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New Enforcement Strategy Advances President Biden’s Environmental Justice Agenda
Justice Department, EPA Launch Comprehensive Environmental Justice Enforcement Strategy and Restore Option for Supplemental Environmental Projects to Help Communities
WASHINGTON (May 5, 2022) – Today, Administrator Michael S. Regan joined Attorney General Merrick B. Garland to announce the Department of Justice’s comprehensive enforcement strategy to advance environmental justice. As directed by President Biden’s executive order, the Justice Department and EPA developed a strategy that positions the Biden-Harris Administration to leverage all available legal tools to secure protections for communities that have been overburdened by pollution and environmental injustices. This includes restoring Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs), which EPA’s enforcement program has used to provide environmental and/or public health benefits to communities harmed by environmental violations.Â
Today’s announcement helps to deliver on two goals in President Biden’s Executive Order Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad: a comprehensive Justice Department “environmental justice enforcement strategy†to provide timely remedies for systemic environmental violations, and stronger enforcement by EPA of “environmental violations with disproportionate impact on underserved communities.â€
“EPA and DOJ’s partnership to protect overburdened and underserved communities across America has never been stronger,†said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “This environmental justice enforcement strategy epitomizes the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to holding polluters accountable as a means to deliver on our environmental justice priorities. Critical to that is the return of Supplemental Environmental Projects as a tool to secure tangible public health benefits for communities harmed by environmental violations.â€
In the development of this strategy, EPA and the Justice Department engaged in listening sessions to hear directly from impacted communities and other stakeholders. This feedback was critical in shaping today’s EJ announcements.
Since Administrator Regan assumed office in March of 2021, EPA has been integral to the Administration’s environmental justice commitment, through a series of enforcement actions, funding decisions, grants, and other policies that have delivered protections for people disproportionately impacted by pollution. For example, EPA and the Justice Department recently reached a settlement with Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP to reduce harmful air pollution at three petrochemical manufacturing facilities located in Cedar Bayou, Port Arthur, and Sweeney, Texas. In addition, Administrator Regan conducted a “Journey to Justice†tour in November where he visited with families in the American South that have long been marginalized, underserved, and overburdened by pollution. In January, the Administrator announced a series of actions responding directly to the concerns he heard on his tour.
A Supplemental Environmental Project is an enforcement tool that EPA used for more than 30 years until the previous administration brought it to a halt. SEPs are local projects that defendants can agree to undertake as part of an enforcement case settlement to help rectify environmental violations. SEPs help to fulfill the goals of the underlying statutes being enforced and can provide important environmental and public health benefits to communities that have been harmed by environmental violations.Â
In the past, SEPs in EPA settlements have been used to support projects that bring significant benefits to communities, including (i) projects to abate lead paint hazards in housing or provide blood lead level analyzers to community health clinics; (ii) installation of enhanced air filtration systems at schools in heavily industrialized areas; (iii) projects to enhance the emergency response capabilities of local fire departments or hazardous emergency response teams, and (iv) installation and operation of a fence line monitoring system. Â
SEPs are considered in accordance with EPA’s SEP Policy, which ensures there is a sufficient connection to the violation. The SEP Policy provides for consideration of a defendant’s willingness to implement a SEP as part of the Agency’s decision about whether, and on what terms, to settle an enforcement matter, just as EPA has discretion to consider, as appropriate, a defendant’s good faith and cooperation when deciding on a penalty and other terms of a settlement. Â
Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation Meeting
 The Board of School Trustees of the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation will meet for the regularly scheduled Board meeting Monday, May 9, 2022 at 5:30 PM in the Board Room of the EVSC Administration Building located at 951 Walnut Street, Evansville, IN. Board meetings can also be observed by tuning to EVSC’s radio station, 90.7 WPSR or live streamed online at https://www.wpsrhd.com/.Â
Prior to the regularly scheduled Board meeting, three members of the Board, along with district administrators, will hold a Town Hall beginning at 5:00 PM. This Town Hall is for Vanderburgh County residents to speak directly with Board members in attendance about issues involving EVSC schools. The Town Hall will be the process utilized to receive Public Comment. The Town Hall will be held in the Technology and Innovation Center located at 951 Walnut Street, Evansville, IN. Members of the public who would like to attend the Town Hall should register by completing the Town Hall Registration Form located on our website at district.evscschools.com.Â
Kunkle nets GLVC C.O.Y. honors as Eagles land six on All-GLVC team
EAST PEORIA, Ill.—University of Southern Indiana Softball Head Coach Sue Kunkle has been named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Coach of the Year, while the Screaming Eagles landed six players on the All-GLVC team in an announcement by the league office Thursday afternoon. That list includes junior pitcher/designated player Allie Goodin(Evansville, Indiana), senior designated player/pitcher Katie Back (Indianapolis, Indiana), sophomore catcher Sammie Kihega(Greenfield, Indiana), sophomore first baseman Lexi Fair (Greenwood, Indiana), sophomore outfielder Mackenzie Bedrick(Brownsburg, Indiana); and freshman pitcher Josie Newman (Indianapolis, Indiana).
