I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2138

To elevate the Environmental Protection Agency to cabinet-level status and 

redesignate such agency as the Department of Environmental Protection. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 15, 2003

Mr. OSE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Government Reform 

A BILL

To elevate the Environmental Protection Agency to cabinetlevel status and redesignate such agency as the Department of Environmental Protection.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Department of Environmental Protection Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. Redesignation of Environmental Protection Agency as Department of 

Environmental Protection. 
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Sec. 5. Secretary of Environmental Protection. 

Sec. 6. Other officers. 

Sec. 7. Functions of officers. 

Sec. 8. Bureau of environmental statistics. 

Sec. 9. Executive Schedule compensation of department officers. 

Sec. 10. References. 

Sec. 11. Savings provisions. 

Sec. 12. Conforming amendments.

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 The Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The United States is one of the few nations 

4 that does not place environmental protection at a 

5 cabinet-level position. Environmental protection is as 

6 important as other cabinet functions, and is critical 

7 to the health and well-being of this nation’s ecology 

8 and population. 

9 (2) During the 107th Congress, a subcommittee 

10 of the Government Reform Committee of the House 

11 of Representatives held 3 hearings to explore the 

12 merits of elevating the Environmental Protection 

13 Agency to department-level status. These hearings 

14 addressed two bills that would reorganize the Agency 

15 as a department and that were introduced, respec16 tively, by Congressman Sherwood Boehlert and 

17 former Congressman Steve Horn. Several ‘‘think 

18 tanks’’, industry groups, and Federal and State offi19 cials testified not only about current organizational 

20 problems at the Agency that hinder effective envi-
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1 ronmental protection, but also about the merits of 

2 reorganizing the Agency as a department. 

3 (3) Currently, each Environmental Protection 

4 Agency regional office, program office, and division 

5 reports directly to the Administrator and Deputy 

6 Administrator of the Agency. This stovepipe organi7 zation results in the Agency’s inability to effectively 

8 address cross-media environmental protection. The 

9 Agency lacks adequate oversight and coordination of 

10 its offices to ensure that science, policy, and imple11 mentation are integrated throughout the Agency. 

12 (4) Several Federal departments have their own 

13 statistical agencies to provide independent and reli14 able data for decisionmaking and analysis. These in15 clude the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of the 

16 Census, the Department of Education’s National 

17 Center for Education Statistics, the Department of 

18 Energy’s Energy Information Administration, the 

19 Department of Health and Human Services’ Na20 tional Center for Health Statistics, and the Depart21 ment of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 

22 Environmental Protection Agency lacks statistical 

23 data on current environmental conditions necessary 

24 to measure whether the Agency’s policies and regu-
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1 lations efficiently and successfully protect the envi2 ronment. 

3 (5) Currently, the Environmental Protection 

4 Agency lacks scientific leadership and critical science 

5 for decisionmaking. Scientific activities take place in 

6 both the Office of Research and Development and 

7 the program offices without sufficient coordination 

8 and intraagency dissemination of information. 

9 (6) Reorganization of the Environmental Pro10 tection Agency, in addition to its elevation to the 

11 Cabinet, could facilitate efficient and successful envi12 ronmental protection in a budget-neutral manner. 

13 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

14 For purposes of this Act—

15 (1) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

16 of the Department; 

17 (2) the term ‘‘Department’’ means the Depart18 ment of Environmental Protection or any component 

19 thereof; 

20 (3) the term ‘‘research’’ means any research, 

21 development, and demonstration; and 

22 (4) the term ‘‘environmental media’’ includes 

23 air, land, water, and other media.
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1 SEC. 4. REDESIGNATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTEC2 TION AGENCY AS DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRON3 MENTAL PROTECTION. 

4 (a) REDESIGNATION.—The Environmental Protec5 tion Agency is redesignated as the Department of Envi6 ronmental Protection (hereinafter in this Act referred to 

7 as the ‘‘Department’’), and shall be an executive depart8 ment in the executive branch of the Government. 

9 (b) MISSION OF DEPARTMENT.—The mission of the 

10 Department is to—

11 (1) protect and improve the quality of the envi12 ronment; 

13 (2) protect the public from actual and potential 

14 unreasonable environmental risks, including risks 

15 from wastes, products, and other substances that 

16 may be found in the environment; 

17 (3) identify, analyze, monitor, and report on ex18 isting and potential unreasonable risks to humans 

19 and the environment; and 

20 (4) assist State, regional, and local government 

21 agencies in protecting humans and the environment 

22 from unreasonable risks. 

