Office of Inspector General

2020 OIG Reports

Following is a listing of all reports issued by the Office of Inspector General.

Reports by Year

Special Reports

Congressionally Requested and Chemical Safety Board Reports

What is the EPA OIG?

The Office of Inspector General is an independent organization that performs audits and investigations of the EPA to detect and prevent fraud, waste and abuse. Learn more

Our Audit and Evaluation Reports

The EPA OIG conducts financial and performance audits to determine the efficiency and effectiveness of agency operations and programs. Audits identify potential fraud, waste and abuse; assess program compliance and management of agency processes; identify opportunities to improve human health and the environment; and offer recommendations for cost savings and other efficiencies.

The EPA OIG also conducts evaluations of EPA programs and activities that support clean air, clear water, safer chemicals, cleaner communities, and scientific research. The office assesses the design, implementation, and measurement of EPA programs, including evidence of program effectiveness and results.

Audits and evaluations differ from our investigations in that they do not deal with criminal activities and generally look at groups, processes, controls or structures, not individual employees. Also, when initiated, most audits are announced publicly, and upon their conclusion, a final report is posted here on the Reports page.

2020 OIG Reports

Date	Title	Publication Number	Environmental Goal(s)	Report Teams
Dec 29, 2020	Evaluation of EPA’s Compliance with the Executive Order 13950 on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping	21-E-0044	Compliance with the law	C
Dec 29, 2020	Evaluation of CSB’s Compliance with Executive Order 13950 on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping	21-E-0043	U.S. Chemical Safety Board	C
Dec 28, 2020	EPA Needs to Substantially Improve Oversight of Its Military Leave Processes to Prevent Improper Payments	21-P-0042	Compliance with the law, Operating efficiently and effectively	FO
Dec 7, 2020	EPA Needs to Improve Its Planning and Management of Laboratory Consolidation Efforts	21-E-0033	Operating efficiently and effectively	EF
Dec 3, 2020	Region 2's Hurricanes Irma and Maria Response Efforts in Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands Show the Need for Improved Planning, Communications, and Assistance for Small Drinking Water Systems	21-P-0032	Ensuring clean and safe water, Partnering with states and other stakeholders, Operating efficiently and effectively	W
Dec 1, 2020	EPA Needs to Improve Oversight of Invoice Reviews and Contractor Performance Evaluation	21-E-0031	Operating efficiently and effectively	IRM
Nov 30, 2020	EPA's Initial Plans for Returning to the Office Incorporate CDC Guidance but Differ by Location	21-E-0030	Operating efficiently and effectively	EF
Nov 2020	Semiannual Report to Congress: April 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020	EPA-350-R-20-002
Nov 18, 2020	CSB Discontinued Information Recovery Testing and Off-Site Backup Storage During the Coronavirus Pandemic	21-E-0016		IRM
Nov 16, 2020	Audit of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board's Fiscal Years 2020 and 2019 Financial Statements	21-F-0015		FA
Nov 16, 2020	EPA's Fiscal Years 2020 and 2019 (Restated) Consolidated Financial Statements	21-F-0014	Operating efficiently and effectively	FA
Sept 30, 2020	Audit of EPA's Toxic Substances Control Act Service Fee Fund Financial Statements for the Period from Inception (June 22, 2016) through September 30, 2018	20-F-0342	Operating efficiently and effectively	FA
Sept 30, 2020	Data Used for Annual Toxics Release Inventory National Analysis Are 99 Percent Complete, but EPA Could Improve Certain Data Controls	20-P-0337	Operating efficiently and effectively	L
Sept 29, 2020	Regions 1 and 5 Need to Require Tribes to Submit More Detailed Work Plans for Grants	20-P-0335	Operating efficiently and effectively	EF
Sept 28, 2020	Improved EPA Oversight of Funding Recipients' Title VI Programs Could Prevent Discrimination	20-E-0333	Compliance with the law, Operating efficiently and effectively	A
Sept 28, 2020	EPA Has Sufficiently Managed Emergency Responses During the Pandemic but Needs to Procure More Supplies and Clarify Guidance	20-E-0332	Cleaning up and revitalizing land	L
Sept 25, 2020	EPA's Lack of Oversight Resulted in Serious Issues Related to an Office of Water Contract, Including Potential Misallocation of Funds	20-P-0331	Operating efficiently and effectively	C
Sept 23, 2020	Fiscal Years 2019 and 2018 Financial Statements for the Pesticide Registration Fund	20-F-0328	Operating efficiently and effectively	FA
Sept 10, 2020	EPA Needs to Improve Processes for Securing Region 8’s Local Area Network	20-E-0309	Operating efficiently and effectively	IRM
Sept 8, 2020	Fiscal Years 2019 and 2018 Financial Statements for the Pesticides Reregistration and Expedited Processing Fund	20-F-0308	Operating efficiently and effectively	FA
Aug 31, 2020	Management Alert: EPA Region 5 Needs to Implement Effective Internal Controls to Strengthen Its Records Management Program	20-E-0295	Operating efficiently and effectively	IRM
