‘Gutting the EPA Is Unacceptable’: Democratic Lawmakers Demand Answers Amid ‘Unconstitutional’ Funding Freeze

At United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) headquarters in Washington on Thursday, Democratic Senator Edward J. Markey, U.S. Representative for Arizona Yassamin Ansari and New York Representative Paul Tonko requested a meeting with EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin to discuss why funding for environmental programs was being “unconstitutionally cut off,” a press release from the Office of Ed Markey said.

The Trump administration has disregarded multiple court orders requiring that the funds be restarted.

The three Democratic members of Congress had also planned “to demand that the funding that has already been authorized and appropriated by Congress be rightfully unfrozen,” the press release said.

“Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and their unqualified, unelected, unwanted henchmen want to dismantle the government services that keep our communities thriving, healthy, and safe from polluters,” Markey said in the press release. “I went to the headquarters of the EPA to demand answers from Administrator Zeldin and the DOGE representatives who are illegally withholding funding that would keep air and water clean and help families save money.”

Here’s what happened when Congressman Tonko, Congresswoman Ansari, and I showed up at EPA today to ask to meet with DOGE. First, we were denied entry. Then we were promised a representative was coming to speak with us—twice. No one ever came. We are demanding answers. youtu.be/fvP1xlt46w0

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— Senator Ed Markey (@markey.senate.gov) February 6, 2025 at 7:38 PM

Trump administration officials have not released billions of EPA dollars authorized by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), including those allotted for clean school bus programs. This has left communities without the resources to combat the impacts of hazardous pollution.

In the lobby of the EPA, the legislators faced a cold reception.

Wearing a scarf that said “Climate Can’t Wait,” Senator Markey spoke to security personnel.

“I’m Senator Markey, and we’re here to request a meeting with EPA officials,” the senator from Massachusetts said, as Inside Climate News reported.

The three legislators were escorted outside and stood in the building’s entryway. A security officer told them they were waiting for a representative to come and speak with them.

“We are here to request a meeting with any and all EPA officials inside,” Tonko said, as reported by Inside Climate News. “The American people deserve to know whether their clean air, clean water and clean land are in jeopardy.”

Following the attempted meeting, other members of Congress, as well as advocates and leaders of several unions and environmental groups, including Green New Deal Network, Hip Hop Caucus, WE ACT for Environmental Justice, Climate Action Campaign, Union of Concerned Scientists, National Council of Churches and Natural Resources Defense Council, joined the lawmakers outside EPA headquarters for a press conference.

They accused the newly appointed leaders of the EPA of defying court orders issued by the federal government to enforce legally mandated environmental protections.

“In a place like Phoenix, Arizona, where we have extreme heat, where hundreds of people die each year from heat exposure, and where air pollution is among the worst in the country, gutting the EPA is unacceptable,” Ansari said, as Inside Climate News reported. “People’s lives literally depend on it.”

Multiple judges have issued orders blocking the federal funding freeze, but state leaders have reported that they continue to be locked out of the government’s payment system.

Jillian Blanchard, Lawyers for Good Government’s vice president for climate change and environmental justice, said IRA payouts for grant recipients at the Energy and Agriculture departments had also reported being unable to access funds.

“People cannot get into their accounts. They can’t access funding. They’re waiting on invoices to be paid. No one will call them back,” Blanchard said, as reported by Scientific American.

Markey said the public should know if the EPA was violating court orders and federal statutes.

“Fifty-five years ago, the American people demanded action against polluters — that is the heart and soul of the EPA,” Markey said, as Inside Climate News reported. “We need to make sure their mission remains intact and that they are following the law.”

Outside EPA headquarters, the legislators addressed the group that had gathered, including members of the press, calling Musk an “unelected billionaire” who was intent on orchestrating a hostile restructuring of federal agencies, including the EPA.

“Musk has made it clear — he’s putting the United States in a wood chipper, and now he’s coming for the EPA,” Markey stated. “They’re bragging about taking money from Medicaid, Medicare, the Affordable Care Act and the Green New Deal to fund tax cuts for billionaires and millionaires.”

Markey and fellow legislators referred to reports of EPA employees being warned about possible removal from their jobs. On Thursday, 168 employees who had been working on the agency’s environmental justice initiatives were put on administrative leave.

“After being denied access and a meeting, I left with more questions than answers. I will not stop fighting on behalf of the American people — their clean air, clean water, lower energy bills, and livable future — until I get those answers and funding gets restored. No business as usual. No votes for nominees. No illegal funding freeze. And no workers left behind,” Markey said in the press release.

EPA staff asked what they could do if the agency continued to defy oversight.

“Congress is a stimulus-response institution,” Markey said, as reported by Inside Climate News. “There is nothing more stimulating than millions of Americans waking up to find out their health care and environment are being gutted for tax breaks. Our job is to sound the alarm so the public can push back.”

The legislators promised to keep on with their oversight efforts, which include congressional investigations and possible legal action, while acknowledging the difficulties of holding the EPA accountable under the Trump administration.

“The whole system is fundamentally not working,” Ansari said. “Right now, they are ignoring the courts, ignoring federal oversight, and rewriting the Constitution to serve their billionaire backers.”

Ansari warned the EPA fight was only one part of a bigger effort by Republicans to dismantle government services.

“It is easy to cut what you do not care about,” Ansari said. “Elon Musk and Donald Trump do not care about the American people. They care about their billionaire agenda, which exploits workers and fuels environmental injustice.”

The members of Congress reaffirmed their commitment to blocking the administration’s policies and nominees they felt posed a threat to the country’s environmental protections.

“We have to fight for our future,” Markey said. “From the halls of Congress to the streets of America, from courtrooms to factory floors, we must stand up for clean air, clean water, and a livable planet. That is why we are here.”