23 (c) GOAL; COOPERATION.—In undertaking respon24 sibilities under this and other laws, the Department—
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1 (1) shall be guided by the goal of improving 

2 overall environmental quality as effectively and effi3 ciently as possible; and 

4 (2) shall cooperate with States, other govern5 ment agencies, other nations, international agencies, 

6 and the general public. 

7 SEC. 5. SECRETARY OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION. 

8 (a) SECRETARY OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTEC9 TION.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be at the head 

11 of the Department a Secretary of Environmental 

12 Protection (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the 

13 ‘‘Secretary’’) who shall be appointed by the Presi14 dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen15 ate, except as provided in paragraph (2). 

16 (2) CONTINUATION BY ADMINISTRATOR.—If so 

17 designated by the President, the individual who has 

18 been nominated and confirmed and is serving as the 

19 Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

20 Agency on the effective date of this Act shall become 

21 the Secretary of Environmental Protection, without 

22 reconfirmation by the Senate. 

23 (b) TRANSFER OF FUNCTION, POWERS, AND DU24 TIES.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The functions, powers, and 

2 duties of each officer and employee of the Environ3 mental Protection Agency are transferred to and 

4 vested in the corresponding officer or employee of 

5 the Department. 

6 (2) DESIGNATION OF OFFICER OR EM7 PLOYEE.—In any case in which the Secretary deter8 mines that the corresponding officer or employee of 

9 the Department is not apparent for purposes of 

10 paragraph (1), the Secretary may designate such of11 ficer or employee. 

12 (c) DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY.—The Secretary 

13 may, consistent with this and other laws—

14 (1) delegate any functions, powers, or duties, 

15 including the promulgation of regulations, to such 

16 officers and employees of the Department as the 

17 Secretary may designate; and 

18 (2) authorize such successive redelegations of 

19 such functions, powers, or duties within the Depart20 ment as the Secretary considers necessary or appro21 priate. 

22 SEC. 6. OTHER OFFICERS. 

23 (a) SENATE-CONFIRMED OFFICERS.—There are the 

24 following officers of the Department, who shall be ap-
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1 pointed by the President, by and with the advice and con2 sent of the Senate: 

3 (1) A Deputy Secretary of Environmental Pro4 tection, who shall be the Secretary’s first assistant 

5 for purposes of subchapter III of chapter 33 of title 

6 5, United States Code. 

7 (2) 3 Under Secretaries of Environmental Pro8 tection, as follows: 

9 (A) An Under Secretary for Science and 

10 Information. 

11 (B) An Under Secretary for Policy, Plan12 ning, and Innovation. 

13 (C) An Under Secretary for Implementa14 tion, Compliance, and Enforcement. 

15 (3) A Chief Financial Officer as provided in 

16 chapter 9 of title 31, United States Code. 

17 (4) An Inspector General, as provided in section 

18 3(a) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

19 App.). 

20 (b) OTHER OFFICERS.—To assist the Secretary in 

21 the performance of the Secretary’s functions, there are the 

22 following officers, appointed by the President: 

23 (1) Up to 5 Assistant Secretaries of Environ24 mental Protection. 
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1 (2) A General Counsel, who shall be the chief 

2 legal officer of the Department. 

3 (c) REGIONAL ADMINISTRATORS.—There shall be up 

4 to 10 Regional Administrators of the Department, who 

5 shall be appointed by the Secretary and who shall report 

6 to the Under Secretary for Implementation, Compliance, 

7 and Enforcement. 

8 SEC. 7. FUNCTIONS OF OFFICERS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of this 

10 Act, every officer of the Department shall perform the 

11 functions specified by law for the official’s office or pre12 scribed by the Secretary. 

13 (b) DEPUTY SECRETARY.—The Deputy Secretary of 

14 Environmental Protection—

15 (1) shall perform such functions as the Sec16 retary shall assign or delegate; and 

17 (2) shall act as Secretary during the absence or 

18 disability of the Secretary or in the event of a va19 cancy in the office of Secretary. 

