[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 237 (Tuesday, December 14, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71058-71059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-26987]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9336-01-OW]


Notice of Request for Nominations of Candidates to the 
Environmental Financial Advisory Board

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of request for nominations.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) invites 
nominations of qualified candidates to be considered for appointment to 
the Environmental Financial Advisory Board (the Board or EFAB). The 
Board provides advice to EPA on ways to lower the costs of, and 
increase investments in, environmental and public health protection. 
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (signed November 2021) provides 
funding to EPA that includes more than $50 billion for clean water 
projects, more than $5 billion for Superfund and brownfields cleanup 
work, $5 billion for decarbonizing our nation's school buses, and $100 
million for pollution prevention. Board members will provide 
recommendations on ways EPA can implement these funds to advance 
environmental justice, tackle the climate crisis, and protect public 
health. Appointments will be made by the Administrator and will be 
announced in June 2022.

DATES: Nominations should be submitted in time to arrive no later than 
January 18, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Nominations should be sent via email to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public who wants 
further information concerning the nomination process may contact 
Sandra Williams at 202-564-4999 or [email protected]. General information 
concerning the EFAB can be found on EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/waterfinancecenter/efab.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Background: The EFAB is an EPA advisory committee chartered under 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C., app. 2, to provide 
advice and recommendations to EPA on innovative approaches to financing 
environmental programs, projects, and activities. Administrative 
support for the EFAB is provided by the Water Infrastructure and 
Resiliency Finance Center within EPA's Office of Water. The Board was 
established in 1989 to provide advice and recommendations to EPA on the 
following issues: Reducing the cost of financing environmental 
facilities and discouraging polluting behavior; creating incentives to 
increase private investment in the provision of environmental services 
and removing or reducing constraints on private involvement imposed by 
current regulations; developing new and innovative environmental 
financing approaches and supporting and encouraging the use of cost-
effective existing approaches; identifying approaches specifically 
targeted to small/disadvantaged community financing; increasing the 
capacity of state and local governments to carry out their respective 
environmental programs under current Federal tax laws; analyzing how 
new technologies can be brought to market expeditiously; and, 
increasing the total investment in environmental protection of public 
and private environmental resources to help ease the environmental 
financing challenge facing our nation.
    The Board meets either in-person or virtually two times each 
calendar year (two days per meeting) at different locations within the 
continental United States. In addition to the bi-annual meetings, 
additional virtual meetings may be held during the year to ensure 
timely completion of the Board's work. Board members typically 
contribute approximately 3 to 8 hours per month to the activities of 
the Board. This includes participation on one or more of the Board's 
active workgroups. Members serve on the Board without compensation; 
however, Board members may receive travel and per diem allowances where 
appropriate and in accordance with Federal travel regulations.

[[Page 71059]]

    Members are appointed to represent the perspective of specific 
organizations, associations, or groups of persons (Representative 
members), or to provide their individual expertise (Special Government 
Employee, or SGE, members). Candidates invited to serve as SGE members 
will be asked to submit the ``Confidential Financial Disclosure Form 
for Special Government Employees Serving on Federal Advisory Committees 
at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency'' (EPA Form 3110-48). This 
confidential form allows EPA to determine whether there is a statutory 
conflict between that person's public responsibilities as an SGE member 
and private interests and activities, or the appearance of a loss of 
impartiality as defined by Federal regulation. The form may be viewed 
at https://www.epa.gov/waterfinancecenter/efab, but this form should 
not be submitted as part of a nomination.
    Experience and Expertise Sought for the EFAB: The Board seeks to 
maintain diverse representation across all workforce sectors (state/
local/tribal government, business (industry and finance), and nonprofit 
organizations) and geographic regions of the United States. Nominees 
should demonstrate experience in environmental finance and/or reducing 
the cost of financing environmental protection in various environmental 
media (e.g., air, energy, land, and water). Experience and expertise 
sought include, but are not limited to, the following areas: Air 
quality; brownfields; climate change; commercial banking; energy 
efficiency; environmental and financial resiliency; environmental 
justice; environmental, social, and corporate governance; green 
banking; infrastructure financing; insurance markets; local utility 
management and finance; public-public and public-private partnerships; 
regulators; resource conservation; sustainable community partnerships; 
and drinking water and wastewater utility financial management.
    EPA values and welcomes opportunities to increase diversity, 
equity, inclusion, and accessibility on its federal advisory 
committees. In an effort to obtain nominations from diverse candidates, 
EPA encourages nominations of women and men of all racial and ethnic 
groups. Nominee qualifications will be assessed under the mandates of 
the FACA, which requires that committees be balanced in terms of the 
points of view represented and the functions to be performed; for the 
Board, this balance includes diversity across a broad range of 
constituencies, sectors, and groups. In addition to this notice, other 
sources may be utilized in the solicitation of nominees.
    How to Submit Nominations: Any interested person or organization 
may nominate qualified person(s) to be considered for appointment to 
the EFAB. Individuals may self-nominate. Nominations should be 
submitted via email to [email protected]. Nominations should include the 
following information: Contact information for the person making the 
nomination; contact information for the nominee (if different), 
including full name and title, business mailing address, telephone, and 
email address; the specific areas of experience or expertise of the 
nominee; the nominee's curriculum vitae or resume; and a biographical 
sketch of the nominee indicating current position and recent service on 
other federal advisory committees or national professional 
organizations. A supporting letter of endorsement is encouraged, but 
not required.
    Evaluation Criteria: The following criteria will be used to 
evaluate nominees: Residence in the continental United States; 
professional knowledge of, and experience with, environmental financing 
activities; senior-level experience that fills a gap in Board 
representation or brings a new and relevant dimension to its 
deliberations; demonstrated ability to work in a consensus-building 
process with a wide range of representatives from diverse 
constituencies; and willingness to serve a two or three-year term as an 
active and contributing member, with possible re-appointment to a 
second term. Under EPA policy, members of EPA advisory committees may 
not be in receipt of (or reap substantial direct benefit from) an EPA 
grant; this policy does not apply to state, local, or tribal government 
agency recipients of EPA grants.

    Dated: December 8, 2021.
Andrew D. Sawyers,
Director, Office of Wastewater Management, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 2021-26987 Filed 12-13-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P