Constructs such as ibid., loc. cit. and idem are discouraged by Wikipedia's style guide for footnotes, as they are easily broken. Please improve this article by replacing them with named references (quick guide), or an abbreviated title. (January 2012)

Environmental Protection Agency
EPA
Environmental Protection Agency logo
Agency overview
Formed	December 2, 1970
Employees	17,359 (2011)[1]
Annual budget	$8.682 billion (2011)[1]
Agency executive	Lisa P. Jackson, Administrator
Website
www.epa.gov

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or sometimes USEPA) is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress.^[2] The EPA was proposed by President Richard Nixon and began operation on December 2, 1970, after Nixon submitted a reorganization plan to Congress and it was ratified by committee hearings in the House and Senate.^[3] The agency is led by its Administrator, who is appointed by the president and approved by Congress. The current administrator is Lisa P. Jackson. The EPA is not a Cabinet department, but the administrator is normally given cabinet rank. The agency has approximately 17,000 full-time employees.^[4]

Overview[link]

EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Closeup of EPA building

The EPA employs approximately 17,000 people, and engages many more on a contractual basis. More than half of EPA human resources are engineers, scientists, and environmental protection specialists; other groups include legal, public affairs, financial, and information technologists.

EPA offices include:

• agency headquarters
• regional offices for each of the agency's 10 regions
• 27 laboratories

The agency conducts environmental assessment, research, and education. It has the responsibility of maintaining and enforcing national standards under a variety of environmental laws, in consultation with state, tribal, and local governments. It delegates some permitting, monitoring, and enforcement responsibility to U.S. states and Native American tribes. EPA enforcement powers include fines, sanctions, and other measures.

The agency also works with industries and all levels of government in a wide variety of voluntary pollution prevention programs and energy conservation efforts.

History[link]

On July 9, 1970, citing rising concerns over environmental protection and conservation, President Richard Nixon transmitted Reorganization Plan No. 3 to the United States Congress by executive order, creating the EPA as a single, independent agency from a number of smaller arms of different federal agencies. Prior to the establishment of the EPA, the federal government was not structured to comprehensively regulate environmental pollutants.

The EPA began regulating greenhouse gases (GHGs) from mobile and stationary sources of air pollution under the Clean Air Act (CAA) for the first time on January 2, 2011. Standards for mobile sources have been established pursuant to Section 202 of the CAA, and GHGs from stationary sources are controlled under the authority of Part C of Title I of the Act. See the page Regulation of Greenhouse Gases Under the Clean Air Act for further information.

EPA offices[link]

• Office of the Administrator (OA)^[5]
• Office of Administration and Resources Management (OARM)^[6]
• Office of Air and Radiation (OAR)^[7]
• Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP)^[8]
• Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO)^[9]
• Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA)^[10]
• Office of Environmental Information (OEI)^[11]
• Office of General Counsel (OGC)^[12]
• Office of Inspector General (OIG)^[13]
• Office of International and Tribal Affairs (OITA)^[14]
• Office of Research and Development (ORD)^[15]
• Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER)^[16]
• Office of Water (OW)^[17]

EPA regions[link]

The administrative regions of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Each EPA regional office is responsible within its states for implementing the Agency's programs, except those programs that have been specifically delegated to states.

• Region 1: responsible within the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
• Region 2: responsible within the states of New Jersey and New York. It is also responsible for the US territories of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
• Region 3: responsible within the states of Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.
• Region 4: responsible within the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
• Region 5: responsible within the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
• Region 6: responsible within the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.
• Region 7: responsible within the states of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska.
• Region 8: responsible within the states of Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.
• Region 9: responsible within the states of Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and the territories of Guam and American Samoa.
• Region 10: responsible within the states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.

Each regional office also implements programs on Indian Tribal lands, except those programs delegated to Tribal authorities.

Related legislation[link]

The legislation here is general environmental protection legislation, and may also apply to other units of the government, including the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture.

Please help improve this section by pruning it. Further information might be found on the talk page. (October 2010)

Air[link]

• 1955: Air Pollution Control Act PL 84-159
• 1963: Clean Air Act PL 88-206
• 1965: Motor Vehicle Air Pollution Control Act PL 89-272
• 1966: Clean Air Act Amendments PL 89-675
• 1967: Air Quality Act PL 90-148
• 1969: National Environmental Policy Act PL 91-190
• 1970: Clean Air Act Extension PL 91-604
• 1976: Toxic Substances Control Act PL 94-469
• 1977: Clean Air Act Amendments PL 95-95
• 1990: Clean Air Act Amendments PL 101-549

Water[link]

• 1948: Water Pollution Control Act PL 80-845
• 1965: Water Quality Act PL 89-234
• 1966: Clean Waters Restoration Act PL 89-753
• 1969: National Environmental Policy Act PL 91-190
• 1970: Water Quality Improvement Act PL 91-224
• 1972: Federal Water Pollution Control Amendments of 1972 PL 92-500
• 1974: Safe Drinking Water Act PL 93-523
• 1976: Toxic Substances Control Act PL 94-469
• 1977: Clean Water Act PL 95-217
• 1987: Water Quality Act PL 100-4
• 1996: Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1996

Land[link]

• 1947: Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act
• 1964: Wilderness Act PL 88-577
• 1968: Scenic Rivers Preservation Act PL 90-542
• 1969: National Environmental Policy Act PL 91-190
• 1970: Wilderness Act PL 91-504
• 1977: Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act PL 95-87
• 1978: Wilderness Act PL 98-625
• 1980: Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act PL 96-487
• 1994: California Desert Protection Act PL 103-433
• 1996: Food Quality Protection Act
• 2010: California Desert Protection Act

Endangered species[link]

• 1946: Coordination Act PL 79-732
• 1966: Endangered Species Preservation Act PL 89-669
• 1969: Endangered Species Conservation Act PL 91-135
• 1972: Marine Mammal Protection Act PL 92-522
• 1973: Endangered Species Act PL 93-205

Hazardous waste[link]

• 1965: Solid Waste Disposal Act PL 89-272
• 1969: National Environmental Policy Act PL 91-190
• 1970: Resource Recovery Act PL 91-512
• 1976: Resource Conservation and Recovery Act PL 94-580
• 1980: Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act ("Superfund") PL 96-510
• 1982: Nuclear Waste Repository Act PL 97-425
• 1984: Hazardous and Solid Wastes Amendments Act PL 98-616
• 1986: Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act PL 99-499
• 2002: Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act ("Brownfields Law") PL 107-118

Programs[link]

This section is missing information about several major EPA programs. Please expand the primary text and the lead to include this information. (October 2010)

Energy Star[link]

In 1992 the EPA launched the Energy Star program, a voluntary program that fosters energy efficiency.

Pesticide[link]

EPA administers the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) (which is much older than the agency) and registers all pesticides legally sold in the United States.

Environmental Impact Statement Review[link]

EPA is responsible for reviewing Environmental Impact Statements of other federal agencies' projects, under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Safer Detergents Stewardship Initiative[link]

Through the Safer Detergents Stewardship Initiative (SDSI),^[18] EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE) recognizes environmental leaders who voluntarily commit to the use of safer surfactants. Safer surfactants are the ones that break down quickly to non-polluting compounds and help protect aquatic life in both fresh and salt water. Nonylphenol ethoxylates, commonly referred to as NPEs, are an example of a surfactant class that does not meet the definition of a safer surfactant.

The Design for the Environment has identified safer alternative surfactants through partnerships with industry and environmental advocates. These safer alternatives are comparable in cost and are readily available. CleanGredients^[19] is a source of safer surfactants.

Fuel economy[link]

Manufacturers selling automobiles in the USA are required to provide EPA fuel economy test results for their vehicles and the manufacturers are not allowed to provide results from alternate sources. The fuel economy is calculated using the emissions data collected during two of the vehicle's Clean Air Act certification tests by measuring the total volume of carbon captured from the exhaust during the tests.

