WHITE HOUSE RE-EXAMINING APPROACH TO EM-1 NOMINATION

According to what WC Monitor has learned, the White House has quietly begun anew its search for an Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management nominee, a position a most thought would be filled by David Huizenga after he was brought over from the National Nuclear Security Administration in July to take the reigns of the cleanup program in an acting capacity. There is not believed to be a specific objection to Huizenga, who has received high marks for his management of the program, and he is still viewed as a likely candidate for the nomination. However, the search for candidates has apparently resumed over the last few weeks as the Administration weighs its path forward for the DOE slot. A White House spokesman contacted yesterday said only that the Administration had “no updates” on the position. Huizenga was vetted by the White House personnel office in preparation for a nomination before taking over as acting Assistant Secretary, but that nomination has not come despite several other Department of Energy nominations—including Under Secretary of Energy nominee Arun Majumdar—being submitted to the Senate this fall.