Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso announced his resignation to
staff in an email Thursday evening; the news was confirmed by CSB. He led the
agency since 2010, a tenure dogged by internal turmoil and allegations that he
mismanaged and overstressed the staff.
Moure-Eraso had just three months left in his five-year term
at CSB, the independent agency tasked with investigating chemical incidents and
issuing recommendations.
"It has been a privilege to serve the agency since June
2010," Moure-Eraso wrote to the staff. "My wishes are for the
continued success and productivity of the Board. Good luck to the Board and the
staff in all your projects at the CSB. I am forever grateful for the hard work
of the agency that has led to so many successes over the past five years."
The White House asked Moure-Eraso to step aside, which the
administration communicated to lawmakers this week.
A spokesman for CSB said that Moure-Eraso resigned his post
as chairman, but will remain a board member until mid-April. That leaves the
makeup of the board at four members for five open spots. It was not clear
Thursday who would serve as chairman.
Moure-Eraso faced increasing pressure from the Hill over his
management of the agency and charges that he stood in the way of EPA inspector
general investigations. Recently, an EPA IG report found that Moure-Eraso and
two top executives used personal email accounts to conduct official business.
Fourteen members of the House Oversight Committee called on
Obama to oust Moure-Eraso last week, as did two Republican members of the
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. The letter from Sens. Jim Inhofe
and Mike Rounds said CSB "can no longer continue to operate credibly under
this leadership."
In a statement Thursday, Inhofe and Rounds, who heads the
Superfund, Waste Management, and Regulatory Oversight subcommittee, applauded
the White House for requesting the resignation and urged quick action to fill
the board.
"During his time serving as chairman, we believe he
violated his oath of office and violated the law," Inhofe and Rounds said.
"Moure-Eraso's leadership created an environment of dysfunction within the
agency and it was no longer operating with credibility in conducting meaningful
investigations of industrial incidents."
In a joint statement issued Wednesday, Oversight Committee
chairman Jason Chaffetz and ranking member Elijah Cummings said they were
"pleased that the president has recognized the importance of making key
changes with the Chemical Safety Board."
"Dr. Moure-Eraso's mismanagement of the CSB, abuse of
power, employee retaliation, and lack of honesty in his communications with
Congress are among the many reasons why his resignation is the right next step
for this federal agency," they wrote. "We remain hopeful that
progress will continue to be made with regards to improving leadership and
morale issues within the CSB."
The Oversight Committee also charged that a CSB employee had
been removed from an outside contract and demoted after working with a
consulting firm on a report that criticized management at the agency. There
have also been questions about a board order that passed in a late-night January
meeting that wiped away several management reforms and appeared to consolidate
power with the chair, although the member who introduced it said it was a
streamlining measure.
Industry and labor observers also said that under
Moure-Eraso, the agency had faltered on its core work of investigating and
preventing chemical accidents. Until recently, there was a hefty backlog of
open investigations, although CSB has issued eight reports in the past nine
months and now has just six open investigations (three others were eliminated
without a final report). Still, critics say the CSB has not been as quick or as
nimble as it had in the past.
Several investigators left under Moure-Eraso, citing a toxic
work environment and a management style that discouraged open discussion and
debate.
The White House this month nominated Vanessa Allen
Sutherland, the chief counsel at the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration, to chair the CSB for a term that would begin in June.