EPA chief Zeldin faces bipartisan anger in Senate over funding freeze, grant cancellations

WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the Environmental Protection Agency came under bipartisan criticism Wednesday over his agency's actions to cancel billions of dollars in congressionally approved spending to address chronic pollution in minority communities and jump-start clean energy programs across the country.

Nearly 800 grants were awarded by former President Joe Biden’s administration under the 2022 climate law, which directed the EPA to spend $3 billion on grants to help low-income and minority communities improve their air and water and protect against climate change. The law allocated another $20 billion under a so-called green bank program to finance clean energy and climate-friendly projects nationwide.

Funding for both programs was abruptly terminated by the Trump administration in actions that Democrats have denounced as illegal and unconstitutional.

Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has illegally withheld, or impounded, climate-law funding despite a decades-old law that explicitly prohibits such actions by the executive branch. Repeated court rulings, including by the Supreme Court, support the power of Congress to set federal spending levels.

Zeldin's budget maneuvers “endanger communities by making it harder to address pollution and climate chaos,” Merkley said at a hearing Wednesday.

Varied approaches to questioning the EPA chief

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, chair of a Senate Appropriations subcommittee on the environment, also criticized Zeldin, saying funding freezes approved by his agency — including to grants intended for rural communities in Alaska — were “somewhat indiscriminate.″

Murkowski questioned whether severe budget cuts proposed by President Donald Trump were “serious.” Many of the proposals, such as an 88% cut to a state revolving fund for clean water, are likely to be reversed by Congress, she said.

The EPA's approach under Zeldin is “problematic,” Murkowski added. “EPA has not adhered to our guidelines and has been largely unresponsive to questions," she said.

Zeldin told Murkowski she has a special phone number for his office and can call him any time.

His exchanges with Democrats were less friendly.

“So you understand that when you impound funds, you’re violating the law?" Merkley asked Zeldin, a former New York congressman who took over at EPA in January.

“No, Senator, we are going to follow all statutory obligations,'' Zeldin replied. “We absolutely disagree with you very strongly.''

Asked under what authority the money was being withheld, Zeldin cited “policy priorities” under Trump that differ from Biden-era views.

“But it wasn’t the Biden administration that passed this law. It was Congress,'' Merkley shot back. ”And so, this is in the law as written, and it’s signed by the president, and yet you’re defying it.''

Zeldin said he rejected Merkley's premise, adding, "We couldn’t possibly disagree more strongly with what you’re saying.''

If he can't follow his oath of office, Zeldin should resign, Merkley said, a suggestion Zeldin immediately rejected.

Accused of trying to ‘burn it down’

Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state said Zeldin and Trump shared an approach when it comes to EPA: "Burn it down.''

Money being withheld by EPA would pay for things like heat pumps to reduce energy costs and pollution, wildfire preparedness and infrastructure upgrades to protect drinking water from floods and earthquakes, Murray said. "Blocking this funding is hurting communities everywhere,'' she said.

Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff asked Zeldin why he had canceled a $19.8 million grant to Thomasville, Georgia, to replace a wastewater collection system and build a community health clinic.

“Is a new health clinic for Thomasville woke?” Ossoff asked, noting that the grant was approved under an environmental justice program the EPA has terminated.

Zeldin again cited policy priorities before Ossoff, a Democrat, cut him off. "You hurt my constituents,'' he said.

Zeldin later said grants to Thomasville and towns in Alaska and Washington state may be restored if language about environmental justice and diversity is removed, in accordance with an executive order by Trump.

Zeldin declined to provide specific goals for EPA staffing under his tenure, but appeared to acknowledge claims by Merkley and Murray that staff totals could return to a level last seen under former President Ronald Reagan. The EPA had fewer than 11,000 employees in 1983, compared to more than 15,100 in 2024.

The agency has laid off hundreds of employees and offered voluntary retirement or deferred resignations to thousands more as part of a broader effort by Trump and adviser Elon Musk to downsize the federal workforce.