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ARTICLE · 06 JUNE 2022

Equity Action Plans: Government Agencies Prioritize Environmental Justice

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Each agency acknowledged the need for more agency staff to support the current initiatives and implement the new initiatives.

United StatesEnvironment
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In an effort to "redress inequities in [Federal] policies and programs that serve as barriers to equal opportunity," the Biden administration has set forth an agenda to identify areas of improvement and advance equity across the Federal Government. On January 20, President Biden issued Executive Order 13985 which requires agencies to produce "Equity Action Plans" that are agency sponsored reports to assess whether underserved communities face systemic barriers in accessing benefits and opportunities available based on an agency's policies and programs. Of the government agencies that have produced Equity Action Plans in response to the Executive Order, three government agencies have focused on addressing environmental justice issues – the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE). FERC announced its Equity Action Plan in January 2022, while the EPA and DOE recently announced their plans in

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