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About EPA

About the Office of Policy (OP)

What We Do

Located in the Office of the Administrator, the Office of Policy (OP) is the primary policy arm of EPA. We work with our EPA colleagues to support Agency priorities and enhance decision-making. We provide multi-disciplinary analytic skills, management support, and special expertise in the following areas:
  • regulatory policy and management,
  • environmental economics,
  • community revitalization,
  • climate adaptation,
  • environmental justice,
  • environmental permitting, and
  • stakeholder engagement via Smart Sectors.

Organization

Brittany Bolen, Associate Administrator

Helena Wooden-Aguilar, Deputy Associate Administrator

Kevin Wheeler, Principal Deputy Associate Administrator

The Office of Policy includes:

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National Center for Environmental Economics (NCEE)

What We Do

Economic analysis plays a central role in informing EPA decision-making. The National Center for Environmental Economics (NCEE) leads the Agency’s work in this area, with a range of expert economists specializing in evaluating the economic costs, benefits and impacts of proposed environmental regulations and policies on the national economy and society. In addition, NCEE engages in new research and develops improved methods for measuring the economic consequences of environmental changes. The office maintains an Environmental Economics website providing research, publications and resources on the subject.

  • Serving as Consultants to the Agency NCEE helps EPA programs perform sound economic and risk analysis and promotes analytic rigor and consistency across the Agency. NCEE provides regulatory review support for economically significant rules and provides training and expertise on economic analysis guidance, assessing exposures and risks, quantitative uncertainty analysis and related issues.
  • Enhancing EPA’s Economic Tools – NCEE develops data and methods for benefit and cost assessments by targeting priority needs across the Agency for research and analysis. NCEE promotes efforts across the agency and elsewhere to improve the quality and reliability of economic methods, models, and information and analysis, and to keep EPA analysts abreast of advances in the field.
  • Linking Science and Policy – NCEE works in partnership with other Agency scientists to develop risk assessment information used to support economic analyses and inform policy. This work improves EPA’s ability to evaluate risks to public health and the environment in the context of economic analysis. In addition, NCEE collaborates with other Agency offices to analyze relationships between environmental pollution and human health, including characterizing morbidity risks to children and adults, as well as investigating the expected benefits of preventing prenatal risks from exposure to pollutants.
  • Connecting with Outside Experts on Priority Analytic Needs – NCEE communicates EPA’s priority needs to economists across the nation on economic research topics and opportunities to improve analytic methods used by EPA.  NCEE facilitates engagements with outside experts by organizing workshops, writing working papers, and hosting seminars.  NCEE obtains advice to improve the Agency’s ability to ensure that analyses provide a complete accounting of the impacts of regulatory actions; this includes involuntary unemployment and distributional consequences. NCEE also seeks the best economy-wide modeling tools to assess the economic effects of environmental regulatory options, including methods designed to examine the distribution of regulatory burdens.
Programs and Projects Managed by the National Center for Environmental Economics

Mail code: 1809T | EPA mailing addresses

Location: EPA Headquarters at Washington, D.C. Federal Triangle campus

NCEE Organization

Al McGartland, Director

The National Center for Environmental Economics includes:

Benefits Assessment and Methods Development Division

  • Brett Snyder, Director

Research and Program Support Division

  • Jenny Bowen, Director

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Office of Community Revitalization (OCR)

What We Do

The Office of Community Revitalization (OCR) (formerly the Office of Sustainable Communities) supports locally-led, community-driven efforts to revitalize local economies and improve environmental and human health outcomes. To accomplish this work, OCR collaborates with other EPA programs, federal agencies, regional, state, and local governments, and a broad array of nongovernmental and private-sector partners to bring additional resources to communities and to leverage public and private sector investments. Assistance is provided at the community’s request on issues such as the reuse and redevelopment of abandoned and underused properties; diversifying economies and revitalizing main streets through local and regional food systems, broadband infrastructure investments, light manufacturing, health care organizations and other community assets; disaster recovery and resilience and green and compete street designs.

