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S. HRG. 111–1211 

HEARING ON THE NOMINATION OF GARY GUZY 

TO BE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE 

OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON 

ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS 

FIRST SESSION 

AUGUST 4, 2009 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

( 

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys 
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS 

ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS 

FIRST SESSION 

BARBARA BOXER, California, Chairman 

MAX BAUCUS, Montana 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, New Jersey 

BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland 

BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont 

AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota 

SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, Rhode Island 

TOM UDALL, New Mexico 

JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon 

KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND, New York 

ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania 

JAMES M. INHOFE, Oklahoma 

GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio 

DAVID VITTER, Louisiana 

JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming 

MIKE CRAPO, Idaho 

CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri 

LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee 

BETTINA POIRIER, Staff Director 

RUTH VAN MARK, Minority Staff Director 
(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

Page 

AUGUST 4, 2009 

OPENING STATEMENTS 

Boxer, Hon. Barbara, U.S. Senator from the State of California ........................ 1 

Inhofe, Hon. James M., U.S. Senator from the State of Oklahoma .................... 2 

Lautenberg, Hon. Frank R., U.S. Senator from the State of New Jersey ........... 4 

Barrasso, Hon. John, U.S. Senator from the State of Wyoming .......................... 5 

Menendez, Hon. Robert, U.S. Senator from the State of New Jersey ................. 6 

Cardin, Hon. Benjamin L., U.S. Senator from the State of Maryland, prepared 

statement .............................................................................................................. 31 

WITNESS 

Guzy, Gary, nominated to be Deputy Director, Office of Environmental Quality .......................................................................................................................... 7

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 10 

Responses to additional questions from: 

Senator Boxer ............................................................................................ 13 

Senator Cardin .......................................................................................... 15 

Senator Inhofe ........................................................................................... 17 

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL 

Letter to Senator Boxer from Nancy Sutley, Chair, Council on Environmental 

Quality, et al., May 20, 2009 ............................................................................... 33 

Letter to Robert Sussman, Senior Policy Advisor, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, from the National Mining Association, July 30, 2009 ................. 37 

(1) 

HEARING ON THE NOMINATION OF GARY 

GUZY TO BE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE 

OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY 

TUESDAY, AUGUST 4, 2009 

U.S. SENATE, 

COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS, 

Washington, DC. 

The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m. in room 406, 

Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Barbara Boxer (chairman of 

the full committee) presiding. 

Present: Senators Boxer, Inhofe, Lautenberg, and Barrasso. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BARBARA BOXER, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA 

Senator BOXER. The committee will come to order. 

Because we have two votes at 10:30, it is our wish to move 

through this pretty quickly. I know we are having Senator Lautenberg and Senator Menendez here. Of course, Senator Lautenberg 

will speak from up here on the podium. Senator Menendez is on 

his way. 

So why do we not start with opening statements? I am asking 

Mr. Guzy if he could take his chair, and when Senator Lautenberg 

speaks we are going to give him a little extra time. He will do his 

opening statement and his introduction. 

I am so pleased to convene this hearing on the nomination of Mr. 

Gary Guzy to be Deputy Director of the White House Office of Environmental Quality. Mr. Guzy brings with him 25 years of legal 

experience to this important White House Office. 

He has worked in the private sector, academia and government 

on a wide variety of environmental issues. His distinguished public 

service career has included positions in the Environmental Division 

in the U.S. Department of Justice as Deputy General Counsel, General Counsel of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and as 

Counselor to the EPA Administrator during the Clinton administration. 

Since 2001, he has worked with a wide variety of governmental 

and non-governmental actors, including Georgetown University 

Law Center, the Environmental Law Institute and in private legal 

practice. 

If Mr. Guzy is confirmed in this position, he will serve as Chief 

Deputy to the Chair of CEQ, Nancy Sutley, in support of the Council’s mission to ’’promote the improvement of environmental quality.’’ 
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CEQ brings together different arms of the Administration and 

agencies across the Federal Government to build strong coordinated environmental policies that protect America’s communities 

from environmental threats. 

Clean energy policies that create jobs, reduce our dependence on 

foreign oil, and address the carbon pollution that causes global 

warming are front and center today. In addition, CEQ must continue to help facilitate efforts to improve drinking water, strengthen clean air safeguards, improve policies to protect our children 

and our families from toxic chemicals, and ensure scientific integrity and transparency. 

I am confident that President Obama, Nancy Sutley and the Nation will be well served by your experience and your demonstrated 

commitment to these goals. 

I look forward to you testimony today. 

Senator Inhofe. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES M. INHOFE, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA 

Senator INHOFE. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

I will shorten mine also and put the entire opening statement in 

the record. 

I agree with comments made by the Chairman here, Mr. Guzy. 

I enjoyed our visit. You have an excellent background for such a 

function. 

I must say you have a difficult job ahead of you, not the least 

because Carol Browner, the White House energy and climate czar, 

appears to be coordinating environmental policy. Of course, we in 

the Senate have little idea of how her office functions because that 

is the whole idea of czars. I do not always agree with Senator Byrd, 

but I do agree with his statement when he talked about the czars 

are not accountable for their actions to the Congress, to the Cabinet officials, and to virtually anyone but the President. 

