WASHINGTON (AP) – The Trump administration said Friday it has thawed its temporary freeze on contract and grant approvals at the Environmental Protection Agency, with all $3.9 billion in planned spending moving forward.
A media blackout at the agency also appears to have been partially lifted, as a trickle of press releases were issued by the EPA this week. However, the agency has still not posted to its official Twitter feed since President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, and the volume of information flowing from the agency is a fraction of what it was under former President Barack Obama.
The Associated Press and other media outlets reported last week that Trump political appointees had instructed EPA staff not to issue press releases or make posts to the agency’s official social media accounts without prior approval. Contract and grant spending at the agency was also put on hold, prompting confusion and concern among state agencies reliant on federal funding for ongoing environmental programs and pollution clean-ups.
Trump’s pick to serve as EPA administrator, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, cleared a Senate committee vote Thursday and appears headed for confirmation by the full chamber in the coming weeks. While Pruitt’s nomination has been enthusiastically praised by Republicans and the fossil fuel industry, Democrats and environmental groups said his confirmation would be a disaster for EPA.
The Trump team also appears to be distancing itself from some of the more controversial comments made by Myron Ebell, who led transition efforts at EPA prior to the president’s swearing in.