in july 2017, president donald trump nominated dourson to become assistant administrator of the environmental protection agency, chemical safety and pollution prevention. his nomination was sent to the united states senate on july 19, 2017. his hearing before the united states senate committee on environment and public works took place on october 4, 2017. during the hearing, he was criticized by democrats for his ties to the chemical industry. dourson defended himself to the satisfaction of the committee, saying he would commit to the law and the epa's mission to protect the public and the environment from chemicals. dourson's nomination was endorsed by the american chemistry council. an october 2017 "new york times" editorial called dourson a "scientist for hire" and said his nomination for an epa post was "dangerous to public health." during his senate confirmation process, he respond privately in writing to accusations and these responses were sent to several us senators. these responses have been made public. for a copy, see: https://www.tera.org/about/teracollaborativework%2012.8.17.pdf.