears
297.3
360.8
534.8
174.0
Total program workyears in FY 2025 includes 83.0 FTE funded by TSCA fees. TSCA Service Fees and associated
FTE are not included in the budget formulation nor in the explanations of change. TSCA fee collections are dependent
on full funding of the program.
Program Project Description:
EPA has significant responsibilities under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for ensuring
the safety of chemicals in or entering commerce and addressing unreasonable risks to human health
and the environment. These responsibilities are executed by EPA as part of its Chemical Risk
Review and Reduction (CRRR) Program.
The CRRR Program plays an important role in achieving the Administration's goals to enhance
environmental justice (EJ) and to tackle the climate crisis. Examples include engaging underserved
and vulnerable communities, including tribes, in identifying exposure pathways; issuing proposed
risk management regulations to ensure needed low-global warming potential chemicals are
available to manufacture refrigerants as the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act
is implemented; incorporating into TSCA chemical risk evaluations the assessment of risks to
communities potentially facing disproportionate impacts from chemical exposure because they are
located near industrial activity; adhering to EPA's Guidance on Considering Environmental Justice
During the Development of Regulatory Actions and TSCA's statutory requirement to consider
risks to potentially exposed and susceptible subpopulations;326 ensuring that TSCA chemical
safety data analytical tools are made publicly available in ways that are accessible to vulnerable
communities; and informing decision making that advances the introduction of more
environmentally sustainable chemicals into commerce.
Under TSCA, EPA works to ensure the safety of:
Existing chemicals,327 by collecting chemical data, prioritizing chemicals for risk evaluation,
conducting risk evaluations, and developing and issuing risk management rules to prevent any
326 For more information, please see EPA's Guidance on Considering Environmental Justice During the Development of an
Action.
327 "Existing Chemicals" are those already in use when TSCA was first enacted in 1976 and those which have since gone through
review by the TSCA New Chemicals Program. These include certain prevalent, high-risk chemicals known generally as "legacy
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unreasonable risk posed by their manufacture, processing, use, distribution in commerce,
and/or disposal; and
New chemicals, by reviewing new chemical submissions from manufacturers and processors
and taking action to mitigate unreasonable risks to health or the environment before those
chemicals enter the marketplace.
Many elements of EPA's implementation of TSCA, including new chemicals, existing chemicals,
and the information technology supporting those programs, contribute to the Biden-Harris
Administration's Cancer Moonshot. While not all chemicals cause cancer, when information about
a chemical designated for TSCA evaluation indicates that cancer risk may be a concern, EPA
evaluates the risk of an individual getting cancer during their lifetime from exposure to the
chemical. If the Agency finds that the risk is unreasonable, EPA establishes requirements and
regulations to eliminate the unreasonable risk.
TSCA authorizes EPA to collect fees from chemical manufacturers and processors to defray up to
25 percent of the costs for administering certain sections328 of TSCA.329 Fee levels are set by
regulation and may be adjusted on a three-year basis for inflation and to ensure that fees defray
approximately 25 percent of relevant costs. The first TSCA Fees rule became effective on October
1, 20 1 8.330 TSCA program fees collected in FY 2019-21 under this rule equated to approximately
14 percent of estimated program costs. EPA proposed revisions to the rule in January 2022, and in
light of public comments supplemented the proposal in November 2022.331 EPA expects to
publish a final rule in the second quarter of FY 2024.
The final rulemaking is intended to establish TSCA fees that would defray up to 25 percent of
relevant costs, as statutorily allowed,332 and consistent with direction by Congress that the Agency
should properly consider full costs in its rulemaking as intended by the Lautenberg Act.333
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.1, Ensure Chemical and Pesticide
Safety, in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
chemicals" (e.g., PCBs, mercury), which were previously covered in a separate Chemical Risk Management (CRM) budget
justification. The CRM program area was combined with Chemical Risk Review and Reduction effective FY 2015.
328 The costs of implementing TSCA Sections 4-6 are defrayable up to the statutory caps, as are the costs of collecting, processing,
reviewing, and providing access to and protecting from disclosure, as appropriate, chemical information under Section 14.
329 The authority to assess fees is conditioned on appropriations for the CRRR Program, excluding fees, being held at least equal
to the amount appropriated for FY 2014.
330 The statute authorizes EPA to collect fees from chemical manufacturers (including importers) and, in limited instances,
processors who: are required to submit information (Section 4); submit notification of or information related to intent to
manufacture a new chemical or significant new use of a chemical (Section 5); manufacture (including import) a chemical substance
that is subject to an EPA-initiated risk evaluation (Section 6); or request that EPA conduct a risk evaluation on an existing chemical
(Section 6), subject to the Agency's approval of the request.
331 For more information on 87 FR 68647, please see https://www.epa.gov/tsca-fees/proposed-revisions-tsca-fees-rule.
332 This rule is expected to go into effect in FY 2024. https://www.federalregister.gOv/documents/2022/l 1/16/2022-24137/fees-
for-the-administration-of-the-toxic-substances-control-act-tsca
333 Joint Explanatory Statement from the Flouse and Division G - Department of Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act, 2022.
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In FY 2025, EPA will continue to emphasize the integrity of scientific products, adherence to
statutory intent and requirements, and timelines applicable to pre-market review of new chemicals,
chemical risk evaluation and management, data development and information collection, the
review of Confidential Business Information (CBI) claims, and other statutory requirements. The
FY 2025 budget includes an additional $49 million for the Program above FY 2024 annualized
continuing resolution level. These additional resources are essential for EPA to address its
substantial workload, including:
Maintaining at least 20 EPA-initiated existing chemical risk evaluations in development at all
times and completing EPA-initiated existing chemical risk evaluations within the statutory
timeframe.
Having up to 10 existing chemical risk evaluations requested by manufacturers in
development.
Issuing protective regulations in accordance with statutory timelines addressing unreasonable
risks identified in each risk evaluation.
Establishing a pipeline of chemicals to be prioritized for future risk evaluation.
Using test orders and a new strategy for tiered data collection, requiring development of data
critical to existing chemical risk evaluation and risk management activities, and systematically
collecting, reviewing, and synthesizing data for risk assessments in a transparent manner as
mandated by the 2016 TSCA Amendments.
Conducting risk assessments for approximately 500 new chemical notices and exemption
submissions and managing the identified risks associated with the chemicals.
Maintaining the statutorily required TSCA Inventory under Section 8(b) which includes over
86,000 chemicals manufactured or processed, including imports, in the United States for uses
under TSCA.
Continuing to support the implementation of a collaborative research program focused on
developing new scientific approaches for increasing the scientific defensibility and timeliness
of risk assessments for new chemical substances.
Reviewing and making determinations on CBI claims contained in TSCA submissions; making
certain non-CBI information available to stakeholders; and publishing identifiers for each
chemical substance for which a confidentiality claim for specific chemical identity is approved.
Stabilizing and modernizing the information technology (IT) environment that supports all
aspects of EPA's TSCA program.
Carrying out other required TSCA CRRR activities as described below.
Primary TSCA Implementation Activities
Section 4: Testing of Chemical Substances and Mixtures. In FY 2025, the resources requested will
support agency review of test protocols; review of test data submitted voluntarily or in response to
Test Orders, Test Rules, and Enforceable Consent Agreements (ECAs); initial implementation of
additional phases of the National Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) Testing Strategy;
and issuance of additional Test Orders. In January 2021, the Agency issued Test Orders for nine
additional chemicals undergoing TSCA risk evaluation and issued additional Test Orders for eight
of these chemicals in March 2022. EPA will continue to support remaining testing requirements
in these Test Orders as recipients complete the required testing. Additionally, EPA anticipates it
will issue Test Orders to support data needs for additional chemicals undergoing TSCA risk
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evaluation. In addition, EPA will continue to implement and refine the National PFAS Testing
Strategy in FY 2025. EPA issued the first Test Orders for PFAS starting in June 2022. EPA will
issue additional Test Orders for PFAS chemicals in FY 2025. In parallel with the Test Order
approach, EPA has requested voluntary submission of PFAS test data. In FY 2025, EPA intends
to refine the initial structural categories developed by EPA's Office of Research and Development
(ORD) to incorporate additional substances as appropriate, to consider physical-chemical
properties and potential exposure.
Section 5: New Chemicals. The New Chemicals Program is critical for ensuring the safety of new
chemicals before they enter commerce. The 2016 TSCA amendments significantly changed the
way EPA implemented the New Chemicals Program. Under the prior law, EPA issued formal
written unreasonable risk determinations for about 20 percent of new chemical submissions. Under
the amended law, EPA is required to issue determinations for 100 percent of new chemical
submissions (a five-fold increase). In FY 2025, the Agency expects to conduct risk assessments
for approximately 500 new chemical notices and exemption submissions;334 make affirmative
determinations on whether unreasonable risks are posed under those chemicals' conditions of use;
manage identified risks associated with the chemicals through the issuance of Orders and
Significant New Use Rules (SNURs); and require development of additional data where
information is insufficient to conduct a reasoned evaluation and then evaluate such data
received.335 The Agency also will conduct a similar effort on notices received in previous years
that are not yet complete.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement innovative approaches to add consistency and
efficiency to new chemical submission reviews for categories such as has been done for, mixed
metal oxides, photo acid generators, and PFAS and to develop new streamlined approaches.
Additionally, the Agency will continue to support outreach to submitters on how to provide the
most complete submissions to enable timely reviews. EPA also intends to continue its commitment
to transparency by making information generated in the review of notices available to the public
via the ChemView database336 and on EPA websites, including TSCA Sections 5 and 8(e) data,
CDR 2024 data, TSCA section 5 communications from submitters received via CDX, Notice of
Commencement (NOC) data, and TSCA section 4 data.
In FY 2025, EPA expects to complete finalization of three SNURs associated with approximately
150 consent orders previously issued for PFAS. Issuance of the SNURs will ensure that companies
planning a significant new use beyond those allowed for these PFAS must notify EPA. Following
its Framework for Addressing New PFAS and New Uses of PFAS, EPA will then have the
opportunity to conduct a risk assessment of the new use and impose any needed restrictions before
it is allowed into commerce. Additionally, EPA will continue to implement a performance metric
to measure compliance with past TSCA regulatory actions, including consent orders and SNURs
334 New chemical submissions may include Pre-Manufacture Notices (PMNs), significant new use notifications (SNUNs),
microbial commercial activity notices (MCANs), low volume exemptions (LVEs), low releases and low exposures exemptions
(LoREX), test marketing exemption (TME), TSCA experimental release application (TERA), and Tier 1 and 2 exemptions.
335 For PMNs, MCANs, and SNUNs, as required by law, the Agency must generally complete the review, determination, and
associated risk management activities within 90 days of receiving the submission, subject to extensions or suspension under certain
circumstances.
336 To access ChemView, please visit: https://chemview.epa.gov/chemview.
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issued for PFAS. Through this measure, the Agency is tracking its success in managing the risks
presented by new chemicals.
EPA will continue to implement its Framework for Addressing New PFAS and New Uses of
PFAS, which outlines EPA's planned approach when reviewing new PFAS and new uses of
existing PFAS to ensure that, if allowed to enter commerce, they will not be harmful to human
health and the environment.337
The New Chemicals Program also will continue implementation of its PFAS Low Volume
Exemption (LVE) Stewardship Program to encourage industry to voluntarily withdraw LVEs for
PFAS already granted under the exemption. EPA anticipates finalization of a rulemaking
amending TSCA section 5 procedural regulations to better align with the 2016 Lautenberg
Amendments in FY 2025. If the rulemaking is finalized in FY 2025, EPA will begin
implementation of the rule. Among other provisions, this rule would codify EPA's current policy
of generally denying LVEs submitted for PFAS and also would make certain persistent,
bioaccumulative, and toxic chemicals ineligible for LVEs (88 FR 34100). EPA also will continue
to make strides in its efforts to review and revise hundreds of critical high-priority standard
operating procedures (SOPs) and science policies to increase consistency and ensure protection of
human health and the environment when conducting new chemical reviews.
The New Chemicals Program has developed and implemented new strategies that will standardize
new chemical review and risk management approaches to support the Administration's climate
adaptation goals. Under the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Protection's Climate
Adaptation Plan, goals and priorities have been established to take actions that directly support
climate adaptation related to new chemistries and innovative technologies or other related
processes. Additionally, the New Chemicals Program is complementing the office's work related
to the Climate Adaptation Plan with improvements in information technology systems and models
under Section 60115 of the Inflation Reduction Act to increase efficiency in reviews of new
chemicals in sectors that support climate adaptation.
In addition, EPA continues to implement the standardized risk assessment and risk management
approach for mixed metal oxides (MMOs), which include new and modified cathode active
materials (CAMs), which are a key component in lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles.
MMOs also have applications in semi-conductors and renewable energy generation and storage,
such as solar cells and wind power turbines. Both efforts support the Biden-Harris
Administration's agenda to tackle the climate crisis and will complement resources provided to
EPA from legislative enactments such as clean energy initiatives under the Inflation Reduction
Act, tax credits for electric vehicles, and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Section 6: Existing Chemicals. TSCA requires a continuing process of prioritizing existing
chemicals for evaluation to identify unreasonable risks and, where unreasonable risks for existing
chemicals are found, the Agency also must commence risk management action under TSCA to
address those risks. The resources requested in FY 2025 are critical for the Agency to continue
337 Please see https://www.epa.gov/reviewiiig-new-chemicals-under-toxic-substances-control-act-tsca/framework-addressiiig-
new-pfas-and.
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implementing these additional requirements to prioritize, evaluate, and address the risks of existing
chemicals, including:
Prioritization. The initial step in the process of evaluating existing chemicals under TSCA,
prioritization, is codified in a final Chemical Prioritization Process rule.338 The purpose of
prioritization is to designate a chemical substance as either High-Priority for further risk
evaluation or Low-Priority for which risk evaluation is not warranted at the time.339'340 TSCA
requires that upon completion of a risk evaluation for a High-Priority Substance (HPS), EPA
designate at least one additional HPS to take its place, ensuring that at least 20 EPA-initiated
risk evaluations are constantly underway. In December 2023, EPA initiated the prioritization
process for five additional chemical substances. In FY 2025 EPA will continue working to
identify, initiate, and designate additional HPS for which sufficient data are available to
conduct scientifically sound risk evaluations. EPA plans to do this by obtaining, validating,
and analyzing reasonably available hazard and exposure information on different HPS
candidates, to build a more manageable and sustainable chemical evaluation pipeline, EPA
intends to prioritize chemicals in smaller groups on an annual basis, consistent with the
completion of risk evaluations currently in process.
Risk Evaluation. EPA initiated risk evaluations for the first 10 chemicals in December 2016. EPA
missed the statutory deadline for completing TSCA risk evaluations for nine of the chemicals, and
work on many of those chemical risk evaluations has continued.341 In FY 2021 and FY 2022, EPA
developed approaches for the consideration of exposure pathways {i.e., air, water, disposal) that
were originally omitted from the scopes of the HPS and Manufacturer-Requested Risk Evaluations
(MRREs) and to consider risks from environmental releases, often to exposed vulnerable and
underserved populations adjacent to the perimeter of manufacturing facilities, for seven of the first
10 chemical risk evaluations. This work added to the challenge of completing additional risk
evaluations.342 EPA issued the final scope document for "Asbestos Part 2: Supplemental
Evaluation Including Legacy Uses and Associated Disposals of Asbestos" in June 2022, issued for
public comment and peer review White Paper: Quantitative Human Health Approach to be
Applied in the Risk Evaluation for Asbestos Part 2 in August 2023 which concluded in December
338 For additional information, please visit: https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=EPA-HQ-OPPT-201.6-0636-0074.
339 TSCA required that EPA designate by December 2019 at least 20 chemical substances as High-Priority for risk evaluation and
also at least 20 chemical substances as Low-Priority. On December 20,2019, EPA finalized the designation of 20 chemical
substances as High-Priority for upcoming risk evaluations. For additional information, please visit:
https://www.epa.gov/assessing-and-managing-chemicals-under-tsca/chemical-substances-undergoing-prioritization-high.
340 On February 20, 2020, EPA finalized the designation of 20 chemical substances as Low-Priority. For additional information,
please visit: https://www.epa.gov/assessiiig-and-iiiaiiagiiig-chemicals-under-tsca/low-priority-substances-under-tsca.
341 EPA revised its risk determinations for eight of the first 10 chemicals to reflect EPA's unreasonable risk finding on the
chemical substance as a whole, rather than on individual conditions of use; in addition, the revised risk determinations do not
assume that workers always and appropriately wear personal protective equipment (consideration of PPE will be part of risk
management). EPA also re-examined the risk evaluations of seven of those chemicals to address overlooked and/or inadequately
assessed exposure pathways (including those affecting fenceline, underserved, or disproportionately burdened communities), is
developing a supplemental risk evaluation for one chemical due to omission of exposure pathways, in part as a result of litigation
against the Agency, and is conducting a second risk evaluation for asbestos to include types and uses that were excluded from the
first one.
342 In January 2022, EPA released for public comment and peer review version 1.0 of a screening methodology that will be used
to further examine whether the policy decision to exclude air and water exposure pathways from the risk evaluations will lead to
a failure to identify and protect fenceline communities. Review of the screening level methodology will include review by the
Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC). See. https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-releases-screening-
methodology-evaluate-cheniical-exposures-and-risks-fenceline.
