Information on the Environmental Protection Agency's Actual and
Proposed Funding for Enforcement Activities for Fiscal Years 2001
through 2003 (27-SEP-02, GAO-02-1096R).
GAO reviewed the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposal
to reduce the number of full-time employees from its enforcement
budget for compliance monitoring and civil enforcement activities
to evaluate EPA's statements that (1) the jobs being eliminated
are ones that EPA has allowed to lapse or has been unable to fill
and (2) the reductions will be managed through normal attrition,
without any loss of enforcement expertise and without shifting
staff to nonenforcement functions. GAO found that EPA received a
total of 1,464.8 full-time equivalent (FTE) positions for civil
enforcement and compliance-monitoring functions under its
Environmental Program and Management appropriation. EPA's fiscal
year 2001 operating plan included full funding for the FTE
positions provided for civil enforcement and
compliance-monitoring activities. According to Office of
Compliance and Enforcement (OECA) officials, the agency had no
specific plans to leave vacancies open in anticipation of planned
reductions in the workforce for compliance monitoring and civil
enforcement. According to EPA officials, the agency does not
assume or use any attrition rate in developing its annual budget.
Instead, EPA establishes FTE ceilings for each of its program
offices, which are expected to manage their resources according
to their ceiling. EPA officials stated that EPA's fiscal year
2002 proposed operating plan did not restore 121.8 FTE positions
for civil enforcement and compliance monitoring that had been
available during fiscal year 2001. Under its fiscal year 2001
budget, OECA received $30,465,100 for its contracting activities
and has requested $26,487,200 for fiscal year 2003. For fiscal
year 2002, EPA anticipates that it will spend 50 FTE for OECA's
counterterrorism activities. OECA has developed a draft Human
Capital Strategy but has not performed the workload study GAO
recommended in a prior report. However, OECA has been working
with EPA's human resources office, in a pilot effort, to develop
a methodology for a workforce assessment.
-------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
REPORTNUM: GAO-02-1096R
ACCNO: A05206
TITLE: Information on the Environmental Protection Agency's
Actual and Proposed Funding for Enforcement Activities for Fiscal
Years 2001 through 2003
DATE: 09/27/2002
SUBJECT: Personnel management
Budget administration
Budget activities
Attrition rates
Reductions in force
Information on the Environmental Protection Agency's Actual and
Proposed Funding for Enforcement Activities for Fiscal Years 2001
through 2003 (27-SEP-02, GAO-02-1096R).
GAO reviewed the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposal
to reduce the number of full-time employees from its enforcement
budget for compliance monitoring and civil enforcement activities
to evaluate EPA's statements that (1) the jobs being eliminated
are ones that EPA has allowed to lapse or has been unable to fill
and (2) the reductions will be managed through normal attrition,
without any loss of enforcement expertise and without shifting
staff to nonenforcement functions. GAO found that EPA received a
total of 1,464.8 full-time equivalent (FTE) positions for civil
enforcement and compliance-monitoring functions under its
Environmental Program and Management appropriation. EPA's fiscal
year 2001 operating plan included full funding for the FTE
positions provided for civil enforcement and
compliance-monitoring activities. According to Office of
Compliance and Enforcement (OECA) officials, the agency had no
specific plans to leave vacancies open in anticipation of planned
reductions in the workforce for compliance monitoring and civil
enforcement. According to EPA officials, the agency does not
assume or use any attrition rate in developing its annual budget.
Instead, EPA establishes FTE ceilings for each of its program
offices, which are expected to manage their resources according
to their ceiling. EPA officials stated that EPA's fiscal year
2002 proposed operating plan did not restore 121.8 FTE positions
for civil enforcement and compliance monitoring that had been
available during fiscal year 2001. Under its fiscal year 2001
budget, OECA received $30,465,100 for its contracting activities
and has requested $26,487,200 for fiscal year 2003. For fiscal
year 2002, EPA anticipates that it will spend 50 FTE for OECA's
counterterrorism activities. OECA has developed a draft Human
Capital Strategy but has not performed the workload study GAO
recommended in a prior report. However, OECA has been working
with EPA's human resources office, in a pilot effort, to develop
a methodology for a workforce assessment.