The current testing system was originally developed in 1972 and used driving cycles designed to simulate driving during rush-hour in Los Angeles during that era. Prior to 1984 the EPA reported the exact fuel economy figures calculated from the test. In 1984, the EPA began adjusting city (aka Urban Dynamometer Driving Schedule or UDDS) results downward by 10% and highway (aka HighWay Fuel Economy Test or HWFET) results by 22% to compensate for changes in driving conditions since 1972 and to better correlate the EPA test results with real-world driving. In 1996, the EPA proposed updating the Federal Testing Procedures^[20] to add a new higher speed test (US06) and an air-conditioner on test (SC03) to further improve the correlation of fuel economy and emission estimates with real-world reports. The updated testing methodology was finalized in December, 2006 for implementation with model year 2008 vehicles and set the precedent of a 12 year review cycle for the test procedures.^[21]

In February 2005, the organization launched a program called "Your MPG" that allows drivers to add real-world fuel economy statistics into a database on the EPA's fuel economy website and compare them with others and the original EPA test results.

It is important to note that the EPA actually conducts these tests on very few vehicles. "While the public mistakenly presumes that this federal agency is hard at work conducting complicated tests on every new model of truck, van, car, and SUV, in reality, just 18 of the EPA’s 17,000 employees work in the automobile-testing department in Ann Arbor, Michigan, examining 200 to 250 vehicles a year, or roughly 15 percent of new models. As to that other 85 percent, the EPA takes automakers at their word—without any testing-accepting submitted results as accurate."^[22] Two-thirds of the vehicles the EPA tests themselves are selected randomly, and the remaining third are tested for specific reasons.

Although originally created as a reference point for fossil fuelled vehicles, driving cycles have been used for estimating how many miles an electric vehicle will do on a single charge.^[23]

Air quality[link]

The Air Quality Modeling Group (AQMG) is in the EPA's Office of Air and Radiation (OAR) and provides leadership and direction on the full range of air quality models, air pollution dispersion models^[24][25] and other mathematical simulation techniques used in assessing pollution control strategies and the impacts of air pollution sources.

The AQMG serves as the focal point on air pollution modeling techniques for other EPA headquarters staff, EPA regional Offices, and State and local environmental agencies. It coordinates with the EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) on the development of new models and techniques, as well as wider issues of atmospheric research. Finally, the AQMG conducts modeling analyses to support the policy and regulatory decisions of the EPA's Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS).

The AQMG is located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.

Oil pollution[link]

SPCC: Spill Prevention Containment and Counter Measures. Secondary Containment mandated at oil storage facilities. Oil release containment at oil development sites.

WaterSense[link]

The WaterSense program is designed to encourage water efficiency through the use of a special label on consumer products. Products include high-efficiency toilets (HETs), bathroom sink faucets (and accessories), and irrigation equipment. WaterSense is a voluntary program, with EPA developing specifications for water-efficient products through a public process and product testing by independent laboratories. The program was launched in 2006.^[26]

Drinking water[link]

EPA ensures safe drinking water for the public, by setting standards for more than 160,000 public water systems throughout the United States. EPA oversees states, local governments and water suppliers to enforce the standards, under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The program includes regulation of injection wells in order to protect underground sources of drinking water.

Radiation Protection[link]

EPA has following seven groups of projects to protect public from nuclear contamination.^[27]

• Waste Management Programs
• Emergency Preparedness and Response Programs

Protective Action Guide

Main article: Protective Action Guide for Nuclear Incidents#Action Plan in USA

EPA developed the manual^[28] to provide guideline for local and state governments to protect public from nuclear accident.

• EPA Cleanup and Multi-Agency Programs
• Risk Assessment and Federal Guidance Programs
• Naturally-Occurring Radioactive Materials Program
• Air and Water Programs
• Radiation Source Reduction and Management

Research vessel[link]

OSV Bold docked at Port Canaveral, FL

On March 3, 2004, the United States Navy transferred USNS Bold, a Stalwart class ocean surveillance ship, to the EPA, now known as OSV Bold. The ship previously used in anti-submarine operations during the Cold War, is equipped with sidescan sonar, underwater video, water and sediment sampling instruments, used in study of ocean and coastline. One of the major missions of Bold is to monitor sites where materials are dumped from dredging operations in U.S. ports for ecological impact.^[29]

Advance identification[link]

Advance identification, or ADID, is a planning process used by the EPA to identify wetlands and other bodies of water and their respective suitability for the discharge of dredged and fill material. The EPA conducts the process in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and local states or Native American Tribes. As of February 1993, 38 ADID projects had been completed and 33 were ongoing.^[30]

Controversies[link]

There has been political controversy over whether environmental regulations increase or decrease national employment.^{[31][32][33][34]}

Air quality standards review[link]

Since its inception the EPA has begun to rely less and less on its scientists and more on non-science personnel. EPA has recently changed their policies regarding limits for ground-level ozone, particulates, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and lead. On March 12, 2008, the federal government of the United States reported that the air in hundreds of U.S. counties was simply too dirty to breathe, ordering a multi-billion dollar expansion of efforts to clean up smog in cities and towns nationwide.^[35]

Fuel economy[link]

In July 2005, an EPA report showing that auto companies were using loopholes to produce less fuel-efficient cars was delayed. The report was supposed to be released the day before a controversial energy bill was passed and would have provided backup for those opposed to it, but at the last minute the EPA delayed its release.^[36]

The state of California sued the EPA for its refusal to allow California and 16 other states to raise fuel economy standards for new cars.^[37] EPA administrator Stephen L. Johnson claimed that the EPA was working on its own standards, but the move has been widely considered an attempt to shield the auto industry from environmental regulation by setting lower standards at the federal level, which would then preempt state laws.^[38][39][40] California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, along with governors from 13 other states, stated that the EPA's actions ignored federal law, and that existing California standards (adopted by many states in addition to California) were almost twice as effective as the proposed federal standards.^[41] It was reported that Stephen Johnson ignored his own staff in making this decision.^[42]

After the federal government bailed out General Motors and Chrysler in the Automotive industry crisis of 2008–2010, the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox was released with EPA fuel economy rating abnormally higher than its competitors. Independent road tests^{[43][44][45][46]} found that both vehicle did not out-perform its competitors, which had much lower fuel economy ratings. Later road tests^[47][48] found better, but inconclusive, results.

Global warming[link]

Wikinews has related news: EPA proposes using Clean Air Act to fight global warming

In June 2005, a memo revealed that Philip Cooney, former chief of staff for the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and former lobbyist for the American Petroleum Institute, had personally edited documents, summarizing government research on climate change, before their release.^[49] Cooney resigned two days after the memo was published in The New York Times. Cooney said he had been planning to resign for over two years, implying the timing of his resignation was just a coincidence. Specifically, he said he had planned to resign to "spend time with his family."^[50] One week after resigning he took a job at Exxon Mobil in their public affairs department.^[51]

In December 2007, EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson approved a draft of a document that declared that climate change imperiled the public welfare—a decision that would trigger the first national mandatory global-warming regulations. Associate Deputy Administrator Jason Burnett e-mailed the draft to the White House. White House aides—who had long resisted mandatory regulations as a way to address climate change—knew the gist of what Johnson's finding would be, Burnett said. They also knew that once they opened the attachment, it would become a public record, making it controversial and difficult to rescind. So they did not open it; rather, they called Johnson and asked him to take back the draft. U.S. law clearly stated that the final decision was the EPA administrator's, not President Bush's. Johnson rescinded the draft; in July 2008, he issued a new version which did not state that global warming was danger to public welfare. Burnett resigned in protest.^[52]

Libraries[link]

In 2004, the Agency began a strategic planning exercise to develop plans for a more virtual approach to library services. The effort was curtailed in July 2005 when the Agency proposed a $2.5 million cut in its 2007 budget for libraries. Based on the proposed 2007 budget, the EPA posted a notice to the Federal Register, September 20, 2006 that EPA Headquarters Library would close its doors to walk-in patrons and visitors on October 1, 2006.^[53] The EPA also closed some of its regional libraries and reduced hours in others,^[54] using the same FY 2007 proposed budget numbers.