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2023. EPA will issue the draft and final Part 2 risk evaluations before the court-mandated deadline
of December 1, 2024.343 In July 2023, EPA also issued a draft supplement to the 1,4-dioxane risk
evaluation and a draft revised risk determination that considers air and water exposure pathways
excluded from the earlier risk evaluation and exposure to 1,4-dioxane generated as a byproduct.
Revisions are ongoing based on peer review and public comment which concluded respectively in
September and November 2023. In FY 2024-2025, EPA expects to issue a final supplement and
risk determination for 1,4-dioxane and commence risk management for any identified
unreasonable risks.
EPA initiated risk evaluations for the first set of 20 HPS in December 2019.344 On September 4,
2020, EPA released final scoping documents for these chemicals.345 Because of resource
constraints and policy shifts, EPA did not meet the December 2022 statutory deadline for
completing these risk evaluations. In addition, manufacturers may submit requests to EPA to
evaluate specific additional chemicals. The first two Manufacturer Requested Risk Evaluations
(MRREs) began in FY 2020. A third was started in FY 2021, and a fourth request is currently
being considered. Those initial MRREs will continue throughout FY 2024 and are for chemicals
on the 2014 TSCA Work Plan.346 To support a sustainable flow of HPS risk evaluations, EPA will
finalize a subset of these 20 HPS risk evaluations and three MRREs each year and then designate
a corresponding number to replace them. Before the end of December 2024, EPA will issue at least
nine draft risk evaluations and complete its risk evaluations for five: a flame retardant (tris[2-
chloroethyl] phosphate (TCEP), the draft risk evaluation for which was released in December
2023), formaldehyde, a chlorinated solvent (1,1-dichloroethane), and two MRRE phthalates
(DIDP and DINP). Before the end of December 2025, EPA will complete its risk evaluations for
at least seven additional chemicals. Before the end of December 2026, EPA will complete its risk
evaluations for the remaining HPS and MRRE chemicals. In December 2023, EPA initiated the
prioritization process for five chemical substances in anticipation of completion of pending risk
evaluations. EPA continues to look for efficiencies to meet statutory deadlines including fit-for-
purpose analyses, systematic review, and peer review.
In October 2023, the Agency proposed and took comment on revisions to the 2017 risk evaluation
procedures rule to better align with statutory language, court decisions, and executive orders; build
on the Agency's experience with its first 10 risk evaluations; and increase program clarity,
transparency, sustainability, and flexibility. The Agency expects to finalize this rule in FY 2024.
The Agency is expanding the focus of the risk evaluations to ensure that exposure pathways
affecting the general public (e.g., through ambient air and drinking water) and overburdened
communities are evaluated in accordance with the law. Specifically, it is expected that the
Agency's consideration of potentially exposed and susceptible subpopulations (a term defined in
the statute) will include environmental justice considerations and reflect engagement with
overburdened communities through mechanisms including the National Tribal Operations
343 The Asbestos Part 2 risk evaluation is in response to the ruling in Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families v. U.S. EPA, 943 F.3d
397 (9th Cir. 2019) as well as the subject of the abeyance in ADAO etal. v. U.S. EPA etal., 9th Cir. No. 21-70160 and under
consent decree from ADAO et al. v. U.S. EPA et al., N.D. Cal. No. 21-cv-3716.
344 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/assessing-and-managiiig-chemicals-uiider-tsca/chemical-
substances-undergoing-prioritization-high.
345 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/chemicals-under-tsca/epa-releases-fiiial-scope-documents-and-
list-businesses-subiect-fees-next-20.
346 See, https://www.epa.gov/assessing-and-managing-chemicals-under-tsca/tsca-work-plan-chemicals.
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Committee (NTOC) and the National Tribal Toxics Council (NTTC). In addition, in February
2023, EPA released for public comment and peer review a set of principles for evaluating
cumulative risks under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and a proposed approach for
applying those principles to the evaluation of the cumulative risk posed by certain phthalate
chemicals undergoing TSCA section 6 risk evaluation/47
The resources requested for FY 2025 will support efforts to meet statutory mandates and other
requirements related to the evaluation of existing chemicals while maintaining EPA's commitment
to evidence-based decisions guided by the best available science and data.
Risk Management. When unreasonable risks are identified in the final risk evaluation, EPA must
promulgate risk management actions under TSCA Section 6(a) to address the unreasonable risks.
EPA commenced development of risk management actions in FY 2020 and 2021 to address
unreasonable risks identified for the first 10 chemicals evaluated under TSCA Section 6. EPA
expects to finalize nine of these actions by or in FY 2025 and will engage in implementation
activities associated with these final actions, including development of compliance guides and
outreach to impacted entities. EPA will continue in FY 2025 to develop up to seven proposed risk
management actions for chemicals with risk evaluations anticipated to be drafted or finalized in
FY 2024. This work will adhere to EPA's Guidance on Considering Environmental Justice During
the Development of an Action and its companion Technical Guidance for Assessing
Environmental Justice in Regulatory Analysis.348
TSCA also mandates that EPA promulgate Section 6 risk management rules for certain Persistent,
Bioaccumulative, and Toxic (PBT) chemicals on the 2014 TSCA Work Plan without undertaking
further risk evaluation.349 EPA issued five final rules for PBTs in January 2021. EPA requested
and received comments on the January 2021 PBT rules and in September 2021 announced its intent
to initiate a new rulemaking to further reduce exposures, promote environmental justice, and better
protect human health and the environment, as well as implementation changes that may need to be
made to current exclusions. In November 2023, EPA proposed revised rules for two PBTs
(decaBDE and PIP (3:1)), with finalization of those anticipated in FY 2024.
In addition, risk management actions for existing chemicals under TSCA Section 5 are ongoing.
EPA expects to propose SNURs in FY 2024 for discontinued uses of the 20 high-priority
substances (HPS) undergoing risk evaluation (e.g., SNURs for three flame retardants were
proposed in June 2023). When final, these rules will ensure that any phased-out uses of the 20 HPS
cannot resume without EPA review and action, as necessary, to protect health and the environment
from potential unreasonable risks. In January 2023, EPA issued a proposed SNUR for inactive
PFAS to ensure these uses cannot restart without prior EPA risk assessment and action, as
necessary, under section 5. EPA finalized this SNUR in January 2024.
Section 14: Confidential Business Information. EPA is required under TSCA Section 14 to review
and make determinations on CBI claims contained in TSCA submissions; to process requests from
347 Please see https://www.epa.gov/assessiiig-and-iiiaiiagiiig-chemicals-under-tsca/cuniulative-risk-assessment-under-toxic-
substances.
348 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/technical-guidance-assessing-
environmental-iustice-regulatory-analysis.
349 TSCA, as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, Section 6(h) (1) and (2).
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TSCA submitters and to make certain CBI information available to states, tribes, health, and
medical professionals, and first responders under defined circumstances; and to assign and publish
unique identifiers for each chemical substance for which a confidentiality claim for a specific
chemical identity is approved. In FY 2025, EPA will assign unique identifiers to chemicals where
CBI claims for chemical identity are approved and expects to complete CBI claim reviews for
more than 1,500 new cases and approximately 1,500 chemical identity claims made in existing
Notice of Activity reports under the 2017 TSCA Inventory Notification (Active-Inactive)
Requirements rule.
These reviews are expected to be conducted in accordance with new and updated procedures and
with reporting and communications tools developed in the new CBI procedures rule, which was
finalized on June 1, 20 23.350 The rule provides the regulatory infrastructure necessary to develop
further internal procedures and reporting tools to support the review of expiring CBI claims,
beginning in FY 2026.
TSCA Information Technology (IT) and Data Tools Infrastructure. IT systems development and
maintenance will continue in FY 2025 with the goal of minimizing reporting burdens on industry
and streamlining data management by EPA, including the following activities:
Continuing enhancement of the TSCA Chemical Information System to reduce manual
handling of data, to increase internal EPA access to data relevant to chemical assessments, and
to expedite review of chemicals.
Initiating development of new tools for hazard and exposure identification, assessment, and
characterization while improving existing tools to better assess chemical risks.
Maintaining the functionality of ChemView,351 continuing to increase transparency, and
expanding the information ChemView makes available to the public, including newly
completed chemical assessments, worker protection information, and other new data reported
to EPA under TSCA.
Continuing TSCA CBI LAN network, Central Data Exchange (CDX), and Chemical
Information System stabilization and modernization efforts.
Putting in place systems and IT capabilities to begin implementation of the TSCA CBI Sunset
Program starting in June 2026.
Implementing TSCA depends on the collection and availability of information on chemicals from
a wide variety of public and confidential sources. EPA's data currently resides in multiple formats
including paper files, microfiche, and numerous old electronic file formats. A critical need for
improving EPA's performance on TSCA implementation is modernizing the IT systems necessary
for chemical data collation, storage, and curation and making the data received under TSCA
available in structured and consistent formats. The funding requested will support the following
activities: advancing modernization of the existing TSCA IT infrastructure including regulatory
community-facing reporting applications in CDX; enhancing the New Chemical Review (NCR)
system; initiating steps toward automating publication of New Chemical Consent Orders and
SNURs; continuing efforts regarding remaining TSCA CBI review workflow enhancements
350 Please see https://www.epa.gov/tsca-cbi/fiiial-rule-requirements-confidential-business-iiifoniiation-claims-uader-tsca.
351 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/assessing-and-managing-chemicals-under-tsca/introduction-
clieniview.
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including enhancement of workflows to support the sunsetting of CBI claims; analyzing and
updating TSCA records data to identify and organize records for publication; making progress
toward the development of a framework for enabling CIS to automatically assign unique identifiers
(UIDs) as CBI claims are approved; making progress in the effort to digitize the remaining legacy
8(e)s and publish them in ChemView; and initiating digitization of legacy documents.
Chemical Data Management Modernization. The international regulatory community has been
moving toward using the International Uniform Chemical Information Database (IUCLID) to
capture, store, maintain, and exchange data on intrinsic and hazardous properties of chemical
substances. Data in IUCLID is centered around standardized reporting templates consistent with
internationally accepted test guidelines and has CBI protection built in. EPA has initiated the
process to incorporate IUCLID template structures and related OECD Harmonized Templates into
OPPT's CBI LAN. With the promulgation of the CBI Procedural Rule, submission of these
templates is required, but resource constraints have limited EPA's implementation and adoption
of IUCLID. With increased resources in FY 2025, the TSCA Program will continue to collaborate
with ORD to implement a IUCLID instance in its CBI LAN to capture, store, and maintain data
on intrinsic and hazard properties of chemicals. The Agency also will work with international
partners to modify software applications to ensure EPA's unique needs and federal IT requirements
are incorporated. Along with integration and consolidation of other legacy data systems, this
initiative will modernize EPA's chemical data management infrastructure and deliver more
efficient searching, collating, managing, and integrating of data on chemicals, resulting in
significant time and cost savings.
Collaborative Research Program to Support New Chemical Reviews.352 In FY 2025 EPA will
continue to develop and implement a multi-year collaborative research program in partnership with
ORD and other federal agencies. This collaboration is focused on developing new science
approaches for performing risk assessments on new chemical substances under TSCA. The effort
is expected to bring innovative science to new chemical reviews; modernize the approaches used;
increase the transparency of the human health and ecological risk assessment process; and expand
utilization of current information technology tools and databases. The resources requested for FY
2025 will allow EPA to accelerate implementation of the collaborative research program, including
new approach methodologies (NAMs), and the new chemicals program in accordance with
statutory mandates and to address the backlog of older submissions. These resources also are
critical to ensuring that the Agency can conduct robust risk assessments using best available
science and data within the statutory timelines.
Other TSCA Sections, Mandates, and Activities
Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) & Tiered Data Reporting (TDR) Rule,353 In FY 2024, EPA plans
to propose a rule that expands reporting requirements for chemicals that are candidates for or
selected as high-priority substances. The purpose is to acquire the most relevant and applicable
352 See, https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-amomces-colkborative-research-program-support-new-chemical-reviews.
353 Section 8(a) of TSCA requires manufacturers (including importers) to provide EPA with information on the production and
use of chemicals in commerce. In March 2020, EPA amended the Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule to reduce burden for
certain CDR reporters, improve data quality, and align reporting requirements with amended TSCA. The Calendar Year 2020
CDR Reporting Cycle, which occurs every four years and covers CY 2016-2019, commenced on June 1, 2020, and concluded on
January 29, 2021.
362
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data that will support risk evaluation. EPA plans to finalize the Rule in FY 2025, after responding
to comments on the proposed Rule and modifying certain CDR requirements. Additionally, in FY
2025, EPA will review data submitted (including CBI claims) and publish the non-CBI CDR data
collected for the 2024 CDR reporting cycle.
Other Section 8 Activities. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement and issue new data
gathering requirements to obtain data needed for chemicals undergoing Section 6 prioritization
and risk evaluations or other chemicals of concern as well as analyze information submitted by
industry. Data gathering actions to implement and/or issue in FY25 include the 8(a)(7) PFAS Data
Reporting rule finalized in 2023, a section 8(d) rule to require submission of copies and lists of
unpublished health and safety studies of identified chemical substances, and section 8(c) call-ins
for adverse effect records of identified chemical substances. EPA continues to develop and test the
reporting tools and internal database infrastructure for each of these actions ahead of their
respective data submission periods and will analyze received data following the associated
submission periods. Information analysis includes review of information submissions from these
previously described section 8 actions as well as 300 Substantial Risk (Section 8(e)) Notifications
submitted by industry.
PFAS Roadmap Support. PFAS have been manufactured and used in a variety of industries
globally since the 1940s, and they are still being used today. Work in FY 2025 will include
continuing to implement the PFAS national testing strategy; ensuring a robust review process for
new PFAS using the "Framework for Addressing New PFAS and New Uses of PFAS"; reviewing
previous decisions on PFAS; implementing actions to close the door on abandoned PFAS and uses;
implementing a new PFAS reporting rule; and leading the development of a voluntary PFAS
Stewardship Program. The final rule for the inactive PFAS was signed in January 2024. The
funding requested in FY 2025 will allow EPA to improve the Agency data submission process for
test data and ensure early engagement with Test Order recipients and, where there is interest
expressed, with other key stakeholders to facilitate robust data collection. The requested funding
also will allow EPA to review study plans required to be submitted as a result of Test Orders and
data submitted pursuant to the first round of Test Orders issued under TSCA for human health
effects; to integrate submitted data into systematic review databases; and to analyze existing data
in preparation for issuing additional orders to require additional testing for chemicals already
subject to testing.
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs). PCBs are a nationwide problem and found in every region.
TSCA requires essential work in evaluating a site for PCB exposures and reducing risks at that
site. EPA Regions do this by making site-specific PCB "use" determinations, evaluating
exposures, and providing recommendations and specialized technical support to address the risks
associated with PCBs legally and illegally "in use." EPA's Regional offices will work with
building owners to implement practical interim measures; to develop outreach and technical
assistance materials to prevent or reduce exposure to PCBs; and to conduct risk evaluation of PCB
exposure at local sites.
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Mercury. In FY 2025 EPA will maintain the Mercury Electronic Reporting Application354 and
conduct outreach to stakeholders on reporting requirements. EPA also will continue work under
the Mercury Export Ban Act and amendments related to prohibiting export of certain mercury
compounds and to supporting compliance with the Minamata Convention on Mercury to which
the United States is a party. EPA will collect and prepare information for publication in the CY
2024 update to the national mercury inventory and consider recommending actions to further
reduce mercury use.
TSCA Citizen Petitions. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to meet the requirements of section 21 of
TSCA, which authorizes citizen petitions for the issuance, amendment, or repeal of certain actions
(rules and orders) promulgated under specific components of TSCA sections 4, 5, 6, and 8. The
Agency must grant or deny a section 21 petition within 90 days. If EPA grants a petition, the
requested action must be initiated in a timely fashion. EPA has received a total of 32 TSCA section
21 petitions since September 2007. 13 of those petitions have been submitted since enactment of
the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act.355
Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products. In FY 2025, EPA will continue
implementing regulations under the TSCA Title VI Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood
Products Act (Public Law 111-199), which established national emission standards for
formaldehyde in new composite wood products.356 Beginning on March 22, 2024, laminated
product producers must meet the formaldehyde emission standards for hardwood plywood and
will be responsible for formaldehyde emissions testing and third-party certification unless
exempted by using no-added formaldehyde or lower emitting phenol formaldehyde resins. EPA
provided laminated product producers seven years to transition to no-added formaldehyde or
phenol formaldehyde resins to avoid being subject to formaldehyde testing and third-party
certification.
TSCA User Fees. TSCA section 26 authorizes EPA to collect user fees to offset 25 percent of the
Agency's full costs for implementing TSCA sections 4, 5, 6, and 14.357 In FY 2021 EPA collected
$28.6 million: $3.3 million from Section 5, $24.05 million from 19 of the 20 Section 6 EPA-
Initiated Risk Evaluations, and $1.25 million from one Section 6 MRRE for a TSCA Work Plan
chemical.358 EPA's FY 2021 collections were as follows:
Amount Collected
TSCA Section
FY 2021
FY 2022
FY 2023
Section 4 Test Orders
$0.88 million
$0.09 million
Section 5 Submissions
$3.3 million
$3.47 million
$3.42 million
Section 6 EPA-Initiated Risk
Evaluations
$24.05 million
$1.48 million
354 The Mercury Electronic Reporting application is an electronic reporting interface and database within the Central Data Exchange
(CDX).
