White House says EPA will cut 65 percent of spending, not staff

Shortly after President Trump said Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin plans to cut 65 percent of the agency’s staff, the White House clarified and said Trump was referring to agency spending.

“President Trump, DOGE, and Administrator Zeldin are committed to cutting waste, fraud, and abuse across all agencies,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said in a statement, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, the Elon Musk-affiliated project that has implemented, and in some cases reversed, deep spending and staffing cuts within the federal bureaucracy.

“After recently identifying $20 billion in fraudulent spending, Administrator Zeldin is committed to eliminating 65 percent of the EPA’s wasteful spending,” Rogers added, referencing the recent freeze by Citibank of accounts belonging to eight nonprofits awarded $20 billion in grants under the Biden administration through the Inflation Reduction Act. There is no indication fraud was involved in the disbursement of the funds. Denise Cheung, the lead prosecutor at the U.S. attorney’s office for the District of Columbia, resigned last week over an order to investigate the award.

A 65 percent reduction of overall EPA spending would likely still mean major staffing cuts at the agency, which has 17,202 permanent staff. Earlier this month, the EPA fired hundreds of probationary staffers, a category that includes both recent hires and recently promoted employees.

Trump’s EPA has spent much of its first month working to reverse Biden-era policies aimed at mitigating climate change and promoting renewable energy.

The agency recently put staffers in its environmental justice office on leave, saying “their function did not relate to the agency’s statutory duties or grant work.” The office, a key focus area of Zeldin’s predecessor Michael Regan, prioritized addressing pollution and environmental degradation in disadvantaged and minority neighborhoods.

The EPA is one of many agencies that have pulled back on similar efforts following Trump's executive orders barring diversity, equity and inclusion considerations.

Updated at 12:02 p.m. EST

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