On October 1, 2008, the Agency re-opened regional libraries in Chicago, Dallas and Kansas City and the library at its Headquarters in Washington, DC.^[55]

In June 2011, the EPA Library Network published a strategic plan for fiscal years 2012-2014.

Mercury emissions[link]

In March 2005, nine states (California, New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, New Mexico and Vermont) sued the EPA. The EPA's inspector general had determined that the EPA's regulation of mercury emissions did not follow the Clean Air Act, and that the regulations were influenced by top political appointees.^[56][57] The EPA had suppressed a study it commissioned by Harvard University which contradicted its position on mercury controls.^[58] The suit alleges that the EPA's rule allowing exemption from "maximum available control technology" was illegal, and additionally charged that the EPA's system of pollution credit trading allows power plants to forego reducing mercury emissions.^[59] Several states also began to enact their own mercury emission regulations. Illinois's proposed rule would have reduced mercury emissions from power plants by an average of 90% by 2009.^[60]

9/11 air ratings[link]

A report released by the Office of the Inspector General of the United States Environmental Protection Agency in August 2003 claimed that the White House put pressure on the EPA to delete cautionary information about the air quality in New York City around Ground Zero following the September 11, 2001 attacks.

An Environmental Protection Agency employee checks one of the many air sampling locations set up around the World Trade Center site.

Very fine airborne particulates[link]

Tiny particles, under 2.5 micrometres, are attributed to health and mortality concerns,^[61] so some health advocates want the EPA to regulate it. The science may be in its infancy, although many conferences have discussed the trails of this airborne matter in the air. Foreign governments such as Australia and most EU States have addressed this issue.

The EPA first established standards in 1997, and strengthened them in 2006. As with other standards, regulation and enforcement of the PM_2.5 standards is the responsibility of the state governments, through State Implementation Plans.^[62]

Political pressure and Scientific Integrity[link]

In April 2008, the Union of Concerned Scientists said that more than half of the nearly 1,600 EPA staff scientists who responded online to a detailed questionnaire reported they had experienced incidents of political interference in their work. The survey included chemists, toxicologists, engineers, geologists and experts in other fields of science. About 40% of the scientists reported that the interference had been more prevalent in the last five years than in previous years. The highest number of complaints came from scientists who were involved in determining the risks of cancer by chemicals used in food and other aspects of everyday life.^[63]

EPA research has also been suppressed by career managers.^[64] Supervisors at EPA's National Center for Environmental Assessment required several paragraphs to be deleted from a peer-reviewed journal article about EPA's integrated risk information system, which led two co-authors to have their names removed from the publication, and the corresponding author, Ching-Hung Hsu, to leave EPA "because of the draconian restrictions placed on publishing.".^[65] EPA subjects employees who author scientific papers to prior restraint, even if those papers are written on personal time.^[66] A $3 million mapping study on sea level rise was suppressed by EPA management during both the Bush and Obama Administrations, and managers changed a key interagency report to reflect the removal of the maps.^[67]

Environmental justice[link]

The EPA has been criticized for its lack of progress towards environmental justice. Administrator Christine Todd Whitman was criticized for her changes to President Bill Clinton's Executive Order 12898 during 2001, removing the requirements for government agencies to take the poor and minority populations into special consideration when making changes to environmental legislation, and therefore defeating the spirit of the Executive Order.^[68] In a March 2004 report, the inspector general of the agency concluded that the EPA "has not developed a clear vision or a comprehensive strategic plan, and has not established values, goals, expectations, and performance measurements" for environmental justice in its daily operations. Another report in September 2006 found the agency still had failed to review the success of its programs, policies and activities towards environmental justice.^[69] Studies have also found that poor and minority populations were underserved by the EPA's Superfund program, and that this situation was worsening.^[68]

Barriers to enforcing environmental justice[link]

Localization Many issues of environmental justice are localized, and are therefore hard to be addressed by federal agencies such as the EPA. Without significant media attention, political interest, or ‘crisis’ status, local issues are less likely to be addressed on local or federal level. With a still developing sector of environmental justice under the EPA, small, local incidents are unlikely to be solved compared to larger, well publicized incidents.

Conflicting political powers The White House maintains direct control over the EPA, and its enforcements are subject to the political agenda of who is in power. Republicans and Democrats differ in their approaches to, and perceived concerns of, environmental justice. While President Bill Clinton signed the executive order 12898, the Bush administration did not develop a clear plan or establish goals for integrating environmental justice into everyday practices, which in turn affected the motivation for environmental enforcement.^[70]

Responsibilities of the EPA The EPA is responsible for preventing and detecting environmental crimes, informing the public of environmental enforcement, and setting and monitoring standards of air pollution, water pollution, hazardous wastes and chemicals. While the EPA aids in preventing and identifying hazardous situations, it is hard to construct a specific mission statement given its wide range of responsibilities.^[71] It is impossible to address every environmental crime adequately or efficiently if there is no specific mission statement to refer to. The EPA answers to various groups, competes for resources, and confronts a wide array of harms to the environment. All of these present challenges, including a lack of resources, its self-policing policy, and a broadly defined legislation that creates too much discretion for EPA officers.^[72]

Authority of the EPA Under different circumstances, the EPA faces many limitations to enforcing environmental justice. It does not have the authority or resources to address injustices without an increase in federal mandates requiring private industries to consider the environmental ramifications of their activities.^[73]

List of EPA administrators[link]

See also[link]

This "see also" section may contain an excessive number of suggestions. Please ensure that only the most relevant suggestions are given and that they are not red links, and consider integrating suggestions into the article itself. (November 2010)

Acid mine drainage Air dispersion modeling Air pollution American Heritage Rivers AP 42 Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors Atmospheric dispersion modeling BioWatch Brownfield land Energy law Environmentalism Environmental Technology Verification Program EPA Methods Federal On Scene Coordinator Federation of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP Federation) FMVSS Green Sticker programs

Environment portal Politics portal List of solid waste treatment technologies List of Superfund sites in the United States List of waste management companies List of waste management topics Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency MyEnvironment Office of Criminal Enforcement, Forensics and Training Regulation of greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act Regulatory Flexibility Act Renewable energy Stormwater U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board U.S. Climate Change Science Program Watershed central Wise Use Movement

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: United States Environmental Protection Agency

• United States Environmental Protection Agency, Official Website
• [15], EPA's nationwide radiation monitoring system, RadNet
• DotGovWatch.com, created using EPA's Toxic Release Inventory Map
• FuelEconomy.gov
• CLU-IN.org, Haz Waste Site Cleanup Information by US EPA Technology Innovation Program
• Sanjour.info, Collected Papers of William Sanjour a retired EPA employee and whistleblower
• Selected Digitized Environmental Protection Agency Records Available in the National Archives' Archival Research Catalog
• OpenRegs.com, Proposed and finalized federal regulations from the United States Environmental Protection Agency
• Air and Radiation, Partnership between EPA and Office of Air and Radiation (OAR) to prevent air pollution
• Historic technical reports from the Environmental Protection Agency (and other Federal agencies) are available in the Technical Reports Archive and Image Library (TRAIL)
• United States Environmental Protection Agency at WhoRunsGov at The Washington Post

Van Jones
Jones as the Council on Environmental Quality's Special Advisor for Green Jobs (2009)
Born	Anthony Kapel Jones (1968-09-20) September 20, 1968 (age 43) Jackson, Tennessee, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Tennessee, Martin Yale University
Known for	Former Special Advisor for Green Jobs 2009 Time 100 Most Influential People 2009 New York Times bestselling author
Website
Official website

