Letter to President Obama - Protect Public Health

Letter

Senator Barbara Boxer, Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, joined with 15 of her Senate colleagues on a letter to President Obama urging him to nominate a strong leader as the next Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The letter called for an EPA nominee with a "demonstrated record of working to safeguard our children and families" who will "enforce the Clean Air Act and our other landmark environmental laws." Lisa Jackson, the current EPA Administrator, announced her resignation last month.

The full text of the letter is below:

Dear Mr. President,

Your words in your second inaugural address were an inspiration to all of us who seek to maintain and build on our nation's landmark public health and environmental protections. We have an obligation to further this legacy for the sake of future generations.

We share your commitment to protect public health and the environment using the best available science, while promoting economic growth, innovation, competitiveness, and job creation. To achieve these goals, we believe it is critical that you appoint an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator who has both a vision and demonstrated record of working to safeguard our children and families.

The EPA nominee must also build on Administrator Lisa Jackson's critical work to protect the air we breathe and the water we drink. We know that pollution can cause asthma attacks, heart and lung disease, cancer, damage to the reproductive system, strokes, and premature death. As we confront these numerous and growing threats to our health, our nation needs another strong leader at EPA who will work to craft bold solutions to these serious problems, as well as enforce the Clean Air Act and our other landmark environmental laws that protect public health.

We stand ready to work with you to use available tools to provide stronger safeguards that will address dangerous air pollution, including carbon pollution. An effective example has been your administration's historic new automobile efficiency standards that will save consumers $1.7 trillion in fuel costs over the life of their vehicles.

By working together, we can build on your administration's efforts to promote a strong and robust economy, foster our nation's global leadership in clean energy innovation and job creation, and reduce the significant harms posed by climate change.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
Chairman
Committee on Environment and Public Works

Ron Wyden
Chairman
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

Robert Menendez
United States Senator

Richard Durbin
United States Senator

Bernie Sanders
Chairman
Committee on Veterans Affairs

Brian Schatz
United States Senator

Chris Murphy
United States Senator

Kirsten E. Gillibrand
United States Senator

Mazie K. Hirono
United States Senator

Jeff Merkley
United States Senator

Dianne Feinstein
Chairman
Select Committee on Intelligence

Frank Lautenberg
United States Senator

Sheldon Whitehouse
United States Senator

Debbie Stabenow
Chairman
Committee on Agriculture

Bill Nelson
United States Senator

Ben Cardin
United States Senator

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