In May 1983, President Ronald Reagan asked me to lead the Environmental Protection Agency for a second time. The first time was when the EPA began. Reagan’s first appointed administrator, Anne Burford, had lost the trust of the public and the confidence of Congress. There were serious questions about the management of the EPA’s Superfund program and a too-cozy relationship with corporate executives and lobbyists.
On my first day back, I issued what is now called the “fishbowl memo,” which laid out my commitment to openness at the agency. We started to release my full schedule and the publication of written communications on a daily basis.