Aug 17, 2020	Lack of Planning Risks EPA’s Ability to Meet Toxic Substances Control Act Deadlines	20-P-0247	Ensuring the safety of chemicals	T
Aug 13, 2020	EPA's 2018 BEACH Act Report to Congress Does Not Fully Meet Statutory Requirements	20-E-0246	Ensuring clean and safe water, Compliance with the law	W
Aug 10, 2020	EPA Needs to Strengthen Controls Over Required Documentation and Tracking of Intergovernmental Personnel Act Assignments	20-P-0245	Compliance with the law, Operating efficiently and effectively	FO
Aug 10, 2020	EPA's Fiscal Years 2018 and 2017 Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund Financial Statements	20-F-0244	Operating efficiently and effectively	FA
July 31, 2020	EPA OIG's Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
July 30, 2020	EPA Needs to Improve Oversight of How States Implement Air Emissions Regulations for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills	20-P-0236	Improving air quality	A
July 21, 2020	EPA's FYs 2020–2021 Top Management Challenges	20-N-0231		SP
July 16, 2020	Internal Quality Assurance Review of EPA OIG Audit Assignments Completed in Fiscal Year 2019	20-N-0230
July 6, 2020	Fiscal Year 2020 U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Management Challenges	20-N-0218	U.S. Chemical Safety Board	SP
June 30, 2020	EPA Needs to Improve Oversight of Research Assistance Agreements	20-P-0204	Improving EPA research programs, Operating efficiently and effectively	C
June 30, 2020	EPA's Safer Choice Program Would Benefit from Formal Goals and Additional Oversight	20-P-0203	Ensuring the safety of chemicals	T
June 29, 2020	EPA’s Initial Implementation of CARES Act Section 3610	20-N-0202		C
June 22, 2020	EPA Needs to Address Internal Control Deficiencies in the Agencywide Quality System	20-P-0200	Operating efficiently and effectively	ER
June 17, 2020	Top Pandemic-Related Challenges Facing the EPA
June 15, 2020	EPA's Office of the Chief Financial Officer Lacks Authority to Make Decisions on Employee-Debt Waiver Requests	20-P-0194	Operating efficiently and effectively	FO
May 2020	Semiannual Report to Congress: Oct 1, 2019 – Mar 31, 2020	EPA-350-R-20-001
June 1, 2020	Fiscal Years 2018 and 2017 Financial Statements for the Pesticides Reregistration and Expedited Processing Fund	20-F-0184	Operating efficiently and effectively	FA
May 28, 2020	EPA Toxic Substances Control Act Consent Orders Need Better Coordination	20-E-0177	Ensuring the safety of chemicals	T
May 20, 2020	Further Efforts Needed to Uphold Scientific Integrity Policy at EPA	20-P-0173	Improving EPA research programs	ER
May 18, 2020	EPA Needs to Conduct Risk Assessments When Designing and Implementing Programs	20-P-0170	Operating efficiently and effectively	EF
May 14, 2020	EPA Oversight Provided Reasonable Controls to Deter and Minimize Trespassing at the Fort Ord Superfund Site	20-E-0169	Cleaning up and revitalizing land	L
May 13, 2020	EPA Complied with Improper Payments Legislation, but Internal Controls Need Substantial Improvement to Ensure More Accurate Reporting	20-P-0167	Compliance with the law	C
Apr 22, 2020	EPA's Processing Times for New Source Air Permits in Indian Country Have Improved, but Many Still Exceed Regulatory Time Frames	20-P-0146	Improving air quality	A
Apr 14, 2020	Fiscal Years 2018 and 2017 Financial Statements for the Pesticide Registration Fund	20-F-0135	Operating efficiently and effectively	FA
Apr 13, 2020	EPA May Have Overpaid for Its $13 Million Time and Attendance System by Not Following Information Technology Investment Requirements	20-P-0134	Operating efficiently and effectively	EF
Mar 31, 2020	EPA's Compliance Monitoring Activities, Enforcement Actions, and Enforcement Results Generally Declined from Fiscal Years 2006 Through 2018	20-P-0131	Compliance with the law	W
Mar 31, 2020	Management Alert: Prompt Action Needed to Inform Residents Living Near Ethylene Oxide-Emitting Facilities About Health Concerns and Actions to Address Those Concerns	20-N-0128	Improving air quality	A
Mar 31, 2020	EPA Did Not Accurately Report Under the Grants Oversight and New Efficiency Act and Needs to Improve Timeliness of Expired Grant Closeouts	20-P-0126	Operating efficiently and effectively	C
Mar 24, 2020	EPA Needs to Improve Its Risk Management and Incident Response Information Security Functions	20-P-0120	Compliance with the law, Operating efficiently and effectively	IRM, OM
Mar 6, 2020	Annual Plan for the EPA and CSB - FY 2020			OM
Feb 18, 2020	Management Controls Needed to Verify and Report Border 2020 Program Accomplishments	20-P-0083	Partnering with states and other stakeholders, Operating efficiently and effectively	T
Feb 12, 2020	CSB's Information Security Program Is Defined, but Improvements Needed in Risk Management, Identity and Access Management, and Incident Response	20-P-0077	U.S. Chemical Safety Board	IRM
Jan 23, 2020	U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board's Compliance in Fiscal Year 2019 with Improper Payments Legislation and Guidance	20-N-0064	U.S. Chemical Safety Board	EF
Jan 10, 2020	EPA Should Improve Oversight of Mobile Phones	20-P-0068	Operating efficiently and effectively	EF
Jan 3, 2020	EPA Can Improve Incident Readiness with Better Management of Homeland Security and Emergency Response Equipment	20-P-0066	Operating efficiently and effectively	EF