355 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/assessing-and-managing-chemicals-under-tsca/tsca-section-21.
356 For additional information, please visit: http://www2.epa.gov/formaldehvde/formaldehvde-emission-standards-composite-
wood-products.
357 TSCA, as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, Section 26(b) (1) and (4).
358 The Agency invoiced $88.2 thousand for Section 4 Test Orders in FY 2020 and FY 2021 but did not start receiving
submissions until FY 2022.
364
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Section 6 MRREs
$1.25 million
Total
$28.6 million
$5.04 million
$3.51 million
Based on its current workplan, EPA is projected to collect $35.45 million in FY 2024359 and $30.83
in FY 2025.360 EPA proposed revisions to its 2018 fee rule in January 2021. Based on public
comments received on the proposed rule, as well as stakeholder engagement and EPA's continued
experience in implementing the 2018 Rule, the Agency issued a supplemental notice of proposed
rulemaking in November 2022 that added to and modified the 2021 proposal. EPA expects the
final rule to be published in early 2024.
Aggregate Exposure and Cumulative Risk Methodologies. EPA is developing aggregate exposure
and cumulative risk approaches to characterizing chemical exposure and risk in risk evaluations
under TSCA. In FY 2025, the following foundational activities will be conducted to support
statutory deadlines:
Apply approaches to determine when aggregating chemical exposure across conditions of use
is applicable in risk evaluations.
Develop approaches to identify co-exposure to chemicals to inform prioritization and to
determine when cumulative assessments should be considered for relevant chemicals.
Continue to apply, where appropriate and feasible, approaches for conducting aggregate
exposure and cumulative risk assessments.
Apply, where relevant and feasible, the using biomonitoring data in risk evaluations.
To begin integrating cumulative assessment into the TSCA Program. In May 2023, EPA
released for public comment and SACC peer review, a cumulative risk assessment framework
and an approach for the phthalates undergoing risk evaluation. In FY 2025, EPA will release
the individual draft risk evaluations and the draft cumulative risk assessment for the phthalates,
incorporating the public comments and peer review from FY 2023.
Continuous Improvement of TSCA Implementation. In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to
monitor and evaluate its progress related to core responsibilities under TSCA, such as completing
all EPA-initiated risk evaluations and associated risk management actions for existing chemicals
within statutory timelines. In addition, EPA will continue to reduce the backlog and work towards
meeting the applicable review period of 90 days for Section 5 new chemicals submissions (such
as PMNs, MCANs, and SNUNs). EPA also will undertake other forms of assessment and data
gathering in FY 2025. Based on experience and chemical-specific information EPA will continue
to apply fit-for-purpose application of systematic review to support TSCA risk evaluations.
359 Estimated $10.2 million in Section 5 submissions, $125 thousand from section 4 Test Order invoices, and an additional
amount from one TSCA Section 6 Manufacturer-Requested Risk Evaluation at $1.497M if the MRRE request is granted.
360 Estimated $10.2 million in Section 5 submissions, $25.4 million from the next round of Section 6 EPA-initiated chemical risk
evaluations, $125 thousand from section 4 Test Order invoices, and an additional amount from one TSCA Section 6
Manufacturer-Requested Risk Evaluation at $1.497M if the MRRE request is granted.
365
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Performance Measure Targets:
(PM TSCA4) Number of HPS TSCA risk evaluations completed within statutory timelines.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
20IS
201')
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
(i
0
1
6
Evaluations
Actual
1
0
0
0
(PM TSCA5) Percentage of existing chemical TSCA risk management actions initiated within 45 days of the
completion of a final existing chemical risk evaluation.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
20IS
201')
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
100
100
100
100
Percent
Actual
N/A
100
Numerator
6
Actions
Denominator
6
(PM TSCA6a) Percentage of past TSCA new chemical substances decisions with risk management actions
reviewed.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
5
25
30
90
Percent
Actual
N/A
16
Numerator
40
Decisions
Denominator
258
(PM TSCA6b) Percentage of TSCA new chemical substances with risk management actions reported to the
2020 CDR reviewed for adherence/non-adherence with TSCA Section 5 risk management actions that are
determined to adhere to those requirements.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
N/A
25
30
90
Percent
Actual
N/A
70
Numerator
28
Substances
Denominator
40
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$5,483.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$43,595.0 / +112.5 FTE) This increase provides critical support for EPA to implement
the revised and expanded TSCA, which gives EPA substantial new responsibilities and
workload to ensure chemical safety. This increase enables EPA to develop and review data
critical to existing chemical risk evaluation and risk management activities; update and
develop 21st century information technology and data tools to meet increasing demands;
366
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and begin to transform New Chemicals review into an efficient and sustainable process to
complete cases in keeping with the statutory requirements. This program change also will
support an agencywide multi-year collaborative research program for new chemicals that
are focused on modernizing the process and incorporating scientific advances in new
chemical evaluations under TSCA. This investment also includes $21,258 million in
payroll costs and essential workforce support costs.
Statutory Authority:
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
367
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Toxic Substances: Lead Risk Reduction Program
Program Area: Toxics Risk Review and Prevention
Goal: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment
Objective(s): Ensure Chemical and Pesticide Safety
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S//."""
SI-/J5V
S N.5V
S238
Total Budget Authority
$11,777
$14,359
$14,597
$238
Total Workyears
58.6
62.9
62.9
0.0
Program Project Description:
EPA's Lead Risk Reduction Program contributes to the goal of reducing lead exposure and works
toward addressing historic and persistent disproportional vulnerabilities of certain communities.361
This program thereby plays an important role in achieving the Administration's goals to enhance
environmental justice (EJ) and equity by:
Implementing standards governing lead paint hazard identification and abatement practices.
Identifying and providing access to a national pool of certified firms and individuals trained to
carry out lead paint hazard identification and abatement practices and/or renovation, repair,
and painting projects while adhering to the lead-safe work practice standards and minimizing
lead dust hazards created in such projects; and
Providing information and outreach to housing occupants and the public so they can make
informed decisions and take actions about lead paint hazards in their homes.
Lead is highly toxic, especially to young children. Exposure to lead is associated with decreased
intelligence, impaired neurobehavioral development, decreased stature and growth, and impaired
hearing acuity. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), no safe blood
lead level in children has been identified, and effects of lead exposure cannot be corrected.362'363
Reducing exposure to lead-based paint (LBP) in old housing continues to offer the potential to
significantly decrease blood lead levels in the largest number of children. Housing units
constructed before 1950 are most likely to contain LBP. The most recent national survey estimated
that 34.6 million homes in the United States have LBP and that 29 million homes have significant
LBP hazards.364 Children living at or below the poverty line who live in older housing are at
361 Childhood blood lead levels (BLL) have declined substantially since the 1970s, due largely to the phasing out of lead in
gasoline and to the reduction in the number of homes with lead-based paint hazards. The median concentration of lead in the
blood of children aged 1 to 5 years dropped from 15 micrograms per deciliter in 1976-1980 to 0.7 micrograms per deciliter in
2013-2014, a decrease of 95%. See. America's Children and the Environment (EPA, 2019), found at:
https://www.epa.gov/americaschildrenenviromnent.
362 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Blood Lead Levels in Children, found at:
http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/prevention/blood-lead-levels.htm.
363 America's Children and the Environment (EPA, 2019), found at: https://www.epa.gov/americaschildrenenvironment.
364 See. American Healthy Homes Survey II Lead Findings (HUD, 2021), found at:
https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/HH/documents/AHHS_n_Lead Findings_Report_Final 29oct21.pdf.
368
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greatest risk. Additionally, some racial and ethnic groups and those living in older housing are
disproportionately affected by LBP.365
Because of historic and persistent disproportional vulnerabilities of certain racial, low-income, and
overburdened and underserved communities, the Lead Risk Reduction Program has the potential
to create significant EJ gains and provides strategic opportunities to advance EPA's work in
support of the Administration's goals to enhance EJ and equity as seen in the Strategy to Reduce
Lead Exposures and Disparities in U.S. Communities,366
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 7/Objective 7.1, Ensure Chemical and Pesticide
Safety in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
EPA's Strategic Plan includes a measure that tracks the percentage of expiring lead-based paint
firm certifications renewed before the expiration date. Federal law requires all Renovation, Repair,
and Painting (RRP) firms working in housing, or facilities where children are routinely present,
built before 1978, to be certified to perform renovations or dust sampling. EPA helps the public
find certified repair and renovation firms through a directory. Funding for this program helps
ensure that people can access firms qualified to mitigate or eliminate the risks posed by residential
lead exposure.
Renovation. Repair and Painting Program
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement the RRP Rule to address lead hazards created by
renovation, repair, and painting activities in homes and child-occupied facilities367 and to advance
EPA's EJ goals. Fifteen states and one tribe have been authorized to administer this program and
rule. In the remaining non-authorized states, tribes, and territories, EPA will continue to accredit
training providers, track training class notifications, and certify renovation firms. EPA also will
assist in the development and review of state and tribal applications for authorization to administer
training and certification programs, provide information to renovators and homeowners, provide
oversight and guidance to all authorized programs, and disseminate model training courses for
lead-safe work practices. As of September 2023, there were 285 accredited RRP training providers
and almost 58,000 certified renovation firms. Through September of FY 2023, about 30 percent
of renovation firms with expiring certifications were recertified before their certifications expired.
DLHS. Definition of LBP. DLCL. and Public and Commercial Buildings (P&CBs)
As a result of a May 2021 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, EPA is
revising the dust-lead hazard standards (DLHS), the dust-lead clearance levels (DLCL), the
365 Among children ages 1 to 5 years in families with incomes below poverty level, the 95th percentile BLL was 3.0 |ig/dL, and
among those in families at or above the poverty level, it was 2.1 |ig/dL, a difference that was statistically significant. The 95th
percentile BLL among all children ages 1 to 5 years was 2.5 |ig/dL. The 95th percentile BLL in Black non-Hispanic children ages
1 to 5 years was 3.0 |ig/dL, compared with 2.4 (ig/dL for White non-Hispanic children, 1.8 (ig/dL for Mexican-American children,
and 2.7 (ig/dL for children of "All Other Races/Ethnicities." The differences in 95th percentile BLL between race/ethnicity groups
were all statistically significant, after accounting for differences by age, sex, and income. See America's Children and the
Environment (EPA, 2019), found at: https://www.epa.gov/americaschildrenenvironment.
366 Strategy to Reduce Lead Exposures and Disparities in U.S. Communities (EPA, 2022) found at
https://www.epa.gov/system/files/docunieiits/2022-ll/Lead%20Strategy_l.pdf.
367 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/lead/lead-renovation-repair-and-paintiiig-program.
369
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definition of LBP, and the soil-lead hazard standard (SLHS) regulations.368 The DLHS defines
hazardous levels of lead in residential paint, dust, and soil, and post abatement clearance levels for
lead in interior house dust. In August 2023, EPA proposed updating the DLHS and DLCL. If
finalized as proposed, the DLHS for floors and windowsills would be any reportable level greater
than zero, as analyzed by any laboratory recognized by EPA's National Lead Laboratory
Accreditation Program. The new DLCL would be three micrograms per square foot ((_ig/ft2) for
floors, 20 (J,g/ft2 for windowsills, and 25 (J,g/ft2 for window troughs. EPA expects to finalize the
DLHS and DLCL rule early in FY 2025.
FY 2025 funding will enable EPA to conduct activities necessary to revisit the definition of LBP
and SLHS. In addition, EPA must continue work to evaluate whether hazards are created from
renovations of P&CBs. Reconsideration and development of these rulemakings will help ensure
the most protective approaches are taken to reduce lead exposure in homes and child-occupied
facilities, with benefits for overburdened and underserved communities where disproportionate
impacts occur from LBP in support of the Administration's goals to enhance EJ and equity.
As resources allow, EPA will conduct technical analyses and rulemaking efforts to address issues
related to preventing childhood lead poisoning; revising the soil-lead hazard standards (SLHS);
and continuing work to identify and subsequently address LBP hazards identified in public and
commercial buildings. The definition of lead-based paint is incorporated throughout the lead-based
paint regulations, and application of this definition is central to how the lead-based paint program
functions. In collaboration with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), EPA
will revisit the definition of LBP and, as appropriate, revise the definition to make it more
protective.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to evaluate risk from renovations of public and commercial
buildings pursuant to TSCA §402(c)(3), which directs EPA to promulgate regulations for
renovations in target housing, public buildings built before 1978, and commercial buildings that
create lead-based paint hazards. EPA will determine whether such renovations create LBP hazards
and, if they do, EPA will address those hazards by promulgating work practice, training, and
certification requirements for public and commercial buildings. Because low-income, minority
children are disproportionally vulnerable to lead exposure, these efforts, as well as others that focus
on reducing environmental lead levels, have the potential to create significant EJ gains.
Lead-Based Paint (LBP) Activities
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement the LBP Activities (Abatement, Risk Assessment,
and Inspection) Rule by administering the federal program to review and certify firms and
individuals and to accredit training providers. Ensuring that those who undertake LBP Activities
are properly trained and certified is a critical aspect of federal efforts to reduce lead exposure and
to work toward addressing the historic and persistent disproportional vulnerabilities of certain
racial, low-income, and overburdened and underserved communities. Additionally, the Agency
will continue to review and process requests by states, territories, and tribes for authorization to
administer the lead abatement program in lieu of the federal program. Thirty-nine states, four
tribes, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have been authorized to run the LBP abatement
program.
368 For additional information, please visit: https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2021/05/14/19-71930.pdf
370
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Education and Outreach
In FY 2025, the Agency will continue to provide education and outreach to the public on the
hazards of LBP, emphasizing compliance assistance and outreach to support implementation of
the RRP rule and to increase public awareness about preventing childhood lead exposure and lead
poisoning. The Agency will further its work in reaching contractors and the public in underserved
communities through the "Enhancing Lead-Safe Work Practices through Education and Outreach"
initiative, by increasing the number of RRP certified contractors and by providing community
leaders a means to educate their own communities about lead hazards, reducing and preventing
potential exposure to lead, and the importance of hiring certified lead professionals. This initiative,
in combination with other regional outreach, is designed to reduce harm to children from exposure
to lead in underrepresented and underserved communities disproportionately affected by lead
exposure, including a focus on low income, overburdened, underserved, and tribal communities.
The Agency will continue to provide multimedia outreach for the National Lead Poisoning
Prevention Week, a collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and HUD. Actions
include formal announcements, social media, web revisions, and other outreach. Finally, EPA will
continue to provide support to the National Lead Information Center (NLIC) to disseminate
information to the public.369
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM RRP30) Percentage of lead-based paint RRP firms whose certifications are scheduled to expire that are
recertified before the expiration date.
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
FY
Units
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Target
32
33
34
34
Percent
Actual
17
19
40
36
31
31
Numerator
1,134
1,185
9,006
6,524
2,874
2,308
RRP Firms
Denominator
6,855
6,091
22,384
18,158
9,423
7,529
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$568.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide essential
workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for critical
agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(-$330.0) This program change is an offset to contracts for the increase in payroll fixed
costs.
Statutory Authority:
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), 15 U.S.C. 2601 et seq. - Sections 401-412.
369 For additional information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/leacl/forms/lead-hotliiie-iiatioiial-lead-infoniiation-center.
371
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Underground Storage Tanks (LUST/UST)
372
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LUST / UST
Program Area: Underground Storage Tanks (LUST / UST)
Goal: Safeguard and Revitalize Communities
Objective(s): Reduce Waste and Prevent Environmental Contamination
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SI 1.03-1
S 12.021
SI-/. 00-/
S 2.5X3
Leaking Underground Storage Tanks
$8,426
$9,991
$14,776
$4,785
Total Budget Authority
$19,460
$22,012
$29,380
$7,368
Total Workyears
84.5
97.9
108.6
10.7
Program Project Description:
Environmental Program Management (EPM) resources fund EPA's work in the Leaking
Underground Storage Tank (LUST)/UST Program to help prevent releases of petroleum through
activities such as inspection and compliance assistance support. The EPM LUST/UST Program
provides states370 and tribes with technical assistance and guidance and directly funds projects that
assist states and tribes in their program implementation, such as the Tribal Underground Storage
Tanks Database (TrUSTD). EPA is the primary implementer of the UST Program in Indian
Country. With few exceptions, tribes do not have independent UST program resources. EPA will
provide facility-specific compliance assistance for UST facility owners and operators in
communities with environmental justice concerns in Indian Country.
This program supports the Administration's priority of mitigating the negative environmental
impacts to communities that are historically underserved, marginalized, and adversely affected by
persistent poverty and inequality, as articulated in Executive Order 13985: Advancing Racial
Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government,371 As of July
2021, approximately 71 million people lived within a quarter mile of an active UST facility,
representing 21 percent of the total U.S population. These communities tend to be more minority,
low income, linguistically isolated, and less likely to have a high school education than the U.S.
population as a whole.372
In 2005, Congress passed the Energy Policy Act (EPAct) which, along with other release
prevention measures, requires states to inspect facilities at least once every three years. EPA has
370 States as referenced here also include the District of Columbia and five territories as described in the definition of state in the
Solid Waste Disposal Act.