These czars are inherently opposed to the President’s commitment for openness, transparency; and we are hoping that you will 

be able to work, somehow, in that area to help us with the transparency concern that we have. 

NEPA, of course, is the bedrock environmental statute which requires Federal agencies to consider how their actions could significantly impact the environment. Mr. Guzy, the previous Administration attempted to improve NEPA implementation, but the improvements were largely cosmetic due in no small part to the inertia of 

CEQ. 

I hope that you will commit to putting NEPA back into balance. 

In other words, NEPA should achieve environmental goals without 

unnecessarily obstructing economic and energy development. 

Projects across the Nation are already in limbo due to red tape 

and litigation based on environmental regulations, from delays in 

building coal power plants in Jamestown, New York, that would 

use the cutting edge carbon capture system of cancellation to construction on a coal-fired plant in Morgan County, Colorado. These 

are some of the things that we are hoping you would be able to 

help us to expedite. 
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You know, both the Chairman and I have an interest in developing our effort on infrastructure, and we want to have you—I 

would like to have you do your job as one who is trying to help us 

to do that very thing, to reduce the obstacles. 

My whole initial reason when I first ran for office many years 

ago, I was a veteran developer, and I told you this story in my office about the time that I had to go to 26 governmental agencies 

to get a dock permit for a condo development I was making. So I 

think what we need to be doing is going in the other direction, getting these things done. And we will be looking for you to help us 

do that. 

The last thing, as I always mention to the appointees, and I am 

sure that this will be the case, as I mentioned to you in my office, 

we want to make sure that any inquiries that we have from this 

side, the minority side of the aisle, you will treat the same as 

though they were coming from the majority. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Senator Inhofe follows:] 

STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES M. INHOFE, U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA

We are here today to consider the nomination of Gary Guzy to be Deputy Director 

of the White House Office of Environmental Quality. 

The Office, also known as the Council on Environmental Quality, leads the Administration’s effort to formulate and execute environmental policy across the Federal Government. CEQ serves a critical role in shaping environmental policy within 

the executive branch. Mr. Guzy, I enjoyed speaking with you at our recent meeting. 

I congratulate you on your nomination and look forward to working with you. 

I must say that you have a difficult job ahead of you, not least because Carol 

Browner, the White House Energy and Climate Change Czar, appears to be coordinating environmental policy out of her office. Of course, we in the Senate have little 

idea as to how her office functions or what contributions it makes to the interagency 

policy process. As Senator Byrd stated in a letter to President Obama in February, 

these White House czars ‘‘are not accountable for their actions to the Congress, to 

Cabinet officials, and to virtually anyone but the President.’’ 

These czars are inherently opposed to the President’s commitment to openness 

and transparency in the executive branch. This no doubt makes our oversight role 

more complicated. Nonetheless, Mr. Guzy, this means you will be on the front line 

as one of the top officials accountable to this committee. 

And for better or for worse, you will be accountable for a number of significant 

issues affecting every corner of the economy. One of them, unique to CEQ, is the 

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). 

NEPA, of course, is a bedrock environmental statute which requires Federal agencies to consider how their actions could significantly impact the environment. Mr. 

Guzy, the previous Administration attempted to improve NEPA implementation— 

but the improvements were largely cosmetic due in no small measure to inertia at 

CEQ. I hope you will commit to putting NEPA back into balance. In other words, 

NEPA should achieve environmental goals without unnecessarily obstructing economic development. 

Projects across the Nation are already in limbo due to delays and litigation from 

existing environmental regulations—including setbacks in building a coal power 

plant in Jamestown, New York, that would use a cutting edge carbon capture system; and the cancellation of construction on a coal-fired power plant in Morgan 

County, Colorado, due to ‘‘steep regulatory obstacles.’’ 

It also seems clear that the tangled web of climate change has enveloped NEPA. 

Activists are forcing Federal agencies to address the global warming implications of 

their actions. Among other things, this could seriously curtail the Nation’s domestic 

energy development. Ironically, NEPA is even being used to block renewable energy 

projects. 

I understand CEQ is drafting guidance on NEPA and climate change. CEQ must 

make clear that climate change is not required for NEPA purposes. As with the Endangered Species Act, NEPA should not be used as a back door tactic to regulate 

greenhouse gases. 
4 

Mr. Guzy, as I noted, you will face a number of challenges in this position. And 

although we will not agree on how to address all of those challenges, I hope we can 

work together with mutual understanding of our respective positions. 

Finally, when this committee, including the minority, seeks information and 

makes inquiries, I hope you will respond to them in a timely fashion and with the 

openness and transparency you have pledged to uphold. 

I look forward to your confirmation and to working with you on issues of great 

importance to the American people. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you, Senator Inhofe. 

Senator Lautenberg. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY 

Senator LAUTENBERG. Thank you, Madam Chairman, for introducing Gary Guzy formally to the process. 

