Chairman Chaffetz Responds to Resignation of EPA Official

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Last night, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) issued the following statement in response to the resignation of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman in light of the Flint water crisis:

“EPA is rife with incompetence and Region 5 is no exception. Mismanagement has plagued the region for far too long and Ms. Hedman’s resignation is way overdue. The lack of accountability throughout the EPA has allowed problems to fester and crises to explode. One resignation will not change the top to bottom scrubbing EPA needs, but it is a step in the right direction.”

Background:

The Committee has examined the mismanagement and incompetence of the EPA—and Region 5, in particular—in a series of hearings: EPA Mismanagement and EPA Mismanagement Part II. Chairman Chaffetz highlighted the lack of accountability plaguing the EPA in an op-ed titled, EPA’s Toxic Environment: Sexual Harassment Running Rampant.