371 For more information, please refer to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-
order-advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-govemment/.
372 U.S. EPA, Office of Land and Emergency Management 2021. Data collected includes: 1) Underground Storage Tank/Leaking
Underground Storage Tank information from states as of 2018-2019 and from Tribal lands and U.S. territories as of 2020-2021
from Office of Research Development & Office of Underground Storage Tanks, UST Finder
https://epa.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=b03763d3f2754461adfB6fl21345d7bci and 2) population data
from the 2015-2019 American Community Survey.
373
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been supporting states in these efforts. Between fiscal years 2008 and 2023, the number of annual
confirmed releases has decreased by 41 percent (from 7,364 to 4,3 54).373
An EPA study suggests that increased UST compliance is a result of increasing inspection
frequency. EPA's statistical analysis, using UST data from the states of Louisiana and Arkansas,
showed a positive and statistically significant effect of increased inspection frequency on facility
compliance.374 This evidence supports the data trends the Agency witnessed: compliance rates rose
notably after fully implementing the three-year inspection requirement.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 6/Objective 6.2, Reduce Waste and Prevent
Environmental Contamination in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
EPA estimates that only two percent of the Nation's 125,000 retail fuel locations have the
appropriate equipment to store higher blends of ethanol, which means that the remaining UST
systems will need some level of upgrade before they can safely and legally store ethanol blend
El 5. This could pose a greater risk of an accidental fuel release in nearby communities. To help
address this, EPA requests an additional $1.8 million and 5.5 FTE to increase activities to improve
the compatibility of UST systems with El5 in fenceline communities where El5 is more
prevalently used. Requested resources will be used to:
Conduct outreach and education to UST owners to ensure they both understand the
regulatory requirements to store El5 and the technical process they can use to determine
their compatibility in complying with those requirements so they can safely store El5; and
Hire staff to support state inspection programs and to conduct direct El 5 compliance
inspections in Indian Country.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to engage in the following core activities:
Support enhanced inspections and evaluations for UST owners/operators to ensure that
UST systems meet current regulations. This will include expanded development and use
of a facility specific compliance assistance application for use in Indian Country. A portion
of EPM funding is used for EPA's Senior Environmental Employment (SEE) Program staff
to help conduct inspections to assist states that do not have sufficient inspection capacity
in house. Constrained resources in recent years have made it increasingly challenging to
meet the Agency's Energy Policy Act requirements of inspecting every UST at least once
every three years.
373 For more information, please refer to https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documeiits/2023-l l/fy-23-eoy-fuial-report-l 1-21-
2023.pdf.
374 Sullivan, K. A.; Kafle, A (2020). The Energy Policy Act of2005: Increased Inspection Frequency and Compliance at
Underground Storage Tank Facilities. OCPA Working Paper No. 2020-01, https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2020-
10/documents/ust ocpa orklng paper_august2020.pdf.
374
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Develop tools and resources to assist states in adapting to the impacts of climate change
and extreme weather events. This includes developing tools and resources to assist states
in identifying facilities that are more prone to flooding or wildfires and helping these
facilities prepare for these events before they occur.
Provide oversight for state LUST prevention grants and provide compatibility compliance
assistance for tribal facilities.
Continue research studies that identify the compatibility of new fuel formulations with
current tank systems.
Continue to coordinate with state UST prevention programs.
Provide technical assistance, compliance help, and expert consultation to states, tribes, and
stakeholders on both policy and technical matters. This support strives to strengthen the
network of federal, state, tribal, and local partners (specifically communities and people
living and working near UST sites) and assists implementation of the UST regulations.
Provide guidance, training, and assistance to the regulated community to improve
understanding and compliance.
Continue to work with industry, states, and tribes to identify causes and potential solutions
for corrosion in diesel tanks. Work in this area is important given the significant findings
regarding the increasing prevalence of corrosion of UST system equipment containing
ethanol or diesel fuels.375
EPA will continue to collect data regarding both the compliance rate and the number of new
releases for UST systems in Indian Country. The compliance rate will help determine progress
toward meeting EPA's revised regulations and help identify any areas that need specific attention.
In addition, EPA will continue its work to evaluate the effectiveness of its 2015 regulations, which
are designed to ensure existing UST equipment continues to function properly.
Performance Measure Targets:
Work under this program supports performance results in the LUST Prevention Program under the
LUST appropriation.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$328.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base payroll costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefits costs. It also includes support for
critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity requirements,
375 For more information, please refer to: www.epa.gov/ust/emerging-fuels-and-underground-storage-tanks-usts#tab-3
375
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electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of Trusted
Vetting 2.0.
(+$2,255.0 / +5.5 FTE) This program change requests additional FTE to conduct direct
El5 compliance inspections in Indian Country. Resources also will be used for the
development and coordination of outreach materials to the regulated community. This
investment includes $1.0 million for payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act §§ 8001, 9001-9011.
376
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Water Ecosystems
377
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National Estuary Program / Coastal Waterways
Program Area: Protecting Estuaries and Wetlands
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S3 8.~00
S-t 0,000
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Total Budget Authority
$38,790
$40,000
$32,611
-$7,389
Total Workyears
34.8
36.9
36.9
0.0
Program Project Description:
The National Estuary Program (NEP)/Coastal Waterways Programs work to restore the physical,
chemical, and biological integrity of estuaries of national significance and coastal watersheds by
protecting and restoring water quality, habitat, and living resources.376
The Nation's coasts are facing devastating ecological and societal stress, and communities with
environmental justice concerns, especially people of color, low-income, and indigenous
communities, are experiencing disproportionate climate impacts. Sea level rise and shoreline loss,
dead zones, harmful algal blooms, coral bleaching, coastal acidification, wetland and habitat loss,
shifts in species composition and habitat, frequent flooding, degraded water quality, saltwater
intrusion, and storms that result in billion-dollar damages are becoming routine. The water quality
and ecological integrity of estuarine and coastal areas is critical to the economic vitality of the U.S.
While the estuarine regions of the U.S. comprise just 12.6 percent of U.S. land area, they contain
40 percent of the U.S. population and provide 47 percent of all U.S. economic output.377 The
economic value of coastal recreation in the U.S. for beachgoing, fishing, bird watching, and
snorkeling/diving has been conservatively estimated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration to be in the order of $20 billion to $60 billion annually.378
Wetlands and healthy ecosystems protect coastal property, providing a buffer against storms,
floods, and high waves. They stabilize shorelines, prevent land from eroding, and provide carbon
sequestration. The storm damage mitigation services provided by wetlands are valued at over $23
billion dollars annually. The NEP has collectively protected and restored just over 2.8 million acres
of habitat, including wetlands, within 28 estuaries of national significance since 2000, providing
the benefits described above to coastal watersheds and their communities stretching across 39
percent of U.S. shoreline miles and containing 40 percent379 of the U.S. population. The NEP
achieves these successes by the 28 locations working collaboratively and proactively with local
376 For more information, please visit https://www.epa.gov/nep.
377 For more information, please visit https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/habitat-conservation/estuary-habitat.
378 For more information, please visit https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/habitat-conservation/coastal-wetlands-too-
valuable-lose.
379 For more information, please visit: https://estuaries.Org/wp-content/uploads/2022/l 1/202 l-Final-Report.pdf
378
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governments and other partners through broad networks and leveraging other sources of funding.
On average, the designated NEPs leverage more than $ 16 for every dollar provided by EPA and,
since 2006, the NEP has exceeded $7.4 billion primary leveraged dollars.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will:
Provide $19.6 million in Clean Water Act Section 320 grants for the 28 NEPs ($700
thousand per NEP). This is a highly leveraged program with projects that address coastal,
estuarine, and inland freshwater ecosystem needs. On average, the NEPs leverage more
than $ 16 for every dollar provided by EPA. Funding for this program will strengthen
EPA's staff and internal resource capacity to support and manage core programmatic
activities, including the implementation of each NEP's Comprehensive Conservation and
Management Plan, conducting and addressing findings from regular program evaluations
of individual NEPs, collecting and analyzing annual data from the NEPs, oversight of the
day-to-day operations of the NEPs, and management of Clean Water Act Section 320 grant
funds;
Provide capacity to support NEP programs that address priority issues such as nutrient
management, habitat protection and restoration, water quality, green infrastructure, and
marine litter reduction. Throughout the NEPs' work, the program seeks to prioritize climate
adaptation and resiliency and greenhouse gas mitigation co-benefits while equitably
distributing federal investments and their benefits, including to disadvantaged
communities. They engage and educate stakeholders and students and implement
collaborative projects with regional, state, tribal, and local partners. These projects include
restoration of submerged aquatic vegetation and blue carbon measures, nutrient and
harmful algal bloom reduction, and development and implementation of climate adaptation
and resiliency strategies;
Support the Clean Water Act Section 319 Program to manage nonpoint source pollution in
coastal waterways;
Support the NEPs in developing the skills and capacity to integrate environmental and
climate justice into their guiding documents, daily operations, and project selection. These
activities will benefit disadvantaged communities and help achieve the goals of the
Administration's Justice40 initiative;
Conduct regular Program Evaluations to assess how the NEPs are making progress in
achieving programmatic and environmental results through implementation of their
Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plans. The evaluation process has proven
to be an effective, interactive management process that ensures national program
accountability and transparency, while incorporating local priorities and considerations. It
379
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also demonstrates the value of federal investment in estuarine and coastal watershed
restoration and protection at the local and regional levels;
Support the Climate Ready Estuaries (CRE) Program380 and other important coastal
program activities, including restoration and protection of coastal wetlands (e.g., avoiding
and removing tidal restrictions) and addressing marine litter. CRE develops resources and
provides technical support to the NEPs and other coastal community leaders and advises
on coastal climate resiliency nationally. EPA will continue to work with other federal
agencies, states, and tribes to assess challenges such as increasing temperatures, sea level
rise, and ocean and coastal acidification and identify opportunities to implement actions to
mitigate the effects of climate change on the Nation's coastal waters and shorelines; and,
The FY 2025 request includes $2.5 million for the NEP Coastal Watersheds Grant
Program.
EPA continues to work with states, tribes, trust territories, the NEPs, and federal agencies to
implement the National Aquatic Resource Survey (NARS) in coastal/estuarine waters. In FY 2023,
the NARS coastal survey completed analysis and interpretation of the sample results and shared
them with state and tribal partners. The web-report and results dashboard for the 2020 National
Coastal Condition Assessment will be released in FY 2024. In FY 2025, EPA will initiate planning
activities with our partners for the 2025 National Coastal Condition Assessment.
EPA, as the federal chair of the Gulf Hypoxia Task Force, will work with other Task Force member
federal agencies and twelve member states to continue implementation of the 2008 Gulf Hypoxia
Action Plan. This activity complements other coordination and implementation resources in the
Geographic Program: Gulf of Mexico and Surface Water Protection Program. A key goal of the
Gulf Hypoxia Action Plan is to improve water quality in the Mississippi River Basin and reduce
the size of the hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico by implementing existing and innovative
approaches to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus pollution in the Basin and the Gulf.
EPA will continue to work with states, territories, tribes, and other partners to identify impaired
waters in coastal watersheds, as required by CWA Section 303(d), and on developing and
implementing total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) for listed impaired waterbodies. TMDLs focus
on clearly defined environmental goals and establish a pollutant budget, which is then
implemented through local, state, and federal watershed plans and programs to restore waters.
EPA will work with and provide support to states, territories, and tribes to ensure that TMDLs for
coastal waters are effective and ready for implementation. EPA also will support states, territories,
and tribes develop other restoration approaches and plans for the protection of unimpaired or high-
quality waters in coastal watersheds. In addition, EPA will continue to support development and
application of tools and applications (e.g., the Watershed Academy, How's My Waterway, and
Restoration and Protection Screening (RPS)) that educate the public and help states and territories
efficiently prioritize coastal waters for restoration and protection.
380 For more information, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/cre.
380
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Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$1,167.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs.
(-$8,556.0) This program change reduces the resources available for this program. Significant
additional funding for these activities is available in FY 2025 through the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act.
Statutory Authority:
2021 Protect and Restore America's Estuaries Act; 1990 Great Lakes Critical Programs Act of the
Clean Water Act; Great Lakes Legacy Reauthorization Act of 2008; Clean Water Act; Estuaries
and Clean Waters Act of 2000; Protection and Restoration Act of 1990; North American Wetlands
Conservation Act; Water Resources Development Act; 2012 Great Lakes Water Quality
Agreement; 1987 Montreal Protocol on Ozone Depleting Substances; 1909 Boundary Waters
Treaty; Marine Debris Research, Prevention and Reduction Act of 2006; Marine Plastic Pollution
Research and Control Act of 1987, Save our Seas 2.0 Act, and the Harmful Algal Bloom and
Hypoxia Research and Control Act of 1998 (16 U.S.C. 1451 note).
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Wetlands
Program Area: Protecting Estuaries and Wetlands
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S IV.050
S21. ->-!
S20.W5
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Total Budget Authority
$19,656
$21,754
$26,995
$5,241
Total Workyears
117.9
118.4
138.0
19.6
Program Project Description:
EPA's Wetlands Protection Program has two primary components: 1) the Clean Water Act (CWA)
Section 404 regulatory program and 2) the state and tribal wetland development program. Major
activities of the Wetlands Protection Program include timely and efficient review of CWA Section
404 permit applications submitted to the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) or
authorized states; engaging and partnering with US ACE, states, and other stakeholders to develop
stream and wetland assessment tools, and improve compensatory mitigation effectiveness and
availability of credits; assisting in building capacity and the development of state and tribal
wetlands and other aquatic resource protection and restoration programs under CWA, including
404 program assumption and Section 401 water quality certification; and providing technical
assistance to the public on wetland management and legal requirements.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
Working with federal, state, tribal, and local partners, EPA will strive to ensure an effective,
consistent approach to wetlands and other aquatic resource protection, restoration, and permitting.
To achieve this goal, the Agency will continue its collaborative relationship with USACE in the
CWA Section 404 permitting program. In addition, EPA will continue its work with states and
tribes to build their wetlands programs to monitor, protect, and restore wetlands to achieve multiple
societal benefits, including adapting to and mitigating the effects of climate change.
CWA Section 404
Section 404 of the CWA is an established program to regulate the discharge of dredged or fill
material into waters of the United States, including wetlands. USACE is responsible for managing
382
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the day-to-day permit processes nationwide under CWA Section 404.381 EPA engages in the CWA
404 permit process to ensure compliance with the CWA Section 404(b)(1) guidelines as the
permitting authority formulates their proposed permits. EPA will perform its CWA responsibilities
to support new infrastructure projects funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
of 2021. In 2008, EPA and USACE issued a final rule governing compensatory mitigation for
activities authorized by the CWA 404 and associated losses of aquatic resources. The regulation
prescribes a review and approval process for the establishment and management of mitigation
banks and in-lieu of fees program. EPA and USACE will continue to work together to evaluate
the effectiveness of the Program, provide training to regulators and the public, and consider further
enhancements to the rule and program.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support the development of stream and wetland assessment
methods, trainings for regulators, and regional crediting protocols for compensatory mitigation to
improve the efficiency and environmental outcomes of federal and state agency review. In
addition, EPA will continue to build internal capacity through trainings and improve efficiencies
in federal CWA Section 404 permitting to help with reducing potential costs and delays; increasing
consistency and predictability; improving protection of public health and the environment,
including assessing climate impacts and impacts to disadvantaged communities; and ensuring
permit decisions are legally defensible.
EPA also will continue carrying out its responsibilities as a member of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem
Restoration Council authorized under the Resources and Ecosystem Sustainability, Tourist
Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States (RESTORE) Act, and as a Natural
Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) Trustee for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill under the Oil
Pollution Act (OP A). Under CWA Section 404, the RESTORE Act, and OP A, EPA's
responsibilities include timely, environmentally sound, and compliant implementation of National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review and associated permitting. Under NRDA, EPA is a
cooperating or lead federal agency for NEPA on all Deepwater Horizon Trustee Implementation
Group restoration plans and ensures the appropriate level of NEPA analysis is integrated into those
referenced restoration plans. EPA's RESTORE responsibilities include NEPA analysis for proj ects
that the Council assigns to EPA. As a NRDA Trustee, EPA undertakes mandatory independent
third-party financial audits every three years to ensure accountability regarding the use of funds
provided under a 2016 consent decree.382 The first independent third-party financial audit was
initiated in FY 2018 and concluded in FY 2020 with no negative findings. The second audit was
initiated in FY 2021 and concluded in FY 2022 with no significant findings. EPA anticipates
initiating its third audit in FY 2024.
Building State and Tribal Aquatic Resource Programs
EPA will continue to work with states and tribes to target Wetlands Protection Program funds to
core statutory requirements while providing states and tribes flexibility to best address their
priorities. This includes providing assistance to states and tribes interested in assuming the
381 Currently, three states, Michigan, New Jersey, and Florida, have assumed the CWA Section 404 permit program. CWA
Section 404(g) gives states and tribes the option of assuming, or taking over, the permitting responsibility and administration of
the CWA Section 404 permit program for certain waters.
