Press Release: EPA Office of Inspector General Joins Interagency Trade Fraud Task Force
Press Release
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Inspector General
Washington, D.C.
For Immediate Release
August 20, 2026
Contact: OIG.PublicAffairs@epa.gov
EPA Office of Inspector General Joins Interagency Trade Fraud Task Force
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General (EPA OIG) announced today that it has joined the Trade Fraud Task Force (TFTF) as an investigative partner. The interagency task force includes Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, U.S. Department of Agriculture OIG, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division.
“Fighting fraud is at the core of the EPA OIG’s statutory mission, and trade fraud threatens the integrity of EPA programs and operations by allowing unverified, noncompliant, or illegal goods to sidestep federal laws and regulations,” said EPA Deputy Inspector General performing the duties of the Inspector General Nicole Murley. “These schemes disadvantage businesses that follow the law, pose unnecessary health risks to Americans, and weaken regulatory safeguards. They also cross jurisdictions and exploit gaps between agencies, making strong federal partnerships essential to detecting fraud, disrupting criminal networks, and ensuring taxpayers and their hard-earned dollars are protected. The Trade Fraud Task Force significantly strengthens our collective ability to expose and stop wrongdoing and deter future violations.”
Launched by the Department of Justice and Homeland Security Investigations, the TFTF brings coordinated, high-impact enforcement against entities seeking to defraud the United States. The TFTF targets tariff and customs duty evasion, illegal transshipment, misclassification and undervaluation of goods, health and safety violations, forced labor in global supply chains, and trade-based money laundering.
In its first year of operation, the TFTF surpassed $1 billion in criminal and civil recoveries, penalties, forfeitures, and charged losses. To institutionalize this whole-of-government mandate, the Department of Justice established a Global Trade & Commerce Enforcement Section within its National Fraud Enforcement Division to aggressively prosecute cross-border supply chain violations.
Working alongside federal partners, the EPA OIG will apply its investigative capabilities to fraud schemes involving products intended for critical water-related infrastructure, fraudulent pesticides and chemicals under EPA oversight, and other regulated materials or products when the objective of these schemes is to defraud the United States and its citizens.
About the EPA OIG
The OIG is an independent office within the EPA that performs audits, evaluations, and investigations of the EPA and the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board. For more information, visit the EPA OIG website and follow the OIG on X, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook. Anyone with knowledge of potential waste, fraud, and abuse relating to EPA operations and programs is encouraged to report it to the OIG Hotline at (888) 546-8740 or OIG.Hotline@epa.gov.
OIG Independence of EPA
The EPA's Office of Inspector General is a part of the EPA, although Congress provides our funding separate from the agency, to ensure our independence. We were created pursuant to the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended.
Environmental Protection Agency | Office of Inspector General
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OIG Hotline: 1-888-546-8740.