A Republican who has proposed to eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was hounded by constituents recently at a pair of town hall events.

Most of the questions freshman Rep. Matt Gaetz Matthew (Matt) GaetzLara Trump campaigns with far-right activist candidate Laura Loomer in Florida House to vote on removing cannabis from list of controlled substances The Hill's 12:30 Report: Sights and sounds from GOP convention night 1 MORE (Fla.) got at the Thursday events were in opposition to his Feb. 3 bill that simply states that the EPA shall be terminated by the end of 2018, the Pensacola News Journal reported.

Environmentalists and other groups helped to organize protests and helped publicize the events.

Jesse Borthwick, one of Gaetz’s constituents, said he is worried about the future of the environment.

ADVERTISEMENT

“I'm concerned about offshore oil and gas drilling, protecting our military range and climate change,” he said, according to the Northwest Florida Daily News. “Conservatives need to agree there's a problem and we need to come together.”

Gaetz's 1st Congressional District includes a large military presence, including Naval Air Station Pensacola and Eglin Air Force Base.

Amanda Gordon, another constituent who voted for Gaetz, said she has “big concerns” about his anti-EPA bill, although she thinks the agency could use some changes.

“Reform it? Yes. Abolish it? No,” Gordon said. “We would be at the mercy of our neighboring states with no federal enforcement to affect anything they do. It's irresponsible.”

Gaetz clarified to his constituents that he wants to keep key federal environmental laws in place, but allow either states or other agencies to enforce them.

“My bill doesn't eliminate it right away, but sunsets the agency by 2018,” he said, according to the Daily News. “I want to keep the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act ... take the power out of Washington and back into the states.”