20 (c) UNDER SECRETARY FOR SCIENCE AND INFORMA21 TION.—The Under Secretary for Science and Information 

22 shall be responsible for management and oversight of the 

23 Bureau of Environmental Statistics, research and develop24 ment, the Department’s laboratories, scientific analysis, 

25 and data on the status, trends, and human health risks
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1 associated with the environment, including the following 

2 functions: 

3 (1) Identifying and defining the important sci4 entific issues facing the Department, including those 

5 embedded in major policy or regulatory proposals to 

6 ensure that critical science is identified early and de7 veloped in time to inform decisions. 

8 (2) Developing and overseeing an integrated 

9 Department wide strategy for acquiring, dissemi10 nating, and applying information. 

11 (3) Ensuring that scientific and technical infor12 mation is analyzed across environmental media. 

13 (4) Conducting, sponsoring, and evaluating en14 vironmental science and technology research, the re15 sults of which shall be used to help initiate, formu16 late, and carry out the Department’s agenda. 

17 (5) Ensuring that the complex scientific out18 reach and communication needs of the Department 

19 are met, including—

20 (A) the use of credible science in support 

21 of the regulatory offices, regions, and Depart22 ment wide policy deliberations; and 

23 (B) communication with the broader do24 mestic and international scientific community 
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1 for scientific knowledge that is relevant to a 

2 Department policy or regulatory issue. 

3 (6) Coordinating and overseeing scientific qual4 ity assurance and peer review practices throughout 

5 the Department to ensure that critical science used 

6 in decisionmaking is of sufficient quality and that 

7 the quality of the science and the associated uncer8 tainty is clearly described. 

9 (7) Producing an annual report assessing envi10 ronmental and human health risks, including com11 parison of such risks to other human health risks. 

12 (8) Such other functions as the Secretary shall 

13 assign. 

14 (d) UNDER SECRETARY FOR POLICY, PLANNING, 

15 AND INNOVATION.—The Under Secretary for Policy, 

16 Planning, and Innovation shall be responsible for the de17 velopment of nationwide programs and policy to address 

18 environmental and human health risks based on statistical 

19 and other scientific information, including the following 

20 functions: 

21 (1) Promulgation of nationwide regulations and 

22 nonbinding guidance. 

23 (2) Oversight of the Assistant Secretaries of the 

24 Department. 
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1 (3) Such other functions as the Secretary shall 

2 assign. 

3 (e) UNDER SECRETARY FOR IMPLEMENTATION, 

4 COMPLIANCE, AND ENFORCEMENT.—The Under Sec5 retary for Implementation, Compliance, and Enforcement 

6 shall be responsible for oversight of regional offices of the 

7 Department to ensure consistent implementation of and 

8 compliance with Department programs, including the fol9 lowing: 

10 (1) Coordinating Department programs with, 

11 and assisting, State and local governments in imple12 menting environmental programs. 

13 (2) Such other functions as the Secretary shall 

14 assign. 

15 (f) ASSISTANT SECRETARIES.—The Secretary shall 

16 delegate among the Assistant Secretaries of Environ17 mental Protection functions otherwise authorized by law. 

18 (g) CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.—The Chief Finan19 cial Officer of the Department shall, in addition to func20 tions under chapter 9 of title 31, United States Code, and 

21 other laws, be responsible for the following: 

22 (1) Ensuring that the budget, human resources, 

23 and regulatory costs imposed by the Department ac24 curately reflect environmental and human health 

25 risks. 
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1 (2) Ensuring that the Department’s annual 

2 performance plan under section 1115 of title 31, 

3 United States Code, includes performance indicators 

4 on the status of the environment for each depart5 mental program. 

6 (3) Ensuring that the Department’s annual 

7 program performance report under section 1116 of 

8 title 31, United States Code—

9 (A) reviews the success of achieving the 

10 performance goals of the fiscal year covered by 

11 the report; and 

12 (B) evaluates the performance plan under 

13 section 1115 of that title for the current fiscal 

14 year relative to the performance achieved to15 ward the performance goals in the fiscal year 

16 covered by the report.

17 (4) Such other functions as the Secretary shall 

18 assign.

