"An analysis of environmental enforcement cases, together with targeted furloughs during the federal shutdown, shows the EPA’s shift toward deregulation."
"The Trump administration is rapidly reshaping the Environmental Protection Agency to weaken enforcement against polluters and slash regulation of industry, according to data reviewed by The Washington Post, with the government shutdown accelerating the shift.
In the first eight months of President Donald Trump’s return to office, the Justice Department initiated only nine major civil cases against polluters on behalf of the EPA, down from 46 civil lawsuits in the same time frame under President Joe Biden, according to an analysis by the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), a watchdog group. The drop in EPA enforcement cases marks a sharp departure from Trump’s first term, when the department brought 53 cases in the same time frame.
The shift in enforcement, together with the shutdown furloughs, shows the extent to which the Trump administration has reoriented the agency toward promoting economic growth."
Jake Spring and Amudalat Ajasa report for the Washington Post November 7, 2025.
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