13 



Perhaps some of these positions could be handled by Presidential appointees not 

 confirmed by the Senate. Candidate positions would include the Assistant Adminis- 

 trator for International Affairs, and the Associate Administrators for Congressional 

 affairs and for public affairs. The need to confirm the individual in charge of con- 

 gressional affairs seems unnecessary. 



The Administrator will soon learn if an appointee is inappropriate. Requiring con- 

 firmation could delay efforts to replace an inefTective individual. 



I would like to see the person selected for intergovernmental relations be a con- 

 firmed position and have suggested such to EPA Administrator Browner. Our cities 

 and towns are struggling to comply with environmental regulations. EPA needs the 

 highest quality individual to work both with our local governments and within the 

 Agency to address the problems facing our communities. The title of the Associate 

 Administrator for Regional Operations and State/Local Affairs should perhaps be 

 amended to include our Native American governments. 



I also have some suggestions for the Bureau of Environmental Statistics. My first 

 concern is one of perception. I fear we may have higher expectations of this position 

 than may be realistic. If one is thinking of trend analysis of rainfall, for example, 

 then much work has been done in this area. But, in terms of pollutant monitoring, 

 environmental statistics, as a field of study, is relatively new. It has not been too 

 many years since the first significant text on environmental statistics was pub- 

 lished. People with experience in environmental statistics are most likely to come 

 from fields such as meteorology or geology. While these are environmental sciences, 

 they are not the fields many think of when thinking of the environment. To many 

 people, environment is synonymous with pollution. 



The application of statistics to pollution monitoring is increasing, but currently, 

 much more research is needed. For example, it can cost more to sample a hazardous 

 waste site than it does to clean it up. Sample analyses can be very expensive reach- 

 ing several thousand dollars per sample. One can remediate a lot of contaminated 

 soil for several thousand dollars. My concern is that some may be expecting a level 

 of data analj^is that is just not possible. We should guard against false expectations 

 about the level of analjrsis possible. Furthermore, given that trends may take time 

 to become apparent, I wonder if preparation of an annual report would provide suf- 

 ficient information to justify the cost. Perhaps a two-year cycle is appropriate. I 

 know the Council of Environmental Quality did an annual report, but President 

 Clinton has proposed abolishing this office. How many people really read CEQ's 

 annual report? Certainly not enough to justify keeping CEQ. 



Secondly. I confess some disappointment in the work accomplished by EPA's 

 Office of Research and Development. Congress is partly to blame as much of ORD's 

 budget gets earmarked for pork projects, not for important research. The level of 

 research and results achieved by ORD has disappointed some to the point that they 

 want to create a whole new Agency to fund environmental research. The Bureau of 

 statistics is going to be very dependent upon the level of research into environmen- 

 tal statistics. Thus, I believe that responsibility for statistical research should be 

 transferred to this Bureau and not be under the jurisdiction of ORD. This is a sug- 

 gestion I hope the Secretary of the Environment would strongly consider. 



Third, the Director of the Bureau is to be "a qualified individual with experience 

 in the compilation and analysis of environmental statistics. I would suggest deleting 

 this reference as it is redundant. Our role in confirming the nomination should be 

 sufficient to ensure that the Director is qualified without placing this requirement 

 into the statute. After all. we have placed no such requirement on the Assistant 

 Secretaries who will have a higher level political appointment. 



Last, I have some concerns about creating a Commission on Improving Environ- 

 mental Protection. President Clinton has asked Departments and Agencies to trim 

 back on the number of commissions and advisory groups. Perhaps other mecha- 

 nisms than creating a commission could be used to accomplish this goal. Oversight 

 hearings and GAO studies could answer some of these questions. Unfortunately, Mr. 

 Chairman, I recognize the political realities that jurisdictional squabbling will make 

 it difficult for Congress to play a significant role in restructuring EPA. 



Those, Mr. Chairman, are my brief comments on this bill. I commend you on your 

 efforts and look forward to fast action on this bill. 



Chairman Glenn. Thank you very much. 

 Senator Lautenberg. 



