Environmental Protection Agency

Why We Did This Report We visited the Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor Superfund site on Bainbridge Island, Washington, to observe the EPA’s management of public access to the site, including contaminated beaches. Through our visit, we aimed to determine whether we should conduct additional oversight. Summary...

Why We Did This Report In November 2025, while planning for future grant audits, an OIG audit team could not find the 2021-2025 plan among the EPA’s online resources and inquired about it with the Office of Finance and Administration. Following that inquiry, the EPA made an updated 2021-2025 plan...

Why We Did This Report Under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or IIJA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was provided with over $60 billion in appropriations for Agency programs, including the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs, the Superfund Program...

Why We Did This Report The Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act requires the EPA to prepare and the OIG to audit the accompanying financial statements of the EPA’s Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund. Our primary objectives were to determine whether the: Fund’s financial...

Why We Did This Report The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, or FIFRA, as amended by the Food Quality Protection Act, requires the EPA OIG to perform an annual audit of the financial statements for the Pesticides Reregistration and Expedited Processing Fund. Our primary objectives...

Why We Did This Report We conducted this evaluation to determine whether American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grants for cleaning up brownfield sites achieved the Brownfields Program intent of cleaning up and reusing these sites. Summary of Findings As of May 2025, of the 38 brownfield sites that...

Why We Did This Report The Reports Consolidation Act of 2000 requires each inspector general to prepare an annual statement summarizing what the inspector general considers to be “the most serious management and performance challenges facing the agency” and to briefly assess the agency’s progress in...

Why We Did This Report We conducted this evaluation to determine the extent to which Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act supplemental funds are used for projects that improve resilience to physical and cyber threats and hazards. Summary of Findings The EPA has...

Why We Did This Report We conducted this audit to determine whether the Environmental Finance Centers, which are funded by annual and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act appropriations and perform work in EPA Region 4 states, are accomplishing the outputs and outcomes established in their...

Why We Did This Report We conducted this evaluation to identify state-level trends in Resource Conservation and Recovery Act enforcement data for large quantity generators from 2020 through 2024. Summary of Findings From 2020 through 2024, the EPA and some authorized states did not fully meet their...