Promoting government transparency
Fighting for the release of public health and environmental information
EDF is working to hold the Trump administration accountable, to ensure its activities are transparent, and that information is provided to the public. Using tools afforded under the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), EDF has requested information from EPA and several other federal agencies about a myriad of activities impacting our environment and public health.
You can explore the information EDF has received so far below. These documents are provided as we received them and have not been altered for clarity. We welcome your assistance in reviewing this information. If you would like to share any of your findings, please email us.
EPA Records on Mandy Gunasekara’s Ethics Obligations
These records concern conflicts of interest for Mandy Gunasekara, who became EPA’s Chief of Staff in March 2020 immediately after founding and running an organization dedicated to promoting Trump’s pro-polluter agenda, and serving as a consultant for multiple groups that oppose public health and environmental protections.
EPA Records on the Red Team/Blue Team Exercise
These records provide new information about plans for a “red team/blue team” exercise that was intended to undermine EPA’s long-established use of rigorous, peer-reviewed climate science. EDF obtained these records under FOIA through litigation against EPA.
- "Prospectus for a Climate Science Red/Blue Exercise" submitted to EPA officials [PDF]
- Email from William Happer targeting the 2009 Endangerment Finding for Greenhouse Gases [PDF]
- Emails from an EPA public affairs official seeking support for former Administrator Scott Pruitt’s climate denialist claims [PDF]
Records on EPA’s “Censored Science” Proposal
EDF obtained these records through litigation against EPA over our FOIA request about the agency’s proposal to restrict the scientific evidence it is allowed to consider when setting public health and environmental protections.
- Production 1 [PDF]
- Production 2 [PDF]
- Production 3 [PDF]. This production contains:
- The meeting agenda [PDF] indicating that the Censored Science proposal is an explicit attempt to implement policies that had failed in Congress;
- The invitation to a subsequent EPA call [PDF] further confirming that the agency’s goal was to implement failed legislation; and
- An email [PDF] indicating that the sponsor of the failed legislation remained involved in pushing this policy at EPA, even after his initial meeting with Administrator Pruitt on the subject.
- Production 4 [PDF]
NASA Records Revealing William Happer Correspondence
Schedules of Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Deputy Secretary Jeffrey Rosen
EDF obtained these records through litigation against the DOT over our FOIA request seeking records related to the Trump Administration’s effort to roll back the Clean Car Standards.
- Chao’s Schedule, 2017: January & February; March; April; May; June; July; August; September; October; November; December [PDF]
- Chao’s Schedule, 2018: January; February; March; April; May; June; July; August; September; October; November; December [PDF]
- Chao’s Schedule, 2019: January; February; March; April; May [PDF]
- Rosen’s Schedule, 2017: May; July; August; September; October; November; December [PDF]
- Rosen’s Schedule, 2018: January; February; March [PDF]
EPA records of heavy-duty glider truck manufacturers
EPA Emails and Hill Outreach about Rollback of “Glider” Freight Truck Pollution Limit
Additional DOI records about the Waste Prevention Rule
EPA emails about EPA's Reconsideration of the Clean Car Standards Mid-Term Evaluation
Emails between EPA and The Heartland Institute
Due to the large file size, EDF has divided this document into eight parts.
EPA emails about the 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding
Emails indicating Pruitt’s involvement in EPA website changes
Zinke staff’s outreach to Senators on Waste Prevention Rule
EPA Transition Team discussion about the Inspector General's employment
Department of Energy records about the Baseload Study
Documents removed or modified from EPA's website
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