Anthony Kapel "Van" Jones (born September 20, 1968) is an American environmental advocate, civil rights activist, and attorney. Jones is a co-founder of three non-profit organizations. In 1996, he founded the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, a California non-governmental organization (NGO) working for alternatives to violence. In 2005, he co-founded Color of Change, an advocacy group for African Americans.^[1] In 2007, he founded Green For All, a national NGO dedicated to "building an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty."^[2] His first book, The Green Collar Economy, was released on October 7, 2008, and reached number 12 on the New York Times Best Seller list.^[3] In 2008, Time magazine named Jones one of its "Heroes of the Environment".^[4] Fast Company called him one of the "12 Most Creative Minds of 2008".^[5]

In March 2009 Jones was appointed by President Barack Obama to the newly created position of Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, where he worked with various "agencies and departments to advance the administration's climate and energy initiatives, with a special focus on improving vulnerable communities."^[6][7] In July 2009 he became "embroiled in a controversy"^[8] over his past political activities, including a public comment disparaging congressional Republicans, his name appearing on a petition for 911Truth.org, and allegations of association with a Marxist group during the 1990s.^[9][10] For these issues, Van Jones was heavily criticized by conservatives.^[11] Jones resigned from the position in early September 2009.^[8] "On the eve of historic fights for health care and clean energy, opponents of reform have mounted a vicious smear campaign against me," Jones said in his resignation statement. "They are using lies and distortions to distract and divide."^[9]

Jones is currently a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and a senior policy advisor at Green For All. Jones also holds a joint appointment at Princeton University, as a distinguished visiting fellow in both the Center for African American Studies and in the Program in Science, Technology and Environmental Policy at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.

Early life[link]

Jones and his twin sister Angela were born in 1968 in Jackson, Tennessee. Their mother was a teacher at a high school and their father was a principal at a junior high school. Jones' sister said that as a child he was "the stereotypical geek—he just kind of lived up in his head a lot."^[12] He has described his own childhood behavior as "bookish and bizarre."^[12] His grandfather was the senior bishop in the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church,^[13] and Jones sometimes accompanied his grandfather to religious conferences, where he would sit all day listening to the adults "in these hot, sweaty black churches".^[12] Jones was a young fan of John and Bobby Kennedy, and would pin photographs of them to a bulletin board in his room in the specially delineated "Kennedy Section". As a child he paired his Star Wars action figures with Kennedy-era political figures; Luke Skywalker was John, Han Solo was Bobby, and Lando Calrissian was Martin Luther King, Jr.^[14] He graduated from Jackson Central-Merry High School in 1986. Jones received his B.S. in communication and political science from the University of Tennessee at Martin (UT Martin).

Jones worked as an intern at the Jackson Sun (Tennessee), the Shreveport Times (Louisiana) and the Associated Press (Nashville bureau). He also helped to launch and spearhead a number of independent, campus-based publishing efforts. These publications included the Fourteenth Circle (University of Tennessee), the Periscope (Vanderbilt University), the New Alliance Project (state-wide in Tennessee), and the Third Eye (Nashville's African American community).^[15] Jones credits UT Martin for preparing him for life on a global stage:^[16]

I left UT Martin confident that I could take on any challenge and do well at it if I studied hard and worked hard and kept my nose clean. I really do think you can get absolutely anywhere from UT Martin . . . because of the quality of caring and individual attention.

After graduating from UT Martin, Jones left his home state to attend Yale Law School. In 1993, Jones earned his Juris Doctor and moved to San Francisco, California.

Social and environmental activism[link]

Earlier activism[link]

In 1992, while still a law student at Yale, Jones participated as a volunteer legal monitor for a protest of the Rodney King verdict in San Francisco. He and many other participants in the protest were arrested. The district attorney later dropped the charges against Jones. The arrested protesters, including Jones, won a small legal settlement. Jones later said that "the incident deepened my disaffection with the system and accelerated my political radicalization."^[17] In October 2005 Jones said he was "a rowdy nationalist"^[14] before the King verdict was announced, but that by August of that year (1992) he was a communist.^[14] His activism was also spurred on by witnessing racial inequality in New Haven, Connecticut: "I was seeing kids at Yale do drugs and talk about it openly, and have nothing happen to them or, if anything, get sent to rehab...And then I was seeing kids three blocks away, in the housing projects, doing the same drugs, in smaller amounts, go to prison."^[12]

When he graduated from law school, Jones gave up plans to take a job in Washington, D.C., and moved to San Francisco instead.^[14] He became a member^[18] of a "socialist collective" called Standing Together to Organize a Revolutionary Movement (STORM) that protested against police brutality.^[14]

Ella Baker Center for Human Rights[link]

In 1995, Jones started Bay Area PoliceWatch, the region's only bar-certified hotline and lawyer-referral service for victims of police abuse. The hotline started receiving fifteen calls a day.^[12] PoliceWatch began as a project of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights. "We designed a computer database, the first of its kind in the country, that allows us to track problem officers, problem precincts, problem practices, so at the click of a mouse we can now identify trouble spots and troublemakers," said Jones. "This has given us a tremendous advantage in trying to understand the scope and scale of the problem. Now, obviously, just because somebody calls and says, 'Officer so-and-so did something to me,' doesn't mean it actually happened, but if you get two, four, six phone calls about the same officer, then you begin to see a pattern. It gives you a chance to try and take affirmative steps."^[19] By 1996, Jones founded a new umbrella NGO, the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, which "consisted of a closet-like office and a computer that Jones had brought from his apartment."^[14]

From 1996-1997, Jones and PoliceWatch led a campaign which was successful in getting officer Marc Andaya fired from the San Francisco Police Department. Andaya was the lead officer accused of the in-custody death of Aaron Williams, an unarmed black man. In 1999 and 2000, Jones was a leader in the failed campaign to defeat Proposition 21, which sparked a student movement that made national headlines.^[20][21] In 2001, Jones and the Ella Baker Center launched the Books Not Bars campaign. From 2001 to 2003, Jones and Books Not Bars led a campaign to block the construction of a proposed "Super-Jail for Youth" in Oakland's Alameda County. Books Not Bars later went on to launch a statewide campaign to transform California's juvenile justice system.^[22]

Color of Change[link]

Following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Jones and James Rucker co-founded a Web-based grassroots organization to address Black issues called Color of Change. Color of Change's mission as described on its web site is as follows: "ColorOfChange.org exists to strengthen Black America's political voice. Our goal is to empower our members—Black Americans and our allies—to make government more responsive to the concerns of Black Americans and to bring about positive political and social change for everyone."^[1] Within two years of co-founding the organization, Jones moved on to other pursuits, but remains listed on the Color of Change website as "Former Staff".^[1][23]

Shift to environmentalism and Green for All[link]

By 2005, Jones had begun promoting eco-capitalism and environmental justice.^[24] In 2005 the Ella Baker Center expanded its vision beyond the immediate concerns of policing, declaring that "If we really wanted to help our communities escape the cycle of incarceration, we had to start focusing on job, wealth and health creation."^[22] In 2005, Jones and the Ella Baker Center produced the "Social Equity Track" for the United Nations' World Environment Day celebration, held that year in San Francisco.^[25] It was the official beginning of what would eventually become Ella Baker Center's Green-Collar Jobs Campaign.

The Green-Collar Jobs Campaign was Jones' first concerted effort to meld his desire to improve racial and economic equality with his newer desire to mitigate environmental concerns. It soon took as its mission the establishment of the nation's first "Green Jobs Corps" in Oakland. On October 20, 2008, the City of Oakland formally launched the Oakland Green Jobs Corps, a public-private partnership that will "provide local Oakland residents with job training, support, and work experience so that they can independently pursue careers in the new energy economy."^[26]

In September 2007, Jones attended the Clinton Global Initiative and announced his plans to launch Green For All, a new national NGO dedicated to creating green pathways out of poverty in America. The plan grew out of the work previously done at local level at the Ella Baker Center. Green For All would take the Green-Collar Jobs Campaign mission — creating green pathways out of poverty — national.