-------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
REPORTNUM: GAO-02-1096R
ACCNO: A05206
TITLE: Information on the Environmental Protection Agency's
Actual and Proposed Funding for Enforcement Activities for Fiscal
Years 2001 through 2003
DATE: 09/27/2002
SUBJECT: Personnel management
Budget administration
Budget activities
Attrition rates
Reductions in force
******************************************************************
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GAO-02-1096R
United States General Accounting Office Washington, DC 20548
September 27, 2002 The Honorable James L. Oberstar Ranking Minority Member
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure House of Representatives
The Honorable Robert Menendez House of Representatives
Subject: Information on the Environmental Protection Agency*s Actual and
Proposed Funding for Enforcement Activities for Fiscal Years 2001 through
2003
This report summarizes the information we obtained in response to the
issues you raised regarding the Environmental Protection Agency*s (EPA)
proposal to reduce the number of full- time employees from its enforcement
budget for compliance monitoring and civil enforcement activities. As
agreed, the information is intended to help you evaluate EPA*s statements
that (1) the jobs being eliminated are ones that EPA has allowed to lapse
or has been unable to fill and (2) the reductions will be managed through
normal attrition, without any loss of enforcement expertise and without
shifting staff to nonenforcement functions.
Our responses to the issues below are based on the information we obtained
relating to EPA*s appropriations process for fiscal years 2001 through
2003. We obtained the information by interviewing EPA officials in the
Office of Compliance and Enforcement (OECA), who are responsible for
developing and monitoring OECA*s budget. We also reviewed documentation
that these officials provided us on EPA*s (1) enacted operating plan for
fiscal year 2001, (2) budget request and enacted operating plan for fiscal
year 2002, and (3) budget request for fiscal year 2003.
Issue 1
Identify the total number of full- time employees provided for civil
enforcement and compliance- monitoring functions (non- Superfund) in EPA*s
budget as approved by the Congress in the Fiscal Year 2001 Appropriations
Act for HUD- VA- Independent Agencies and as reflected in the agency*s
operating plan for fiscal year 2001, which
GAO- 02- 1096R EPA*s Enforcement Budget Page 2 described in detail how the
agency planned to implement the budget approved by the
Congress. 1 GAO*s Response As approved by the Congress and reflected in
EPA*s operating plan for fiscal year 2001, EPA received a total of 1,464.8
full time equivalent (FTE) positions for civil enforcement and compliance-
monitoring functions (non- Superfund) under its Environmental Program and
Management (EPM) appropriation. Of this total, 954.8 FTE positions were
provided for the civil enforcement program and 510.0 for the compliance-
monitoring program.
Issue 2
Determine whether the fiscal year 2001 operating plan for Environmental
Programs and Management activities, which was based on the EPA budget
approved by the Congress, included full funding (salaries and expenses)
for the FTE positions provided for civil enforcement and compliance
monitoring (non- Superfund).
GAO*s Response EPA*s fiscal year 2001 operating plan included full funding
(salaries and expenses) for the FTE positions provided for civil
enforcement and compliance- monitoring (non- Superfund) activities. The
EPA fiscal year 2001 operating plan for Environmental and Management
activities included $137.5 million for payroll, travel, administration,
and a working capital fund (for telecommunications, Internet use, and
other aids to enable employees do their jobs) associated with these
activities*$ 89.1 million for civil enforcement and $48.4 million for
compliance monitoring.
Issue 3
Determine whether planning for expected budget cuts in fiscal year 2002
led EPA to leave open vacancies in fiscal year 2001 for compliance
monitoring and civil enforcement (non- Superfund) to the levels that were
provided for in the fiscal year 2001 appropriations act and reflected in
the agency*s operating plan for that year. How many positions were
ultimately allowed to lapse in anticipation of these reductions in the
enforcement workforce?