382 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/deepwaterhorizon.
383
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administration of the CWA Section 404(g) program. EPA intends to finalize a regulation in FY
2024 to update the existing state and Tribal program regulations on CWA Section 404(g) program
assumption. EPA also will continue to administer Wetland Program Development Grants, which
is a Justice40 covered program, in support of state and tribal wetland programs. The Agency will
focus on working more efficiently with states and tribes to achieve specific program development
outcomes including protecting and restoring wetlands and other aquatic resources to address water
quality and climate impacts, provide benefits to disadvantaged communities, support state and
tribal assumption of the CWA Section 404 program, and support states and tribes with
implementing CWA Section 401.383
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$123.0) This change to fixed and other costs is a decrease due to the recalculation of base
workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs.
(+$5,364.0 / +19.6 FTE) This increase of resources and FTE supports the implementation
of the Clean Water Act to protect and restore wetlands and other aquatic resources. This
investment also includes $3,431 million in payroll.
Statutory Authority:
CWA § 404, § 104(b)(3).
383 For more information, please see: https://www.epa. gov/wetlands.
384
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Ensure Safe Water
385
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Beach / Fish Programs
Program Area: Ensure Safe Water
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
Sl.fi'3
S 2.2-10
S 2..WI
SNi
Total Budget Authority
$1,673
$2,246
$2,391
$145
Total Workyears
1.7
2.7
3.8
1.1
Program Project Description:
The Beach/Fish Program provides up-to-date science, guidance, technical assistance, and
nationwide information to state, tribal, and federal agencies to protect human health of beachgoers
from contaminated recreation waters, as well as recreational and subsistence fishers (e.g., tribal
communities and other underserved populations) from consumption of contaminated fish.
The Agency implements the following activities under this Program:
Develop and disseminate methodologies and guidance that states and tribes use to sample,
analyze, and assess fish tissue in support of waterbody specific or regional consumption
advisories.
Develop and disseminate guidance that states and tribes can use to conduct local fish
consumption surveys.
Develop and disseminate guidance that states and tribes can use to communicate the risks
of consuming chemically contaminated fish.
Gather, analyze, and disseminate information to the public and health professionals that
informs decisions on when and where to fish, and how to prepare fish caught by
recreational and subsistence fishers.
Provide best practices on public notification of beach closures and advisories.
Develop tools such as the sanitary survey app, predictive modeling, and improved
analytical methods.
Maintain the E-Beaches IT system to collect data required by the Beaches Environmental
Assessment and Coastal Help (BEACH) Act.
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In addition to providing technical support to states and tribes on beach monitoring and data
reporting, these programs are part of EPA's ongoing effort to increase public awareness of the
risks to human health associated with contact with recreational water contaminated with pathogens
or harmful algal blooms, and with eating locally caught fish that contain pollutants such as
mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at
levels of concern. These efforts are directly linked to the Agency's mission to protect human
health.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this Program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to:
Update science and public policy to assess and manage the risks and benefits of fish
consumption.
Provide analytical tools and collect data associated with beach monitoring.
Provide technical support to states in the operation of their fish consumption advisories and
beach monitoring programs.
Build program capacity, particularly in areas related to environmental justice, water
infrastructure support and oversight, climate change resilience, and regulatory reviews.
Complete National Aquatic Resource Surveys (NARS) National Lakes Assessment analysis
of fish tissue for contaminants including PFAS;
Per the Agency's PFAS Roadmap, complete reporting for the first time of PFAS levels in
fish collected from lakes nationwide;
Conduct monitoring of PFAS and other contaminants in fish collected from the Great Lakes
and (for the first time) coastal estuaries as part of the NARS National Coastal Condition
Assessment; and
Implement the Justice 40 initiative in the BEACH Act Program.
In FY 2025, EPA also will make investments in providing up-to-date science, guidance, and
technical assistance so states and tribes have equitable and effective beach and fish advisory
programs. This information allows the public, including underserved communities, to make
informed choices about recreational activities in local waters and eating locally caught fish. EPA
will maintain the E-Beaches IT system and make updates if needed.
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Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
~ (+$78.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of base
workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to provide
essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs.
(+$67.0 / +1.1 FTE) This program change in resources and FTE builds program capacity,
particularly in areas related to environmental justice, water infrastructure support and
oversight, climate change resilience, and regulatory reviews.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act, § 101, 104, and 303.
388
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Drinking Water Programs
Program Area: Ensure Safe Water
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Ensure Safe Drinking Water and Reliable Water Infrastructure
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
linviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.S IUV.V5N
SI 21.Mr
SI-13, KM
S 22.2'V
Science & Technology
$5,474
$5,098
$7,043
$1,945
Total Budget Authority
$115,432
$126,705
$150,929
$24,224
Total Workyears
471.0
539.4
554.5
15.1
Program Project Description:
Safe drinking water is critical for protecting human health and the economic vitality of the Nation.
Approximately 320 million Americans rely on public water systems to deliver safe tap water that
complies with national drinking water standards.384 EPA's Drinking Water Program is based on a
multiple-barrier and source-to-tap approach to protect public health from contaminants in drinking
water.385 EPA protects public health through:
Source water assessment and protection;
Promulgation of new or revised National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWRs);
Training, technical assistance, and financial assistance programs to enhance public water
system capacity to comply with regulations and provide safe drinking water;
Underground Injection Control (UIC) programs;
Support for implementation of NPDWRs by state and tribal drinking water programs
through regulatory, non-regulatory, and voluntary programs and policies; and
Funding, assistance, and resources for states and tribes to support the financing of water
infrastructure improvements nationwide that will improve compliance, address drinking
water contaminants such as lead, and ensure water systems are more resilient to threats,
like cyber-attacks and natural hazards such as climate change.386
Current events, including the detection of lead and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in
drinking water, highlight the importance of drinking water protection programs that safeguard
public health. It also is important to protect the sources of drinking water. Moreover, incidents of
drinking water contamination with lead and PFAS, such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA),
perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), and GenX chemicals, exemplify the increased demand for risk
384 For more information on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS/FED),
please see: http://water.epa.gov/scitech/datait/databases/drink/sdwisfed/index.cfm.
385 For more information, please see: https://www.epa. gov/sites/production/files/2015-
10/documents/guide swppocket 2002 updated.pdf.
386 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water.
389
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communication and other resources that can help communities protect public health and address
these chemicals.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.1, Ensure Safe Drinking Water and
Reliable Water Infrastructure in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, the program will continue to support the Agency's national drinking water priorities,
including:
Addressing lead and emerging contaminants such as PFAS and
Improving resilience in drinking water systems to address natural hazards, including
climate change, and human threats by enhancing cyber security; and, improving drinking
water access and water quality across the Nation, especially in rural, small, underserved,
and disadvantaged communities across the country.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work to integrate climate adaptation planning into water
programs, policies, and rulemaking processes, and consult and partner with states, tribes,
territories, local governments, environmental justice organizations, community groups,
businesses, and other federal agencies to strengthen the adaptive capacity and increase the
resilience of the Nation. The Agency also is requesting resources to support regulatory analysis,
development and training, and technical assistance for state, tribal, and local communities to
address drinking water contaminants (including lead and emerging contaminants like PFAS) in
their efforts to ensure safe and affordable drinking water.
The Agency will continue to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of its programs for states
and tribes, including work to ensure EPA water programs and resources reach communities that
too often have been overburdened, including rural and tribal communities. In FY 2023, over 2,100
tribal, small, rural, or underserved communities were provided with technical, managerial, or
financial assistance to improve operations of their drinking water or wastewater systems. The
Drinking Water Program supports this effort by providing training and assistance to state drinking
water programs, tribal drinking water officials, drinking water systems, and technical assistance
providers. The training includes:
Achieving and maintaining compliance at drinking water systems;
Developing and amplifying best practices and providing technical assistance;
Protecting sources of drinking water, including through the UIC program;
Strengthening state and tribal program capacity; and
Certifying drinking water operators and maintaining an essential workforce.
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EPA oversees state drinking water programs by completing the annual public water system
supervision (PWSS) program review for each primacy agency as required under the Safe Drinking
Water Act (SDWA). Information gained during the Program reviews, which occur throughout the
year, includes an analysis of the completion of sanitary surveys by primacy agencies and an
evaluation of whether each primacy agency is implementing its programs in accordance with
SDWA. The annual program reviews directly support the work of the states and the Agency to
reduce the number of community water systems in noncompliance with health-based standards.
As of September 30, 2023, 3,042 of the 3,508 systems with health-based violations on September
30, 2017, have been returned to compliance {i.e., 466 systems are still in violation). EPA
recognizes that many of the remaining systems have complex compliance issues or may require
capital infrastructure improvements to help address noncompliance. While Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and State Revolving Fund (SRF) funding will support these
systems, infrastructure projects can take many years to complete. In FY 2025, EPA will continue
to provide technical assistance and work with states towards long-term remediation of systems
with health-based violations.
The Agency is continuing to work with states on completing the development of the Drinking
Water State-Federal-Tribal Information Exchange System (DW-SFTIES) as the long-term
replacement for the Safe Drinking Water Information System for states (SDWIS-State) by early
2026. As of FY 2023, 42 states use SDWIS-State for day-to-day information management for
implementing state drinking water programs. In FY 2025, EPA continues to support and prepare
states in their transition planning activities to DW-SFTIES. The information gained from the
PWSS reviews, and the database modernization efforts will continue to support evidence-building
activities as part of EPA's implementation of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking
Act of 2018 (Evidence Act).
The Agency also continues to provide training and collaborate with states on:
Helping underserved, small, and disadvantaged communities with SDWA compliance and
providing households access to drinking water services and household water quality
testing, including testing for unregulated contaminants;
Maintaining the states' capacity development programs and providing resources, tools, and
technical assistance to help water systems with SDWA compliance;
Effectively implementing PWSS programs; and
Providing operator certification programs to support the water sector workforce.
Water Infrastructure
The Nation's aging infrastructure poses a significant challenge for the drinking water and
wastewater sectors to protect public health and the environment. These challenges are particularly
pressing in small, rural, overburdened, and underserved communities. In FY 2025, EPA will
continue to support improvements to the Nation's drinking water infrastructure, including
identification of infrastructure needs and assistance for underserved and tribal communities. The
Agency also will support activities to leverage and encourage public and private collaborative
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efforts and investments. This Program also supports the Agency' s efforts in implementing the IIJA.
EPA will continue to provide direct technical assistance to water systems and collaborate with the
states to help small and underserved communities access the funding provided by IIJA.
Every four years, EPA is required to conduct the Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey
Assessment (D WINS A) by working with states and community water systems to estimate the
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) eligible needs of systems by state over the next
20 years. EPA uses this information as part of the formula for state allocations of the DWSRF.
The 2021 or the 7th DWINSA effort concluded and the new allotment formula was announced and
used starting in FY 2023. EPA submitted the 2021 DWINSA Report to Congress in FY 2023.
Findings included capital investment needs and also estimates on lead service line prevalence and
replacement costs, current concerns for a sustainable certified operator workforce, and an
assessment of the uses of iron and steel products. In late FY 2023 to early FY 2024, EPA conducted
a one-time update of the service line material information for the seventh DWINSA. This
additional information will update the Lead Service Line Replacement funding allotments for the
DWSRF programs and be used starting in FY 2024. In addition, planning activities will begin for
the 8th DWINSA. EPA plans to reach out to state partners to discuss 'Lessons Learned' with the
previous DWINSA efforts and identify ways to improve the next survey. In FY 2024 through FY
2025, EPA expects to develop the survey instrument, conduct trainings, and begin data collection
for the 8th DWINSA. The FY 2025 request includes up to $1.5 million set aside from the DWSRF
to ensure there are consistent and reliable resources to fund this important work.
In addition to the DWSRF Program, in FY 2025, EPA will continue to support drinking water
infrastructure programs by implementing the following statutes:
Consolidated Appropriations Acts of 2022 and 2023 (EPA Community Grants) and any
future Community Grant appropriations;
Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act of 2021 (DWWIA) within IIJA;
Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act of 2021 within IIJA;
America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (AWIA);
Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act of 2016 (WIIN); and
Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA).
Collectively, these laws strengthened existing programs and created new ones to tackle significant
public health concerns and environmental needs. The programs created in these laws are vital to
protecting public health, continuing to grow the United States' economy, and ensuring that rural
and urban communities from coast-to-coast can thrive. EPA will continue to provide WIIN,
AWIA, and IIJA grant funding to support projects focusing on reducing lead and addressing
emerging contaminants in drinking water and to enhance water system resiliency to natural hazards
such as climate change and man-made threats such as cyber-attacks, with a focus on small and
disadvantaged communities. Funding for these proj ects also will bolster the U. S. economy through
domestic preference requirements for federally funded infrastructure projects.
Funding for infrastructure supports EPA's goal to increase the cumulative amount of non-federal
dollars leveraged by water infrastructure finance programs by $9.5 billion in FY 2025. These water
infrastructure finance programs include the DWSRF, CWSRF, and the WIFIA program. In FY
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2023, $11.4 billion was leveraged by these programs, increasing the funds available to improve,
repair, and modernize the Nation's water infrastructure.
Drinking Water Program Implementation
In FY 2025, the Agency is requesting additional resources to support continued work with states
to implement requirements for all NPDWRs to ensure that systems install, operate, and maintain
appropriate levels of treatment and effectively manage their drinking water plants and distribution
systems. The Program activities are designed to improve drinking water and water quality across
the Nation, especially in tribal and underserved and vulnerable communities. Activities include:
Working with states to provide training, direct technical assistance, and resources to
conduct lead service line inventories, replace lead service lines, and optimize corrosion
control treatment, develop other strategies to minimize exposure to lead, and maintain
simultaneous compliance;
Developing guidance manuals, tools, and trainings for states to support water systems and
primacy agencies in implementing the Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI) and
its revision;
Developing guidance, tools, and trainings to support water systems and primacy agencies
in implementing the PFAS Rule;
Implementing regulations to improve the clarity, readability, and accuracy of information
in Consumer Confidence Reports;
Implementing SDWA Section 1414 requirements allowing states to mandate water system
restructuring assessments;
Focusing on the reduction of the number of community water systems with health-based
violations, especially small systems, tribal systems, and systems in underserved
communities;
Coordinating with the Indian Health Service and other federal partners to provide financial
and technical assistance to tribal communities;
In preparation of the PFAS NPDWR, supporting the development of the draft Small
System Compliance Guidance Document; and,
EPA will continue to complete the development of DW-SFTIES and support state migration to
DW-SFTIES and to the Compliance Monitoring Data Portal, which enables drinking water utilities
and laboratories to report drinking water data electronically. In addition, EPA will continue the
development of efficient program data management and reporting tools focusing on drinking water
regulation, system technical, managerial, and financial capacity, and activities that inform status
of SDWA compliance and decisions to support human health protection.
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In FY 2025, EPA will conduct the following activities to facilitate compliance with drinking water
rules:
Overseeing the national PWSS Program by administering grants to states and measuring
program results based on state reporting of health-based rule violations at public water
systems for over 90 drinking water contaminants;
Offering training and technical assistance opportunities to states, tribes, and public water
systems, especially those in underserved and disadvantaged communities, with a priority
on addressing significant noncompliance with the NPDWRs;
Bolstering its strong partnership with the states to provide direct small system technical
assistance, especially in disadvantaged communities, with a focus on compliance with
rules, operational efficiencies, and system sustainability and resiliency to ensure public
health protection;
Directly implementing the Aircraft Drinking Water Rule, designed to protect millions of
people who travel on approximately 5,700 aircraft in the United States annually; and
Directly implementing the Drinking Water Program where states and tribes do not have
primacy (e.g., Wyoming, the District of Columbia, and tribal lands other than the Navajo
Nation).
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement the Evidence Act and make evidence-based decisions
guided by the best available science and data. EPA will continue to help develop statistical
evidence where it is lacking and improve EPA's capacity to generate and share science and data,
and use it in policy, budget, operational, regulatory, and management processes and decisions.
Specifically, the Agency will be conducting evidence-building activities and gathering information
from SDWIS that inform the data quality of the Agency's drinking water compliance information.
Through these efforts, EPA has identified a need for access to states' compliance monitoring data
and is developing the regulatory authority and tools necessary to fill this gap. Furthermore, EPA
expects to identify additional data needs, potential sources of additional information, and
mechanisms to fill data gaps. EPA also will identify system characteristics that support compliance
and those that cause compliance challenges. EPA will use these findings to inform and develop
policy instruments.
Drinking Water Standards
To assure the American people that their water is safe to drink, EPA's drinking water regulatory
program monitors for a broad array of contaminants, evaluates whether contaminants are a public
health concern, and regulates contaminants when there is a meaningful opportunity for health risk
reduction for persons served by public water systems. In FY 2025, the Agency also will address
drinking water risks with the following actions:
Continuing to develop the new NPDWR, LCRI. In FY 2021, EPA issued the Lead and
Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) and subsequently reviewed those revisions in accordance
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with Executive Order 13990.387 Through this review, the Agency concluded that there are
significant opportunities to improve the LCRR to support the overarching goal of
proactively removing lead service lines and more equitably protecting public health (86 FR
71574). EPA announced the proposed LCRI on November 30,2023 and intends to finalize
by October 16, 2024.