We think he is an outstanding candidate with a distinguished career in environmental leadership, whether government, academia 

or business, on all fronts. He has done wonders at each of his jobs 

by making sure that they are accurately and deftly performed. 

He did something else here today. It is almost unfair, because 

this is from my home town of Patterson, New Jersey, and in it 

there is a theater mention that we knew about, an act where these 

people would get up on a 300-foot pole above the sidewalk to attract people to the theater. 

Now, off the record, was it your grandfather who owned this? 

Mr. GUZY. Yes. 

Senator LAUTENBERG. Oh, OK. 

Senator INHOFE. Now how do you get that off the record? 

[Laughter.] 

Senator LAUTENBERG. How do I get it off the record? Very easily, 

because I want the public to know that this was a gushy statement 

of sentiment that crept into this hard-nosed political life that we 

endure. 

So, it is a real pleasure for me, Gary Guzy, to meet you here and 

to support your nomination from the President to be the Deputy 

Director of the Office of Environmental Quality. I know that you 

are a highly committed and talented public servant, and if confirmed I believe that he is certainly ready to tackle the challenges 

that lie ahead. 

Those of us who were born in New Jersey can leave the State, 

but the State can never leave us. He was born in Newark, which 

was part of the—kind of orbit, of Patterson, Newark and others. I 

do not want this to devolve into a study of New Jersey and its past, 

but after a bright high school career, he went to Cornell and then 

returned to our State and to a field that we hold in high regard 

in the State of New Jersey, and that is environmental protection. 

Mr. Guzy came to Government in a position at the Department 

of Justice where specialization in wetlands, water quality and hazardous waste issues was his particulate interest. He then, as 

Chairman Boxer mentioned, moved to the EPA to serve as Deputy 

General Counsel and help managed the agency’s legal staff. 

During the Clinton administration, the promotion to General 

Counsel at EPA took place, and in that position he made it a priority to focus on children’s health and control air pollution, as well 
5 

as to help restore the Florida Everglades, which is a project that 

almost everyone supports. 

I am confident that you are going to be successful in this new 

position, assuming that our friends here and on the floor of the 

Senate will support you. 

At this critical time in the climate debate, we need someone with 

the strength Mr. Guzy brings to help run the Office of Environmental Quality. We need Government to be active and innovative 

in finding solutions to the challenges that we face. 

In June, the House of Representatives passed a landmark bill 

that would fundamentally change how America uses energy and 

fights global warming. The world is now expecting the U.S. Senate 

to pass a bill that moves our country away from dirty, unstable 

sources of energy and toward clean, sustainable and efficient ones. 

As Congress works toward a legislative solution, we need the Administration to work with us. We need a strong, aggressive Office 

of Environmental Equality to build support for a clean energy bill. 

Clean energy can create jobs, as it has in New Jersey. There are 

now more than 2,000 clean energy companies that call New Jersey 

home, and they employ more than 25,000 people. And clean energy 

can reduce air pollution that causes asthma and is thought to 

cause cancer as well. And clean energy can slow the effects of global warming so that we leave the next generation a healthier planet 

than the one that this generation inherited. 

We also need Mr. Guzy and the Administration to take strong action on hazardous chemicals which are cancer causing, cause birth 

defects and raise health care costs across the country. 

And we need to clean up Superfund sites more quickly so that 

communities can rebuild and recover their health. New Jersey has 

more Superfund sites than any State in the Nation. So, this is an 

important priority for our State’s residents. 

Overcoming this list of challenges will not be an easy task. But 

our children and our grandchildren are depending on us to accomplish them. I have no doubt that, if confirmed, Mr. Guzy will be 

a strong partner in this effort. 

Thank you again, Madam Chairman, for holding this hearing. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you, Senator Lautenberg. 

We have been joined by Senator Menendez. Senator, after we 

hear from Senator Barrasso, we will turn to you for your comments. 

Senator Barrasso. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN BARRASSO, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF WYOMING 

Senator BARRASSO. Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. 

Thank you, Mr. Guzy, for taking the time this morning to come 

and visit with me and have a chance to visit about issues. I want 

to also congratulate you, congratulate your family and thank you 

all for the willingness to serve. 

Madam Chairman, Wyoming is very interested in a number of 

environmental issues in which the nominee today will have a significant impact. We had the chance to discuss some of those. In 

Wyoming, the frontier spirit of smaller government and individual 

liberty are still sacred traditions. And the reason, of course, is, as 
6 

we have discussed, half of the land in Wyoming is run by the Federal Government. 

The Federal Government reintroduced major predators into our 

landscape. The Federal Government manages our dams, our lakes, 

our reservoirs, they control irrigation and grazing for agriculture 

production, and we depend on Federal managers to access lands for 

hunting and fishing. 

Living with this heavy Federal involvement in Wyoming, we 

fight every day, as we discussed, to fight red tape and get work 

done. Bureaucratic delays impact everyday life in Wyoming. All actions of the Federal Government are subject to environmental law. 