To foster outcomes in the built environment that protect environmental quality and public health, support economic growth, and avoid disproportionate harm to disadvantaged communities, OCR:

Programs and Projects Managed by the Office of Community Revitalization

Mail code: 1807T | EPA mailing addresses

Location: EPA Headquarters at Washington, D.C. Federal Triangle campus

OCR Organization

Matthew Dalbey, Director

The Office of Community Revitalization includes:

Federal and State Division (FSD)

Community Assistance and Research Division (CARD)

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Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ)

What We Do

The Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ) works to protect human health and the environment in communities overburdened by environmental pollution by integrating environmental justice into all EPA programs, policies and activities. This includes working with EPA programs and regions to strengthen their community involvement efforts; to identify, assess and consider community issues in EPA’s decision-making processes; and to develop critical tools, such as EJSCREEN and guidance on incorporating EJ in our regulatory programs.

Other roles include:

  • Building Community Capacity – OEJ provides a comprehensive set of approaches to build community capacity to better understand community issues and work toward solutions, including EJ Small Grants, EJ Collaborative Problem Solving Cooperative Agreements and the Technical Assistance for Communities program.
  • Convening EJ Bodies - OEJ convenes the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC), which helps historically underrepresented communities access the agency and provides advice and recommendations to the EPA Administrator. OEJ also leads the EJ Interagency Working Group, which marshals the resources of 17 federal agencies to address the multi-faceted environmental, economic and public health issues confronting underserved and vulnerable communities around the United States.
  • Collaborating with Partners on EJ Priorities- OEJ is a leader across EPA in working collaboratively with a variety of partners, including industry, academia, civil society, states and Tribes, to integrate environmental justice considerations into their processes and programs, and to jointly identify solutions to challenging environmental justice problems.
Programs and Projects

OEJ Organization

Matthew Tejada, Director

Sheila Lewis, Deputy Director

Marsha Minter, Associate Director

Charles Lee, Senior Policy Advisor

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Office of Federal Activities (OFA)

What We Do

The Office of Federal Activities (OFA) coordinates EPA’s review of all federal Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) prepared by other agencies under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), as well as EPA’s internal compliance with NEPA. OFA also leads and coordinates Agency-wide efforts to develop strategies and make policy-related changes to accelerate permitting-related decisions without sacrificing environmental results.

  • NEPA Compliance Division (NCD) serves as the EPA representative between assigned federal agencies and the EPA regional and headquarters offices to implement the environmental requirements of NEPA and Section 309 of the Clean Air Act regarding federally conducted, supported, or permitted activities.
    • Specifically, NCD:
      • Maintains a national EIS filing system and publishes a weekly notice of EIS documents available for review;
      • Provides written comments on the adequacy and acceptability of the environmental impacts of federal proposed actions subject to NEPA;
      • Assures that EPA’s own actions comply with NEPA and other environmental requirements;
      • Provides technical assistance and capacity building for environmental impact assessment in other countries; and
      • Works with federal, foreign governments, international and non-governmental organizations to ensure compliance for expeditions (including tourism) in Antarctica.
  • Permitting Policy Division (PPD) serves as the agency’s central point of contact for Federal agencies on EPA issued permits and coordinates with the EPA’s three major permitting offices (Office of Air and Radiation, Office of Water, and Office of Land and Emergency Management) and EPA's ten Regional offices to establish and implement streamlining strategies resulting in consistency and timeliness for the issuance of permits. 
    • PPD provides direction and coordination for the EPA’s permitting activities through the following responsibilities:
      • Serves as the EPA’s advocate and central point of contact for all Federal agencies on EPA issued permits;
      • Leads the identification and tracking of common permit performance measures to guide coordinated cycle time reduction and consistency efforts;
      • Increases transparency and accountability across all EPA permit programs;
      • Promotes early coordination between the regulated community and state/federal permitting programs; and
      • Oversees and track the timely and synchronized permit issuance within the environmental review process for Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST-41) projects.
Programs and Projects