Conducting human health effects assessments for water contaminants to support SDWA
actions, including the derivation of maximum contaminant level goals, drinking water
health advisories, and human health benchmarks. Consideration of those potentially most
at risk - especially sensitive subpopulations and critical life stages (e.g., infants and
children) - is key in development of health effects assessments for contaminants in water.
Continuing to develop guidance materials and webinar content to assist stakeholders with
preparing for their responsibilities under the final NPDWR for PFAS in drinking water.
Continuing the development of the SDWA-mandated draft Regulatory Determinations
(Reg Det) for the Fifth Contaminant Candidate List (CCL 5) and preparing to publish the
final Reg Det for CCL 5 in FY 2026.
Developing and publishing the draft Sixth Contaminant Candidate List (CCL 6) in FY
2025.388
Continuing to participate in interagency actions and support cross-agency efforts to address
PFAS; establishing better understanding of the health impacts and extent of their
occurrence in the environment and resulting human exposures; and supporting priorities
identified by the EPA's PFAS Council and in EPA's PFAS Strategic Roadmap.
Developing drinking water health advisories for PFAS with final toxicity values.
Continuing to develop risk communication and other tools to support states, tribes, and
localities in managing PFAS and other emerging contaminants in their communities.
Continuing to support state and tribal efforts to manage cyanotoxins in drinking water,
including providing technical assistance.
Proposing revisions to the existing Microbial and Disinfection Byproducts Rules based on
evaluations of the National Drinking Water Advisory Council (NDWAC)
recommendations and working towards a final rule by FY 2027.
Providing support to drinking water systems and laboratories as they collect and analyze
samples during implementation of the fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule.
Conclude monitoring for PFAS and lithium under UCMR 5 in FY 2025. Continuing to
387 For additional information, please see: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-Q1765/protecting-public-
health-aiid-the-enYiromiient-aiid-restoriiig-science-to-tackle-the-cliiiiate-crisis.
388 por additional information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/ccl/draft-contaminant-candidate-list-6-ccl-6.
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publish data summaries and detailed results and conduct occurrence data analyses.
Continuing the development of UCMR 6 towards the publication of the proposal in FY
2025.
Collecting and analyzing Community Water System Survey data to capture changes and
update information related to the conditions of public water systems.
Source Water Protection
SDWA requires drinking water utilities that meet the definition of a public water system to meet
requirements for source water protection set by EPA and state primacy agencies. Protecting source
water from contamination helps reduce treatment costs and may avoid or defer the need for
complex treatment. EPA will continue to partner with states, federal counterparts, drinking water
utilities, and other stakeholders to identify and address current and potential threats to sources of
drinking water. In FY 2025, the Agency will be:
Continuing to develop data-layers and decision support tools to assist source water
assessment, planning, and emergency preparation, including updates to the Drinking Water
Mapping Application for Protecting Source Waters (DWMAPS) on EPA's web-based
geospatial platform, GeoPlatform;389
Working with state, federal, utility, and local stakeholders to leverage resources, support
efforts to assist communities in source water protection activities and projects, and promote
ongoing efforts, including funding opportunities through the Funding Integration Tool for
Source water (FITS), to protect drinking water sources;
Continuing to partner with the Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Natural Resources
Conservation Service and Forest Service and state partners to support implementation of
the source water protection provisions of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018
Farm Bill) and provide support in the development and implementation of the subsequent
Farm Bill. Additionally, exchanging spatial data, resources, and funding information across
multiple federal and state partners to facilitate achievement of shared goals. This presents
an opportunity to forge stronger connections between EPA and USD A to address
agriculture-related impacts to drinking water sources;
Continuing to provide support for workshops that promote source water protection at the
local level and support the integration of source water protection into related programs at
the state and federal levels, focusing on reducing nutrient pollution impacts on drinking
water sources;
Providing support to states and tribes in identifying and planning for the use of IIJA and
IRA funding available from federal agencies to address source water protection priorities,
especially as it relates to addressing emerging drinking water contaminants; and
389 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/sourcewaterprotection/dwmaps.
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Building partnerships and developing source water protection planning resources and
communications materials related to source water protection priorities as part of EPA's
membership in the National Source Water Collaborative.
Underground Injection Control
Roughly one-third of the United States' population is served by public water systems that receive
water from groundwater. To safeguard current and future underground sources of drinking water
from contamination, the UIC Program regulates the use of injection wells that place fluids
underground for storage, disposal, enhanced recovery of oil and gas, and minerals recovery.
Protecting groundwater requires proper permitting, construction, operation, and closure of
injection wells. In FY 2025, planned activities in the UIC Program include:
Supporting implementation of DWWIA to support comprehensive carbon dioxide
infrastructure in the United States by working with applicants on Class VI permits for
secure geologic storage of carbon dioxide and with state UIC programs seeking to obtain
primacy for the Class VI program;
Supporting the implementation of the UIC STAG and IIJA funded Class VI programs,
including a grant program that assists states and tribes in obtaining primacy;
Supporting efforts to advance environmental justice in UIC programs;
Supporting states and tribes in applying for primary enforcement responsibility and
implementing UIC Program revisions;
Continuing to provide technical assistance, tools, and strategies to states to improve
implementation of UIC programs, including development of e-learning material, and to
support permitting in direction implementation;
Using national UIC data to assist with promoting consistent approaches to program
oversight of state and EPA's UIC programs; and
Streamlining EPA's UIC direct implementation permitting process and reducing the permit
application backlog.
Water Reuse
To assure a safe and reliable source of water that is resilient to drought, flooding, and population
growth, EPA is working to advance water reuse nationwide. This work is being done in
collaboration with a broad group of stakeholders, including non-governmental organizations,
states, tribes, and local governments. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to support the National Water
Reuse Action Plan and the Federal Water Reuse Interagency Working Group. The Agency will
develop and pursue actions that prioritize advancing technical and scientific knowledge on water
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reuse to ensure its safety across a range of uses and applications. EPA also will pursue actions that
provide technical and financial tools for stakeholders to ensure the accessibility of water reuse.390
One Water/One Community
In FY 2025, EPA will coordinate CWA and SDWA resources toward historically underserved and
overburdened communities that are facing greater climate and water equity challenges to achieve
greater resilience, access to clean and safe water, and an improved quality of life. This program
will provide holistic support to communities as they respond to the climate crisis by increasing
funding for planning and implementation actions across the country. Additionally, EPA will work
with federal partners and tribes to meet the unique water infrastructure challenges and other needs
in tribal nations.
Permitting Related to Infrastructure
In FY 2025, EPA is requesting additional resources to help process the increase in permits across
the country driven by this Administration's historic investment in infrastructure. These additional
FTE are necessary to handle the influx in a variety of different permit types that require EPA
approval.
This program also includes resources to support the increasing and new costs associated with
mandatory Agency support services provided through the Working Capital Fund (WCF), support
delegated responsibilities for Mission Support functions across the Agency, and support Agency-
wide implementation of OMB Cybersecurity mandates.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PM DW-02) Number of community water systems still in noncompliance with health-based standards since
March 31,2021.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
875
640
450
425
400
CWSs
Actual
1,718
1,128
1,048
654
537
466
(PM DW-07) Number of drinking water and wastewater systems, tribal and state officials, and water sector
partners provided with security, emergency preparedness, and climate resilience training and technical
assistance.
FY
20IS
FY
201')
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
2,000
3,500
4,500
4,500
Systems
and
Partners
Actual
3,939
3,895
390 For more information, please see https:/Avww.epa.gov/wateiTeuse.
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(PM DWT-02) Number of community water systems in Indian Country still in noncompliance with health-
based standards since March 31,2021.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
100
55
35
30
CWSs
Actual
74
54
(PM INFRA-06) Number of tribal, small, rural, or underserved communities provided with technical,
managerial, or financial assistance to improve system operations.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
339
542
1,100
1,300
Communities
Actual
IX"
l,o68
Data
Avail
4/2024
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
~ (+$8,970.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs. It also includes support
for critical Agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028 cybersecurity
requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and implementation of
Trusted Vetting 2.0.
~ (+$407.0 / +2.2 FTE) This program change is an increase to resources and FTE to support
Agencywide implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
Strategic Plan and Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements and other
Evidence Act activities.
(+$1,285.0 / +1.0 FTE) This program change is an increase to support implementation of
EPA's Climate Adaptation Action Plan. This increase will support priority commitments,
such as actions to integrate climate adaptation into EPA programs, policies, and processes,
efforts to address climate adaptation science and data needs, and efforts to consult and
partner with outside stakeholders This investment includes $185.0 thousand in payroll.
(+$11,617.0 / +7.9 FTE) This program change is an increase in resources and FTE that
supports regulatory analysis, development, training, permit review, and technical
assistance for state, tribal, and local communities to address drinking water contaminants
(including Lead and PFAS) in their efforts to ensure safe and affordable drinking water.
This increase also supports development of the Lead and Copper Rule Improvements and
the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule. This investment also includes $1,459
million in payroll.
Statutory Authority:
SDWA; CWA.
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Preparation for Water Emergencies
Program Area: Ensure Clean Water
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Ensure Safe Drinking Water and Reliable Water Infrastructure
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SO
SO
S JO.000
S JO.000
Total Budget Authority
$0
$0
$30,000
$30,000
Total Workyears
0.0
0.0
30.0
30.0
Program Project Description:
Fulfilling EPA's emergency response obligations during a water crisis is a top priority for the
Agency and the Administration and an imperative for communities experiencing such
emergencies. Responding quickly to drinking water and wastewater emergencies often requires
action beyond what is considered the traditional role of EPA's water, enforcement, or emergency
response programs. The new Water Emergencies Program would enable EPA to respond to water
and wastewater emergencies where EPA has determined that water quality poses a risk to public
health, and the affected community lacks access to safe and clean water in a timely or effective
manner. The Agency presently lacks resources to respond to, and sustain, water and wastewater
emergency response operations. This new program and the resources requested to implement this
proposal is an important towards filling this gap.
EPA will assume a lead role in assisting communities in the response to and recovery from a water
incident, particularly environmental justice communities which may be more vulnerable to water
and wastewater emergencies. EPA has taken a lead role during water crises, through various EPA
programs, within the past few years, including water systems with elevated water lead levels in
Clarksburg, WV, and Benton Harbor, Michigan; the leakage of stored jet fuel into a drinking water
source in Oahu, HI; arsenic contamination of a public well in Coachella Valley, CA; and the crisis
in Jackson, MS.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.1, Ensure Safe Drinking Water and
Reliable Water Infrastructure in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
It is incumbent on the EPA, under Presidential Policy Directive (PPD)-44 (Enhancing Domestic
Incident Response), to develop capacity and capabilities in the event that the President designates
EPA as the Lead Federal Agency (LFA) for a water emergency. As LFA, the Agency is expected
to perform multiple complex and time critical duties, including the following key actions:
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Enhance federal government unity of effort;
Develop strategic objectives, priorities and planning for the incident;
Identify gaps that response efforts should address;
Coordinate the federal incident response strategy with senior federal, state, local, tribal and
territorial officials, as well as the private sector and nongovernmental entities;
Communicate with senior U.S. Government officials to raise and resolve issues;
Facilitate appropriate incident information reporting;
Serve as or designate a principal spokesperson to lead communication efforts with affected
parties and the public;
Establish unified coordination through a Unified Coordination Group (UCG) or similar
construct and supporting organizational structure;
Identify federal, State, Local, Tribal and Territorial (SLTT), private sector, and non-
governmental organization (NGO) stakeholders with roles in responding to the incident
and working with stakeholders to:
o Develop strategic objectives, priorities, and planning efforts necessary for the
response.
o Assess the nature of the incident, including identifying and mitigating operational
and policy gaps to effectively respond to the incident,
o Establish roles, responsibilities, and clear expectations across the UCG.
o Clearly identify reporting relationships internally and externally,
o Establish an operational tempo and meeting schedule.
Establish an entity responsible for engagement and outreach to each stakeholder or set of
stakeholders, to ensure stakeholders needs are integrated with incident planning and
operations;
Initiate operational planning to develop appropriate response tactics and facilitate the
effective application of resources to meet incident objectives including:
o Set common incident objectives corresponding to the identified operational issues
and gaps.
o In coordination with stakeholders, develop and communicate performance
indicators for each incident objective that can be used to track progress against the
objective.
o Identify resources (authorities, capabilities, grants, programs, personnel) within
federal, SLTT, private sector, NGO, and other appropriate sectors, that could close
identified gaps.
o Identify gaps in the response that require operational planning to solve and establish
planning initiatives with cross-agency and cross-jurisdictional representation for
each operational gap or incident objective,
o Ensure appropriate agency subject matter experts are available to provide strategic
and operational input,
o Establish a common picture of cost accounting and expenditures by LFA and
Support Federal Agency (SFA).
Communicate with senior federal officials to raise and resolve issues related to the response
and recovery outcomes, including addressing national-level resource and strategic policy
issues through the National Security Council interagency policy process; and
Identify possible thresholds for completion of incident objectives that will allow the unified
coordination structure to stand-down.
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Accordingly, and to be better prepared to accomplish this critically important work, EPA is
requesting $30 million and 30 FTE in FY 2025 to establish a new program that would expand the
Agency's water emergency response capabilities across the following two components:
Ensuring the availability of trained personnel and resources at EPA Headquarters and in
the Regions
o EPA water, enforcement, and other program staff currently perform emergency
response activities, with their emergency response role considered ancillary to their
primary duties of implementing programs under the Safe Drinking Water Act and
Clean Water Act. EPA will need additional staff and resources in order to
effectively act in a water or wastewater emergency.
o $10 million would provide the resources necessary for EPA to serve as the LFA
upon possible designation by the President of the United States in the event of an
emergency compromising the ability of a water system to provide safe and clean
water. To support EPA's designation as a LFA and associated primary duties across
the Agency, additional staff and funding are needed to fully implement, and address
emergency response responsibilities.
Establishing a Water Emergency Fund
o If a significant water or wastewater emergency requiring direct EPA action arises
or EPA is designated by the President as an LFA under PPD-44, EPA will not have
access to emergency response funds under CERCLA or the Stafford Act, but
nonetheless will have the responsibility to provide staffing and material support to
restore drinking water and wastewater services. EPA can only achieve this essential
mission with a no-year fund dedicated to emergency response actions for water
incidents.
o $20 million is included to provide direct assistance to affected communities which
could be in the form of bottled water, filters, obtaining assistance from other federal
agencies under the Economy Act, reimbursing the water system or state for mutual
aid assistance, providing trained personnel to operate or manage drinking water and
wastewater services, among other tasks.
EPA is requesting new appropriations language that will provide no-year funding, broaden the
authorization to include both publicly and privately owned drinking water and wastewater systems,
and provide more inclusive language for using SDWA 1442(b) authorities for technical assistance,
grants, and contract support regardless of whether the Administrator determines that such actions
would not be taken without such emergency assistance for this work. Additionally, the
appropriations language requested will allow EPA to respond faster to emergencies.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program at this time.
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FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+30,000.0 / +30.0 FTE) This increase provides funding for a new program to support the
implementation and priorities to better prepare the Federal government, states, and
communities for potential water emergency situations in direct support of the EPA's
mission to protect human health. This investment includes $5.4 million in payroll.
Statutory Authority:
SDWA 1442(b) and 1431, CWA
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Ensure Clean Water
404
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Marine Pollution
Program Area: Ensure Clean Water
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
SS.0S1
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Total Budget Authority
$8,081
$10,187
$12,724
$2,537
Total Workyears
26.8
32.8
38.0
5.2
Program Project Description:
EPA's Marine Pollution Program aims to: 1) protect human health and the marine environment
from pollution through implementation of the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act
(MPRSA) permitting, site designation, and site management and monitoring program; 2) address
incidental discharges, including sewage, under the Clean Water Act Section 312; and 3) reduce
marine litter in the Nation's waterways and oceans, improve trash capture and source reduction
activities across the country, and support the Trash Free Waters Program.
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
MPRSA Program
The MPRSA regulates the transportation and disposition of any material in the ocean unless
expressly excluded under MPRSA. In the United States, MPRSA implements the requirements of
the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter of
1972, known as the London Convention treaty, one of the first international agreements for the
protection of the marine environment from human activities. The United States has signed but not
ratified the London Protocol, a free-standing treaty intended to modernize and eventually replace
the London Convention. Among other things, Contracting Parties to the London Convention and
London Protocol have taken steps to address potential harm to the marine environment from the
evaluation of new experimental technologies designed to reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
or mitigate its adverse effects (e.g., marine geoengineering).
In FY 2025, EPA will evaluate MPRSA permitting inquiries and requests for the transportation
and disposition of all materials except dredged materials and, as appropriate, issue MPRSA
emergency, research, general, and special permits for all materials other than dredged material.
