WATCH: In Senate EPW Hearing, Kelly Presses EPA on Lead Pollution Waiver Putting Arizona Kids at Risk

"It's just common sense. Nobody wants their kids breathing in lead and arsenic pollution."

Today, during a Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee hearing on the proposed Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) 2027 budget, Arizona Senator Mark Kelly pressed EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin on the Administration's use of a Clean Air Act rule allowing a mining company to bypass requirements to reduce toxic emissions in Miami, Arizona. This waiver is putting kids, school, churches, and the entire nearby community at risk.

Kelly highlighted the dangers of toxic emissions from a smelter operating near a school and residential community: "During your confirmation hearing, you said that EPA's mission is, quote, 'simple, but essential: to protect human health and the environment.' […] Take what's happening in Miami, Arizona, a small mining town about 90 miles east of Phoenix. Freeport-McMoRan operates a smelter that emits 12 tons of lead and 3 tons of arsenic into the surrounding community every year. That smelter is located about a mile from an elementary school, and it's less than half a mile from a church and residential neighborhoods […] We know what lead does to kids. Mr. Zeldin, I imagine you would not want your kids attending that school, I wouldn't want mine there or going to that church."

Kelly criticized the Trump Administration for putting corporate profits ahead of the health and safety of surrounding communities: "Accordingly, under EPA's National Emission Standards, the facility was required to install a pollution control device called a baghouse and that would reduce toxic lead and arsenic emissions. It's basically just a big vacuum cleaner bag that would cost the mining company, Freeport-McMoRan, about $60 million to install, one time cost […] It's just common sense; nobody wants their kids beathing in lead and arsenic pollution. But Freeport won't have to install that baghouse. Because last fall, the company requested and received a presidential exemption from these requirements through a new process set up by your EPA where a company could just email your staff and request an exemption. No public process. No one asking the opinions of the parents whose kids go to that school who are breathing in that pollution every day."

In response, Zeldin committed to reviewing the exemption and working with Senator Kelly's office to address the issue and protect the Miami, Arizona community.

Click here to download a video of Kelly's remarks. See the transcript below:

Sen. Kelly: Thank you, Madam Chair, Administrator Zeldin-thanks for being here. I want to discuss rules that limit hazardous air pollution. During your confirmation hearing you said that the EPA 's mission is and this is, quote, 'simple but essential to protect human health and the environment'.

Now there can be times, and we discussed this in Phoenix-you just mentioned non-attainment when the rules and science is a little bit uncertain and the rulebook says some action needs to be taken that may not make sense. I agree but that's a rare exception. Sometimes the answer is pretty clear cut.

Take what's happening in the town of Miami, Arizona. It's a small mining town about 90 miles east of Phoenix. Freeport-McMoRan, the mining company, operates a smelter there and this smelter emits 12 tons of lead and three tons of arsenic into the surrounding community every year.

That smelter is located about a mile from an elementary school and it's less than a half a mile from a church and a residential neighborhood. Here you can see the elementary school, the swing, that's the smelter in the upper left-hand corner. And we know what lead does to kids. Mr. Zeldin, I imagine you would not want your kids attending that school I wouldn't want mine there or going to that church.

Accordingly, under EPA 's national emission standards, the facility was required to install a pollution control device called the bag house and that would reduce toxic lead and arsenic emissions. It's basically just a big vacuum cleaner bag that would cost the mining company Freeport-McMoRan about $60 million to install. One-time cost and that's for a company that had a net profit of 2.7 billion dollars last year, so $60 billion-not a drop in the bucket.

It's just common sense that nobody wants their kids breathing in lead and arsenic pollution. I don't think anybody in here would want that. I don't see anybody raising their hands.

But Freeport, they don't have to install this bag house, because last fall the company requested and received a presidential exemption from these requirements through a new process that was set up by your EPA where a company could just e-mail your staff and request an exemption no public process. No one asking the opinions of the parents whose kids go to that school who are breathing in that pollution every day.

Section 112 of the Clean Air Act says that waivers can only be granted if, and this is a quote, "the technology to implement such standards is not available and it is in the national security interest of the United States to do so." It's not an either or. Technology not available, national security interest-has to be both. So, to the first requirement the air pollution control technology clearly exists and has been used for decades, including at the other smelter still operating in the United States. It's in Utah.

To the second requirement, somebody could argue the national security connection until you consider that we're talking about here is installing a routine pollution control device that keeps kids from breathing in lead. That's exactly what environmental protections are designed to do. So, Administrator Zeldin, given this waiver fails both of the tests that are laid out in the law and more importantly fails the basic duty to protect human health, how was that legal?

EPA Administrator Lee M. Zeldin: Well, first off, with regards to a section 112 presidential exemptions, as I'm sure you're well aware, presidential exemptions are made by the president; our role is to accept the submission and transmit it to the White House. That was the extent of our role consistent with the statue. The White House has publicly posted the proclamations and annexes listing the sources that received exemptions, including the actions on April 8^th, July 17^th, October 24^th, November 21st of '25. On the bigger topic of lead, it's a an extraordinarily important topic as it relates to children's health, led in drinking water, on land, and much more. And the agency takes it extraordinarily seriously and there's a lot of accomplishments that we're proud of.

Sen. Kelly: Well, here's the thing, though: your agency created a website specifically to invite companies to fast-track waiver requests, and a FOIA request shows that the company spoke with your staff to coordinate this request. This wasn't just like something that the president. Your EPA may not be granting the exemptions, but you went through great lengths to make sure that that was facilitated. So, I mean, this this is a mile away from a school. This thing is spewing out 12 tons of lead every single year. The bag costs $60 million.

Mr. Zeldin, can I get a commitment from you to fix this? Can you go to the president and say "hey, we made a mistake." Companies have responsibilities in these communities. Can I get a commitment from you to work with my office, work with the president, to undo this?

Administrator Zeldin: Just for my own background, because this first time we're talking about it, do you know if anyone from your team has raised this to ours before now or is this the first time that we're engaging on this?

Sen. Kelly: Well, it's the first time we are engaging, and we've engaged in other topics. This is a serious issue for the community in Miami.

Administrator Zeldin: I hope that, at this point, after all of the many other topics that you've engaged us with that we've been able to very successfully work together on, I'll just tell you my role has been on these exemptions to receive and transmit pursuant to the statute. If there's something specific beyond that, merits a follow up conversation but it's not familiar, I'm not aware from you guys reaching out.

Sen. Kelly: It wasn't from what we know, it wasn't just received. The website was set up, there was coordination with your staff. You provide no recommendation to the White House on this at all? Your job is to look out for the health of the American people.

Administrator Zeldin: Just following the statute.

Sen. Kelly: But how about the kids that go to that school and people that go to that church? I mean, I would love to have an opportunity to try to solve this problem. It's $60 million to a company that made $2.7 billion, and I'm not saying you specifically, I'm saying this administration, the White House, put the profits of that company over the health of those children.

Administrator Zeldin: The only issue is, as I sit here, and I don't have all the information about the company, the technology, and the emissions that you're talking about because, as I sit here, it's the first time that anyone has raised it but I'm happy to follow.

Sen. Kelly: We will get you all the information, thank you.