Thread by @Headsnipe011

Letter CoS John Kelly regarding mismanagement issues at the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB)

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Over the past several years, the governance of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) has suffered from substantial mismanagement issues, and requires new leadership. We recommend the President nominate a new Chairman.

In 2014, the Committee initiated an investigation into the disclosure of whistleblower identities and related document access issues at the CSB after EPA Inspector General Arthur Elkins Jr. sent a rare "seven-day letter" ...

highlighting the CSB's refusal to cooperate with an investigation into related matters.

On June 19, 2014, the Committee released a joint report with the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology. The report described an "agency in disarray."

Findings included a toxic work environment, routine failures to complete investigations and reports in a timely manner, a culture of whistleblower retaliation, and a rejection of proper governance processes.

The Committee convened a hearing to examine the extent of hte problems at the CSB and obtain assurance from CSB's leadership those management failures would be addressed.

During the hearing, then-CSB Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso denied staff who disagreed with him were marginalized, despite their testimony to the contrary, and characterized his refusal to cooperate with the EPA Office of Inspector General (OIG) as "an obscure legal point that...

the lawyers could deal with." In light of Chairman Moure-Eraso's refusal to take responsibility for the CSB's troubles, then-Chairman Darrell Issa and Committee on Science, Space, and Technology Chairman Lamar Smith sent a letter to President Barack Obama on July 7, 2014,

calling for a change in leadership.

On March 5, 2015, the Committee held a second hearing to probe the CSB's abysmal employee morale, further assess the lack of management accountability, and seek answers from Chairman Moure-Eraso regarding the EPA OIG's finding he...

and other senior staff members violated the Federal Records Act. While testifying under oath at both hearings, Chairman Moure-Eraso made inconsistant statements about accessing the email accounts of CSB employees, the CSB's "production of emails to the...

Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Inspector General," and his use of a personal email account.

Due to the discrepancies in Chairman Moure-Eraso's testimony, the Committee sent a bipartisan criminal referral for perjury to the Department of Justice.

The Committee's investigation culminated in request for removal of Chairman Moure-Eraso and two other senior staff members, and in March 2015 be resigned at the request of the White House.

Members of the Committee hoped his departure would facilitate the drastic improvement needed at the agency.

Since Chairman Moure-Eraso's resignation, the Committee has continued to monitor the agency's progress.

The Subcommittee on Government Operations examined the CSB's low employee satisfaction ratings at an April 16, 2015, hearing. On February 20,2018, the Subcommittee on Interior, Energy, and Environment asked the OIG to investigate a CSB's Board Member's potential violations...

of anti-lobbying provisions. Most recently, the Committee requested information from the CSB regarding its suddenly-improved employee satisfaction scores on the 2017 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) after years of dismal ratings.

Recent reports indicate mismanagement and improper conduct continue to undermine the CSB's mission. On June 4, 2018, the OIG issued a report on agency management challenges and concluded the CSB "continues to be plagued with leadership issues."

The OIG noted complaints about a Board Member who did not conform to established agency practices and improperly shared information with outside entities on multiple occasions.

According to the report, CSB emails revealed inappropriate activities by the Board Member, including apparent favoritism toward a certain stakeholder. The same Board Member provided independent, public comments on proposed EPA rule,

which may have created the impression the comments represented the full Board's positions. Additionally, some CSB managers believe the Board Member "leaked" the CSB's fiscal year 2019 budget request to a news reporter before it was officially provided to Congress.

Not only are these activities inappropriate, but they foment mistrust among CSB staff and distract from the agency's public safety mission.

The Board's shortcomings have measurably affected the CSB's ability to hire and retain employees. The OIG's review, for example, found CSB career staff "are frustrated and feel disrespected."

The number of investigative staff has dropped from twenty to ten in the last two years, and employees cite "harassment, devaluing technical staff, and removing rigor from the investigative process" as sources of dissatisfaction.

Other news reports identified "accusations that the board's leadership pressured staff to report higher morale on a federal survey" and claimed experienced investigators departed the agency due to concerns they were being "pushed out."

As of June 2018, the CSB also had not hired any new investigators during Chairperson Vanessa Allen Sutherland's tenure-even though it "returned [funding] to federal government every year." Southerland told the OIG the CSB's workforce challenges stemmed from budget uncertainty...

and the Administration's proposal to climate funding for the agency. However, many of the agency's management challenges, as well as Southerland's control of the agency, predate this Administration and its proposal.

On May, 21, 2018, Southerland announced her resignation. Upon her departure at the end of June, the Board membership dwindled to three of the statutorily prescribed five members.

The remaining board members-who have either contributed to or presided over ongoing mismanagement at the CSB-recently selected Dr. Kristen Kulinowski to serve as Interim Executive Authority.

However, permanent new leadership is needed to stabilize this agency and address such extreme managerial challenges.

We recommend the President nominate a new Chairman who possesses the qualifications, experience, and integrity necessary to address the longstanding dysfunction at the CSB.

Given the agency's history, the current transition could plunge the agency into further chaos, and a leadership void could embolden the remaining Board Members to engage in more inappropriate behavior.

However, it also provides a crucial opportunity to reverse the CSB's troubled course and confront the pattern of management abuses. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

***This is me from here on out***

Here is an example of the hysteria that this group has caused.

esquire.com/news-politics/…