Kunkle is earning her third-career GLVC Coach of the Year honor after leading the Eagles to the GLVC regular-season title. USI went 40-10 overall and 26-2 in GLVC play during the regular-season en route to earning the conference’s No. 1 overall seed in the GLVC Softball Championship Tournament.
Goodin, who was a unanimous first-team All-GLVC selection as a utility/pitcher, is earning her first All-GLVC honor after hitting .337 with three doubles, a triple, four home runs and 24 RBI. In the circle, Goodin went 11-2 with a 2.24 ERA and .228 opponent batting average.
USI had five players named to the second-team, with Back earning accolades as a designated player.
Back is earning her first-career All-GLVC nod after hitting .374 during the regular season with eight doubles, two home runs and 26 RBI. She also aided the Eagles in the circle, going 6-1 with a 2.54 ERA and was 3-0 in GLVC play with a 0.00 ERA.
Kihega also is earning her first All-GLVC accolade after hitting .358 with 33 walks, 12 doubles, a triple, two home runs and 22 RBI. Behind the plate, she helped USI’s pitching staff become one of the most dominate units in program history as USI posted a 1.47 team ERA and .177 opponent batting average during conference play.
Newman played a big role in USI’s success inside the circle as she went 14-3 overall and 11-0 in conference play during the regular-season. She posted a 0.95 ERA, 120 strikeouts and a .114 opponent batting average in GLVC play. Overall, Newman finished the regular-season with a 1.84 ERA, 165 strikeouts and a .170 opponent batting average.
Fair, who is collecting her first All-GLVC award, led USI with a .385 batting average during the regular-season. She had 16 doubles, three triples, eight home runs and 42 RBI on the year. Fair, who was on the NFCA’s Player and Pitcher of the Year Top 50 list, had a .495 on-base percentage after drawing 13 walks and being hit 20 times.
Rounding out USI’s All-GLVC contingent was Bedrick, who was a unanimous first-team All-GLVC selection as a freshman. Bedrick hit .363 during the regular-season with three doubles, two triples, and 15 RBI. She led USI with 62 hits, 37 runs scored and was 17-of-19 in stolen base attempts.
In addition to USI’s All-GLVC honorees, senior catcher Courtney Schoolcraft (Crest Hill, Illinois) was USI’s nominee for the James R. Spalding GLVC Sportsmanship Award.
USI, which is ranked No. 3 in the final NCAA II Midwest Region Rankings, takes on Maryville University in the opening round of the GLVC Tournament. The game has been delayed due to rain in the East Peoria Area.
Neglect of a Dependent Arrest
 On April 29th, around 3:00 a.m., Evansville Police Officers were dispatched to a local hospital to meet with DCS in reference to a young child who was showing signs of an overdose. The hospital staff advised that it appeared to be an Opioid overdose and had to give the child Narcan treatment. A Detective with the EPD Juvenile Investigations Unit responded to the hospital and spoke with the mother of the child. She stated that the father had brought the child to the hospital but had left with their other child prior to EPD arrival. She told the detective that the father, later identified as 28-year-old Kevin Ladell Moman, woke her up and said that the child had put something in his mouth and was unresponsive. She said they rushed the child to the hospital.Â
Kevin Moman was located at his apartment with his other child. Moman was brought to EPD Headquarters for an interview. He told the detective that the child followed him outside to his car. Moman saw that the child had something in his hand so Moman smacked it out of his hand. Moman said that about 20 minutes later, the child was unresponsive.Â
Search warrants were later obtained by the EPD/VCSO Narcotics Joint Task Force for Moman’s apartment. Surveillance video from the apartment complex was obtained that contradicted Moman`s account. The video did not show Moman exiting the apartment being followed by the child as he claimed. The video showed Moman removing items from the apartment after the child had been taken to the hospital and prior to the detective’s arrival there.Â
On today’s date, the test results were received that revealed the child had tested positive for Fentanyl. Moman was brought to EPD Headquarters and confronted with the evidence. Moman stated he would not incriminate himself and refused to give an accurate account of what had occurred. Moman was arrested and charged with Neglect of a Dependent causing Serious Bodily Injury and was booked into the Vanderburgh County Confinement Center earlier today.Â
The child has been released from the hospital and both children have been removed from the home by DCS while this investigation is still active. At this time, no charges have been filed against the child’s motheÂ
American Politics And “The Zombie Brainless Virusâ€
American Politics and “The Zombie Brainless Virusâ€
by DANNIE McINTIRE
CITY-COUNTY OBSERVER FEATURE WRITER
If you’ve seen the 1995 movie, The American Presidentâ€, towards the end of the movie, the fictional president, Andrew Shepherd, is speaking to the American public, explaining how a politician gets elected. The below dialogue has always stuck with me:
“I promise you, Bob Rumson is not the least bit interested in solving it. He is interested in two things and two things only: making you afraid of it and telling you who’s to blame for it. That, ladies and gentlemen, is how you win elections.â€
In regards to many of our current State and National politicians, no truer words have been spoken. Too many of our politicians are more concerned with staying in power than they are in actually trying to solve any of the dauntless problems that face our country today. Some once elected, quickly prove they lack the mental capacity to effectively lead. Â
Why do we keep reelecting these politicians once they’ve proven they are inept and lack the ability to actually get anything accomplished? I don’t believe it is because the majority of the American electorate is that easily bull winked, but more that we as an electorate have been worn down by the hypocrisy of those we had elected in good faith.
