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When the Trump administration tapped Michael Honeycutt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency’s Science Advisory Board in 2017, environmental and public health advocates expected that he would be a loyal foot soldier, supporting the administration’s deregulatory agenda at every opportunity that came before the influential panel, which provides scientific advice to inform pending environmental regulations.
Advocates’ fears were based in large part on Honeycutt’s tenure in Texas. As the chief toxicologist for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), the state environmental protection agency, Honeycutt had developed a reputation for holding fringe views on air pollution. For instance, just a few years prior, he had argued that increasing smog levels might have health benefits—a view at odds with decades of research.
