Council on Environmental Quality
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) is a division of the Executive Office of the President focused on public health and environmental issues. It was established in 1969 by the National Environmental Policy Act.[1]
The council typically has three members. As of April 9, 2025, President Donald Trump (R) had not nominated a chair for the CEQ. The acting chairwoman was Katherine Scarlett.[2]
Mission
As of April 2025, the White House provided the following mission for the CEQ:
| “ |
CEQ consults and coordinates with federal agencies, providing guidance on the implementation of NEPA to ensure timely environmental review and permitting processes across the Federal government. In addition, CEQ advises and assists the President on policies that promote the improvement of environmental quality, while supporting the economic prosperity and energy security of the American people.[3] |
” |
| —White House[1] | ||
Activities
The United States Government Manual listed the following tasks as under the scope of the CEQ:
| “ |
The Council develops policies that bring together the Nation's economic, social, and environmental priorities to improve Federal decisionmaking. As required by NEPA, the CEQ also evaluates, coordinates, and mediates Federal activities. It advises and assists the President on both national and international environmental policy matters. It oversees Federal agency and departmental implementation of NEPA. The CEQ's Office of Federal Sustainability coordinates policy to promote energy and environmental sustainability across Federal Government operations. [3] |
” |
| —United States Government Manual[4] | ||
Leadership
This table provides a list of chairs of the Council of Environmental Quality from 2001 to 2025. It does not include acting chairs.[5][6][7]
| Chairs of the Council on Environmental Quality, 2001-2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Chair | Tenure | Administration |
| Brenda Mallory | 2021-2025 |  Joe Biden
|
| Mary Neumayr | 2019-2021 |  Donald Trump
|
| Christy Goldfuss | 2015-2017 | Barack Obama
|
| Michael Boots | 2014-2015 | Barack Obama
|
| Nancy Sutley | 2009-2014 | Barack Obama
|
| James Connaughton | 2001-2009 | George W. Bush
|
Executive Office of the President
- See also: Executive Office of the President
The Executive Office of the President (EOP) is a group of federal entities responsible for advising and supporting the president's policy agenda and administration. The EOP's composition has changed over time as different presidential administrations have added, transferred, and removed entities from the office.
Under the second Trump administration, the EOP included the following 5 offices:
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Council on Environmental Quality. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Executive Office of the President
- Donald Trump presidential administration, 2025
- Joe Biden presidential administration
- Executive Branch
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 White House, "Council on Environmental Quality," accessed March 17, 2021
- ↑ E&E News, "Trump’s CEQ has no nominee as it tears down NEPA rules," February 21, 2025
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ U.S. Government Manual, "Council on Environmental Quality," accessed April 9, 2025
- ↑ Congress.gov, "Confirmations for Council on Environmental Quality," accessed March 17, 2021
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Mary Neumayr," accessed March 17, 2021
- ↑ WAMU, "Biden To Nominate Brenda Mallory To Run Council On Environmental Quality," December 17, 2020