Mail code: 2251A | EPA mailing addresses

Location: EPA Headquarters at Washington, D.C. Federal Triangle campus

OFA Organization

Robert Tomiak, Director

 Nancy Abrams, Associate Director

The Office of Federal Activities includes:

Permitting Policy Division

  • Prasad Chumble
    • Phone: 202-564-7924
    • Email: chumble.prasad@epa.gov

NEPA Compliance Division

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Office of Regulatory Policy and Management (ORPM)

What We Do

EPA issues regulations to carry out the environmental and public health protection laws enacted by Congress. OP’s Office of Regulatory Policy and Management (ORPM), manages the regulatory development process for the Agency, providing support and guidance to EPA's program and regional offices as they develop regulations. ORPM provides policy and analytical advice and support to these offices, works to ensure compliance with key statutes and Executive Orders relating to regulatory process, and helps to promote analytical consistency and rigor across EPA’s regulatory portfolio.

  • Policy and Regulatory Analysis – ORPM advises the Administrator and other senior Agency decision-makers on regulatory and policy development; manages the Agency’s policy priority agenda; conducts timely and effective policy analysis; and helps ensure that EPA’s regulatory decision processes and actions are invested with high quality information. 
  • Regulatory Management – ORPM manages EPA’s action development and review process, provides comprehensive action development training for EPA staff and managers, and provides procedural and analytical support to help EPA consider the impact of its actions on small entities and state and local governments.
  • Small Business Advocacy Chair – ORPM’s Office Director serves as EPA’s Small Business Advocacy Chair (SBAC). The SBAC is responsible for guidance and oversight of the Agency’s implementation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act and serves as the permanent chair of all Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) Panels.
  • Laws and Regulations – ORPM maintains the Laws and Regulations website, which provides general information about the laws we administer, the regulations we are developing, and how we write regulations.
Programs and Projects Managed by the Office of Regulatory Policy and Management

Mail code: 1803A | EPA mailing addresses

Location: EPA Headquarters at Washington, D.C. Federal Triangle campus

ORPM Organization

William Nickerson, Director

  • Phone: 202-566-0326

The Office of Regulatory Policy Management includes:

Regulatory Management Division

  • Mary Manibusan, Director
    • Phone: 202-564-7267

Policy and Regulatory Analysis Division

  • Mark Corrales, Director
    • Phone: 202-564-7493

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Smart Sectors Program

What We Do:

Smart Sectors is a voluntary partnership program that provides a platform for EPA to collaborate with regulated sectors and develop sensible approaches that better protect the environment and public health. The program works with trade associations that represent the engine of the American economy and significant opportunities for environmental improvement. Current sectors include Aerospace; Agriculture; Automotive; Cement and Concrete; Chemical Manufacturing; Construction; Electronics and Technology; Forestry, Paper and Wood Products; Iron and Steel; Mining; Oil and Gas; Ports and Maritime Transportation; and Utilities and Power Generation. 

Key objectives include:

  • Meaningful Collaboration with Regulated Sectors. The Smart Sectors program maintains meaningful, open dialogue with trade association partners, and serves as ombudsmen for each sector within the Agency. Other roles include conducting educational site tours and hosting roundtables with EPA leadership, analyzing data and developing reports that profile the impact of each sector on the economy and the environment.
  • Sensible Policies to Improve Environmental Outcomes. Recognizing that a sector-based, collaborative approach can reveal more forward-thinking ways to improve environmental outcomes, the program aims to deliver multiple benefits, including increased long-term certainty and predictability, decreased operating costs, more innovation and efficiency, lower costs for the American taxpayer, creative solutions based on sound data, and better environmental protection.
  • Better EPA Practices and Streamlined Operations. Within EPA, the program facilitates better communication and streamlines operations across programs and regional offices. It also helps address executive orders on regulatory reform, energy independence, permit streamlining, and the reconsideration of major regulations.
Programs and Projects
  • Sector Performance Profiles

Mail code: 1807T | EPA mailing addresses

Location: EPA Headquarters at Washington, D.C. Federal Triangle campus

Smart Sectors Contact

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