Green For All formally opened its doors on January 1, 2008. In its first year, Green For All organized "The Dream Reborn," the first national green conference where the majority of attendees were people of color. It cohosted, with 1Sky and the We Campaign, a national day of action for the new economy called "Green Jobs Now." It launched the Green-Collar Cities Program to help cities build local green economies and started the Green For All Capital Access Program to assist green entrepreneurs. As part of the Clean Energy Corps Working Group, it launched a campaign for a Clean Energy Corps initiative which would create 600,000 'green-collar' jobs while retrofitting and upgrading more than 15 million American buildings.^[27]

In reflecting on Green For All's first year, Jones wrote, "One year later, Green For All is real – and we have helped put green collar jobs on the map... We have a long way to go. But today we have a strong organization to help get us there."^[27]

Jones advocates a combination of conservation, regulation and investment as a way of encouraging environmental justice and opposing environmental racism. In an interview for the "EON Deep Democracy Interview Series" Jones spoke of a "third wave of environmentalism":

The first wave is sort of the Teddy Roosevelt, conservation era which had its day and then, in 1963, Rachel Carson writes a book, Silent Spring, and she's talking about toxics and the environment, and that really kind of opens up a whole new wave. So it's no longer just conservation but it's conservation, plus regulation, trying to regulate the bad, and that wave kind of continued to be developed and got kind of a 2.5 upgrade because of the environmental justice community who said, "Wait a minute, you're regulating but you're not regulating equally, the white polluters and white environmentalists are essentially steering poison into the people-of-color communities, because they don't have a racial justice frame." ... Now there's something new that's beginning to gather momentum, and it's conservation plus regulation of the bad, plus investment in the good ... beginning to put money into the solutions as well as trying to regulate the problem.^[28]

Other[link]

Jones has served on the boards of numerous environmental and nonprofit organizations, including 1Sky, the National Apollo Alliance, Social Venture Network, Rainforest Action Network, Bioneers, Julia Butterfly Hill's "Circle of Life" organization and Free Press. He currently serves on the board of trustees at Demos.^[29] He was also a Senior Fellow with the Center for American Progress and a Fellow at the Institute of Noetic Sciences. He was a keynote speaker at the youth conference Power Shift 2009 and 2011 in Washington, D.C.^[1]

During the 2003 California gubernatorial recall election, Jones served as Arianna Huffington's statewide grassroots director.^[30]

[edit] The Green Collar Economy

Van Jones meets with San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom at The Green Collar Economy book signing, October 14, 2008.

On October 7, 2008, HarperOne released Jones' first book, The Green Collar Economy. The book outlines his "substantive and viable plan for solving the biggest issues facing the country—the failing economy and our devastated environment."^[31] The book has received favorable reviews from Al Gore, Nancy Pelosi, Laurie David, Paul Hawken, Winona LaDuke and Ben Jealous.^[32]

In the book, Jones contended that invention and investment will take us out of a pollution-based grey economy and into a healthy new green economy.^[33] Jones wrote:

We are entering an era during which our very survival will demand invention and innovation on a scale never before seen in the history of human civilization. Only the business community has the requisite skills, experience, and capital to meet that need. On that score, neither government nor the nonprofit and voluntary sectors can compete, not even remotely.

So in the end, our success and survival as a species are largely and directly tied to the new eco-entrepreneurs—and the success and survival of their enterprises. Since almost all of the needed eco-technologies are likely to come from the private sector, civic leaders and voters should do all that can be done to help green business leaders succeed. That means, in large part, electing leaders who will pass bills to aid them. We cannot realistically proceed without a strong alliance between the best of the business world—and everyone else.

Jones had a limited publicity budget and no national media platform. But a viral, web-based marketing strategy earned the book a #12 debut on the New York Times bestseller list. Jones and Green For All used "a combination of emails and phone calls to friends, bloggers, and a network of activists" to reach millions of people.^[34] The marketing campaign's grassroots nature has led to Jones calling it a victory not for him but for the entire green-collar jobs movement. Jones was featured on the grassroots radio program, Sea Change Radio, talking about the book and about creating a "new, clean and green economy...in a way that's inclusive." The Green Collar Economy is the first environmental book authored by an African-American to make the New York Times bestseller list.^[27]

White House Council on Environmental Quality[link]

On March 10, 2009, it was announced that Jones would serve as Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality.^[7] Jones, while an ardent supporter of President Barack Obama, originally did not intend to work for the White House, later explaining "when they asked the question, I burst out laughing because at the time it seemed completely ludicrous that it would even be an option. I think what changed my mind was interacting with the administration during the transition process and during the whole process of getting the recovery package pulled together."^[35]

His position with the Obama Administration was described by columnist Chadwick Matlin as "switchboard operator for Obama's grand vision of the American economy; connecting the phone lines between all the federal agencies invested in a green economy."^[36] Jones did not like the informal "czar" term sometimes applied to his job, and described his position as "the green-jobs handyman. I'm there to serve. I'm there to help as a leader in the field of green jobs, which is a new field. I'm happy to come and serve and be helpful, but there's no such thing as a green-jobs 'czar.'"^[37]

Controversy and resignation[link]

After his White House appointment, Jones began receiving criticism from media sources such as WorldNetDaily and Fox News commentator Glenn Beck, who featured Jones on fourteen episodes of his show.^[38][39] They criticized Jones for his past political activities, including his involvement with STORM (Standing Together to Organize a Revolutionary Movement) and his support for Mumia Abu-Jamal, a prisoner sentenced to death for murdering a police officer.^[40][41] In July 2009 Color of Change, an organization that Jones founded in 2005 and left in 2007, launched a campaign urging advertisers on Beck's Fox News show to pull their ads, in response to comments by Beck stating President Obama has a "deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture."^[42] In September 2009, DefendGlenn.com, a website launched in response to the boycott campaign, posted a video on YouTube of a February 2009 event at which Jones called Congressional Republicans "assholes".^[43][44] Jones responded by saying that the comments "were clearly inappropriate" and that "they do not reflect the experience I have had since I joined the [Obama] administration."^[44]

Several days later, Jones came under additional criticism for his name appearing on a 2004 petition from 911Truth.org that suggested the Bush Administration "may indeed have deliberately allowed 9/11 to happen".^[45][46] Representative Mike Pence (R-Indiana), the chairman of the Republican Conference in the U.S. House of Representatives, and Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas), Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, publicly criticized Jones, while Senator Kit Bond (R-Missouri) urged Congress to investigate Jones' "fitness" for the position.^[46][47] Bob Beckel, a Fox News political analyst who was formerly an official in the Carter administration, became the first prominent Democrat to call for Jones' resignation.^[48] In response to the criticisms, Jones issued a statement that said, "In recent days some in the news media have reported on past statements I made before I joined the [Obama] administration — some of which were made years ago. If I have offended anyone with statements I made in the past, I apologize." Of the 9/11 petition specifically, he said, "I do not agree with this statement and it certainly does not reflect my views now or ever."^[45][46]

Wikinews has related news: Van Jones environmental jobs adviser to US President Barack Obama resigns

After what Jones described as a "vicious smear campaign" by "opponents of reform [of health care and clean energy]",^[49] he resigned on September 5, saying that he could not "in good conscience ask my colleagues to expend precious time and energy defending or explaining my past. We need all hands on deck, fighting for the future".^[49] During an interview on ABC's This Week, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs thanked Jones "for his service to the country" and said that Obama "doesn't endorse" Jones' previous association with the 9/11 Truth movement, his comments regarding race relations and politics, and his support for Mumia Abu-Jamal.^[41][50] Some liberal commentators expressed continued support for Jones, singling out the efforts of Glenn Beck to force his resignation.^[51] Arianna Huffington predicted Beck's efforts would backfire by freeing Jones from being "tied to his desk with a sock in his mouth".^[52] John McWhorter, in The New Republic, related his analysis to the Obama presidency in general, saying that allowing Jones to resign was "spineless".^[53]

