"The EPA lost more than 4,000 employees in the first year of Trump’s second term, bringing its staffing down to a total of 12,849—a level not seen since the Reagan administration. That represents a reduction of 24 percent, more than double the rate of losses across the entire federal workforce."
"A host of agency appointees will be free to reconnect with past industry clients on upcoming consequential regulatory matters."
"The Point Isabel Independent School District on Monday rejected a multi-million dollar tax break for a proposed $5.7 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) project on the Texas Gulf Coast, finding the facility would not “align” with the community’s values or finances."
"An internal government database reviewed by The Washington Post demonstrates the vast scope of the Trump administration’s ongoing effort to revise or remove information on African American history, climate change and other topics at hundreds of national park sites."
"Facing multiple lawsuits, Dow requests an “unprecedented” permit amendment to authorize its discharge of polyethylene pellets into coastal waters."
"The payments to states drain a large share of FEMA’s budget reserves, raising questions about the agency’s ability to respond to disasters."
"Crews in South Florida were trying to contain a wildfire in Big Cypress National Preserve that had burned more than 25,000 acres (100 square kilometers) near the immigration detention facility known as 'Alligator Alcatraz' as of Wednesday."
"There’s $2.3 billion left unspent from a Biden-era clean school bus program. The Trump admin wants more of it to go to buses that run on fuels and not batteries."
"About 6.5 million people in Somalia face acute hunger due to drought, the government and the United Nations said on Tuesday, sounding the alarm days after the U.N.'s food agency warned that food aid could grind to a halt by April without new funding."
The enforcement of environmental laws suffered a dramatic collapse during the Trump administration’s first year, several studies have found. Even the most serious violations, typically referred to the Department of Justice, are left unpursued because of DOJ staffing declines. The latest Backgrounder has the details, a look at the administration’s rationale for the decline and the implications for the environment and public health.
