crs_reports: R48961

Congressional Research Service reports with summaries, authors, and topic classifications.

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R48961 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Origins, Authorities, and Organization 2026-05-28T04:00:00Z 2026-05-30T05:23:52Z Active Reports Angela C. Jones Air Quality, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Waste Management & Cleanup, Water Quality The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established through the Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970 (Reorganization Plan No. 3), issued by President Nixon, with the purpose of consolidating and coordinating federal pollution control responsibilities and functions. In 2025, President Trump signed several executive orders that directed EPA, among other agencies, to make changes to its structure and eliminate certain programs. As changes to the agency have been planned and implemented, Congress has demonstrated increasing interest in the origins, authorities, and structure of EPA. Congressional interest in pollution control began in the 1940s with enactment of several pollution control statutes to address a range of environmental concerns. Prior to the creation of EPA, federal pollution control responsibilities were implemented by several different departments and agencies, separately addressing air quality, water pollution, solid waste management, pesticides, radiation, and other pollution and environmental protection issues. In addition, many states and some local governments had implemented pollution control laws and programs. The general purpose of Reorganization Plan No. 3 was to centralize and coordinate most federal pollution control functions within one independent federal agency. In 1984, Congress ratified as law all reorganization plans then in effect, including Reorganization Plan No. 3. Since 1970, Congress has enacted and amended more than a dozen pollution control statutes that EPA implements, such as the Clean Air Act; the Clean Water Act; the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act; the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act; the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act; the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; the National Environmental Policy Act; and the Safe Drinking Water Act. EPA’s purposes, as established in Reorganization Plan No. 3 and generally continuing to the present day, include environmental standard-setting; research; monitoring; enforcement; and providing assistance to states, tribes, and local governments to support implementation of federal pollution control programs. As a regulatory agency, EPA is responsible for researching, developing, and implementing environmental regulations as directed by Congress through statute. The agency’s activities cover multiple environmental media (e.g., air, water, and land) and a range of pollution control efforts, such as air and water quality regulation, waste management, cleanup of contaminated sites, environmental permitting, and regulation of chemicals in commerce. In addition, following the principle of “cooperative federalism,” EPA delegates the administration of many programs to states and tribes. Congress has provided appropriations throughout the agency’s history to support EPA funding of state and tribal activities, as well as grant programs to public and nonprofit entities conducting research, technical assistance, and other environment-related activities. EPA’s current organizational structure includes 10 headquarters offices, 10 regional offices across the United States, labs, and research centers. In the last decade, EPA staffing has ranged from nearly 13,000 full-time equivalents (FTEs) to more than 18,000 FTEs, with 12,500 FTEs estimated for FY2027. EPA’s annual appropriations have been relatively steady, when adjusted for inflation since 1980, supplemented by significant additional appropriations from Congress in FY2009 and FY2022-2026. For FY2026, EPA’s enacted annual appropriations totaled $8.82 billion, with supplemental advance appropriations of $12.01 billion from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58). EPA’s organizational structure and statutory authorities are closely interrelated; both factors influence the agency’s responsibilities and capacity for promulgating regulations, conducting research, developing standards, and administering programs. Further, EPA appropriations, staffing, and other resources are directly related to the agency’s organizational structure and implementation of statutory duties. Congress could consider a range of policy issues when conducting oversight of EPA, developing legislation related to environmental protection, or debating EPA appropriations. Policy issues include the implications of recent changes to EPA’s structure, functions, and staffing on the agency’s implementation of its responsibilities under a variety of pollution control statutes. As EPA implements changes to regulations and numerous agency programs, driven by executive orders, agency policies, and court decisions, Congress could also consider whether to amend existing legislation or enact new legislation to specify the agency’s responsibilities and functions in statute. In addition, when debating future agency appropriations, Congress could consider increasing, decreasing, or maintaining appropriations levels to align with the agency’s responsibilities and needs for resources and staffing to carry out these responsibilities. https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/R/PDF/R48961/R48961.2.pdf https://www.congress.gov/crs_external_products/R/HTML/R48961.html

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