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Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

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Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
Seal of the Environmental Protection Agency
since March 11, 2021
Member ofCabinet
Inaugural holderWilliam D. Ruckelshaus
Formation1970
Websitewww.epa.gov

The administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency is the head of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and is thus responsible for enforcing the nation's Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, as well as numerous other environmental statutes. The administrator is nominated by the president of the United States and must be confirmed by a vote of the Senate.

On March 10, 2021, Michael S. Regan was confirmed by a vote 66 to 34 as the administrator of the EPA, the first Black man to serve in this role.[1]

Rank in the Cabinet

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Since the Clinton administration, the EPA administrator has been accorded cabinet rank by the president. The administrator of the EPA is equivalent to the position of Minister of the Environment in other countries. There have been various proposals to make the EPA a full executive department.

List of administrators

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  Denotes Acting Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
  Nominee for Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
Officeholder Term President(s)
William Ruckelshaus December 4, 1970 – April 30, 1973 Richard Nixon
Robert W. Fri
Acting
April 30, 1973 – September 12, 1973
Russell E. Train September 12, 1973 – January 20, 1977
Gerald Ford
John Quarles Jr.
Acting
January 21, 1977 – March 6, 1977 Jimmy Carter
Douglas M. Costle March 7, 1977 – January 20, 1981
Steve Jellinek
Acting
January 21, 1981 – January 25, 1981 Ronald Reagan
Walter Barber Jr.
Acting
January 25, 1981 – May 19, 1981
Anne Gorsuch Burford May 20, 1981 – March 9, 1983
Lee Verstandig
Acting
March 10, 1983 – May 17, 1983
William Ruckelshaus May 18, 1983 – January 4, 1985
Lee M. Thomas January 4, 1985 – February 8, 1985
February 8, 1985 – January 20, 1989
John Moore
Acting
January 20, 1989 – February 6, 1989 George H. W. Bush
William K. Reilly February 6, 1989 – January 20, 1993
W. Michael McCabe
Acting
January 20, 1993 – January 31, 1993 Bill Clinton
Carol Browner January 31, 1993 – January 20, 2001
Christine Todd Whitman January 31, 2001 – June 27, 2003 George W. Bush
Linda Fisher
Acting
June 27, 2003 – July 14, 2003
Marianne Lamont Horinko
Acting
July 14, 2003 – November 5, 2003
Mike Leavitt November 6, 2003 – January 26, 2005
Stephen L. Johnson January 26, 2005 – May 2, 2005
May 2, 2005 – January 20, 2009
Granta Nakayama
Acting
January 20, 2009 – January 21, 2009 Barack Obama
Mike Shapiro
Acting
January 21, 2009 – January 23, 2009
Lisa P. Jackson January 23, 2009 – February 15, 2013
Bob Perciasepe
Acting
February 15, 2013 – July 18, 2013
Gina McCarthy July 18, 2013 – January 20, 2017
Catherine McCabe
Acting
January 20, 2017 – February 17, 2017 Donald Trump
Scott Pruitt February 17, 2017 – July 9, 2018
Andrew R. Wheeler July 9, 2018 – February 28, 2019
February 28, 2019 – January 20, 2021
Charlotte Bertrand
Acting[a]
January 20, 2021 Joe Biden
Jane Nishida
Acting
January 20, 2021 – March 11, 2021
Michael S. Regan March 11, 2021 – present
  1. ^ Served as Acting Administrator in her capacity as Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water for a few hours following the conclusion of the term Andrew R. Wheeler at noon on January 20, 2021. President Joe Biden signed an executive order naming principal deputy assistant head of the Office of International and Tribal Affairs Jane Nishida as acting Administrator later that day.[2][3]

List of deputy administrators

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Acting administrators

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Acting administrators usually assume the office in the interim period between the resignation of a previous administrator and the confirmation of his or her successor, including during the transition period between two presidential administrations, before the successor has been nominated and confirmed. Acting administrators come from within the EPA and usually hold an office that is subject to Senate confirmation before becoming the acting administrator. Linda Fisher and Stephen L. Johnson had served as Deputy Administrator when they became acting administrator. Marianne Lamont Horinko was an assistant administrator at the time. They are not subject to Senate confirmation to serve as the acting administrator, though to continue to serve as a full-fledged administrator (as in the case of Lee M. Thomas or Stephen L. Johnson), they must be confirmed by the Senate.

Line of succession

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The line of succession for the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency is as follows:[4]

  1. Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
  2. General Counsel
  3. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Land and Emergency Management
  4. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention
  5. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation
  6. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water
  7. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
  8. Chief Financial Officer
  9. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Research and Development
  10. Assistant Administrator for the Office of International and Tribal Affairs
  11. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Administration and Resources Management
  12. Assistant Administrator for the Office of Environmental Information
  13. Regional Administrator, Region 7 (Kansas City, Kansas)
  14. Principal Deputy General Counsel
  15. Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance
  16. Deputy Regional Administrator, Region 2 (New York, New York)
  17. Deputy Regional Administrator, Region 5 (Chicago, Illinois)

See also

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References

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  • "About the Office of the Administrator". Washington, D.C.: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. February 25, 2020.
  1. ^ "President Joe Biden Announces Acting Federal Agency Leadership". whitehouse.gov. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  2. ^ "About the Office of the Administrator". epa.gov. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  3. ^ "Here's Who Is Leading Federal Agencies as Biden Nominees Await Confirmation". govexec.com. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  4. ^ "Providing an Order of Succession Within the Environmental Protection Agency". Federal Register. August 17, 2016.