Management Implication Report: Extramural Research and Scientific Integrity Concerns

Why We Did This Report

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General has identified a concern with the EPA’s requirement that extramural research reports be submitted to the EPA via email.

Summary of Findings

The OIG has concerns with the EPA’s requirement that awardees submit federally funded research reports via email. Email providers go to great lengths to obscure the originating IP address from an email’s header information. This makes it very difficult to determine the location from which the email was sent. The location is useful for identifying whether a research report was sent from within the United States.