And these laws are entitled to provide for measured, thoughtful decisionmaking. They allow public involvement in our Government, 

but they are not built for speed. 

Let me tell you from Wyoming experience, NEPA reviews take 

years. Not weeks, not months, but years. And you and I had a 

chance to visit about the original NEPA laws as written, when Senator Scoop Jackson was chairing the committee, and where we 

were then and where we are now. 

Even after NEPA documentation is finalized by the Feds, activist 

groups can file appeals and litigation and hold up projects for many 

more years. The NEPA process is broken, and it needs to be fixed. 

I tried to work with my colleagues, including the distinguished 

Chairman of this committee, to address these concerns. I worked 

with the Chairman to attach language to the President’s stimulus 

package to do just that. In addition, however, I maintain that we 

need to streamline NEPA to protect our communities, to create jobs 

and to make America energy independent. 

We cannot tie America’s hands behind its back with onerous red 

tape if we are going to achieve energy independence and compete 

with China and India. Smart energy development of all of our domestic energy resources must occur if we are going to compete to 

be energy secure. 

It is my hope that the nominee before us today will work with 

us to achieve these reforms of NEPA that really do need to occur. 

Thank you, Madam Chairman. I look forward to the testimony. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you. 

Senator Menendez. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. ROBERT MENENDEZ, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY 

Senator MENENDEZ. Thank you, Madam Chairman, and Ranking 

Member and the distinguished members of the committee. 

I am pleased to join my colleague from New Jersey in introducing Gary Guzy to the committee for his position that he is nominated for as the Deputy Director of the White House Council on 

Environmental Quality. 

I am proud to say he is the latest in a line of environmental leaders hailing from the Garden State, punctuated quite nicely by Administrator Lisa Jackson whose leadership of the EPA, I think, is 

showing us that we can protect our precious land, water and air 

resources. 

Mr. Guzy brings with him true expertise on many different levels 

that are important to the Nation and the committee on climate 
7 

change, among others, issues gained from having acquired a wealth 

of experience that spans the public, the private, the non-profit and 

the academic sectors. That is a very unique confluence of experiences. 

His most recent experience in Government was at the EPA as 

General Counsel during which time he worked with the Administrator to accomplish important air pollution and tailpipe emissions 

protections, fostered Everglades’ protection, and designed regulatory approaches to protect children. 

He has been deeply involved in energy and environmental issues 

in the private sector. He currently serves as Vice President and 

General Counsel of APX, the leading infrastructure provider for environmental and energy markets providing registry tracking systems for each of the world’s credible voluntary carbon standards. 

Prior to that, he was the Global Practice Leader for Climate Risk 

and Sustainability at Marsh, where he positioned the world’s leading insurance broker and strategic risk advisor at the forefront of 

the industry in dealing with the climate risks. 

So in all of those ways, as well as a member on advisory boards 

to the Environmental Law Institute, the Urban Land Institute, the 

Greater Washington Board of Trades, Green Committee, and teaching the first-ever course on climate law change at GW’s Law Center 

as Adjunct Professor of Environmental Law, we have someone who 

has an extraordinary breadth and scope of experiences in the private sector, in the Government sector, in the non-profit sector. 

I think those all speak volumes of a tremendous nominee, and 

I urge the committee’s adoption of his nomination. 

Thank you for the opportunity. 

Senator BOXER. Senator Menendez, thank you. I know you have 

a hectic schedule. 

Before you leave, I just want to say, Mr. Guzy, you should be, 

and I am sure you are, very pleased that you have both of your 

great Senators here today. It is a hectic time for us all because it 

is the last week, and I know everybody has obligations. But you 

should feel very good. 

And thank you, Senator Menendez, so much, for taking time to 

be here. 

Now, Mr. Guzy, it is your opportunity to speak to us, and we 

hope that you will introduce your family as well. We welcome you 

again. 

STATEMENT OF GARY GUZY, NOMINATED TO BE DEPUTY 

DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY 

Mr. GUZY. Good morning. Thank you, Madam Chairman, Ranking Member Inhofe and members of the committee. 

I am deeply appreciative to you for holding this hearing, for the 

members of the committee for their thoughtful consideration, to 

Senator Lautenberg and Senator Menendez for those gracious introductions, to Senators Inhofe and Barrasso for the opportunity to 

take time out of their busy schedules to meet. 

I am delighted to be joined today by members of my family who 

provide constant support for my work. I am joined by my wife, 

Sharon Sprague, who you should know for 20 years has been a 

dedicated public servant in her own right as an Assistant U.S. At-
8 

torney in the District of Columbia; by my two wonderful and inspiring children, Zoe and Zander; and by my mother, Rita Guzy, who 

traveled from Boca Raton, Florida, to be with us today. 

Senator BOXER. Welcome, everybody. 

Mr. GUZY. Madam Chairman and members of the committee, I 

am deeply honored, grateful and humbled by President Obama’s 

nomination to serve as the Deputy Director of the Office of Environmental Quality. As you well know, Congress established the Office in 1970 to provide essential support to the Chair of the Council 

on Environment Quality. 