In a post-resignation interview with The Washington Post, Jones said he did not have "any bitterness or anger about the situation" and expressed his "hope and belief" that people would judge him based on his work.^[54] Later, in an op-ed about the resignation of another Obama administration official, Shirley Sherrod, Jones described the media as having "rushed to judgment" about him, and he denied having ever signed the 911Truth petition.^[55] On July 27, 2010, the group 911truth.org released a statement that they had "researched the situation and were unable to produce electronic or written evidence that Van agreed to sign the Statement".^[56] In 2009 when first questioned about it, Jones said that he hadn't fully reviewed the statement before he signed.^[57] Two other signatories of the statement, Rabbi Michael Lerner and historian Howard Zinn, told Politico's Ben Smith they felt they had signed a petition of more limited scope, one that asked only for an investigation into the attacks.^[57]

Janice Matthews, Director of 911Truth.org, said Jones and two other signatories "requested their names be removed. That has been done." ^[58]

Post-White House activity[link]

Jones speaking at Power Shift 2011, an annual youth summit, in Washington, D.C. on April 15, 2011

In February 2010, Jones became a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, where he leads their Green Opportunity Initiative "to develop a clearly articulated agenda for expanding investment, innovation, and opportunity through clean energy and environmental restoration".^[59] At the same time, he received appointments at Princeton University, as a distinguished visiting fellow in both the Center for African American Studies and in the Program in Science, Technology and Environmental Policy at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.^[60] Jones is also a senior policy advisor at Green For All.^[61]

On February 26, 2010, Jones received the NAACP President's Award at the 41st annual NAACP Image Awards.^[62]

On October 2, 2010, Jones spoke at the One Nation Working Together rally in Washington, DC, where he spoke about linking the fight against poverty with the fight against pollution, saying that green jobs would bring "real solutions" instead of "hateful rhetoric".^[63][64]

On April 15, 2011, Jones spoke at Powershift 2011 in Washington, DC, where he addressed over 10,000 students on issues of climate justice and standing up for underrepresented communities. Powershift 2011 was the largest youth activism and organizing training in U.S. history.

In 2011, Jones worked with MoveOn.org to launch the Rebuild the Dream campaign, which was intended to start a progressive American Dream movement to counter the Tea Party movement.^[65] Following a kickoff on June 23, 2011,^[66][67] Rebuild the Dream announced a "Contract for the American Dream", intended as a counter to the Tea Party-supported "Contract from America",^[68] and held house meetings in July.^[69][70] Jones claimed 127,000 people had become involved in the movement by the end of July 2011.^[71]

At the beginning of October 2011, prior to a Rebuild the Dream conference in Washington, DC, Jones compared the Occupy Wall Street movement to an "American Autumn" comparable to the Arab Spring uprisings, saying, "You can see it right now with these young people on Wall Street. Hold onto your hats, we're going to have an October offensive to take back the American dream and to rescue America's middle class."^[72]

At a speech in San Francisco in February 2012, Jones spoke out on behalf of underwater home owners, saying "”They call it class warfare…if anything, it’s warfare against people who have no class…they won’t even return our phone calls when our houses are underwater.”^[73]

Awards and honors[link]

Jones' awards and honors include:^[74]

• 1997-1999 - Rockefeller Foundation "Next Generation Leadership" Fellowship
• 1998 - Reebok International Human Rights Award
• 2000 - International Ashoka Fellowship
• 2008 - Best Dressed Environmental List (#1 of 30); Sustainable Style Foundation^[75]
• 2008 - Time Magazine Environmental Hero^[4]
• 2008 - Elle Magazine Green Award
• 2008 - One of the George Lucas Foundation's "Daring Dozen"
• 2008 - Hunt Prime Mover Award; Hunt Alternatives Fund
• 2008 - Campaign for America's Future "Paul Wellstone Award"
• 2008 - Global Green USA "Community Environmental Leadership" Award
• 2008 - San Francisco Foundation Community Leadership Award
• 2008 - Puffin/Nation Prize for Creative Citizenship^[76]
• 2008 - World Economic Forum "Young Global Leader"
• 2009 - Hubert H. Humphrey Civil Rights Award^[77]
• 2009 - Eco-Entrepreneur Award, Institute for Entrepreneurship, Leadership & Innovation; Howard University
• 2009 - Individual Thought Leadership, Energy & Environment Awards; Aspen Institute^[78]
• 2010 - NAACP President's Award^[62]
• 2010 - Commonwealth Club of California - Inforum's 21st Century Visionary Award
• 2010 - Global Exchange Human Rights Award Honoree.^[79]

Bibliography[link]

• Jones, Van; Conrad, Ariane (2008). The Green Collar Economy. New York: HarperOne. ISBN 978-0-06-165075-8. 
• Jones, Van (2012). Rebuild the Dream. New York: Nation Books. ISBN 1-56858-714-7. 

See also[link]

	Barack Obama portal
	Biography portal
	California portal
	San Francisco Bay Area portal
	Environment portal
	Politics portal

• List of people from Tennessee
• List of U.S. executive branch czars
• List of Yale Law School alumni
• Green collar worker
• Social justice

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Blog entries at The Huffington Post
• Blog entries at Grist.org
• Van Jones at TED Conferences
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Van Jones at the Internet Movie Database
• Van Jones on Twitter
• Van Jones on Charlie Rose
• Works by or about Van Jones in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• 'Ella Baker Center for Human Rights in California', The Nathan Cummings Foundation (2004)
• 'Van Jones: Speak Truth to Power Defender' Speaktruth.org (2007 interview)
• 'Miracles', Jones' biographical keynote at the Craigslist Foundation's 'Nonprofit Boot Camp'
• Van Jones Resigns Citing "Vicious Smear Campaign Against Me" - video report by Democracy Now!
• Van Jones interview with Tavis Smiley at PBS (2010)
• Van Jones: Inforum's 21st Century Visionary Award (Commonwealth Club) (Full video 01:10:10 on FORA.tv)

Rick Perry
Rick Perry in February 2012.
47th Governor of Texas
Incumbent
Assumed office December 21, 2000
Lieutenant	Bill Ratliff David Dewhurst
Preceded by	George W. Bush
39th Lieutenant Governor of Texas
In office January 19, 1999 – December 21, 2000
Governor	George W. Bush
Preceded by	Bob Bullock
Succeeded by	Bill Ratliff
9th Commissioner of Agriculture of Texas
In office January 15, 1991 – January 19, 1999
Governor	Ann Richards George W. Bush
Preceded by	Jim Hightower
Succeeded by	Susan Combs
Member of the House of Representatives of Texas from District 64
In office 1985–1991
Preceded by	Joe Hanna
Succeeded by	John Cook
Personal details
Born	James Richard Perry (1950-03-04) March 4, 1950 (age 62) Paint Creek, Texas
Political party	Republican Party (since 1989) Democratic Party (until 1989)
Spouse(s)	Anita Thigpen
Children	Griffin Sydney
Residence	West Austin, Texas (Temporary residence since 2007, during repairs to the Texas Governor's Mansion)[1]
Alma mater	Texas A&M University (B.S.)
Profession	Military Officer Farmer Politician
Religion	Christianity (evangelical) [2]
Signature
Website	www.governor.state.tx.us
Military service
Service/branch	United States Air Force
Years of service	1972–1977
Rank	Captain
Unit	772nd Tactical Airlift Squadron

	This article is part of a series about Rick Perry	Mitt Romney
2012 Presidential Campaign Governor of Texas Political positions

James Richard "Rick" Perry (born March 4, 1950) is the 47th and current Governor of Texas. Perry, a Republican, was elected Lieutenant Governor of Texas in 1998 and assumed the governorship in December 2000 when then-governor George W. Bush resigned to become President of the United States. Perry was elected to full gubernatorial terms in 2002, 2006 and 2010. With a tenure in office to date of &1000000000000001100000011 years, &10000000000000188000000188 days, Perry is the longest continuously serving current U.S. governor, and the second longest serving current U.S. governor—after Terry Branstad of Iowa. Perry served as Chairman of the Republican Governors Association in 2008 (succeeding Sonny Perdue of Georgia) and again in 2011.^[3] Perry is the longest serving governor in Texas state history. As a result, he is the only governor in modern Texas history to have appointed at least one person to every eligible state office, board, or commission position (as well as to several elected offices to which the governor can appoint someone to fill an unexpired term, such as six of the nine current members of the Texas Supreme Court).

