--- title: Donald Trump's EPA Budget Cuts Would Hurt Public Health description: The effects of the President's proposed 25% budget cut at the agency would put human health at risk in the U.S., advocates say canonical: https://time.com/4688753/donald-trump-epa-budget-cuts-public-health/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-03-02T20:54:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:04:18.064Z article:section: Politics og:title: What President Trump's Proposed EPA Budget Cuts Mean for Your Health og:description: The President has proposed a 25% budget cut at the agency og:url: https://time.com/4688753/donald-trump-epa-budget-cuts-public-health/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcd88056e544cb37e/6988bcc7cf40a889ecc46ae0/brownfields-epa-grants.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: EPA Brownfield sites og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What President Trump's Proposed EPA Budget Cuts Mean for Your Health twitter:description: The President has proposed a 25% budget cut at the agency twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcd88056e544cb37e/6988bcc7cf40a889ecc46ae0/brownfields-epa-grants.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # What President Trump's Proposed EPA Budget Cuts Mean for Your Health > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ## Video: A Trump Presidency and the Future of Climate Change [Watch (HLS stream): A Trump Presidency and the Future of Climate Change](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/U3bhooK6.m3u8) (2:27)  _Published 2016-11-15. Donald Trump has repeatedly indicated that environmentalism is not his priority. Now, Climate scientists, policymakers and diplomats are questioning how his presidency will shape the future of climate change policy._  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Mar 2, 2017 8:54 PM UTC  The former Maine Energy Recovery Co. site, seen from the corner of Lincoln Street and Pearl Street, was purchased by the city of Biddeford, Maine in 2012\. The 8.4-acre site received funding from the Environmental Protection Agency through a brownfields cleanup grant. The former Maine Energy Recovery Co. site, seen from the corner of Lincoln Street and Pearl Street, was purchased by the city of Biddeford, Maine in 2012\. The 8.4-acre site received funding from the Environmental Protection Agency through a brownfields cleanup grant. Derek Davis—Portland Press Herald/Getty Images  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Mar 2, 2017 8:54 PM UTC President Trump’s administration is planning big cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), with the aim of moving the organization away from climate programs that grew under President Obama. But the proposed 25% cut to the EPA’s budget would also slash funding to dozens of other initiatives that support clean air and water, which environmental and public health groups say would put human wellbeing at risk almost immediately. “I can predict with certainty that if those cuts prevail — and I’m not predicting they will — millions of people around the country will be exposed to unhealthful air,” says Bill Becker, executive director of the National Association of Clean Air Agencies. “It could literally be the difference between protecting public health and premature death.” The proposed cuts — which were not released publicly but have been reported widely and were shared with TIME — represent just the first stage of a winding budget process, and many environmental policy experts do not expect that such drastic cuts will win the approval of Congress. Many environmental programs — including grants to states — remain popular on both sides of the aisle. Indeed, [EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt](http://time.com/4637905/epa-scott-pruitt-global-warming/?iid=sr-link1) has already said he is in talks with the White House about maintaining certain state grants that appear to be targeted in the first budget. **Read More:** [How the United States Looked Before the EPA](http://fortune.com/2017/02/28/how-the-united-states-looked-before-the-epa/) “I am concerned about the grants that have been targeted, particularly around water infrastructure, and those very important state revolving funds,” Pruitt said, according to a [report](http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2017/03/01/stories/1060050736) in _E&E News_. “The importance is setting priorities as an agency and then allowing the budget to be formed around that.” Trump has repeatedly said that he wants to “promote clean air and clear water” but without deep cuts across the board at the EPA, Trump is unlikely to be able to deliver on the 25% target. Here’s a look at what’s proposed for some affected programs and what they mean for public health: **Grants to states** Much of the work protecting the country’s air and water is left to the states. Trump and Pruitt have called for increased reliance on states in environmental matters, but the proposed budget cuts grants to states and tribes by 30%, according to Becker. Those grants cover a wide variety of initiatives aimed at protecting public health. For instance, the Trump budget cuts funding to implement the Clean Air Act in states and localities from about $227 million to less than $160 million, grants to implement the Clean Water Act from $230 million to $161 million and grants to address lead poisoning from about $14 million to less than $10 million. **Diesel emissions reductions grants** The long lifespan of diesel vehicles means that many old diesel engines remain on the road today despite changing emissions standards. In short, old vehicles emit far greater levels of dirty pollutants than new ones. This [program](https://www.epa.gov/cleandiesel/learn-about-clean-diesel), which receives approximately $50 million annually from the EPA, funds efforts that reduce emissions from old diesel engines and in turn reduces the risks of asthma and lung conditions. The budget calls for defunding the program, according to Becker. **Environmental justice** Environmental justice programs work to ensure that minority groups and low-income people receive equal treatment under environmental laws. The people helped by these programs often live in the heavily polluted urban areas. Trump has proposed defunding the EPA’s environmental justice program. **Enforcement** Trump has declared himself an enemy of many environmental regulations that keep companies from polluting air in the U.S., but he cannot undo most of them with the stroke of a pen. However, his proposed budget cuts funding that enables enforcement personnel to ensure that the rules are followed. The EPA’s civil enforcement budget alone would be cut from $171 million to $153 million under the proposal, according to Becker. ## Transcript [ BLANK_AUDIO ] Donald Trump has called climate change a hoax. It'll get cooler, it'll get warmer. It's called weather. Now that he's President- elect, here's what at stake for the future of the environment. Thank you. Paris Agreement which was negotiated last year and came into effect just a few weeks ago was a monumental step for addressing climate change. And setting a path forward for the coming decades to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Donald Trump has promised to cancel the Paris agreement, or at the very least, renegotiate it. Stop all payments of the United States tax dollars to UN Global Warming Programs. He does not have the authority to cancel it. It's an agreement with more than 190 countries. He also doesn't have the power to withdraw from it. Immediately at least, it would take at least three years to go through those processes. He does have the power to ignore it. It's unlikely that other countries will feel comfortable making big reductions in their greenhouse gas emissions, if the United States is not taking the lead. Another policy at stake is Obama's clean power plan. [ APPLAUSE ] Single most important step America has ever taken in the fight against global Climate change. Trump has said that he would cancel it. Environmental Protection, what they do is a disgrace. Every week they come out with new regulations. He has the authority to do that. He could direct the EPA to eliminate the clean power plan. We'll be fine with the environment. We can leave a little bit, but you can't destroy businesses He will definitely if he does face litigation from environmental groups that will argue that it's the EPA's role to do that. It's a long winding process. And certainly not something that he's going to be able to accomplish in his first 100 days. Environmentalists are trying to remain Optimistic and looking at a lot of the market trends that have resulted in the reduction in coal power and other greenhouse gas emissions. A lot of it is outside of the realm of regulation. But also trying to stay optimistic about the Paris agreement. Some of them say even if Donald Trump Withdraws, they are confident that other countries will step up to the plate. I'm 16 years old from Mwanza, Tanzania. Looking forward, there's a lot of things that Trump can do to slow progress on climate change, but many of the trends he doesn't have control over. So there is reason for optimism if you're looking in the long- term. 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