Laws & Regulations

Semiannual Report: Oct 1, 2013 - Mar 31, 2014

Semiannual Report #EPA-350-R-14-001, May, 2014. Part of the OIG’s mission is to provide assistance to the agency in safeguarding the health of the American people and protecting the environment.

Report: Audit of EPA Passport Controls

Report #14-P-0243, May 1, 2014. EPA needs to strengthen controls for official passports to protect sensitive personally identifiable information.

Notices of Intent Archive: 2005, 2010, & 2017 Remediation General Permits (RGP) for Massachusetts & New Hampshire

Notices of Intent Archive for the 2005 & 2010 Remediation General Permits (RGP) in Massachusetts and New Hampshire

Report: EPA OIG’s Compliance With EPA Passport Guidance

Report #14-B-0244, May 1, 2014. The EPA OIG needs to ensure that it complies with EPA passport guidance to protect sensitive PII.

Report: EPA Compliance With Retention Incentive Regulations and Policies

Report #14-P-0245, May 2, 2014. EPA did not comply with Office of Personnel Management regulations or agency policies on retention incentive pay.

Report: EPA OIG Compliance With Retention Incentive Regulations and Policies

Report #14-B-0246, May 2, 2014. Unauthorized retention incentive payments totaling $64,204 were made to EPA OIG employees due to a lack of adequate internal controls and agency follow-up.

Report: EPA Employees Did Not Act Consistently With Agency Policy in Assisting an EPA Grantee

Report #14-P-0247, May 9, 2014. Fish contamination data was withheld that could have been useful to the scientific community and the public.

Briefing Report: Review of EPA’s Process to Release Information Under the Freedom of Information Act

Report #14-P-0262, May 16, 2014. All offices, except one, had internal FOIA procedures in writing to varying degrees.

EPA's Key Management Challenges - 2014

We are pleased to provide you with a list of areas the Office of Inspector General considers as key management challenges confronting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Report: EPA Has Not Implemented Adequate Management Procedures to Address Potential Fraudulent Environmental Data

Report #14-P-0270, May 29, 2014. The EPA is not ensuring that fraudulent laboratory environmental data is being communicated to appropriate program offices and data users, reviewed, and analyzed for its impact on human health and the environment.

Report: Weak Management of a Climate Change Services Contract Creates Risk EPA Did Not Receive Services for Which It Paid

Report #14-P-0272, May 30, 2014. The EPA awards millions of federal dollars to contractors every year. It must have robust oversight and management controls in place to prevent waste and unnecessary spending.

Report: New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Needs to Meet Cooperative Agreement Objectives and Davis-Bacon Act Requirements to Fully Achieve Leaking Underground Storage Tank Goals

Report #14-R-0278, June 4, 2014. NJDEP did not fully meet cooperative agreement objectives with Davis-Bacon Act requirements.

Report: CSB's Fiscal Year 2014 Management Challenges

June 9, 2014. The Office of Inspector General is beginning work to update the fiscal year 2014 list of areas we consider to be the key management challenges confronting the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board.

Report: EPA Has Made Progress in Assessing Historical Lead Smelter Sites But Needs to Strengthen Procedures

Report #14-P-0302, June 17, 2014. Improvements in guidance and procedures for managing contaminated sites could result in more efficient and effective use of limited resources and result in public health and economic benefits.

Report: Wells Band Council Needs to Improve Its Accounting System to Comply With Federal Regulations

Report #14-2-0316, July 14, 2014. The Wells Band Council’s accounting system did not comply with federal regulations, which resulted in $390,000 of questioned costs and proposed high-risk designation for the grantee.

Report: EPA Should Improve Oversight and Assure the Environmental Results of Puget Sound Cooperative Agreements

Report #14-P-0317, July 15, 2014. EPA should improve the administration and monitoring of Puget Sound cooperative agreements.

Report: Unliquidated Obligations Resulted in Missed Opportunities to Improve Drinking Water Infrastructure

Report #14-P-0318, July 16, 2014. States miss opportunities to improve the health of their communities’ drinking water infrastructure and the opportunity to infuse funds into the economy and create jobs.

Report: No Indications of Bias Found in a Sample of Freedom of Information Act Fee Waiver Decisions But the EPA Could Improve Its Process

Report #14-P-0319, July 16, 2014. EPA should address variability in time to respond to FOIA fee waiver requests and should clarify what requesters must demonstrate to receive a fee waiver.

Follow-Up Report: EPA Improves Management of Its Radiation Monitoring System

Report #14-P-0321, July 22, 2014. RadNet improvements have increased the EPA’s ability to assess radioactive threats to the public and the environment.

Report: Impact of EPA’s Conventional Reduced Risk Pesticide Program Is Declining

Report #14-P-0322, July 24, 2014. The number of newly registered reduced risk pesticides may continue to decline unless the EPA can reduce barriers to participation.