Perhaps, it has become easier to shrug our shoulders and say what can we do, nothing ever changes, so why vote. I believe it is this mindset that has allowed inept candidates to be elected and reelected. Â
It is truly amazing to me the amount of political mail I have received during this most recent primary election cycle. Slick mailings, all promising if elected they will take the fight to Indianapolis or Washington. Reading their campaign literature, they all seem to say that they have “the integrity†and“the answers†we as an electorate are looking for.Â
Is there some mysterious “zombie†virus that circulates in the air around Indianapolis and Washington DC, which renders many politicians brainless once they arrive?
I offer the following quotes as proof to the existence of the “Zombie Brainless Virusâ€;
Joe Barton – Former Republican Representative for Texas’s 6th congressional district – “Wind is a finite resource and harnessing it would slow the winds down which would cause the temperature to go up.â€
Hank Johnson – Democratic U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 4th congressional district – talking about sending troops to Guam – “My fear is that the whole island will become so overly populated that it will tip over and capsize.â€
Ed Orcutt – Republican Representative For Washington’s 20th congressional district –  “Also, you claim that is environmentally friendly to ride a bike. But if I am not mistaken cyclists have an increased heart rate and respiration. That means the act of riding bike results in greater emissions of carbon dioxide from the riderâ€. Since CO2 is deemed a greenhouse gas and a pollutant, bicyclists are actually polluting when they ride.â€Â
Sheila Jackson Lee – Democratic U.S. representative representing the 18th District of Texas – “Has the Mars Pathfinder succeeded in taking pictures of the American flag planted on Mars by Neil Armstrong in 1969?â€
Michele Bachmann – Republican U.S. representative for Minnesota’s 6th congressional district.- “Literally, if we took away the minimum wage—if conceivably it was gone—we could potentially virtually wipe out unemployment completely because we would be able to offer jobs at whatever level.â€
Diana DeGette – Democratic Representative for Colorado’s 1st congressional district – . on a high capacity magazine ban – “I will tell you these are ammunition, bullets, so the people who have those now they are going to shoot them, and so if you ban them in the future, the number of these high capacity magazines is going to decrease dramatically over time because the bullets will have been shot and there won’t be any more availableâ€Â
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – Democratic Representative for New York’s 14th congressional district – “Unemployment is low because everyone has two jobsâ€
Sheila Jackson Lee – Democratic Representative for Texas 18th congressional district – “Don’t condemn the gangbangers, they’ve got guns that are trafficked, that are not enforced, that are straw purchased and they come into places even that have strong gun laws. Why? Because we don’t have sensible gun legislation.â€
How many of us have watched any of the numerous congressional hearings when they are broadcast on TV? Hours of mindless posturing by our congress members to get their “face out to their constituents†while accomplishing absolutely nothing, merely confirming to the audience that they have been infected with the “zombie brainless virusâ€.
How can we change this quandary we find ourselves in? In my opinion, there are several steps we as an electorate can immediately take.
The first step is to take time to educate yourself on the candidates, and know their positions on issues that matter to you. If you find the candidate is more often spending their campaign time telling you that the other side is the problem instead of offering solutions, run from that candidate, they already have the “Zombie brainless Virusâ€.Â
The second step is once you’ve educated yourself on the candidates, quit going into the voting booth and “mindlessly†voting the straight party ticket. Vote for the best candidate and not the party.Â
FOOTNOTE: Â The City-County Observer posted this article without bias or editing.