19 SEC. 8. BUREAU OF ENVIRONMENTAL STATISTICS. 

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There shall be in the Depart21 ment the Bureau of Environmental Statistics (in this sec22 tion referred to as the ‘‘Bureau’’). The purpose of the Bu23 reau is to provide in accordance with this section such en24 vironmental quality and related public health and eco25 nomic information, and such evaluation and analyses of 
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1 such information, as may be appropriate, to meet ade2 quately and fully the needs of the Department in carrying 

3 out its functions under applicable law, and the Congress. 

4 (b) DIRECTOR OF ENVIRONMENTAL STATISTICS.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Bureau shall be under 

6 the direction of the Director of Environmental Sta7 tistics (hereinafter in this section referred to as the 

8 ‘‘Director’’), who shall be appointed by the Presi9 dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen10 ate. The Director shall report to the Under Sec11 retary for Science and Information. 

12 (2) APPOINTMENT, TERM, AND REMOVAL.—

13 (A) APPOINTMENT AND TERM.—The Di14 rector shall—

15 (i) be appointed by the President for 

16 a term of 4 years; and 

17 (ii) be selected from individuals who 

18 are well qualified through experience or 

19 training in the collection and analysis of 

20 environmental statistics. 

21 (B) SERVICE AFTER EXPIRATION OF

22 TERM.—An individual may, at the request of 

23 the Secretary, serve as Director after the expi24 ration of his or her term for not more than 3
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1 months until his or her successor has taken of2 fice.

3 (C) REMOVAL.—An individual may be re4 moved as Director by the Secretary only for 

5 malfeasance in office or neglect of duty. 

6 (D) REAPPOINTMENT.—An individual 

7 serving as Director may be reappointed for ad8 ditional terms. 

9 (c) FUNCTIONS OF DIRECTOR.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The functions of the Direc11 tor shall include the following: 

12 (A) Collecting, compiling, analyzing, and 

13 publishing a comprehensive set of environ14 mental quality and related public health, eco15 nomic, and statistical data for determining envi16 ronmental quality and related measures of pub17 lic health, over both the short- and long-term, 

18 including assessing—

19 (i) ambient conditions and trends; and 

20 (ii) the distribution of environmental 

21 conditions and related public health condi22 tions across all affected populations, in23 cluding those populations identifiable on 

24 the basis of income, race, ethnicity, or na25 tional origin. 
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1 (B) Evaluating the adequacy of available 

2 statistical measures to determine the Depart3 ment’s success in fulfilling statutory require4 ments. 

5 (C) Ensuring that data and measures re6 ferred to in this subsection are accurate, reli7 able, relevant, and in a form that permits sys8 tematic analysis. 

9 (D) Collecting and analyzing such other 

10 data as may be required by the Director to—

11 (i) efficiently and effectively fulfill the 

12 Director’s responsibilities, or 

13 (ii) identify new environmental prob14 lems. 

15 (E) Conducting specialized analyses and 

16 preparing special reports on particular subjects 

17 whenever required to do so by the President, by 

18 law, or by the Secretary, or when considered 

19 appropriate by the Director. 

20 (F) Making readily accessible or, to the ex21 tent practicable, disseminating all publicly avail22 able data collected under subparagraph (A) or 

23 (B), in a timely manner and using dissemina24 tion methods that will maximize the utility of 
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1 such publicly available information to the pub2 lic. 

3 (G) Preparing and submitting to the Con4 gress and the Secretary an annual report on en5 vironmental conditions and public health condi6 tions, using, to the maximum extent practicable 

7 and consistent with the Director’s duties under 

8 this Act, reliable statistical sampling tech9 niques. 

10 (H) Making available to the public, upon 

11 request, the annual report under subparagraph 

12 (G), and publishing a notice of such availability 

13 in the Federal Register. 

14 (2) TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES TO PERFORM

15 ANALYSES.—The Director shall establish and main16 tain the scientific, engineering, statistical, and other 

17 technical capability to perform analysis of environ18 mental quality and related public health and eco19 nomic data, to—

20 (A) verify the accuracy of items of environ21 mental quality and related public health and 

22 economic data submitted to the Director; and 

23 (B) ensure the coordination and com24 parability of such data. 

25 (d) POWERS OF DIRECTOR.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director is authorized 

2 on a nonexclusive basis to exercise and enforce any 

3 authority vested in the Secretary by law that relates 

4 to the collection, gathering, reporting, evaluating, 

5 analysis, or dissemination of environmental quality 

6 data and related measures of public health in order 

7 to carry out fully the functions of the Director.

