U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today released the following statement after learning that Michael Dourson, the nominee to be the Environmental Protection Agency’s top chemical regulator, has been advising the EPA despite not having been confirmed by the Senate:
“Even after being forced to withdraw a toxic nominee from consideration to become Drug Czar, the Trump administration has no shame. In another shocking example of the fox guarding the henhouse, the President has nominated Michael Dourson to be the nation’s top chemical regulator. I was stunned to learn that Mr. Dourson has already started working at the EPA before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and full Senate have even had the ability to vote on this controversial nominee.
“There is no way around it. Michael Dourson has spent his career helping chemical companies cover up deadly chemical contamination. His record of greenwashing the actions of chemical companies and placing their profits over the health and wellbeing of children is appalling. Because of his actions, the water that children drank, bathed in, and had their food cooked in was allowed to have unsafe levels of PFOA, a toxic chemical that is poisoning people in my state.
“Mr. Dourson was even paid to go out in public to defend a safety standard for PFOA that was 2,000 times weaker than the EPA’s safety standard.
“The fact that he has already begun advising the EPA administrator shows contempt for the committee’s role in his nomination process and more importantly a profound disrespect to the families who are terrified about what toxic chemicals are going to do to their children’s health.
“The EPA should immediately terminate its relationship with Mr. Dourson until the nomination process is complete and my colleagues have voted on the record whether they are on the side of protecting chemical companies or protecting families. I will vote to protect families and reject this terrible nomination.”