Enhancing EPA Science Capability for a Complex Future: Recommendations for Use of Title 42 Special Hiring Authority (2024)

Chapter: Appendix E: Summary of How EPA's Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD's Initiatives

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Suggested Citation: "Appendix E: Summary of How EPA's Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD's Initiatives." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Enhancing EPA Science Capability for a Complex Future: Recommendations for Use of Title 42 Special Hiring Authority. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/27440.
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Appendix E
Summary of How EPA’s Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD’s Initiatives

TABLE E-1 Summary of How EPA’s Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD’s Initiatives

ORD Functionsa Title 42 Impact Examplesb
Develop new analytical methods for measuring environmental pollutants and human exposure
  • Measured, modeled, and assessed human health and ecological risk of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the environment.
  • Implemented cheminformatics grouping methodologies to discern PFAS, enabling the establishment of toxicity thresholds within distinct categories rather than individually assessing each PFAS.
  • Applied transcriptomics techniques to formulate expedited chemical testing procedures and construct a comprehensive human health assessment framework.
  • Curated chemicals identified in biosolids and tailored the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Public Information Curation and Synthesis prioritization workflow for its application to biosolids.
  • Studied cardiovascular disease outcomes and mechanisms of PM2.5 health effects in North Carolina, which informed the Integrated Science Assessment (ISA).
  • Leveraged -omics tools to comprehend intricate toxicity mechanisms, assess the potential consequences of high-priority environmental contaminants, and conduct cumulative risk assessments.
  • Provided leadership in the development of the inaugural quantitative evaluation of perchlorate’s effects on the fetal thyroid gland and the brain.
Convene scientific experts for technical advice and strategic planning of research programs and priorities
  • Provided guidance in the strategic direction and specialized expertise for the agency.
  • Set strategic direction for watershed, ecosystem, and human health research for the Safe and Sustainable Water Resources Strategic Research Action Plan.
Page 68 Cite
Suggested Citation: "Appendix E: Summary of How EPA's Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD's Initiatives." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Enhancing EPA Science Capability for a Complex Future: Recommendations for Use of Title 42 Special Hiring Authority. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/27440.
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ORD Functionsa Title 42 Impact Examplesb
Develop frameworks and guidance documents for conducting human health and ecological assessments
  • Guided the development of the Integrated Risk Information System Handbook.
  • Initiated the task to engage the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in the assessment of the causality framework within the ISA, the scientific basis for the review of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards.
  • Guided the rapid human health assessment approach for data-scarce chemicals, involving short-term in vivo transcriptomic studies and standardized assessment methods.
  • Led the development of a value of information framework to evaluate the trade-offs among cost, uncertainty, and timeliness in various toxicity testing approaches within chemical risk assessment.
  • Led advancements in chemical risk assessment by formulating the draft EPA Transcriptomic Assessment Product and contributing to the development of the OECD Transcriptomic Reporting Framework.
Participate with the broader scientific community to advance research, present research findings, and encourage collaboration and adaptation of EPA science
  • Leveraged resources to develop a 5-year MOU/Statement of Intent with the Global Water Research Coalition, facilitating collaborative research projects on water-related issues of significance to EPA and international water organizations.
  • Conducted research on the development of estrogen and androgen receptor pathway models, publishing findings in scientific journals and subjecting them to review by EPA Science Advisory Panel and the public.
Provide scientific support for EPA responses to environmental emergencies from local to international scales
  • Conceptualized and led the development of the EPA Facilities COVID-19 Dashboard.
  • Established a COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic.
  • Provided leadership in developing methods for harmful algal bloom forecasting.
  • Provided the development of methodologies for the detection of PFAS in air, food, soil, and water, aiming to protect public health by expediting the time required for the detection of these compounds.
Page 69 Cite
Suggested Citation: "Appendix E: Summary of How EPA's Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD's Initiatives." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Enhancing EPA Science Capability for a Complex Future: Recommendations for Use of Title 42 Special Hiring Authority. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/27440.
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ORD Functionsa Title 42 Impact Examplesb
Support EPA science at the regional and state levels
  • Responded to multiple state public health and environmental agencies’ concerns regarding PFAS by applying high-resolution mass spectrometry, nontargeted analysis methods developed by the appointee to identify previously unknown PFAS in these media.
  • Collaborated with states to implement innovative nontargeted analysis, enabling the rapid characterization of a diverse range of compounds and contaminants of emerging concern.
Support the science needs of regulatory programs including the Office of Air and Radiation, Office of Water, Office of Land and Emergency Management, and Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP)
  • Collaborated with OCSPP in the formulation of the National PFAS Testing Strategy, contributing to the development of methods aimed at defining and categorizing thousands of PFAS compounds.
  • Engaged with the Office of Water to modernize, standardize, and streamline risk assessment processes, ensuring efficient and comprehensive evaluations of chemical risks in biosolids.
  • Guided the development of new approach methodologies for the Endocrine Disruption Screening Program, with the objective of testing and prioritizing chemicals for potential endocrine disruption.
  • Collaborated with OCSPP to implement the Strategic Plan to Promote the Development and Implementation of Alternative Test Methods under the TSCA.
Coordinate with other federal science agencies
  • Initiated and providing leadership for the New Chemicals Collaborative Research Program, involving OPPT, ORD, and NIEHS/DTT.

a ORD Functions adapted from National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2023. Transforming EPA science to meet today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26602.

b Data for the Title 42 impact examples were provided in a presentation to the committee by EPA ORD, June 22, 2023.

NOTES: DTT = NIEHS’s Division of Translational Toxicology; EPA = Environmental Protection Agency; MOU = memorandum of understanding; NIEHS = National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; OECD = Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development; OPPT = Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics; ORD = EPA’s Office of Research and Development; PM = particulate matter.

Page 67 Cite
Suggested Citation: "Appendix E: Summary of How EPA's Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD's Initiatives." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Enhancing EPA Science Capability for a Complex Future: Recommendations for Use of Title 42 Special Hiring Authority. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/27440.
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Page 68 Cite
Suggested Citation: "Appendix E: Summary of How EPA's Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD's Initiatives." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Enhancing EPA Science Capability for a Complex Future: Recommendations for Use of Title 42 Special Hiring Authority. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/27440.
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Page 69 Cite
Suggested Citation: "Appendix E: Summary of How EPA's Title 42 Program Strengthens ORD's Initiatives." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2024. Enhancing EPA Science Capability for a Complex Future: Recommendations for Use of Title 42 Special Hiring Authority. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/27440.
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Next Chapter: Appendix F: FY 2023 Title 42 Positions
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