8 (2) ACTIONS NOT SUBJECT TO APPROVAL.—

9 The Director shall not be required to—

10 (A) obtain the approval of any other officer 

11 or employee of the Department in connection 

12 with the collection, compilation, evaluation, 

13 analysis, or dissemination of any information; 

14 or 

15 (B) obtain, prior to publication, the ap16 proval of any other officer or employee of the 

17 United States with respect to the substance of 

18 any reports prepared in accordance with law. 

19 (3) PROVIDING ASSISTANCE.—The Director 

20 may, upon request, provide technical assistance to 

21 offices of the Department and to other Federal 

22 agencies for the purpose of assuring the technical 

23 quality and the coordination of statistical activities 

24 of the Department. Such assistance may include re25 viewing data collection plans, survey designs, and 
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1 pretests, management of data, and quality of data. 

2 The Director shall, upon request, promptly provide 

3 any information or analysis in the possession of the 

4 Bureau to any office within the Department which 

5 such office determines relates to the functions of 

6 such office. 

7 (4) COLLECTION OF DATA FROM OTHER AGEN8 CIES, PERSONS, ETC.—Subject to other applicable 

9 provisions of law, the Director, in carrying out re10 sponsibilities under this Act, may collect data from 

11 such Federal agencies, State or local governments or 

12 instrumentalities, Indian tribes, businesses, and 

13 other individuals, persons, organizations, and insti14 tutions as the Director considers appropriate. 

15 (5) USE OF DATA COLLECTED BY FEDERAL

16 AGENCIES.—

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Director may—

18 (i) use data collected by any Federal 

19 agency, and 

20 (ii) enter into interagency or 

21 intraagency agreements for the collection 

22 of data for the purposes of this section. 

23 (B) PROVISION OF DATA TO DIRECTOR.—

24 Subject to applicable law, all Federal agencies 

25 (including agencies in the Department) shall
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1 provide to the Director, in a timely manner and 

2 to the extent possible in a usable electronic for3 mat, any data that the Director requires to 

4 carry out responsibilities under this Act. 

5 (C) COOPERATIVE COLLECTION OF

6 DATA.—The Director may—

7 (i) arrange with any agency, organiza8 tion, or institution for the cooperative col9 lection of data for the purposes of this sec10 tion, and 

11 (ii) assign employees of the Bureau to 

12 any such agency, organization, or institu13 tion to assist in such collection. 

14 (6) OBTAINING EMPLOYEES AND SERVICES.—

15 The Director—

16 (A) may select, appoint, and employ such 

17 officers and employees as may be necessary to 

18 carry out the functions of the Bureau, subject 

19 to—

20 (i) the provisions of title 5, United 

21 States Code, governing appointments in 

22 the competitive service, and 

23 (ii) the provisions of chapter 51 and 

24 subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title 
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1 relating to classification and General 

2 Schedule pay rates; and

3 (B) may obtain services as authorized by 

4 section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, at 

5 a rate not to exceed the equivalent daily rate 

6 payable for level V of the Executive Schedule 

7 under section 5316 of such title. 

8 (e) STAFF.—The Secretary shall ensure that the Bu9 reau of Environmental Statistics has staff sufficient to en10 able the Director to efficiently carry out the duties of the 

11 Director. 

12 (f) CONTINUING PERFORMANCE OF FUNCTIONS OF

13 DIRECTOR.—An individual who, on the effective date of 

14 this Act, is performing any of the functions required by 

15 this section to be performed by the Director may continue 

16 to perform such functions until such functions are as17 signed to an individual appointed as the Director under 

18 this Act. 

19 (g) AVAILABILITY OF DIRECTOR TO CONGRESS; SPE20 CIAL REPORTS.—The Director—

21 (1) shall be available to the Congress to provide 

22 testimony on subjects under the authority of the Di23 rector as any committee of the Congress may re24 quest, including on environmental quality data and 
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1 related measures of public health and analyses 

2 thereof; 

3 (2) shall, subject to otherwise applicable law, 

4 make available to any committee of the Congress 

5 having jurisdiction over any program of the Depart6 ment, upon written request of the committee, any in7 formation reported or otherwise obtained, and any 

8 evaluation or analysis made, by the Director or any 

9 officer or employee of the Bureau under this section 

10 that relates to that program; and 

11 (3) may provide, and charge for, statistical 

12 records, compilations, surveys, and reports to State 

13 and local officials, public and private organizations, 

14 and individuals.

