May 3 (UPI) — The U.S. The Environmental Protection Agency is consolidating staff and shifting resources, part of a larger restructuring effort that will seek to “bring much needed efficiencies,” officials announced.
The agency is also planning to cut jobs as part of the shake-up, reducing staffing to levels seen during the 1980s, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said this week.
“With these organizational improvements, we recommit to fulfilling all of our statutory obligations and exceptionally delivering on EPA’s core mission of protecting human health and the environment. This reorganization will bring much needed efficiencies to incorporate science into our rulemakings and sharply focus our work on providing the cleanest air, land and water for our communities. It will also save at least $300 million annually for the American people,” Zeldin said in the agency’s statement.
Zeldin said the agency will strive to “operate as efficiently and effectively as possible,” signaling the possibility of looming job cuts.
The New York Times previously reported President Donald Trump‘s administration planned to fire over 1,500 scientists from the EPA at some point, citing an internal government document.
The agency had a workforce of 15,130 people and a $9.158 billion budget in the most recent fiscal year.
“This phase of reorganization will save taxpayers more than $300 million annually by Fiscal Year 2026. It is all part of a larger, comprehensive effort to restructure the agency, and when finalized, EPA expects to have employment levels near those seen when President Ronald Reagan occupied the White House,” the EPA said in a press release announcing the restructuring.
Under the directive, the focus will shift to strengthening partnerships with state-level agencies, particularly when it comes to air and water monitoring.
“In the Office of Air and Radiation, we’re establishing the first-ever Office of State Air Partnerships to improve coordination with state, local, and tribal air permitting agencies. This collaborative approach will resolve permitting concerns more efficiently and ensure EPA is working with states, not against them, to advance our shared mission,” Zeldon wrote in an op-ed written for Newsweek and republished on the EPA’s website.
Part of that will also see the creation of a new Office of Clean Air Programs.
The EPA also plans to begin consolidating staff to save on office space costs and prioritize approval of the use of certain chemicals currently under review.
“Under the previous administration, EPA’s buildings stood largely empty, with headquarters attendance peaking at just over one-third occupancy as the record high attendance day last year. Agency spending had ballooned from around $8 billion to $10 billion to more than $63 billion. Hundreds of new chemicals remained in regulatory limbo far beyond statutory review timelines, as did more than 12,000 pesticide reviews, and 685 State Implementation,” Zeldin wrote.
He pointed to some 504 new chemicals currently under EPA review beyond the statutorily required timeframe and more than 12,000 pesticides in a similar situation.
“The American people deserve an EPA that effectively balances environmental protection with economic prosperity,” Zeldin wrote.
“Through this reorganization, we’re positioning the agency to do just that.”