Legislation Would Make DEP Boss an Independently Elected Position

introduced two bills, House Bills 2606 and 2607, which would amend the Pennsylvania constitution to change the Department of Environmental Protection’s appointed secretary position to a commissioner post voted for by Pennsylvania residents.

White said the legislation would end the governor’s appointment of the position and put the role of a DEP commissioner closer in line with that of the state treasurer, attorney general or auditor general, "and would create more transparency for a department that has been continually scrutinized for its clear political agenda under Gov. Tom Corbett and Sec. Michael Krancer’s lead."

“Recent events have forced me to question whether DEP has allowed political considerations to overtake pursuing policies that strike a fair and reasonable balance between protecting and developing our natural resources, and the answer is a resounding ‘yes’,” White, D-Cecil, said. “I believe an election by the people is the only means of promoting transparency within the DEP and returning the department to fully carry out its core mission, instead of playing political games that have real consequences to the health and safety of Pennsylvanians.”

House Bill 2607 states the provisions of the elective process, noted among them that the Commissioner would hold office for a term of four years and would not be eligible to serve continuously for more than two successive terms. An amendment to the State Constitution would be necessary to make the change, which would take at least five years and require state-wide approval through a referendum vote.

House Bill 2606 would change the title of the office to commissioner.

White said "it’s dangerous when complex decisions about environmental safety and health are made by a politically appointed boss presumably for political purposes. The current system only lends to political maneuvering, he said, and offers Pennsylvanians no tools to hold the DEP head accountable for poor decisions."

“I personally have been denied access to air quality test results conducted by DEP in my own district, even after I filed a Right to Know Request,” White said of “The DEP stated there was a greater interest in keeping the test results confidential instead of releasing them to the public, which is a truly astounding statement. The DEP came right out and admitted they are working for someone other than the citizens of Pennsylvania, which is reprehensible and unacceptable.”

The lawmaker added: “This implies an unacceptable lack of transparency and political motivation to protect the interests of people or entities deemed more important to Secretary Krancer and the Corbett administration than the residents of Pennsylvania. Campaign donations and political motivations should never drown out scientific facts.”

The nonprofit medical clinic in Burgettstown closed on May 25 when officials were forced to evacuate the facility for a third time because of mysterious odors seemingly linked to sickness among employees and patients. The cause of the odors has not been found, but the clinic reopened to the public.

White was denied access to the complete testing data, which indicated elevated levels of ethane, Ethylbenzene, Hexane, propane, Methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK), carbon disulfide and methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE). The DEP refused to acknowledge a Marcellus Shale drilling site approximately half a mile from the clinic when conducting the tests, and officials then publicly stated that there was no indication the source of the problems at Cornerstone was anywhere outside.

“Either by incompetence or by design, the DEP failed to do its job at Cornerstone Care and then refused to take any accountability, hiding behind a loophole in the Open Records Act to conceal whatever they found,” said White. “Any Pennsylvanian who truly believes the DEP in its current role is committed to its stated mission of environmental protection needs to realize this is simply not reality, or else the air quality data from Cornerstone Care would have been made public.”

White stressed the goal of his legislation is not to favor any political affiliation, but to ensure Pennsylvanians have an "honest and independent watchdog" to protect the environment.

“The health and safety of Pennsylvanians should not be subject to political concerns,” White continued. “Policies should come from scientific facts; instead, we now have ‘facts’ being determined to fit specific policies, which is a violation of our Constitutional protections to clean air and water. By making the head of DEP an independently elected position, the people of Pennsylvania will have the opportunity to choose a truly independent watchdog and hold him or her accountable at the ballot box.”