15 (h) CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.—

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Information obtained by the 

17 Bureau under this section shall be cataloged and, 

18 upon request, shall be promptly made available to 

19 the public in a form and manner easily adaptable for 

20 public use, except that this subsection shall not re21 quire disclosure of matters exempted from disclosure 

22 pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection or sec23 tion 552(b) of title 5, United States Code, the 

24 Homeland Security Act of 2003 (Public Law 107–

25 296), or other applicable law. 
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1 (2) RESTRICTION ON DISCLOSURE.—The Direc2 tor shall not disclose personally identifiable or cor3 porately identifiable data collected by the Bureau. 

4 (3) ACCESS TO INFORMATION IN POSSESSION

5 OF OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY.—In furtherance and 

6 not in limitation of any other authority, the Direc7 tor, on behalf of the Secretary, shall have access to 

8 environmental and health related economic and sta9 tistical information in the possession of the Depart10 ment or any other Federal agency, except informa11 tion—

12 (A) the disclosure of which to another Fed13 eral agency is expressly prohibited by law; or

14 (B) the disclosure of which the agency hav15 ing possession determines would significantly 

16 impair the discharge of authorities and respon17 sibilities that have been delegated to, or vested 

18 by law, in such agency. 

19 (4) OBTAINING INFORMATION TO WHICH AC20 CESS IS DENIED.—In any case in which the Director 

21 is denied information that is necessary to achieve 

22 the purposes of this Act, the Director shall take ap23 propriate action, pursuant to paragraph (3), to ob24 tain such information. 
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1 (5) DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION TO FEDERAL

2 AGENCIES.—Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and 

3 (3) and section 552(b)(4) of title 5, United States 

4 Code, the Director may disclose any information ob5 tained under this section to—

6 (A) the General Accounting Office; 

7 (B) the Inspector General of the Depart8 ment; and 

9 (C) any department or statistical agency of 

10 the Federal Government that requests the in11 formation to carry out its lawful functions. 

12 (6) CONTINUING APPLICATION OF OTHER RE13 STRICTIONS.—Any information disclosed by the Di14 rector under paragraph (5) shall continue thereafter 

15 to be subject to any restriction, requirement, or con16 dition regarding the use or disclosure of the infor17 mation that applies to the Department. 

18 (i) ESTABLISHMENT OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

19 PROCESS.—The Director shall establish an ongoing bal20 anced process for obtaining public advice, guidance, and 

21 recommendations on the implementation of the functions 

22 of the Director. 

23 (j) PEER REVIEW OF BUREAU.—

24 (1) REVIEW REQUIREMENT.—The statistical 

25 procedures and methodology of the Bureau shall be
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1 subject to peer review every 2 years. Such review 

2 shall be conducted by a Peer Review Team, which 

3 shall prepare and submit to the President and the 

4 Congress a report describing its investigation and 

5 findings. 

6 (2) PEER REVIEW TEAM.—The Peer Review 

7 Team shall consist of at least 5 professionally quali8 fied persons who are officers or employees of the 

9 United States, of whom at least—

10 (A) 1 shall be designated by the Director 

11 of the Bureau of the Census; 

12 (B) 1 shall be designated by the Commis13 sioner of Labor Statistics; 

14 (C) 1 shall be designated by the Director 

15 of the National Center for Health Statistics; 

16 (D) 1 shall be designated by the Adminis17 trator of the Energy Information Administra18 tion; and 

19 (E) 1 shall be designated by the Comp20 troller General of the United States. 

21 (3) CHAIRMAN.—The Secretary shall appoint 

22 the Chairman of the Peer Review Team. 

23 (4) RESPONSIBILITIES OF DIRECTOR AND SEC24 RETARY.—The Director and the Secretary—
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1 (A) shall cooperate fully with the Peer Re2 view Team; and 

3 (B) notwithstanding any other provisions 

4 of law, shall make available to the Peer Review 

5 Team such relevant data, information, docu6 ments, and services as the Peer Review Team 

7 determines are necessary for successful comple8 tion of its peer review. 