Perry won the Texas 2010 Republican gubernatorial primary election, defeating U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison and former Wharton County Republican Party Chairwoman and businesswoman Debra Medina.^[4] In the 2010 Texas gubernatorial election, Perry won a third term by defeating former Houston mayor Bill White and Kathie Glass.^[5]

On August 13, 2011, Perry announced in South Carolina that he was running for the Republican nomination for President of the United States in the 2012 presidential election. On January 19, 2012, Perry announced he would be suspending his campaign for the Republican nomination, and endorsed Newt Gingrich.

Early life, education, and military service[link]

A fifth-generation Texan, Perry was born in Paint Creek, about 60 miles (97 km) north of Abilene in West Texas, to ranchers Joseph Ray Perry and the former Amelia June Holt. Perry's ancestry is almost entirely English, dating as far back as the original thirteen colonies. His family has been in Texas since before the Texan Revolution.^[6][7][8]

His father, a Democrat, was a long-time Haskell County commissioner and school board member. Perry has said that his interest in politics probably began in November 1961, when his father took him to the funeral of U.S. Representative Sam Rayburn (D-TX),^[9] who during his long public career served as speaker of the Texas House for a short time at the age of 29 and then later for 17 years as the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Perry was in the Boy Scouts (BSA) and earned the rank of Eagle Scout; his son, Griffin, would later become an Eagle Scout as well.^[10][11] The BSA has honored Perry with the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award.^[12]

Perry graduated from Paint Creek High School in 1968. He then attended Texas A&M University, where he was a member of the Corps of Cadets, a member of the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity, was elected senior class social secretary, and was also elected as one of A&M's five yell leaders.^[13][14] Perry graduated in 1972 with a Bachelor of Science in animal science.^[15][16]

Perry said that the Corps of Cadets gave him the discipline to complete his animal sciences degree and earn a commission in the Air Force. In a 1989 interview he said that "I was probably a bit of a free spirit, not particularly structured real well for life outside of a military regime, I would have not lasted at Texas Tech or the University of Texas. I would have hit the fraternity scene and lasted about one semester."^[15] Perry was a prankster in college: he once placed live chickens in the closet of an upperclassman during Christmas break and used M-80 firecrackers to prank students using the toilet.^[15]

In the early 1970s, Perry interned during several summers with the Southwestern Company, as a door-to-door book salesman. "I count my time working for Dortch Oldham [President of the Southwestern Company] as one of the most important formative experiences of my life," Perry said in 2010. "There is nothing that tests your commitment to a goal like getting a few doors closed in your face." He said that "Mr. Oldham taught legions of young people to communicate quickly, clearly and with passion, a lesson that has served me well in my life since then."^[17]

Upon graduation in 1972, Perry was commissioned in the Air Force and completed pilot training in February 1974. He was then assigned as a C-130 pilot to the 772nd Tactical Airlift Squadron at Dyess Air Force Base. Perry's duties included two-month overseas rotations at RAF Mildenhall in England and Rhein-Main Air Base in Germany. His missions included a 1974 U.S. State Department drought relief effort in Mali, Mauritania and Chad, and two years later, earthquake relief in Guatemala.^[18] He left the Air Force in 1977 with the rank of captain, returned to Texas, and went into business farming cotton with his father.^[19]

Early political career[link]

Texas Legislature[link]

In 1984, Perry was elected to the Texas House of Representatives as a Democrat from district 64, which included his home county of Haskell. He served on the House Appropriations and Calendars committees during his three two-year terms in office. He befriended fellow freshman state representative Lena Guerrero of Austin, a staunch liberal Democrat who endorsed Perry's reelection bid in 2006 on personal, rather than philosophical, grounds.

Perry was part of the "Pit Bulls", a group of Appropriations members who sat on the lower dais in the committee room (or "pit") who pushed for austere state budgets during the 1980s.^[20] At one point, The Dallas Morning News named him one of the ten most effective members of the legislature.^[21]

In 1987, Perry voted for a $5.7 billion tax increase proposed by Republican governor Bill Clements.^[22] Perry supported Al Gore in the 1988 Democratic presidential primaries and worked in an unspecified capacity for Gore's campaign in Texas.^[23] In 1989, Perry announced that he was switching parties, becoming a Republican.^[24]

Agriculture Commissioner[link]

In 1990, as a newly minted Republican, Perry challenged Jim Hightower, the incumbent Democratic Agriculture Commissioner. Hightower had worked on behalf of Jesse Jackson for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988, while Perry had supported U.S. Senator Al Gore of Tennessee.

During 1990, Hightower's office was embroiled in a FBI investigation into corruption and bribery. Three aides were convicted in 1993 of using public funds for political fundraising, although Hightower himself was not found to be involved in the wrongdoings.^[25] Perry narrowly defeated Hightower in November 1990.

As Agriculture Commissioner, Perry was responsible for promoting the sale of Texas farm produce to other states and foreign nations, and for supervising the calibration of weights and measures, such as gasoline pumps and grocery store scales.^[26]

In April 1993, Perry, while serving as Texas agriculture commissioner, expressed support for the effort to reform the nation's health care, describing it as "most commendable".^[27] The health care plan, first revealed in September, was ultimately unsuccessful due to Republican congressional opposition.^{[28][29][30][31][32]} In 2005, after being questioned on the issue by a potential opponent in the Republican governor primary, Perry said that he expressed his support only in order to get Clinton to pay more attention to rural health care.^[33]

In 1994, Perry was reelected Agriculture Commissioner by a large margin, getting 2,546,287 votes (62 percent) to Democrat Marvin Gregory's 1,479,692 (36 percent). Libertarian Clyde L. Garland received the remaining 85,836 votes (2 percent).^[34] Gregory, a chicken farmer from Sulphur Springs, Texas, was on the Texas Agricultural Finance Authority with Perry in the early nineties, as a Republican. He became a Democrat before running against Perry in 1994.^[35]

Lieutenant Governor[link]

In 1998, Perry chose not to seek a third term as Agriculture Commissioner, running instead for Lieutenant Governor to succeed the retiring Democrat Bob Bullock. During this election, Rick Perry had a notable falling out with his previous top political strategist Karl Rove, which began the much-reported rivalry between the Bush and Perry camps.^[36] Perry polled 1,858,837 votes (50.04 percent) to the 1,790,106 (48.19 percent) cast for Democrat John Sharp of Victoria, who had relinquished the Comptroller's position after two terms to seek the lieutenant governorship. Libertarian Anthony Garcia polled another 65,150 votes (1.75 percent).^[34] Perry thus became the state's first Republican lieutenant governor since Reconstruction, taking office on January 19, 1999.

Governor of Texas[link]

President George W. Bush and Texas Governor Rick Perry shake hands after a question and answer session at the Port Arthur airport. Port Arthur was hit hard by Hurricane Rita.

Perry assumed the office of governor on December 21, 2000, following the resignation of George W. Bush—who was preparing to become President of the United States.^[10] He won the office in his own right in the 2002 gubernatorial election, where he received 57.80% of votes to businessman Tony Sanchez's 39.96%.^[34] He was re-elected in the 2006 gubernatorial election against three major opponents, polling 39% of votes against runner-up Chris Bell with 29.8%. In the 2010 gubernatorial election, Perry became the first Texas governor to be elected to three four-year terms, polling 54.97% of votes to Bill White's 42.48%.

