Every new presidential administration appoints someone to lead our regional Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) office. Will the Obama Administration pick a dedicated environmental advocate who is serious about tackling pollution problems in Texas and our neighboring states? Or will a lobbyist, who has been raking in millions from the industry polluters he would regulate, get the job?

Texas Campaign for the Environment and many other organizations working for environmental justice have developed a set of principles for environmental leadership that we are urging the Obama Administration to follow in making this appointment. Two candidates have emerged that would qualify under these principles: Dr. Alfredo Juan “Al” Armendariz of Texas and Mr. Ron Curry of New Mexico. We believe these two examples would fulfill the hope for a sustainable environmental and economic future promised by the Obama Administration.

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The EPA Region 6 Administrator oversees implementation and enforcement of federal environmental laws for Texas and its four adjacent states. This region is home to some of the country’s—indeed the world’s—largest petrochemical complexes and other greenhouse gas emitters. The Texas Gulf Coast and the state of Louisiana have many air pollution hotspots and high rates of cancer, hence the area named “Cancer Alley.” Both Dr. Armendariz and Mr. Curry demonstrate the ability to look at these issues from diverse perspectives, to analyze data without preconception and to elucidate reasonable yet broad-minded, forward-thinking ideas to protect our natural resources and our communities. In fact, we believe that both of these gentlemen are among the best candidates our region has ever seen.

Texas Campaign for the Environment is working with other social and environmental justice organizations to identify and evalutate all the candidates for this important position. We have distributed questionnaires to several candidates asking for their positions on some of the key issues facing the region, and posted below are the responses we've received so far.

Dr. Alfredo Juan “Al” Armendariz - click here to read the survey response
Mr. Ron Curry - click here to read the survey response
Mr. Terence Thorn - click here to read the survey response
Ms. Diane Dutton, Esq. - click here to read the survey response
Mr. Jim Roth
Mr. Mark Alvarado, Esq. - click here to read the survey response

Another candidate being considered for this position is John Hall, a former Chairman of the Texas environmental agency (then known as TNRCC, now called Texas Commission on Environmental Quality or TCEQ). As head of the state environmental agency, Mr. Hall caved under pressure from polluters and issued controversial permits to industry. Upon leaving the agency, he immediately started his own public affairs firm and went straight to work for the companies he had formerly been “regulating.” Over the years, he has represented an array of clients from the oil and gas, petrochemical, electric utility and solid waste industries such as the Association of Electric Companies of Texas, Inc., BASF, Chevron U.S.A., Inc., Diamond Shamrock Refining & Marketing, Exxon Mobil, Fina Oil & Chemical Co., Total Petrochemicals, TXU Services, Worldwide Wastewater, Inc. and Waste Management. In true “revolving door” fashion, Mr. Hall now wants the EPA Regional Administrator job.



                                                                                                      Alexa Schirtzinger/Dallas Observer

The people of this region and this country need a bold leader in this position—not industry lobbyists with so many conflicts of interest and a history of working for the polluters whose actions cause harm to so many communities.

On the very first day of his Administration, President Obama issued his Executive Order regarding Ethics Commitment by Executive Branch Personnel. The message was that corporate lobbyists were not going to fill positions to regulate their former clients. We believe that appointing John Hall should be unthinkable given this Executive Order. He has represented so many polluters that he would have extensive conflicts of interests. Mr. Hall should not be sent through the revolving door again into the Regional Administrator position for EPA Region 6.

Principles for Environmental Leadership and Real Change in EPA Region 6
(Texas, New Mexico, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma)

Supported by Texas Campaign for the Environment, Clean Water Action, Public Citizen, Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance, PODER, Environment Texas, Louisiana Bucket Brigade, TEJAS, Southwest Network for Environmental and Economic Justice, Citizens for Environmental Justice, Carbon Shrinks, Gulf Restoration Network, Ecology Action of Texas, Save Our Water, SEED Coalition, Texans for Public Justice, Indian Creek HOA Landfill Committee, Owens Park NA Transfer Station Task Force, Martina Cartwright, Esq. and Neil Carman, Ph.D.

In order to exhibit environmental leadership for Region 6, the appointee to the EPA Regional Administrator position should fulfill the following principles:

- A demonstrated commitment to public health for all residents of five-state region, especially fenceline communities.

- A demonstrated knowledge and commitment to environmental issues and principles of environmental justice.

- Experience in the use, not abuse of science to protect public health and the environment.

- A professional background that meets the letter and spirit of President Obama’s January 21st executive order on ethics.

- Unencumbered by conflicts of interest due to extensive work for polluting industries that s/he would oversee as Regional Administrator.

Based on these principles, we are strongly opposed to the candidacy of John Hall. He has an documented record of lobbying for polluters in Texas.