CEQ has a distinguished 40-year history of service to our Nation, 

advising the President in the development of environmental policies and legislation, identifying, assessing and reporting on trends 

in environmental quality and recommending appropriate responses, 

overseeing Federal implementation of the environmental impact assessment process under NEPA, and coordinating and, at times, 

even refereeing, Federal environmental efforts. 

These tasks are ever more important given the urgency and cost 

cutting nature of climate change and other environmental challenges our Nation faces. That is why as our President seeks to reinvigorate our Nation’s commitment to environmental, public health 

and natural resources protection, it makes sense to fill the position 

of Deputy Director and why five former Chairs of CEQ, from both 

parties, have called upon him to do so. 

I have devoted my career to understanding and resolving such 

concerns and have had the benefit of broad experience in business, 

government and academia. I currently serve as the General Counsel of APX, a relatively small entrepreneurial green venture hailing 

from Hoboken, New Jersey, that provides global registry oversight 

systems for voluntary carbon standards and renewable energy credits. 

I previously served as the Global Practice Leader for Climate 

Risk and Sustainability at Marsh, a Fortune 200 company that is 

the world’s leading insurance broker and strategic risk advisor. 

There, I helped businesses around the world understand the climate risks they face across their operations and the tools they have 

for addressing them. 

I also am an Adjunct Professor of Environmental Law at Georgetown University Law Center, where I devised and taught the 

school’s first courses on climate change law. 

In Government, I was privileged to be appointed by President 

Clinton and confirmed by the Senate as General Counsel of the 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency where I served from 1998 

until 2001, as well as to have served before then as Counsel to the 

Administrator and as Deputy General Counsel at EPA. 

In those several roles, I assisted in resolving issues as diverse as 

enhanced air quality, enhanced tailpipe emission standards, the 

protection of children’s health, and addressing threats to key ecosystems. 

Before that, I was a Senior Attorney at the U.S. Department of 

Justice’s Environment Division, handling major environmental litigation that spanned from the Everglades to Alaska. 

As I go about my work, I think back to my early childhood living 

in Newark, New Jersey, with my mother, a single parent then and 
9 

a dedicated public school teacher. And from that vantage, I recognize that a caring and open Government can make a difference in 

the lives of ordinary citizens. From the child with asthma to the 

coastal communities facing enhanced risks, Government can provide essential hope and essential protection. 

I think about the many days that I have been privileged to spend 

on a bicycle traveling across America’s back roads and blue highways, and I realize that the legendary natural bounty that has defined our Nation merits careful stewardship. 

I think back to my days on the job as a young law clerk for Judge 

Elbert Tuttle, former Chief of the U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta. 

Despite his then 30 years on the bench, I was struck that he was 

vitally interested in my relatively inexpert views. 

From him I learned that keeping an open mind and being attentive to absolute fairness of process are essential to the ultimate 

success of our work and to improving the quality of the Government’s analysis and decisions. Also critical is maintaining the highest of ethical standards. And these are values that, if confirmed, I 

will strive to take to my job every day and to continue to instill in 

CEQ staff. 

My substantive focus if confirmed as Deputy Director will be to 

work alongside Chair Sutley to ensure that there is a strong 

science and legal basis for our environmental policy, move the Nation to greater reliance on clean energy and increase energy security, combat global warming while growing the green economy, provide increased protection for public health and the environment, especially in vulnerable communities, and protect and restore our 

great ecosystems. 

Much as changed in the 40 years since CEQ’s founding. Gone 

should be the myth that protecting our environment, public health 

and natural resources comes at the expense of a prosperous economy. Rather, these are critical to our continuing prosperity, and 

they provide enormous opportunities to revitalize our economy. 

Gone should be the notion that Government and the private sector must be at loggerheads on the environment. Rather, enhanced 

cooperation between Government, affected communities and the 

private sector, tempered by appropriate levels of rigorous oversight, 

is critical to spurring the innovation that will allow our Nation to 

thrive. 

And gone should be the notion that the environmental pendulum 

must keep swinging from lack of protection to seemingly onerous 

prescriptive regulation, with no common ground for action in between. 

With this perspective, I am hopeful that we can find enduring, 

productive and sustainable solutions to the great challenges that 

we face. If confirmed, I look forward to a close and cooperative relationship with the committee and its staff in carrying out this vital 

work. 

I thank you for your consideration, and I would be very pleased 

to answer any questions. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Guzy follows:] 
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Senator BOXER. Thank you so much, Mr. Guzy. 

I would just like to ask you some required questions. Then I will 

turn to my colleagues. 

Do you agree, if confirmed by the Senate, to appear before this 

committee or designated members of this committee, and other appropriate committees of the Congress, and provide information subject to appropriate and necessary security protection, with respect 

to your responsibilities as Deputy Director of the Office of Environmental Quality? 

Mr. GUZY. I do, Madam Chairman. 

Senator BOXER. Second, do you agree to ensure that testimony, 

briefings, documents and electronic and other forms of communication are provided to this committee and its staff and other appropriate committees, in a timely manner? 