In his three gubernatorial campaigns, Perry received hard-money campaign contributions of $102 million, half of which came from 204 donors.^[37]

In the 2001 legislative session, Perry set a record for his use of the veto, rejecting 82 acts, more than any other governor in any single legislative session in the history of the state since Reconstruction.^{[38] [39][40]}

Fiscal policies[link]

Rick Perry giving a speech at Pioneer Hi-Bred conference

In his presidential campaign, Perry has highlighted the economic success Texas achieved under his governorship, although the true success of his policies has been questioned.^{[41][42][43][44][45][46]} A proclaimed proponent of fiscal conservatism, Perry has often campaigned on job growth and tax issues, such as his opposition to creating a state income tax. Perry refused in 2002 to promise not to raise taxes as governor, and in the following years did propose or approve various tax and debt^[47] increases.^{[48][49][50][51]} In 2009, Perry signed Grover Norquist's pledge to "oppose and veto any and all efforts to increase taxes".

Texas began borrowing money in 2003 to pay for roads and will owe $17.3 billion by the end of 2012, increasing total state debt, from $13.4 billion in 2001 to $37.8 billion in 2011.^[52] The state's public finance authority sold $2 billion in bonds for unemployment benefits, and it's authorized to sell $1.5 billion more if necessary. Texas federal borrowing topped $1.6 billion in October 2010, before the bond sales.^[53] Texans voted November 8, 2011 for a Water Works Bill with an additional $6 billion of debt and against new tax breaks for landowners.^[54] A Republican on the Natural Resources Committee laments “we couldn’t get the votes” which would break Perry's pledge not to raise taxes.^[55]

In 2003, Perry signed legislation that created the Texas Enterprise Fund, which has since given $435 million in grants to businesses. The New York Times reported that many of the companies receiving grants, or their chief executives, have made contributions to Perry's campaigns or to the Republican Governors Association.^[56]

Health[link]

As Governor, Perry has been an outspoken opponent of federal health-care reform proposals and of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, describing the latter as "socialism on American soil".^[57] Perry's focus in Texas has been on tort reform, signing a bill in 2003 which restricted non-economic damages in medical malpractice judgments.^[58] Perry touted this approach in his Presidential campaign, although independent analysts have concluded that it has failed to increase the supply of physicians or limit health-care costs in Texas.^[57][59]

During Perry's governorship, Texas rose from second to first among states with the highest proportion of uninsured residents at 26%, and had the lowest level of access to prenatal care in the U.S.^[57] Perry and the Republican-led state legislature have cut Medicaid spending and made it more difficult to enroll in the program, which currently covers one-third of Texas children.^[57] The cost of caring for uninsured Texans has been borne by those with insurance, leading to substantial rises in insurance premiums and leading Texas to rank next-to-last among states in terms of affordability of health insurance.^[60] The Los Angeles Times wrote that under Perry, "working Texans increasingly have been priced out of private healthcare while the state's safety net has withered."^[60]

Perry's office has argued that Texas represents a model private-sector approach to health-care. His spokeswoman stated that "Texas does provide an adequate safety net to those truly in need... and many individuals simply choose not to purchase healthcare coverage."^[60]

Perry is pro-life and has signed multiple bills creating new rules or restrictions for abortion procedures and funding for such.^[61][62] These bills include a May 2010 law requiring that a sonogram be performed prior to every abortion, and that the practitioner discuss the sonogram images with the patient except in limited cases where the patient may waive the explanation.^[63][64][65] In December 2011, Perry said he had undergone a "transformation" and now opposed all abortions, including in cases of rape and incest. The next day he clarified that he would allow an exception for abortions that would save a mother's life.^[66][67]

In February 2007, Perry issued an executive order mandating that Texas girls receive the HPV vaccine, which protects against some strains of the human papilloma virus, a contributing factor to some forms of cervical cancer.^[68] Following the move, news outlets reported various apparent financial connections between Perry and the vaccine's manufacturer, Merck.^[68][69] Merck's political action committee has contributed $28,500 since 2001 to Perry's campaigns.^[70] The order was criticized by some parents and social conservatives, and a lawsuit was filed later that month.^[71] In May 2007, the Texas Legislature passed a bill undoing the order; Perry did not veto the bill, saying the veto would have been overruled, but blamed lawmakers who supported the bill for the deaths of future cancer victims.^[72]

In 2011, Governor Perry both had adult stem cell surgery himself, in Houston by Dr. Jones, and started "laying the groundwork" for the commercialization of the adult stem cell industry in Texas.^[73][74]

Religion[link]

Perry grew up in the Methodist church, until 2010 when he began attending Lake Hills Church in Austin.^[2] In 2006, Perry stated that he believes in the inerrancy of the Bible and that those who do not accept Jesus as their savior will go to hell. He later clarified, "I don't know that there's any human being that has the ability to interpret what God and his final decision-making is going to be."^[75] In his 2008 book On My Honor, Perry expressed his views on the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause. "Let's be clear: I don't believe government, which taxes people regardless of their faith, should espouse a specific faith. I also don't think we should allow a small minority of atheists to sanitize our civil dialogue on religious references."^[76] In June 2011, Perry proclaimed August 6 as a Day of Prayer and Fasting, inviting other governors to join him in a prayer meeting hosted by the American Family Association in Houston.^[77][78] The event was criticized as going beyond prayer and fasting to include launching Perry's presidential campaign.^[79]

Perry has called himself "a firm believer in intelligent design as a matter of faith and intellect", and has expressed support for its teaching alongside evolution in Texas schools, but has also said that "educators and local school officials, not the governor, should determine science curriculum."^[80]

Education[link]

Perry has repeatedly attacked the Robin Hood plan to provide court-mandated equitable school financing for all school districts in the state. In 2005, following rejection of Perry's proposal to replace the Robin Hood plan, Perry vetoed all funding for public schools for the 2007–2008 biennium, saying he would not "approve an education budget that shortchanges teacher salary increases, textbooks, education technology, and education reforms. And I cannot let $2 billion sit in some bank account when it can go directly to the classroom."^[81] Following a second rejection of Perry's bill, Perry asked John Sharp to head a task force charged with preparing a bipartisan education plan, which was subsequently adopted.^[82][83]

In 2001, Perry expressed his pride in the enactment of the statute extending in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants who meet Texas' residency requirements. It also required the undocumented students to pledge to apply for permanent residency or citizenship if this became a possibility for them.^[84]

LGBT issues[link]

In 2002, Perry described the Texas same-sex anti-sodomy law as "appropriate".^[85] The United States Supreme Court's civil rights decision in Lawrence v. Texas struck down the statute Perry referred to the following year for violating the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Perry supported the 2005 ballot proposition which amended the Texas constitution by defining marriage as "only a union between a man and a woman" and prohibiting the state from creating or recognizing "any legal status identical or similar to marriage".^[86] In 2011, after New York legalized same-sex marriage, Perry stated that it was their right to do so under the principle of states' rights delineated in the 10th Amendment.^[87] A spokesman later reiterated Perry's support for a federal constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, saying that position was not inconsistent since an amendment would require approval by three-fourths of the states.^[88]

In his first book, On My Honor, published in 2008, Perry drew a parallel between homosexuality and alcoholism, writing that he is "no expert on the 'nature versus nurture' debate", but that gays should simply choose abstinence.^[89] During the 2012 presidential campaign, he criticized the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell".^[90]

Crime[link]

Perry's campaigns for lieutenant governor and governor focused on a tough stance on crime. He has supported block grants for crime programs.^[91]

Jeff L. Blackburn, chief counsel of the Innocence Project of Texas, said of Perry that "He has done more good than any other governor we've ever had ... unless, of course, it involves the death penalty. On the death penalty, Rick Perry has a profound mental block".^[92]

In 2007, Perry signed a law ending automatic arrest for marijuana possession.^[93]

Death penalty[link]

The neutrality of this section is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (November 2011)

Perry supports the death penalty.^[94] In June 2002, he vetoed a ban on the execution of mentally retarded inmates.^[91] As of August 10, 2011, Texas has carried out 234 executions since Rick Perry became governor.^[95] Cases in which Perry has been criticized for his lack of intervention include those of Cameron Todd Willingham, Frances Newton, and Mexican nationals José Medellín and Humberto Leal Garcia.^{[96][97][98][99]}