Steve Owens

After graduating, he served as counsel to the House Science and Technology subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight. Whether investigating biotechnology or toxins in baby formula, Owens learned that more often than not, the best information was found in scientific reasoning.

The lesson stayed with him over the years as he negotiated new territory, transitioning between public service and private practice and from the hills of Tennessee to the Arizona desert.

During his tenure as the longest-serving director of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Owens championed sound science and transparent decision-making, determined to restore integrity to a department that had become entrenched with special interests under previous governance.

Owens has set a similar tone for his office at EPA, saying his primary objective is to follow the rule of law and ensure the regulatory process is as clear as possible. At his nomination hearing in May 2009, he reaffirmed the priorities outlined by EPA head Lisa P. Jackson, saying, "Scientific decisions should reflect the expertise of the agency's career scientists and independent advisers."

Owens' actions, such as calling for scientific review of a commonly used herbicide, already have begun to reinvigorate the EPA, an agency long criticized for a lack of disclosure.

In Their Own Words

"Science will lead to the best solutions. Certainly there are areas where it will not be able to answer all the questions, but if you follow the science and do it in a sound way, you go a long way toward making the right decisions."

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