The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) are both facing significant budget cuts as part of a $1.6 trillion budget agreement to fund the government through the end of March.
The budget agreement calls for a $3.6 billion reduction in funding for both agencies, which together account for roughly 70% of the federal government’s overall budget.
The deal was negotiated by the Trump administration, which has been critical of the EPA and OSHA’s role in addressing the deadly asbestos exposure that occurred in the 1970s.
“This is a very tough budget deal,” OSHA Administrator Joseph A. Garza told reporters on Thursday.
“The Trump administration is not happy with our work.”
Asbestos, a powerful and dangerous substance that is used in building construction and manufacturing, was discovered in 1978 in a Pennsylvania home, resulting in more than 30,000 deaths.
The EPA and Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHRA) have since worked to identify and remove asbestos-containing material from the air, water, soil, and ground.
“We are committed to continuing to do our part to prevent this type of event from ever happening again,” Garza said.
“Asbestos is a serious threat to human health and the environment, and the government is committed to supporting the EPA’s asbestos program.”
The EPA has been conducting asbestos assessments since 1978, but the agency has had little funding for those efforts since it took over in 2011.
The Trump administration has taken steps to cut the OSHA budget, including slashing funding for its asbestos task force and the Bureau of Occupational Security (BOS), which oversees asbestos inspections.
The OSHA has also requested more funding for other asbestos-related programs.
“While the agency is committed in a comprehensive way to working with the OSHRA and BOS to ensure that we are fully funding our asbestos program, this is a time of transition,” OSHSA Administrator Mark Hemsley said in a statement on Thursday morning.
“I know this is not a quick fix, but it is a step in the right direction.
We are also committed to making asbestos-affected communities more resilient to future asbestos exposure, including building code improvements, to better protect workers and the public from asbestos-caused illnesses.”
The Trump Administration has repeatedly said that the EPA has no control over the level of asbestos exposure in the United States.
It has also said that it would “rescue” the OSHS if it was forced to close, but has not specifically said it would make that decision.
In addition to the cuts to OSHA, the Trump Administration also is proposing to slash the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the Office of the Assistant Secretary for the Environment and Natural Resources (OSAR), and the US Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).
The Trump Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will also take over the Office for Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), which is tasked with the development of a new strategy to address the spread of asbestos.
According to the OMB, OSSTP has proposed a $2 billion plan to address asbestos-based health and economic threats.
OSSTI also proposed $3 billion for the Office to Prevent and Respond to Airborne Asbestos Exposure, a plan that will address the threat of airborne asbestos in the US and worldwide.
“At the federal level, the plan also includes $2.5 billion for a National Strategy to Reduce Asbestos-Related Deaths and Illnesses, and $1 billion for an Integrated Risk Mitigation and Response Strategy to reduce the spread and increase public safety, both of which are essential to our efforts to reduce asbestos-associated mortality and illness,” OMB said in its statement.
The House Appropriations Committee is scheduled to vote on the $1 trillion budget on Thursday, and has not yet released a final bill.
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