This will include addressing MPRSA permitting requests for climate mitigation approaches,
including ocean-based carbon dioxide removal activities or ocean-based solar radiation
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management activities, and investigating any needed regulatory updates. EPA will administer
MPRSA general permits (some of which require consultation, for example, to ensure applicability
or to identify an appropriate disposal location at sea) for the burial at sea of cremated or non-
cremated human remains, the transport and disposal of vessels at sea, the transport of target vessels
for ocean disposal by the U.S. Navy for the Sink Exercise Program (SINKEX), the ocean disposal
of man-made ice piers by National Science Foundation in Antarctica, and the ocean disposal of
marine mammal carcasses.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers uses EPA's ocean-dumping criteria when evaluating requests
for MPRSA permits and MPRSA federal project authorizations for the ocean dumping of dredged
material (e.g., to support the expansion of ports and harbors or maintenance of navigation channels
including to support the transport of offshore wind infrastructure built on land for installation
offshore). All dredged material MPRSA permits and federal project authorizations are subject to
EPA review and written concurrence, and EPA will continue to work expeditiously consistent with
the Permitting Action Plan. In FY 2025, EPA will manage approximately one hundred EPA-
designated MPRSA ocean sites, conduct oceanographic surveys at approximately four to six EPA-
designated MPRSA ocean sites to ensure that ocean dumping will not unreasonably degrade or
endanger human health or the environment, to verify that unanticipated adverse effects are not
occurring from past or continued use of the site, and to ensure that terms of the MPRSA
permit/federal project authorization are met. EPA will evaluate lessons learned from sites and
evaluate lessons learned from each survey and review and update, as necessary, MPRSA-required
site management and monitoring plans established for each EPA-designated site. EPA will
evaluate requests to designate new MPRSA sites and/or modify (i.e., expand the capacity of)
existing EPA-designated MPRSA sites (through rulemaking) for the disposal of dredged material
(sediment) removed from the bottoms of the navigable waters to maintain the navigation channels
and coastal ports of the U.S. marine transportation system.
EPA will perform its MPRSA responsibilities to support new port and navigation infrastructure
projects funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. EPA will work to
maintain national program capacity by training EPA staff and developing technical/regulatory
tools to improve MPRSA permitting, site designation, and site management and monitoring. EPA
will provide training for new Chief Scientist candidates and existing Chief Scientists responsible
for designing and implementing ocean monitoring surveys to meet MPRSA requirements.
In FY 2025, EPA will serve as the Head of the United States Delegation for the annual London
Convention (LC) and London Protocol (LP) Scientific Groups Meetings, serve as Alternate Head
of the United States Delegation for the annual Consultative Meeting of the LC and LP Parties, and
represent the United States at the annual LP Compliance Group Meeting. An EPA representative
will chair the annual LC/LP Consultative Meeting. With the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, EPA
will submit the annual United States permit and ocean monitoring report to the International
Maritime Organization to meet LC treaty obligations.
Vessels Program
EPA is responsible for developing regulations under the Clean Water Act to address vessel
discharges. The vessel regulations help protect the environment from harmful pollutants such as
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sewage, metals, and aquatic nuisance species. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work with the
states on the designation of vessel sewage no-discharge zones as needed. EPA also will continue
to work with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) on implementation of Vessel Incidental Discharge Act
(VIDA) regulations including but not limited to discharge standards, no-discharge zones, and
emergency orders. Additionally, in FY 2025, EPA will continue working on the development of
ballast water discharge regulations for vessels of the Armed Forces. EPA will work to maintain
national program capacity by training EPA staff and developing technical/regulatory support tools
to improve implementation. EPA also will continue to provide support to the USCG in their role
as the head of delegation at the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The IMO is a
specialized agency of the United Nations with the responsibility to develop and maintain a
comprehensive regulatory framework for worldwide shipping. Lastly, in FY 2025, EPA will
continue to conduct extensive research on the management of ballast water in the Great Lakes.
Trash Free Waters Program
The FY 2025 request includes resources and Full Time Equivalents (FTE) to support trash capture
and prevention programs across the United States which are tied to water quality and waste
management goals, as well as to implement activities under the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act. This
program provides education and outreach and technical support to Tribes, states, municipalities
and non-governmental organizations across the country, including communities in coastal regions
and on major river systems, with a special focus on lower-income areas with environmental justice
concerns.
FY 2025 funding will allow the Program to:
Support the installation of trash capture systems in stormwater conveyance systems and in
waterways using technologies that are cost-effective and that have high trash-removal
efficiencies;
Provide assistance on integrating trash prevention provisions into municipal stormwater
management permits and practices, as well as broader watershed plans;
Aid targeted source reduction efforts;
Promote appropriate protocols for trash monitoring efforts;
Research and address microplastics (including microfibers) in waterways;
Engage in targeted outreach and education efforts in support of place-based trash capture
and reduction; and
Validate and replicate the most effective tools, projects, metrics, and partnerships across
the Nation for subsequent application in locations within the United States and in countries
with the greatest need.
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The Trash Free Waters Program has been able to increase the number of place-based projects year
by year through active engagement with partners. Since 2013, well over two hundred aquatic trash
related projects have been undertaken with EPA's assistance, including projects addressing public
education and outreach, research, the development and implementation of regional strategies, and
more. EPA will continue to work with its partners to advance this initiative in FY 2025 and
evaluate progress by reviewing best practices and challenges and applying lessons learned to future
projects.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$304.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs.
(+$2,233.0 / +5.2 FTE) This increase of resources and FTE builds program capacity,
particularly in areas related to environmental justice, navigation and other water
infrastructure support and oversight, climate change mitigation, and permitting. This
investment also includes $1,013 million in payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (Ocean Dumping Act); Clean Water Act;
Marine Debris Research, Prevention and Reduction Act of 2006; Marine Plastic Pollution
Research and Control Act of 1987; Save Our Seas 2.0 Act.
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Surface Water Protection
Program Area: Ensure Clean Water
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
.S 2UJ20
.S 22-I.-IV2
S2 ~0.5
S-IOMJ
Total Budget Authority
$213,320
$224,492
$270,573
$46,081
Total Workyears
938.1
1,010.3
1,056.4
46.1
Program Project Description:
The Surface Water Protection Program, under the Clean Water Act (CWA), directly supports
efforts to protect, improve, and restore the quality of the Nation's coastal waters, rivers, lakes,
wetlands, and streams. EPA works with states and tribes to make continued progress toward clean
water goals.
EPA uses a suite of regulatory and non-regulatory programs to protect and improve water quality
and ecosystem health in the Nation's watersheds. In partnership with other federal agencies, tribes,
states, territories, local governments, and non-governmental partners, EPA works collaboratively
with public and private sector stakeholders nationally and locally to establish innovative, broad-
scale, and location-appropriate programs to achieve the Agency's goals.
This Program also supports implementation of water quality standards, effluent guidelines,
impaired waters listing, water quality monitoring and assessment, water quality certification,
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting, and management and
oversight of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF).
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Work in this Program directly supports Goal 5/Objective 5.2, Protect and Restore Waterbodies and
Watersheds in the FY 2022 - 2026 EPA Strategic Plan.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work with states and tribes to target funds to core requirements
while providing states and tribes with flexibility to best address their priorities for surface water
protection. The FY 2025 request provides an increase of $22.4 million and 22.8 FTE above FY
2024 annualized CR levels that will allow EPA to focus on the advancement of clean water
infrastructure programs, with an emphasis on building climate change resilience, conducting CWA
regulatory reviews, and advancing environmental justice through technical assistance and
stakeholder engagement. The FY 2025 request also provides an increase of $14.1 million and 22
FTE above FY 2024 annualized CR levels that will focus on investing in programs to put in place
the national regulatory requirements needed to identify and control discharge of per- and
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polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), nutrients and bacteria in surface waters and publicly owned
treatment works (POTWs).
Program Implementation
Water Quality Criteria and Standards. Water quality criteria and standards provide the scientific
and regulatory foundation for water quality protection programs under the CWA. EPA will provide
new and revised national recommended ambient water quality criteria as required by CWA Section
304. EPA also will be supporting states and tribes with the adoption and implementation of water
quality standards in accordance with 40 CFR part 131. In FY 2025, the Agency will place special
emphasis on engaging with underserved communities in the review and setting of state water
quality standards. The Agency also will place special emphasis on improving the water quality
standards in tribal waters on reserved lands and in waterways where tribes retain treaty rights to
better ensure that tribes' health and natural resources are protected.
Effluent Limitations Guidelines (ELGs). As required under the CWA, EPA will continue to
annually review industrial sources of pollution. In FY 2025, EPA will seek to finalize 1) a
rulemaking to establish more protective nutrient limits on wastewater discharges from meat and
poultry product facilities and 2) a rulemaking to establish PFAS limits for the organic chemical
manufacturing industry. As EPA finalizes detailed studies on the textile industry for PFAS
discharges and the Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) industry for nutrient
discharges, the Agency will consider the data and conclusions of these detailed studies in the ELG
plan. Additionally, EPA will collect a national dataset on additional industrial discharges of PFAS
to surface waters and influent to POTWs and conduct rulemakings on one or more additional
categories of industrial dischargers of PFAS as the Agency determines necessary.
Clean Water Act Analytical Methods Program. EPA will continue developing and updating
analytical methods (test procedures) that are used by industries and municipalities to analyze the
chemical, physical, and biological components of wastewater and other environmental samples.
EPA periodically updates existing analytical methods to reflect advances in analytical
instrumentation and to foster innovation and improvement in the analytical chemistry community.
In addition, as novel pollutants are identified for regulation under CWA programs, EPA develops
and promulgates new analytical methods that can then be incorporated into NPDES and other
permits. During FY 2025, EPA intends to finalize analytical methods that were multi-lab validated
in previous years for determining PFAS in industrial wastewater to support ongoing PFAS
industrial category rulemakings and NPDES permits, as well as investing in updating existing
analytical methods for pollutants such as pesticides/herbicides, microbial contaminants,
radiological contaminants, and nutrients in wastewater.
Biosolids. EPA will continue to implement the Biosolids (sewage sludge) Program as required
under CWA Section 405, including reviewing the biosolids regulations at least every two years to
identify additional toxic pollutants and promulgate regulations for such pollutants consistent with
the CWA. EPA also will continue to develop tools to conduct risk assessments for chemicals and
pathogens found in biosolids. EPA will focus resources on obtaining and using the latest scientific
knowledge to identify resource recovery and reuse alternatives, understanding, and managing the
biosolids lifecycle, engaging partners particularly those communities most affected and
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conducting research. Investment in the biosolids program is critical to addressing near term risks
from chemicals known to be in domestic sewage sludge that is currently applied to land.
Impaired Waters Listings and Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs). EPA will work with states,
territories, tribes, and other partners to identify impaired waters, as required by CWA Section
303(d), and on developing and implementing TMDLs for listed impaired waterbodies. TMDLs
focus on clearly defined environmental goals and establish a pollutant budget, which is then
implemented through local, state, and federal watershed plans and programs to restore waters. EPA
will work with and provide support to states, territories, and tribes to ensure that TMDLs are
effective and implementation ready. EPA also will support states, territories, and tribes develop
other restoration approaches and plans for the protection of unimpaired or high-quality waters.
The TMDL Program is at an important inflection point as EPA began implementing the new "2022
- 2032 Vision for the Clean Water Act Section 303(d) Program" and continues to build on the work
done throughout the first 10-year 303(d) Vision. As part of the 2022 - 2032 Vision, EPA provided
four themes to consider in the CWA Section 303(d) program implementation - 1) Environmental
Justice, 2) Climate Change, 3) Tribal Water Quality and Program Development, and 4) Program
Capacity Building.
Monitoring and National Aquatic Resource Surveys (NARS). EPA will continue working with
states and tribes to support the NARS statistically representative monitoring of the condition of
the Nation's waters and fish which supports CWA Section 305(b). EPA will explore opportunities
to leverage NARS data analysis to gain insight on disparities in water quality and the impacts of
climate change. EPA will leverage NARS training programs to support workforce development in
water quality monitoring and build tribal capacity for monitoring and assessment. EPA will
continue working with states and tribes to support base water quality monitoring programs and
priority enhancements that serve state and tribal CWA programs in a cost-efficient and effective
manner. The FY 2025 request would support EPA's assistance for states and tribes to expand
monitoring and reporting for PFAS and other priority water quality concerns. In addition, the
request will support continued monitoring and reporting of contaminants (including PFAS)
nationwide in fish. EPA will continue supporting state and tribal water quality data exchange and
tools to maximize the use of data from multiple organizations to support water quality management
decisions and continue supporting applications like How's My Waterway to make water quality
information readily accessible to the public and water quality managers.
Managing Nonpoint Sources of Pollution. EPA will continue to use staff and extramural resources
to administer the Section 319 nonpoint source management grant program and continue efforts to
reduce nonpoint sources of pollution. EPA will continue to emphasize and provide technical
support to state, territory, and tribal Nonpoint Source programs to develop and implement
watershed-based plans, which is central to achieving NPS load reductions contained in TMDLs to
achieve water quality standards. Watershed-based plans enable states, territories, tribes, and local
communities to track progress and make changes over time to meet their water quality goals. EPA
will continue to forge and strengthen strategic partnerships with other EPA and federal agency
programs to reduce nonpoint source pollution, promote the implementation of green infrastructure,
and to build capacity in natural hazard mitigation planning and residence co-benefits.
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Waters of the United States. EPA and the Department of the Army published the final revised
definition for the "Waters of the United States" rule in January 2023. Considering the May 2023
U.S. Supreme Court decision in Sackett, the agencies finalized a new conforming rule to amend
the 2023 "Waters of the United States" rule on August 29.391 EPA also will continue to support
the development of tools and resources with state and federal partners to facilitate implementation,
such as the Streamflow Duration Assessment Methods.
Water Quality Certification. In accordance with Executive Order 13990, EPA completed a review
of the 2020 CWA Section 401 certification rule and proposed a new rule on June 9, 2022, which
was finalized in September 2023 and took effect on November 27, 2023. EPA will continue to
support the development of tools and resources with the federal licensing and permitting agencies
as well as the certifying states, territories, and tribes. Section 401 of the CWA gives states and
authorized tribes the authority to address potential adverse water quality impacts of discharges
from federally permitted or licensed projects that may affect the "Waters of the United States."
Water Quality Programs. The NPDES Program protects human health, safety, and the
environment by regulating point sources that discharge pollutants into waters of the United States.
In an average year, over 10 thousand permits are issued to address discharges from among the
approximately 15 thousand wastewater treatment facilities, nearly 60 categories of industries, and
almost 300 thousand stormwater facilities. EPA authorizes the NPDES permit program to state,
tribal, and territorial governments, and currently 47 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands have
authorized programs.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement the NPDES program that helps control point source
discharges through permitting and pretreatment programs. The permitting process is a vital tool
for protecting waterways, particularly in underserved communities that may suffer from a
combination of economic, health, and environmental burdens, by setting effluent limits,
monitoring, and reporting requirements, and other provisions. As climate change increases the
stress on waterways, these permits allow EPA and the states to set appropriate requirements for
wastewater and stormwater discharges to protect water quality and public health.
In addition, as required under the CWA and Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and
Review,392 EPA will continue to support cost-benefit analysis for CWA regulatory actions. EPA
will work with states, tribes, territories, and local communities to safeguard human health;
maintain, restore, and improve water quality; and make America's water systems sustainable and
secure, supporting new technology and innovation wherever possible.
Nutrient and Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) Reductions. The FY 2025 budget includes resources
and FTE to support efforts to reduce nutrient pollution and HABs, which remain the most
significant widespread water quality challenge across the country, despite decades of efforts to
391 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/wotus/amenclments-2023-rule.
392 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-executive-order-12866-regulatory-
planning-and-review.
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achieve reductions.393 Climate change is exacerbating HABs. The sources and impacts of nutrient
pollution and HABs vary depending on geographic location, and span urban, rural, and coastal
landscapes. EPA has been working with its partners to address these challenges. Since 2022, over
13 thousand square miles of watersheds with waters identified as impaired by nutrients are now
attaining standards. The FY 2025 request will allow EPA to assist states, territories, and authorized
tribes in the development of numeric nutrient criteria through the Nutrient Scientific Technical
Exchange Partnership & Support (N-STEPS) Program, establishment of numeric targets to apply
narrative water quality standards (WQS), perform assessments and identify impaired waters,
develop TMDLs, and support science research related to HABs.
Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS). The FY 2025 request directs resources toward
addressing PFAS in surface waters through the development of national recommended ambient
water quality criteria for PFAS; biosolids risk assessments for PFOA and PFOS; methods for
detecting PFAS in wastewater; national collection of information on discharges of PFAS from
industrial point source categories to determine if revisions to ELGs are warranted; revising existing
ELGs for metal finishing operations, organic chemical manufacturers, and landfills to include
numeric effluent limits on PFAS discharges; incorporating PFAS monitoring requirements in
NPDES permits; recommending inclusion of PFAS in state and tribal fish tissue monitoring and
fish advisory programs. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to implement the four-year PFAS Strategic
Roadmap which contains a comprehensive set of actions that guide the Agency's efforts on PFAS.
Water Reuse. To assure that communities have safe, reliable sources of water that are resilient to
drought, flooding, and population growth, EPA is working to advance water reuse nationwide.