Press Clippings on the Regional Administrator Appointment
Yet more possible names for the EPA regional administrator: Austin American-Statesman, 09/09

Another update on possible appointee for EPA regional administrator: Austin American-Statesman, 08/09

Groups, politicians scramble to sway pick for Region 6 administrator: Greenwire, 08/09

Candidate for regional EPA post faces opposition: Dallas Morning News, 06/09

Just Why Is the EPA Considering Waste Management's Lobbyist For Dallas Director? Dallas Observer, 06/09

Environmentalists Plenty Steamed About Possible Nominee to Head EPA's Dallas Office: Dallas Observer, 06/09

John Hall: Change We Can Believe In? Texas Observer, 06/09

Panel approves Ferris landfill expansion - divisive 5-year battle in Ellis County ends: Dallas Morning News, 02/95

Residents not so wild about hog operations: Houston Chronicle, 11/97

Environment----Blowing the Whistle at the TNRCC: Texas Observer, 04/97

Issues During Hall’s Tenure as Director of the Texas Environmental Agency

John Hall has a controversial record as head of the Texas state environmental agency. The following examples raise questions about his commitment to environmental health and justice:

1. Hall approved of Waste Management’s massive landfill expansion south of Dallas, even though an impartial administrative law judge recommended denial of the expansion due to the impact it would have on minority neighborhoods.

2. When Hall headed the TNRCC, the agency cut out public input, weakened enforcement against life-threatening air pollution and noxious odors and diluted permit rules for massive confined animal feeding operations. In a May 2009 meeting with TCE and other environmental advocates, Hall said he could not recall this issue coming before the Commissioners, but it was on the Commissioners’ June 14, 1995 docket—just weeks before Hall left the agency.

3. Hall caved to industry lobbyists in D/FW to allow the continued (to this day) incineration of toxic waste at the TXI Midlothian cement kilns. After negotiating for months with environmental groups to construct a “clean fuels” compromise that would have eliminated metals and chlorinated waste from TXI's waste stream, Mr. Hall ultimately rejected any compromise and agreed with the Texas Chemical Council (representing Gulf Coast industries seeking a cheap disposal method for hazardous waste) that TXI could burn anything it pleased. This set the stage for the largest hazardous waste incineration permit ever granted in the U.S. and ensured that citizens would be working for another fifteen years in an attempt to eliminate burning hazardous waste in circa-1960 cement kilns in Midlothian.

4. Hall had to resign as Chair of a national environmental justice task force during the Clinton years because of pending environmental justice lawsuits against the TNRCC.

Hall Took the Revolving Door Out of TNRCC Straight Into Contracts with Regulated Industries

Since July 1995, Hall has been a consultant to many regulated industries including waste companies, coal plant utilities, petrochemical firms and others. Specific concerns include:

-- Less than 6 months after the decision to allow Waste Management, Inc. (WMI) to super-size the landfill south of Dallas, he was calling WMI to hire him as a consultant—he has remained one into 2009. WMI has been his second most lucrative lobbying client, with payments up to $950,000 for his services. WMI has been very active in efforts to oppose increasing public input during the permitting process and has lobbied in Texas and elsewhere against positive rule changes for waste facilities. Given his history working for WMI, advocates who work on trash issues have serious reservations about Mr. Hall’s willingness or ability to advance progressive trash and recycling policies.

-- Mr. Hall’s third best-paid lobbying contract is with City Public Service of San Antonio, which recently received a permit for an additional coal-fired power plant. Part of Mr. Hall’s job was to organize a stakeholder process in San Antonio, as he has for Mobil in Port Arthur. However, these stakeholder processes have not included community activists that work on the environmental health issues associated with the polluters’ facilities. In Port Arthur, Mobil’s stakeholder group refused to include the most prominent local environmental justice advocacy group, Community In-Power and Development Association. Likewise in San Antonio, local and statewide stakeholders were shut out of meetings and literally had to beat on doors at times to be let in.

-- Aside from his lobbying contracts, his public affairs firm has other contracts that do not appear in lobbying reports. He had a long-standing relationship with the Pedernales Electric Cooperative (PEC), which brought at least $770,000 into Hall’s firm. Mr. Hall was hired by former PEC General Manager Bennie Fuelberg, later ousted because of a wide-ranging scandal that relates in part to contracts with Hall and others who were paid handsomely with little work product to show for it. The new General Manager, Juan Garza, terminated the financial relationship with Hall. The Texas Attorney General’s Office is overseeing an on-going grand jury investigation of PEC.

Texas and Region 6 Need a True Advocate for Public Heath and Environmental Justice

There are other qualified individuals under consideration for the position who have demonstrated a commitment to protecting the environment and public health. We are certain other candidates demonstrate the qualifications and integrity needed at this time for this position.

In a May 2009 meeting with TCE and other environmental groups, John Hall told us that Region VI needed someone who would be able and willing to take on the Texas environmental agency—where the prevailing orientation is to protect business—each and every day. We could not agree more. However, given his performance inside the TNRCC and as a private consultant for many polluting interests, we have grave apprehensions that John Hall is not the person to fill those shoes.

Examples of John Hall Public Affairs Lobbying Clients 1997-2009

* Lobbying contracts are reported within dollar ranges rather than specific amounts.