Michael Regan would become the first Black man to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.
Bloomberg | Dec 17, 2020
By Jennifer A. Dlouhy and Jennifer Epstein
President-elect Joe Biden is nominating Michael Regan to lead the EPA, putting a North Carolina environmental regulator in line to chart national policy on combating climate change and pollution, according to people familiar with the matter.
If confirmed, Regan would become the first Black man to be Environmental Protection Agency administrator, taking the helm of an agency at which he worked for nearly a decade under two presidents.
Regan’s long history focused on regulating air pollution and combating climate change are central to some of Biden’s top environmental policies. The next EPA chief is expected to develop new regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that drive global warming while reversing some of President Donald Trump’s moves that undercut limits on pollution.
Published: Thursday, December 17, 2020
Michael Regan. Photo credit: @AutryJohn/Twitter
Michael Regan, current secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. @AutryJohn/Twitter
President-elect Joe Biden has selected Michael Regan, secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, as his nominee for EPA administrator, four sources tell E&E News.
Regan, 44, has served at the state environmental agency since 2017 and previously worked at EPA. If confirmed, Regan would be the first Black man to lead the agency.
Reuters first reported that Regan has been chosen for the EPA job, followed by multiple news outlets.
Neither Regan nor Biden s transition team responded to a request for comment from E&E News for this story.
Biden close to naming North Carolina regulator to EPA
Jennifer A. Dlouhy and Jennifer Jacobs
Bloomberg
North Carolina’s top environmental regulator, Michael Regan, is Joe Biden’s leading candidate to head the EPA though the president-elect has not yet made a final decision, according to a people familiar with the matter.
Regan’s lead role comes after weeks of deliberations and as concerns about some candidates’ confirmation chances prompted transition officials to shuffle the lineup of contenders to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.
Regan is in the final stages of being vetted for the role, according to people familiar with the matter. Biden interviewed Regan for the EPA administrator post on Tuesday, according to a separate person familiar with the deliberations.
Joe Biden is expected to select
Michael Regan to lead the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
If selected, he would be the first Black man to hold the role of Administrator of the EPA.
Regan currently serves as the secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, which is the state’s version of the national EPA.
The 44-year-old worked for the EPA during the administrations of
Bill Clinton and
George W. Bush. Afterwards, he took up the role of southeast regional director at the Environmental Defense Fund.
Selecting Regan would mean Biden would have an environmental expert to take over the agency following Donald Trump’s controversial decisions pertaining to climate, and the environment.
Politics
Thursday, December 17, 2020 at 5:29 pm | ב טבת תשפ א (REUTERS/Hamodia) -
Thursday, December 17, 2020 at 5:29 pm | ב טבת תשפ א
Joe Biden listens as he holds a videoconference meeting with members of the U.S Conference of Mayors in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S., November 23, 2020. (REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo)
President-elect Joe Biden plans to nominate Michael Regan, North Carolina’s top environmental regulator, to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, three sources with knowledge of the discussions said on Thursday.
If confirmed by the Senate, Regan would become the first Black person to run the EPA and one of the key players in Biden’s agenda to reverse environmental rollbacks under outgoing President Donald Trump and fight climate change by bringing the U.S. economy to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The EPA administrator is the top U.S. environmental regulator.