Mr. GUZY. Yes, I do, Madam Chairman. 

Senator BOXER. And last, do you know of any matters which you 

may or may not have disclosed that might place you in any conflict 

of interest if you are confirmed? 

Mr. GUZY. I do not. 

Senator BOXER. Excellent. 

Senator Inhofe, go right ahead. 

Senator INHOFE. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

I was going to start off with my streamlining of the NEPA process questions, but I have a feeling that Senator Barrasso is going 

to be asking about that, so I will get into two other things within 

this 5 minute period of time. 

One is on energy permitting, the regional multi-agency permit offices. A company now is seeking to develop an offshore lease. It has 

got to have an array of State and Federal permits. Remember I 

told you the example that, one of the reasons I ran in the first 

place was the permit problem I had out in the real world. And 

these have shown that off shore energy development can occur in 

an environmentally responsible manner as we have found out from 

our experience. 

Now, my concern is this. In some instances, over 30 permits from 

30 different agencies are required to drill one exploratory well. Just 

one. That is just one pre-production well. The same is likely true 

of any energy project, I suspect. This is not a sustainable model. 

We have got to find a way to rationalize the process without short 

circuiting any of the safeguards. 

Now, in recent years, the Bureau of Land Management ran a 

successful pilot program to speed the permit delivery process by 

bringing all of the permitting agencies together in one single office, 

one stop shopping if you will. 

Would you support a regional permitting support office in Alaska? Alaska is an area where we have most of the problems, and 

if we could have a single permitting office there that would no 

more than anything else we could think of to expedite this process. 

What do you think about that? 

Mr. GUZY. Well, a few thoughts, Senator. First, the President 

and the Administration have committed to both transforming our 

economy to a new energy economy and to economic revitalization 

as among their highest priorities. 
28 

The Council on Environmental Quality’s very role is that of coordination among Federal agencies that have a hand or a stake in 

those efforts. While I am not familiar with that particular proposal 

or set of problems, I would be very pleased to work with you to look 

at it. And certainly the Council on Environmental Quality’s efforts 

at coordination in spurring an economic recovery and our economic 

transformation will be absolutely critical. 

Senator INHOFE. Yes, but do you not think, this is the information age and we have got all of the electronics and the capabilities. 

The idea of having to go to 30 different governmental agencies, do 

you not find that to be more than just a little ridiculous? 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, again, I am not familiar with this particular 

circumstance. But I will say that, for example, with respect to various controversial permitting activities, one of the things that the 

Council on Environmental Quality has done in this Administration 

is to pull together all of the agencies that have a role so that there 

can be as much coordination and as much efficiency as possible. 

Senator INHOFE. The New York Times had the article that we 

have quoted from several times, and I am sure that you are familiar with it. They wrote that Mary Nichols, the head of the California Air Resources Board, and Carol Browner ’’quietly orchestrated private discussions from the White House with auto industry officials in an effort to conceal information used to develop the 

fuel economy proposals. Nichols said that she and Browner put 

nothing in writing ever.’’ 

Is this consistent with the openness policy that our President has 

campaigned on? Is there anything that you would like to do to 

bring these things out into the daylight? 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, a few thoughts about that, if I may. One is 

that the President certainly is entitled to have advisors on high 

priority issues, and he has chosen to structure his White House in 

that fashion. I am not familiar with the operation of the White 

House and with that particular effort around cars to know precisely 

how that transpired or the accuracy of the reporting there. 

But I will say that, if confirmed, I will be accountable to this 

committee, and you can be assured that we will look to work in 

partnership with you and this committee as we put high priority 

on economic revitalization. 

Senator INHOFE. And that is what we really want, daylight and 

accountability. 

Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you. 

Senator Lautenberg. 

Senator LAUTENBERG. Mr. Guzy, first of all I do want to say that 

I was pleased to see your family here, and your mother. My mother 

was widowed when she was 37 years old. I had already enlisted in 

the Army, and life was tough. But a strong mother always carries 

on, and the consequence of her dutiful management of your life apparently was the right thing to do, and we are pleased to see you 

here. Welcome. 

Global warming is one of the greatest environmental challenges 

that our planet has ever faced. Do you think that, why should Government approve projects that have to undergo review for their potential contribution to global warming before they are approved? 
29 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, as part of the Council on Environmental 

Quality’s responsibilities in implementing and interpreting the National Environmental Policy Act, I fully expect that we will look at 

and give careful consideration to the benefits of greater guidance 

to Federal agencies around both the effects on the Federal Government of climate change as that may unfold both now and in the 

future and the contribution that Government activities may make 

to global warming. Those are areas that certainly merit more consideration. 

Senator LAUTENBERG. One of the things that happen in this 

house of legislation is that sometimes we have to go to 100 Senators to get improvement. And that is even more than 30 agencies 

by a significant factor. We do it. It is arduous, but worth it. 

The one thing that I have done since I have been in the Senate 

is to use as a matrix for my thinking and my legislative pursuits— 

I look at pictures that I have of 10 grandchildren. The eldest is 15. 