9 (5) CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.—In10 formation made available to the Peer Review Team 

11 under paragraph (4)(B) shall be subject to the con12 fidentiality standards applicable to the information 

13 under subsection (h). 

14 (6) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—Each member 

15 of the Peer Review Team who is a non-Federal em16 ployee shall not possess any interest that conflicts 

17 with the member’s duty as a member of the Peer 

18 Review Team. 

19 (k) SPECIFICATION IN BUDGET OF PROPOSED AP20 PROPRIATIONS.—The President shall include in each 

21 budget submitted under section 1105 of title 31, United 

22 States Code an estimate of expenditures and appropria23 tions necessary to carry out this section for the fiscal year 

24 covered by the budget.
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1 SEC. 9. EXECUTIVE SCHEDULE COMPENSATION OF DE2 PARTMENT OFFICERS. 

3 (a) EXECUTIVE LEVEL I.—Section 5312 of title 5, 

4 United States Code, is amended by inserting after the 

5 item relating to the Secretary of Homeland Security the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘Secretary of Environmental Protection.’’. 

8 (b) EXECUTIVE LEVEL II.—Section 5313 of title 5, 

9 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘Deputy Secretary of Environmental Protec12 tion.’’. 

13 (c) EXECUTIVE LEVEL III.—Section 5314 of title 5, 

14 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘Under Secretaries of Environmental Protec17 tion (3).’’. 

18 (d) EXECUTIVE LEVEL IV.—Section 5315 of title 5, 

19 United States Code, is amended—

20 (1) by inserting after the item relating to In21 spector General, Department of the Treasury, the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘Inspector General, Department of Environ24 mental Protection.’’; and 
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1 (2) by inserting after the item relating to Chief 

2 Financial Officer, Department of Treasury, the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘Chief Financial Officer, Department of Envi5 ronmental Protection. 

6 ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of Environmental Pro7 tection (5). 

8 ‘‘General Counsel, Department of Environ9 mental Protection.’’. 

10 (e) EXECUTIVE LEVEL V.—Section 5316 of title 5, 

11 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘Regional Administrators, Department of Envi14 ronmental Protection. 

15 ‘‘Director of Environmental Statistics, Depart16 ment of Environmental Protection.’’. 

17 SEC. 10. REFERENCES. 

18 Any reference in any other Federal law, Executive 

19 order, rule, regulation, reorganization plan, or delegation 

20 of authority, or in any document—

21 (1) to the Environmental Protection Agency is 

22 deemed to refer to the Department of Environmental 

23 Protection; 
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1 (2) to the Administrator of the Environmental 

2 Protection Agency is deemed to refer to the Sec3 retary of Environmental Protection; and 

4 (3) to a subordinate official of the Environ5 mental Protection Agency is deemed to refer to the 

6 corresponding official of the Department of Environ7 mental Protection. 

8 SEC. 11. SAVINGS PROVISIONS. 

9 (a) CONTINUING EFFECT OF EXISTING STATUTES.—

10 Nothing in this Act shall be construed as altering, affect11 ing, amending, modifying, or otherwise changing, directly 

12 or indirectly, any law that refers to and provides authori13 ties or responsibilities for, or is administered by, the Envi14 ronmental Protection Agency or the Administrator of the 

15 Environmental Protection Agency.

16 (b) CONTINUING EFFECT OF LEGAL DOCUMENTS.—

17 All orders, determinations, rules, regulations, permits, 

18 grants, contracts, certificates, licenses, privileges, agree19 ments, registrations, and other administrative actions—

20 (1) that have been issued, made, granted or al21 lowed to become effective by the President, the Ad22 ministrator or other authorized official of the Envi23 ronmental Protection Agency, or by a court of com24 petent jurisdiction, which relate to functions of the
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1 Administrator or any other officer or agent of the 

2 Environmental Protection Agency actions; and

3 (2) that are in effect on the date of the enact4 ment of this Act; 

5 shall continue in effect according to their terms until 

6 modified, terminated, superseded, set aside, or revoked in 

7 accordance with law by the President, the Secretary, or 

8 other authorized official, by a court of competent jurisdic9 tion, or by operation of law. 

