Civil Rights Guidance on Procedural Safeguards
Pursuant to a permanent injunction issued by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana on August 22, 2024, EPA will not impose or enforce any disparate-impact or cumulative-impact-analysis requirements under Title VI against any entity in the State of Louisiana. Click here for additional and updated information.
On August 22, 2024 the EPA’s Office of External Civil Rights Compliance, within the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights, released the Civil Rights Guidance on Procedural Safeguards: Requirements and Best Practices. This guidance document was created to assist recipients of EPA financial assistance (such as grantees) when developing and improving their legally required civil rights compliance efforts.
It also advances transparency by providing information to all stakeholders about obligations under civil rights laws and EPA’s nondiscrimination regulations, and represents another step toward delivering on EPA’s commitment to strengthening its external civil rights enforcement program.
The Civil Rights Guidance on Procedural Safeguards: Requirements and Best Practices provides information about the civil rights laws administered by the Agency, and outlines best practices for building strong and effective civil rights programs for recipients of EPA financial assistance.
Read the Civil Rights Guidance on Procedural Safeguards: Requirements and Best Practices (pdf)
Guía de derechos civiles sobre garantías procesales: requisitos y mejores prácticas (pdf)
While best practices are not themselves legal requirements, and do not modify or add to existing legal requirements, EPA believes that civil rights concerns may be addressed proactively by recipients if they have the tools necessary to engage in robust civil rights compliance efforts. This guidance does not replace or supersede any existing statutory obligations, but rather pulls together requirements and best practices to be responsive to asks from inside and outside of the Agency.
EPA’s Office of External Civil Rights Compliance is working diligently to improve processes and provide helpful resources to all recipients, communities, and other stakeholders to ensure their success and partnership with EPA. Through this guidance document, and other resources available online, EPA is continuing to build a robust, responsive civil rights program.