He has asthma, and on bad days he has bad effects. 

And my friends here have heard me say this before. My daughter, when she takes him out for a sporting event, baseball or basketball or whatever else, the first thing she does, if it is away from 

home, is check and see where the nearest emergency facility is. 

This is more an encouragement than a question. And that is, always keep in mind your daughter and the other children for whom 

we have an enormous responsibility, and let that be the guide to 

your action. Do not let politics overcome science in selection of 

those who might be staffing your office. 

So, when I look at this job, it is so important. And I feel very 

comfortable that you are going to be there with your knowledge 

and your experience and your commitment to what is right, as I 

know about you. 

The Government Accountability Office recently placed our Nation’s system for regulating potentially hazardous chemicals on its 

list of high risk areas. What priority will your office place on fixing 

our Nation’s system for regulating chemicals? 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, I am generally familiar with reports and testimony of the Government Accountability Office on the Toxic Substances Control Act and the hearing that I think occurred in February in the House of Representative on those issues. And I am 

also familiar that Administrator Jackson has identified this as one 

of her priorities, and in particular concerns about the burdens and 

difficulties of obtaining and proving data and burdens of proof. 

I look forward to the opportunity, if confirmed, to work with her 

on these issues, to continue to give priority to children’s environmental health, as you mentioned, and to carry on that work. 

Senator LAUTENBERG. Well, I close by saying that we are fortunate to have a candidate like you coming to this job. It is going to 

be more difficult than perhaps some of the tasks that you have 

had, but you are up to it, and we are pleased to have you here. 

Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you very much, Senator Lautenberg. 

Senator Barrasso, you will close this because we have a vote 

pending. So go right ahead and then we will vote. How many minutes left to vote? Seven minutes left to vote, so do your 5. 

Senator BARRASSO. Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. 
30 

In Southern Wyoming, in Colorado, having experienced bark beetle in our forests, I was there this past weekend; we have mountain 

ranges of standing dead trees that is literally a tinder box. The 

Forest Service is working on hazardous fuels reduction as best they 

can. But in order to complete the NEPA requirements of these 

projects, they can only process one watershed at a time, and these 

NEPA evaluations take about a year and a half each. 

So it seems to be a management gamble. We have no way to 

know where the fire is going to start, and it seems to us in Wyoming that NEPA is preventing large scale action to prevent the 

damage. Is this how the law ought to be serving our communities 

in the State of Wyoming and in the country? 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, I am not familiar with that particular circumstance, but would be happy to, if confirmed, look at that. 

But generally—the Council on Environmental Quality provided 

Congress yesterday with data on economic recovery environmental 

reviews. Generally, that showed an extraordinary amount of activity in a very short time, the successful resolution of approximately 

80,000 environmental reviews, the completion of 90 percent of 

those reviews over a 3-month period. 

I think that represents the commitment that this Administration 

has to expeditious processing at the same time as it respects the 

environmental and public input concerns of those circumstances. 

I would also add that we look forward to working, if confirmed, 

at the Council on Environmental Quality on appropriate means for 

adaptation for planning for climate change so as to avoid those circumstances that would be unmanageable and manage those things 

that prove actually to be unavoidable. And certainly increasing 

wildfires across the West are an area of significant concern. 

Senator BARRASSO. As you talk about the stimulus package, you 

know, unemployment has now reached 9.5 percent, and it is climbing. With that in mind, do you believe job creation, such as the 

clean energy sector which you talked about in your comments, 

should be weighed more heavily in making decisions under NEPA? 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, I do not have a particular view on that technical issue, but certainly the Administration is absolutely committed to job creation in this area. They have as an initial step 

brought forward $80 billion in investment in the clean energy area. 

There is a commitment to continue that and hopefully work with 

the Senate on passage of broader climate legislation that also will 

help to spur this industry. 

You know, you look at things like the testimony, I believe last 

week or the week before, your neighboring Governor, Governor Ritter, about the transformation that is occurring in the economy in 

Colorado that really promotes green jobs, wind power, basic manufacturing that helps promote renewable and clean energy. 

Senator BARRASSO. How can NEPA be improved to address the 

concerns of people in the Rocky Mountain West who view the law 

as a tool by outside group to block economic development, the kind 

of development that is going to create well paying jobs and allow 

communities to survive and to thrive? 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, it is important that in CEQ’s advice in working with Federal agencies, and if confirmed, that we strike an appropriate balance and a common sense approach. 
31 

Oftentimes NEPA becomes the vehicle for raising the whole set 

of concerns that may be extraneous to the NEPA process. And I am 

certain that the more engagement there is between Government, 

business and effective groups on the front end of the process, the 

more I believe that benefits a speedy resolution on the back end of 

the process, and so that the NEPA process itself does not bear the 

burden of all of those other concerns. And that is something that 

I look forward to working with you on. 

Senator BARRASSO. Well, that would be great. Do you believe 

NEPA has been abused in the past by outside groups? 

