Lee
Zeldin

Who is Lee Zeldin?

Claims to fame: Former U.S. Representative, NY-1 (2014-2023); Unsuccessful candidate for NY Governor (2022)

LCV Environmental Scorecard Lifetime Score: 14%

You should know: Zeldin has denied that climate change is a serious problem and has a history of opposing environmental action. Since Trump appointed Zeldin as EPA Administrator, he has consistently taken the side of industrial polluters over lowering families’ costs and protecting people and the environment.

Zeldin’s take on climate action:

“We are driving a dagger straight into the heart of the climate change religion.” (Zeldin in an EPA announcement on 31 actions the agency is taking to weaken environmental protections – spoiler alert: he’s also driving up heart attacks with more soot pollution.)

Lee Zeldin’s environmental record as EPA Administrator:

EPA’s core mission is to protect people and the environment. Trump’s EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has thrown this mission out the window, and is instead protecting polluters. In just one year, he has taken 70 actions (and counting) that are detrimental to the environment and human health, but great for fossil fuel and industrial polluters.

Zeldin’s EPA has made it abundantly clear that it cares more about Big Polluters’ bottom line than keeping people safe. Under Zeldin, the agency has:

1. Set the value of human life at $0 by asserting that EPA will no longer count the impacts on human health when setting air pollution limits.
2. Gutted key climate protections like the 2009 endangerment finding and vehicle tailpipe pollution standards. The endangerment finding stated that greenhouse gases are harmful to public health and required EPA to regulate them. It was the bedrock of nearly all federal climate pollution limits, and reversing has had serious consequences.
3. Defied the Clean Air Act, giving polluters free rein to release dangerous pollution into our air.
4. Severely limited which bodies of water are protected under the Clean Water Act, allowing more pollution into our waterways, including our drinking water.
5. Exposed our communities to more toxic chemicalsby lowering the threshold where various chemicals are considered dangerous and delaying the phase out of asbestos.
6. Weakened protections against PFAS and other dangerous substances in our drinking water. PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” have been linked to cancer and damage to the immune system and liver, among other adverse health effects.
7. Maintained that glyphosate is not harmful to human health. Glyphosate has well documented links to cancer, organ damage, damage to the nervous and reproductive systems, among other negative health impacts. Despite its risks to human health, Trump recently issued an executive order boosting the use of glyphosate.

…and so much more.

Each of these actions, which Zeldin falsely claims are somehow cost-saving options (?), will end up costing everyday people more money. From increased healthcare costs, to spending more money at the gas pump, to more climate disasters and extreme weather, weakened environmental protections will cost us all.

For more information:

• Learn more about Zeldin’s complete rejection of EPA’s core mission with this memo covering Zeldin’s first year from the Natural Resource Defense Council. 
• Check out our post about Zeldin’s endangerment finding repeal and what it means for clean air and climate.

Take action now: Tell Congress to Hold Trump’s EPA Accountable