2019 OIG Reports are available.

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GAGAS and Non-GAGAS Reports

Reports from October 2016 and later marked with a P, F or A in their report number follow GAGAS, Exitofficial examination standards established by the federal government. This sign of quality ensures the integrity, objectivity and independence of our work.

Reports marked with an N, E, B or S signify the limited “non-GAGAS” work that reflects back on our recent recommendations to highlight the impact of our oversight mission.

Report Type	Middle Character (i.e., 20-X-001)
GAGAS-compliant performance audit	P
GAGAS-compliant financial statement audit	F
GAGAS-compliant attestation audit	A
Non-GAGAS or Non-QSIE-compliant report	N
QSIE -compliant evaluation	E
Internal report	B
Single audit report	S

Report Teams

A - Air
CSB - US Chemical Safety Board
C - Contracts and Assistance Agreement
EF - Efficiency
FA - Financial
FO - Forensic
IRM - Information Resources Management
L - Land Cleanup and Waste Management
OM - Office of Management
SP - Special Programs (prev SPR)
ER - Environmental Research (prev ERP)
T - Toxics, Chemical Management and Pollution Prevention
W - Water

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 Exit.

Environmental Protection Agency | Office of Inspector General
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. (2410T) | Washington, DC 20460 | (202) 566-2391
OIG Hotline: 1-888-546-8740.

Office of Inspector General

2020 OIG Reports

Reports by Year

Special Reports

Congressionally Requested and Chemical Safety Board Reports

What is the EPA OIG?

Report Corrections

Our Audit and Evaluation Reports

2020 OIG Reports

GAGAS and Non-GAGAS Reports

Report Teams

OIG Independence of EPA

Office of Inspector General