Mr. GUZY. Senator, I believe that is has had a heavy burden to 

bear, and that as a result, in certain circumstances, it has been 

slower than one might like, and litigation has played—and while 

playing an important role, it has played a role in slowing down 

some environmental reviews. 

Senator BARRASSO. Thank you very much. 

Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Senator BOXER. Let me just say on NEPA, we worked together 

to make sure, when the stimulus funding came, we were able to 

make sure that NEPA did not slow up the process. 

And so far, we have had some good, we have a report, actually, 

I would put it in the record, Senator, since this is something that 

we worked on together. Since June 30th, more than 70,000 NEPA 

reviews were completed, an increase of over 30,000 since the last 

report. We will put this in, because we did want to make sure that 

NEPA was not used in a way that was not appropriate. 

I share that concern. I also believe it is hard to say you are for 

individual rights and community rights versus big government or 

big business if you do not understand that. That is why NEPA was 

written in the first place, to give individuals and communities the 

say-so so that Federal Government could not come in, or some special interest, and ride roughshod over your towns or mine. 

However, there is no question, I think, that we can do better 

with NEPA. And we could work together on that. I think where we 

could part at some future point is whether we believe those community groups and individuals should have rights at all. But so far, 

I think we have been able to work together on this. 

So, we look forward to working with you, Mr. Guzy. I am so 

grateful to you for taking on this challenge. And to your family. I 

am glad your kids are here, your mom, your wife. It is a great moment for you. I will be very proud to support you. 

We stand adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 10:40 a.m. the full committee was adjourned.] 

[The referenced report was not received at time of print.] 

[An additional statement submitted for the record follows:] 

STATEMENT OF HON. BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF MARYLAND

Chairman Boxer, thank you for holding this hearing, and Mr. Guzy, welcome to 

our committee; it is a pleasure to have you here before us today, and I look forward 

to hearing your testimony and answers to our questions. 

Gary Guzy’s nomination to the President’s Council on Environmental Quality 

demonstrates President Obama’s commitment to developing environmental policies 

using careful science and receiving the best advice from leading experts in the field. 

The breadth of experience and expertise that Mr. Guzy will bring to CEQ will serve 
32 

1 Yuan L.L. & Nortno S.S. Comparing responses of macroinvertebrate metrics to increasing 

stress (2003). 

Allan J.D. Landscapes and riverscapes: the influence of land use on stream ecosystems (2004). 

Morgan R.P. & Cushman S.F. Urbanization effects on stream fish assemblages in Maryland 

(2005). 

the Council well as it helps guide the Administration’s decisionmaking on environmental policies. 

CHESAPEAKE BAY AND CLEAN WATER

The health and productivity of the Chesapeake Bay are a top priority of mine. It 

is a major economic driver for Maryland and the surrounding States within the watershed. But the Bay’s value is dependent on the water quality of the watershed. 

Mr. Guzy’s expert legal analysis and testimony before Congress on the implications 

of the Supreme Court’s decision in SWANCC v. United States Army Corps of Engineers in 2002 outlined the enforcement and regulatory mess that the SWANCC decision created for regulators trying to apply the Clean Water Act throughout the country. Fortunately Congress and this committee are working to apply Mr. Guzy’s recommendations 7 years after he delivered testimony on the SWANCC decision. 

MOUNTAINTOP MINING

Protecting clean water and public health is at the heart of making sure that the 

Clean Water Act is dutifully applied to Appalachia’s dangerous and destructive 

mountaintop removal coal mining operations. The valley fills associated with these 

operations have destroyed more than a thousand stream miles with mining waste. 

Numerous studies have shown that when impacts to the natural landscape of a watershed exceed 10 percent, water quality and the biodiversity of aquatic life in all 

waters of the watershed decline. 1 In Southern West Virginia there are watersheds 

with more than 25 percent of the land impacted by surface mines’ operations. 

What’s more, the permitting process for these operations does not account for the 

cumulative effect of multiple mine operations on downstream water quality. 

Regulatory responsibility for mountaintop mining regulation rests with the Office 

of Surface Mining (Department of the Interior), the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers. I urge you to ensure that CEQ facilitates the development of congruent environmental policy when agencies’ jurisdictions overlap. 

CLIMATE CHANGE

No policy will require greater administrative interagency coordination and executive leadership than the clean energy legislation that Congress will send to the 

President’s desk for execution. Department leaders from EPA, Department of Energy, Department of Transportation, Department of Agriculture and Department of 

the Interior, and former military leaders have all testified before this committee on 

climate change and the policy solutions that we are considering. 

In many ways, the actions President Obama takes on climate change and clean 

energy will greatly shape his legacy and the future of the American economy. CEQ 

will play a critical role in coordinating the Administration’s multiple layers of regulatory guidelines to make sure that the country’s transition to a clean energy economy is a smooth one. 

CONCLUSION

Mr. Guzy has excellent experience as a legal scholar, environmental regulator and 

in the private sector in emerging clean energy markets that has prepared him well 

for the position that he has been nominated to. I hope he gets the strong support 

of this committee and the full Senate. 

[Additional material submitted for the record follows:] 
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