GAO*s Response According to OECA officials, the agency had no specific
plans to leave vacancies open in anticipation of planned reductions in the
workforce for compliance monitoring and civil enforcement (non-
Superfund). They noted, however, that managers were probably inclined not
to fill all vacancies, anticipating that FTE positions would soon need to
be reduced under the fiscal year 2002 budget.
1 EPA*s civil enforcement program helps protect the environment and human
health by assuring compliance with federal environmental laws. Civil
enforcement encompasses the investigations and cases brought to address
the most significant violations, and includes EPA administrative actions
and judicial cases referred to the Department of Justice.
GAO- 02- 1096R EPA*s Enforcement Budget Page 3 OECA officials also told us
that, in fiscal year 2001, approximately 65 FTE vacancies
were not utilized in EPA*s Goal 9, Objective 1, Subobjectives 1 and 2,
which include civil enforcement and compliance monitoring, as well as
criminal enforcement training, data management, and capacity- building
activities. They said that the vacancies were not filled in part because
of a government- wide freeze on hiring from November 2000 through February
2001, following the presidential election.
Issue 4
Identify the attrition rate (voluntary retirement or departure of
employees) that EPA assumed or assumes for its fiscal year 2001, 2002, and
2003 budgets. Indicate whether reductions to civil enforcement and
compliance- monitoring staff planned for fiscal year 2002 and 2003 exceed
projected attrition rates. Determine whether EPA had planned (or is
planning) to transfer enforcement staff to nonenforcement functions as
part of proposed reductions to civil enforcement and compliancemonitoring
functions.
GAO*s Response According to EPA officials, the agency does not assume or
use any attrition rate in developing its annual budget. Instead, EPA
establishes FTE ceilings for each of its program offices, which are
expected to manage their resources according to their ceiling.
EPA had proposed reductions of 270 FTE positions for OECA*s enforcement
activities during fiscal year 2002. Of these FTE positions, the agency had
planned to redirect 70 positions to nonenforcement programs and to achieve
the remaining reduction of 200 FTEs by not filling vacancies that were
expected to occur during the year. EPA officials told us that they did not
determine the number of FTE positions that would be redirected
specifically from civil enforcement and compliancemonitoring programs.
While the redirection of 70 FTEs was implemented, 145 of the remaining 200
FTEs were restored in the November 2001 conference committee report
accompanying EPA*s fiscal year 2002 appropriations act. For fiscal year
2003, EPA is requesting a reduction of 76 FTE positions for civil
enforcement and compliance- monitoring (non- Superfund) activities from
fiscal year 2002 enacted levels. EPA does not intend to redirect any of
these enforcement FTE positions to other activities. Rather, EPA plans to
achieve these reductions by not filling vacancies that occur during the
year.
Issue 5
Determine whether EPA*s fiscal year 2002 operating plan restored FTE
positions for civil enforcement and compliance monitoring (non- Superfund)
to the fiscal year 2001 levels, as directed by the Congress in the fiscal
year 2002 Appropriations Act for HUD- VA- Independent Agencies.
GAO- 02- 1096R EPA*s Enforcement Budget Page 4 GAO*s Response
EPA officials told us that EPA*s fiscal year 2002 proposed operating plan
did not restore 121.8 FTE positions for civil enforcement and compliance
monitoring (nonSuperfund) that had been available during fiscal year 2001.
They told us that the funding received from the Congress for fiscal year
2002 was not sufficient to fund these FTEs. Subsequently, an additional 30
FTEs (24 non- Superfund) were restored to civil enforcement and compliance
monitoring in fiscal year 2002.
Issue 6
Compare the FTE positions for civil enforcement, compliance- monitoring,
and incentive programs (non- Superfund) in the fiscal year 2001 budget for
OECA as approved by the Congress and reflected in the operating plan for
that year with the amount projected in fiscal year 2003 in the
administration*s proposal to the Congress.
GAO*s Response Table 1 compares the fiscal year 2001 positions with the
amount projected in fiscal year 2003 in the administration*s proposal to
Congress.