This work is being done in collaboration with a broad group of stakeholders including non-
governmental organizations, states, tribes, and local governments. In FY 2025, EPA will continue
to support the National Water Reuse Action Plan and the Federal Water Reuse Interagency
Working Group. The Agency will develop and pursue actions that prioritize advancing technical
and scientific knowledge on water reuse to ensure its safety across a range of uses and applications.
EPA also will pursue actions that provide technical and financial tools to stakeholders to ensure
the accessibility of water reuse.394
Water Sense. The WaterSense Program is a key component of the Agency's efforts to ensure long-
term sustainable water infrastructure and help communities respond to water shortages that can be
caused by drought, growth, or aging infrastructure. WaterSense provides consumers with a simple
label to identify and select water-efficient products and homes to help them save water and money
and provides resources and tools to help water utilities carry out efforts to manage water demand
and wastewater flows. Products and homes may only bear the WaterSense label after being
independently certified to ensure that they meet WaterSense criteria for efficiency and
performance. As of December 2023, the Program has labeled close to 45 thousand models of
plumbing and irrigation products, and more than 10 thousand homes have earned the WaterSense
label. Through 2022, the Program helped save more than 7.5 trillion gallons of water and 337
metric tons of greenhouse gases.395 In FY 2025, the Program will finalize or implement new
393 For more information, please see: https://www.epa.gov/nutrientpollution.
394 For more information, please see https://www.epa.gov/wateiTeuse.
395 WaterSense Accomplishment Reports (updated annually). For more information visit:
https://www.epa.gov/watersense/accomplishments-and-history.
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specifications for point-of-use reverse osmosis water treatment systems and irrigation spray
sprinkler nozzles, issue a revised specification for tank-type toilets, release proposals to label or
provide guidance on other product categories, and carry out consumer campaigns that encourage
consumers to switch to WaterSense-labeled products and adopt water-efficient behaviors.
Urban Waters Federal Partnership Program (UWFP). The Urban Waters Federal Partnership
Program (UWFP)396 reconnects urban communities with their waterways, particularly
communities that are overburdened and underserved. The Program supports local urban water
champions (Ambassadors) who work with diverse local stakeholder groups to collaborate on
community-led revitalization efforts to improve the Nation's waters and promote their economic,
environmental, and social well-being. At the national level, EPA leads a coalition of over 15
federal agencies that support 21 designated UWFP partnership locations. In FY 2025, through its
Urban Waters Learning Network (UWLN)397, the UWFP will continue to share resources, best
practices, tools, trainings, mentoring, and financial assistance to support locations and other
communities as they collaborate, develop solutions, and elevate new approaches on how to
effectively integrate equity into climate resilience.398 In FY 2025, UWFP will implement metrics
to estimate the environmental and programmatic impact of the program and evaluate the health of
the partnership in the 21 locations.399
One Water/One Community. EPA will coordinate CWA and Safe Drinking Water Act resources
toward historically underserved and overburdened communities that are facing greater climate and
water equity challenges to achieve greater resilience, access to clean and safe water, and an
improved quality of life. This program will provide holistic support to communities as they
respond to the climate crisis by increasing funding for planning and implementation actions across
the country. Additionally, EPA will work with tribes to meet the unique needs of their
communities.
Infrastructure
EPA will continue its support of the Nation's infrastructure, focusing on efforts to leverage and
encourage public and private collaborative efforts and investments in improving the Nation's water
infrastructure. This program supports the policy and fiduciary oversight of the Clean Water State
Revolving Fund (CWSRF) Program, which provides low-interest loans and additional
subsidization to help finance wastewater treatment facilities and other water quality projects.400
Federal capitalization to the SRFs is significantly leveraged; since 1988, the CWSRF Program has
made over 48 thousand assistance agreements, funding approximately $172 billion in wastewater
infrastructure and other water quality projects.
396 For more information visit: littps: //www.epa. govAirbanwaters.
397 For more information, please see: https://urbanwatersleamiiignetwork.org/.
398 For more information, please see https://urbanwatersleamiiigiietwork.org/equitable-cliiiiate-resilieiice-2/.
399 Pending approval by Office of Management and Budget of an UWFP Information Collection Request.
400 For more information, please see littps://www, epa. gov/cwsrf.
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The FY 2025 request:
Supports funding for the Environmental Finance Centers Program which will help
communities across the country improve their wastewater and stormwater systems,
particularly through innovative financing.
Drives progress on water infrastructure by increasing non-federal dollars leveraged by EPA
water infrastructure finance programs (CWSRF, Drinking Water State Revolving Fund,
and Water Infrastructure Finance Innovation Act). EPA leveraged $11.4 billion in non-
federal dollars in FY 2023 and expects to leverage another $9.5 billion in FY 2025.
Supports decentralized systems (septic or onsite) that provide communities and
homeowners with a safe, affordable wastewater treatment option by implementing the 2020
Decentralized Wastewater Management Memorandum of Understanding and by improving
access to CWSRF financing for communities who rely on decentralized systems.
Supports the Wastewater Technology Center that provides accurate and objective resources
on innovative and alternative wastewater technologies with a focus on small, mid-sized,
and underserved communities.
Supports the Wastewater Technology Clearinghouse, a searchable database that will
provide reliable, objective information on proven innovative and alternative technologies
for decentralized and centralized alternative wastewater treatment, such as water reuse,
small system technologies used by lagoons, resource recovery, and nutrients.
Supports the Sustainable Utility Management programs, implemented in partnership with
industry associations and designed to protect and improve infrastructure investments
through the Effective Utility Management Program, the Water Workforce Initiative, and
tools such as augmented alternatives analysis that help communities leverage investments
to achieve water protection goals and other community economic and societal goals; and
Supports the Water Infrastructure and Resiliency Finance Center in assisting local leaders
in identifying financial approaches for their drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater
infrastructure needs.
Program Oversight/Accountability
The Assessment TMDL Tracking Implementation System (ATTAINS). ATTAINS is an online
system for accessing information about the conditions in the Nation's surface waters. ATTAINS
provides key information to the Agency, as well as states, territories, and tribes, who play a critical
role in implementing the CWA. The Agency will continue to support states, tribes, and territories
in electronically reporting CWA Section 303(d) and Section 305(b) assessment conclusions
through ATTAINS to track improvements in impaired waters. This tool allows states and EPA to
track and report progress in meeting water quality standards.
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In FY 2023, over 15 thousand square miles of state waters were covered by priority TMDLs, other
restoration approaches, or protection plans. EPA will continue to track progress of state waters
covered by priority plans. However, beginning in FY 2025, EPA will transition to tracking a new
universe for this work consistent with the new 2022-2032 Vision.
EPA continues to support streamlining efforts to allow states to reduce the time they spend on
administrative reporting. EPA will work on improved reporting of the Agency's metric to reduce
the number of square miles of watershed with surface water not meeting standards. Since FY 2022,
over 27 thousand square miles of watersheds that contained previously impaired waters attained
compliance with water quality standards.
NPDES Oversight. The National Program continues to work with the federal and state permitting
authorities to provide oversight, technical assistance, and training to permit writers to support
program implementation and pursue comprehensive protection of water quality on a watershed
basis. EPA's oversight includes the National Pretreatment Program, which is a cooperative effort
of federal, state, and local governments that perform permitting and enforcement tasks for
discharges to publicly owned treatment works.
EPA continues to collaborate with the federal and state permitting authorities to identify
opportunities to enhance the integrity and timely issuance of NPDES permits and permitting
backlogs. After program improvements, between March 2018 and the end of FY 2023, the backlog
of EPA-issued new and existing NPDES permits decreased from 106 to 12 and 547 to 194,
respectively.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to host NPDES-related workshops and provide technical assistance
to build permit writer capacity on a range of topics including permit writing, pretreatment, whole
effluent toxicity, stormwater, and nutrients. EPA also will issue general permits where appropriate
to address the timeliness of permit issuance and continue to reduce the backlog of permits.
In FY 2025, EPA will continue to work with the federal and state permitting authorities to address
PFAS in NPDES permitting. In FY 2023, EPA published a memorandum titled, AddressingPFAS
Discharges in NPDES Permits and Through the Pretreatment Program and Monitoring Programs,
which provides detailed instructions regarding how permitting authorities can address PFAS
discharges in NPDES permits. EPA encourages permitting authorities to include monitoring
requirements at facilities where PFAS are expected or suspected to be present in wastewater and
stormwater discharges, utilizing EPA's recently published analytical method 1633, which
addresses 40 unique PFAS. In FY 2025, EPA will continue to utilize the NPDES Program to
monitor, report, and control discharges of PFAS and build upon the existing guidance by compiling
best practices from state permitting authorities to address PFAS in NPDES permits, conducting
training, and sharing the latest research and practices to prevent these contaminants from reaching
surface waters.
EPA will address permits and litigation related to the County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund
Supreme Court decision that held that discharges from point sources through groundwater that
eventually reach a water of the United States require an NPDES permit if they are the "functional
equivalent" of a direct discharge to a water of the United States. In FY 2025, EPA will continue
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to provide technical assistance and guidance to permit writers to implement this decision
effectively in permits.
Integrated Planning. Clean water infrastructure investment needs are documented to be several
hundred billion dollars, with wet weather improvements (combined sewer overflows [CSOs],
sanitary sewer overflows [SSOs], bypasses, and stormwater discharges) comprising a significant
portion of this total. Investment needs of this magnitude affect utility rates and disproportionately
impact underserved communities. Integrated planning, utilizing green infrastructure, and other
tools allow communities to synchronize infrastructure investments with broader community
development goals. An integrated approach creates opportunities for affordable, multi-benefit
investments that protect public health and enhance resiliency. As an effort to promote
the adoption of green infrastructure as an effective solution to advance climate resilience and
enhance the resilience of gray infrastructure, EPA has reinvigorated the Green Infrastructure
Federal Collaborative.401 This cooperative effort fosters engagement and cooperation between
agencies that actively work to promote the implementation of green infrastructure. In FY 2025,
EPA will continue to implement integrated planning and green infrastructure practices to address
wet weather challenges and increase infrastructure resiliency.
Combined Sewer Overflows: Combined sewers have been a large focus for over two decades and
EPA recognizes the tremendous investments that communities have made to significantly reduce
combined sewer overflows and the substantial environmental progress that has been made. EPA's
latest data indicate that there are more than 740 CSO communities (down from over 900) located
in over 30 states and the District of Columbia. Even as communities have made progress in
reducing both the number of overflows and the amount of untreated sewage discharged, remaining
CSO discharges may be a concern for water quality and public health even following the
completion of the projects in communities' long-term control plans. In FY 2025, EPA will
continue developing guidance, seeking public comment on new draft guidance, and working to
finalize the guidance for CSO communities. The guidance will clarify the permitting flexibilities
and best implementation practices available as communities work toward water quality goals under
the CWA. It will emphasize available integrated planning tools and permitting approaches that
support equitable, resilient, and community-driven infrastructure decision-making.
Building Coalitions to Advance the Permitting Program. EPA continues to work with stakeholders
and industry to identify challenges in implementation and best management practices. In FY 2025,
EPA will continue to lead the Animal Agriculture Discussion Group (AADG), which consists of
animal agriculture representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the animal feeding
industry, and the states. AADG provides a forum for industry to engage with permitting authorities,
resulting in a shared understanding of how to enhance agricultural practices that lead to greater
water quality protection.
In FY 2023, EPA initiated the development of an NPDES general permit that the U.S. Forest
Service intends to seek coverage under to address point source discharges to waters of the United
States from the aerial application of fire retardants in geographic areas where EPA is the permitting
authority. EPA estimates that approximately 30 months are needed to develop and issue a general
permit and will continue to work on this permit development in FY 2025. In the interim, EPA
401 For more information please visit: https://www.epa.gov/green-infrastructure/green-infrastructure-federal-collaborative.
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entered into a federal facility compliance agreement with the Forest Service that will allow the
Forest Service to continue the use aerially delivered fire retardant in accordance with direction
outlined in the agreement.
Improving National Aquatic Resource Survey (NARS) Data. Another process improvement effort
is focused on streamlining the flow of NARS data from EPA labs to state partners and data
analysts. The Agency will continue to implement these process improvements and monitor the
impact of data delivery on timeliness of analysis and reporting.
401(a)(2) Notifications. In FY 2025, EPA intends to use a tracking system for all 401(a)(2)
notifications and actions. EPA will track whether a "may affect" determination has been made and
to who (state or tribe) and then note the follow-up coordination, as applicable, including whether
a state or tribe objects to the issuance of a license or permit, potential public hearings, and EPA
recommendations. The notifications will mostly come from the Army Corps of Engineers but can
come from any federal licensing or permitting agency. This information will be used for future
Information Collection Requests and to inform future implementation efforts to ensure a consistent
and streamlined section 401(a)(2) process (e.g., development of templates and standard operating
procedures for evaluating notifications and objections).
Permitting Related to Infrastructure. EPA is requesting additional resources to help process the
increase in permits across the country driven by the Administration's historical investment in
infrastructure. These additional FTE are necessary to handle the influx in a variety of different
permit types that require EPA approval or review, including Section 401 certification.
Performance Measure Targets:
(PMINFRA-06) Number of tribal, small, rural, or underserved communities provided with technical,
managerial, or financial assistance to improve system operations. i
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
339
542
1,100
1,300
Communities
Actual
187
1,668
Data
Avail
4/2024
(PM NPDES-03) Number of existing EPA-issued NPDES individual permits in backlog.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
360
280
230
250
210
200
210
Permits
Actual
456
373
333
284
229
194
(PM SWP-01) Annual increase in square miles of watersheds with surface water meeting standards that
previously did not meet standards.
FY
2018
FY
2019
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
8,000
8,000
17,100
7,900
Square
Miles
Actual
20,511
7,121
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(PM SWP-02) Annual increase in square miles of watersheds with previously impaired surface waters due to
nutrients that now meet standards for nutrients.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
2,100
1,400
1,400
650
Square
Miles
Actual
12,833
904
(PM TMDL-03) Square miles of priority areas covered by TMDLs, other restoration plans, or protection
approaches.
FY
20IX
FY
201<)
FY
2020
FY
2021
FY
2022
FY
2023
FY
2024
FY
2025
Units
Target
"',940
19,280
TBD
Square
Miles
Actual
15,432
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(+$9,352.0) This change to fixed and other costs is an increase due to the recalculation of
base workforce costs for existing FTE due to annual payroll increases, adjustments to
provide essential workforce support, and changes to benefit costs. This change also
includes support for critical agency wide infrastructure for Executive Order 14028
cybersecurity requirements, electronic discovery for FOIA and litigation support, and
implementation of Trusted Vetting 2.0.
(+$14,107.0 / +22.0 FTE) This program change, increases FTE and resources to accelerate
progress on EPA's PFAS Strategic Roadmap, to enable EPA to move more quickly on
policy, regulatory, and enforcement actions across multiple statutory authorities, and to
support states and tribes in taking action on PFAS. This investment also includes $4,107
million in payroll.
(+$243.0 / +1.3 FTE) This program change, increases FTE to support agencywide
implementation of EPA's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Strategic Plan and
Evidence Act data stewardship and governance requirements.
(+$22,379.0 / +22.8 FTE) This increase of resources and FTE supports the advancement
of clean water infrastructure programs, with an emphasis on building climate change
resilience, conducting Clean Water Act regulatory and permit reviews, and advancing
environmental justice. This investment includes $4.3 million in payroll.
Statutory Authority:
Clean Water Act; Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act; Marine Debris Research,
Prevention and Reduction Act of 2006; Marine Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act of
1987; Save Our Seas 2.0 Act.
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Congressional Priorities
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Congressional Priorities
Program Area: Clean and Safe Water Technical Assistance Grants
Goal: Ensure Clean and Safe Water for All Communities
Objective(s): Protect and Restore Waterbodies and Watersheds
(Dollars in Thousands)
FY 2023
Final Actuals
FY 2024
Annualized
CR
FY 2025
President's
Budget
FY 2025 President's
Budget v.
FY 2024 Annualized
CR
Unviroiimciiful I'ro^ruiii.s A- Managi'mcnl
S 25. '00
SJO. -00
SO
-SJO. "00
Science & Technology
$23,283
$30,751
$0
-$30,751
Total Budget Authority
$48,983
$61,451
$0
-$61,451
Project Description:
The purpose of the Water Quality Research and Support Grants Program is to provide training and
technical assistance for small public water systems, to help such systems achieve and maintain
compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), and to provide training and technical
assistance for small publicly owned wastewater systems, communities served by onsite /
decentralized wastewater systems, and private well owners improving water quality under the
Clean Water Act (CWA).
FY 2025 Activities and Performance Plan:
Resources are proposed for elimination for this program in FY 2025 States have the ability to
develop technical assistance plans for their water systems using Public Water System Supervision
Program grant funds and set asides from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund.
Performance Measure Targets:
EPA's FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan does not include annual performance goals specific to
this program.
FY 2025 Change from FY 2024 Annualized CR (Dollars in Thousands):
(-$30,700.0) This program change proposes to eliminate the Water Quality Competitive
Grant Program. Resources are available through other existing programs and states are best
positioned to develop technical assistance plans for their water systems.
Statutory Authority:
SDWA § 1442(e); Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act; Food Quality Protection Act;
Endangered Species Act; CWA § 104(b)(3).
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