Outlet profile

NC DEQ

U.S. state government agency — North Carolina, under Democratic administration

Owned byState of North Carolina; led by Secretary D. Reid Wilson, appointed by Democratic Governor Josh Stein (took office January 2025)

FundingNorth Carolina state budget appropriations, federal grants (EPA and other federal agencies), and regulatory permit fees

On the administrationbroadly critical

Background

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality was established in 2015 under then-Governor Pat McCrory, succeeding the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), which itself was created in 1971 under the North Carolina Executive Reorganization Act. For much of the 2010s, the agency operated under Republican governors and faced criticism from environmental groups over budget cuts and lax enforcement, particularly around coal ash and water pollution. In 2017, DEQ faced scrutiny over its handling of coal ash ponds owned by Duke Energy, which had contaminated groundwater across the state. Democratic Governor Roy Cooper took office in 2017 and shifted the agency's priorities toward stricter enforcement of water quality rules and PFAS contamination. Governor Josh Stein, also a Democrat, took office in January 2025 and appointed D. Reid Wilson as Secretary; since then DEQ has advanced over $1.6 billion in water infrastructure investments and launched energy-efficiency programs statewide. Under Stein, NC DEQ has clashed with Trump administration federal rollbacks, including opposing an EPA–Chemours PFAS settlement that provided no direct relief to North Carolina and pushing back against elimination of mercury and air toxics standards affecting Duke Energy coal plants.

Sources

Profile compiled 2026-07-31; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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