Table 1: FTE Positions for Civil Enforcement, Compliance- Monitoring, and
Incentive Programs (NonSuperfund) in the Fiscal Year 2001 Budget Compared
with the Administration*s Proposed Fiscal Year 2003 Budget
Program Fiscal year 2001 operating plan
for FTE enforcement positions Fiscal year 2003 President*s
budget for FTE enforcement positions
Civil enforcement 954.8 848.2 Compliance monitoring 510.0 419.3 Compliance
Incentives 94.9 82.8
Total 1,559.7 1, 350.3
Issue 7
Compare the amount of contract dollars available to support OECA in fiscal
year 2001 with the amount that would be available under the fiscal year
2003 budget proposed for EPA by the administration.
GAO*s Response Under its fiscal year 2001 budget, OECA received
$30,465,100 for its contracting activities (non- Superfund). It has
requested $26,487,200 for fiscal year 2003 (nonSuperfund).
Issue 8
Indicate the approximate number of OECA*s FTE staff engaged in
counterterrorism investigation or support activities in fiscal year 2002.
Determine if (1) EPA shifted 30
GAO- 02- 1096R EPA*s Enforcement Budget Page 5 FTE positions from OECA*s
budget for civil enforcement and compliance monitoring
to support counterterrorism activities, in addition to the 50 FTE
positions already provided by Congress and (2) whether OECA will fill more
than 50 counterterrorism positions in fiscal year 2003, making the
reduction to environmental enforcement unnecessary.
GAO*s Response For fiscal year 2002, EPA estimates that it will spend
approximately 50 FTE for OECA*s counterterrorism activities.
In January 2002, EPA was provided with funds to cover an additional 50 FTE
for OECA*s homeland security activities under a supplemental
appropriation. As part of EPA*s 2002 operating plan submitted to the
Congress in April 2002, the agency proposed to allocate an additional 30
FTEs from enforcement to homeland security activities. However, in July
2002, the Congress denied EPA*s proposal. Prior to that date, some
enforcement staff had worked on homeland security activities, but agency
officials told us that all time spent on such activities during fiscal
year 2002 will be charged to the supplemental appropriation.
EPA officials told us that, by the end of fiscal year 2002, they estimate
that EPA will have filled approximately 50 FTEs for OECA*s
counterterrorism activities.
Issue 9
Last year, GAO recommended that the administration not proceed with
planned budget cuts for enforcement and monitoring functions without
completing a comprehensive workforce study to evaluate whether enforcement
resources are adequate to meet need. Indicate whether EPA has undertaken
such a study.
GAO*s Response OECA has developed a draft Human Capital Strategy but has
not performed the workload study that we recommended. However, OECA has
been working with EPA*s human resources office, in a pilot effort, to
develop a methodology for a workforce assessment. The overall objective is
to define the business line and the resources to accomplish the work.
OECA*s draft human capital strategy focuses on the organizational needs of
OECA headquarters. The strategy recommends that each regional office
examine its enforcement workforce consistent with OECA*s headquarters
strategy. Completing such an examination of regional needs is essential
for OECA to fully analyze its enforcement workload and accurately
determine the impacts of reducing its enforcement staff, shifting
resources to states, and ensuring that enforcement resources are directed
to the areas of greatest need.
Agency Comments
We provided EPA with a draft of this report for review and comment. EPA
officials, including the Director of the Administration and Resources
Management Support Staff in the Office of Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance, generally agreed with
GAO- 02- 1096R EPA*s Enforcement Budget Page 6 the information contained
in this report and offered a number of detailed
clarifications, which we incorporated as appropriate. - - - - We performed
our work from July through August 2002 in accordance with generally
accepted government auditing standards.
As agreed with your office, we plan no further distribution of this report
until 7 days after the date of this letter. At that time, we will send
copies to the Administrator of EPA and other interested parties. We will
also make copies available upon request. In addition, this report will be
available at no charge on the GAO Web site at http:// www. gao. gov.
If you have any questions about this letter, please call me at (202) 512-
3841 or Edward A. Kratzer, Assistant Director, at (202) 512- 6553. William
H. Roach also contributed to this assignment.
John B. Stephenson Director, Natural Resources
and Environment (360269)
*** End of document. ***