The Trump administration’s pick to lead EPA’s water office seemed on track Wednesday to secure the job, winning praise from Republicans and at least one Democrat on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
Jessica Kramer, the nominee for assistant administrator for water, fielded questions from Republicans about the agency’s regulation of wetlands under the Clean Water Act. Amid the Trump administration’s freeze on hundreds of EPA grants, multiple Democrats also asked her to commit to ensuring funding goes out to fix water infrastructure.
“I, of course, will commit to working with this committee to follow the law,” Kramer said, referring to money for drinking water from the bipartisan infrastructure law.
Democrats reserved their most pointed questions for Sean Donahue, Trump’s pick for EPA general counsel, who also appeared before the committee. A practicing attorney since 2021, Donahue confirmed that he had been fired from a previous job and initially failed the bar exam.
