Ensuring Consistent Environmental Enforcement and Compliance

• EPA has authorized states to carry out much of the day-to-day responsibilities for timely, appropriate enforcement of environmental laws.
• EPA does not effectively oversee how well the states are carrying out their enforcement responsibilities.
• EPA has not (1) identified the root causes of poorly performing programs; (2) informed the public about how well the states are implementing their enforcement responsibilities; and (3) assessed the performance of EPA's regional offices in carrying out their state oversight responsibilities—performance that has been inconsistent over the years.
• EPA has been slow to improve long-standing problems in its enforcement data, which, among other things, hampers its ability to accurately determine the universe and characteristics of entities needing regulation to ensure that (1) the public is afforded equal protection under environmental laws and (2) regulated parties, taxpayers, and ratepayers are not subjected to widely varying costs of environmental compliance among regions.
• EPA’s human capital management challenges also exacerbate its ability to ensure that regions and states have the capacity to meet their enforcement responsibilities.
• EPA reports on penalties and its estimates of the value of injunctive relief and pollution reduction may undermine the transparency and accuracy of its reported outcomes and cause EPA to both over- and under-report its enforcement achievements.

^ Back to topWhat Needs to Be Done

• EPA needs to enhance its oversight of regional and state enforcement activities to implement environmental programs consistent with the requirements of federal statutes and regulations.

  Highlights of GAO-07-883 (PDF)

• EPA should develop an action plan for addressing enforcement problems identified in state programs; ensure that states have sufficient resources to implement and enforce programs, as authorized by EPA; and help the states improve their capacity for enforcement.

  Highlights of GAO-07-883 (PDF)

• EPA should also routinely conduct performance assessments of regional and state enforcement programs and communicate the results of the assessments to the public and the regulated industry.

  Highlights of GAO-07-883 (PDF)

^ Back to topKey Reports

Environmental Protection

Environmental Enforcement

Environmental Compliance and Enforcement

More Reports