10 (c) PROCEEDINGS NOT AFFECTED.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—This Act shall not affect any 

12 proceeding, proposed rule, or application for any li13 cense, permit, certificate, registration, or financial 

14 assistance pending before the Environmental Protec15 tion Agency on the date of the enactment of this 

16 Act, and the effect of any such proceeding, proposed 

17 rule, or application shall continue. Orders shall be 

18 issued, and final determinations shall be made, in 

19 any such proceeding, proposed rule, or application, 

20 appeals shall be taken therefrom, and payments 

21 shall be made pursuant to such orders, as if this Act 

22 had not been enacted, and orders issued with respect 

23 to any such proceeding, proposed rule, or application 

24 shall continue in effect until modified, terminated, 

25 superseded, or revoked by a duly authorized official, 
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1 by a court of competent jurisdiction, or by operation 

2 of law. 

3 (2) DISCONTINUANCE OR MODIFICATION.—

4 Nothing in this subsection prohibits the discontinu5 ance or modification of any such proceeding, pro6 posed rule, or application under the same terms and 

7 conditions and to the same extent that such pro8 ceeding, proposed rule, or application could have 

9 been discontinued or modified if this Act had not 

10 been enacted. 

11 (d) SUITS NOT AFFECTED.—The provisions of this 

12 Act shall not affect suits commenced before the effective 

13 date of this Act, and in all such suits, proceedings shall 

14 be had, appeals taken, and judgments rendered in the 

15 same manner and with the same effect as if this Act had 

16 not been enacted. 

17 (e) NONABATEMENT OF ACTIONS.—No suit, action, 

18 or other proceeding commenced before the effective date 

19 of this Act by or against the Environmental Protection 

20 Agency, or by or against any individual in the official ca21 pacity of such individual as an officer of the Environ22 mental Protection Agency, shall abate by reason of the 

23 enactment of this Act. 

24 (f) PROPERTY AND RESOURCES.—The contracts, li25 abilities, records, property, and other assets and interests 
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1 of the Environmental Protection Agency shall, after the 

2 effective date of this Act, be considered to be the con3 tracts, liabilities, records, property, and other assets and 

4 interests of the Department of Environmental Protection. 

5 SEC. 12. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

6 (a) PROPOSED LEGISLATION.—After consultation 

7 with the appropriate committees of the Congress, the Sec8 retary shall prepare and submit to the Congress proposed 

9 legislation containing necessary and appropriate technical 

10 and conforming amendments to the laws of the United 

11 States, to reflect the changes made by this Act. Such pro12 posed legislation shall be submitted not later than one year 

13 after the effective date of this Act. 

14 (b) INSPECTOR GENERAL.—Section 11(2) of the In15 spector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amend16 ed—

17 (1) by inserting ‘‘Environmental Protection,’’ 

18 after ‘‘Energy,’’; and 

19 (2) by striking ‘‘the Environmental Protection 

20 Agency,’’. 

21 (c) CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.—Subsection (b)(1) 

22 of section 901 of title 31, United States Code, is amend23 ed—

24 (1) by striking subparagraph (O); 
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1 (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (F), (G), 

2 (H), (I), (J), (K), (L), (M), (N), and (P) as sub3 paragraphs (G), (H), (I), (J), (K), (L), (M), (N), 

4 (O), and (P), respectively; and 

5 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(F) The Department of Environmental Protec8 tion.’’. 

9 (d) EXECUTIVE SCHEDULE COMPENSATION.—Title 

10 5, United States Code, is amended—

11 (1) in section 5313 by striking the item relating 

12 to the Administrator of the Environmental Protec13 tion Agency; 

14 (2) in section 5314 by striking the items relat15 ing to the Deputy Administrator of the Environ16 mental Protection Agency; and 

17 (3) in section 5315 by striking the items relat18 ing to—

19 (A) the Assistant Administrator for Toxic 

20 Substances, Environmental Protection Agency; 

21 (B) the Assistant Administrator, Office of 

22 Solid Waste, Environmental Protection Agency; 

23 (C) Assistant Administrators, Environ24 mental Protection Agency; 
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1 (D) the Inspector General, Environmental 

2 Protection Agency; 

3 (E) Chief Financial Officer, Environmental 

4 Protection Agency; and 

5 (F) Chief Information Officer, Environ6 mental Protection Agency.

Æ