EPA Enforcement Trends—Is Obama’s EPA tougher than Bush’s?
12.06.10 5:53 PMEPA released its “Fiscal Year 2010 EPA Enforcement and Compliance Annual Results” on December 2, 2010. EPA enforcement statistics reflect 2010 was a banner year for enforcement in many respects. The “value” in monetary terms of injunctive relief and supplemental environmental projects for 2010 exceeded $12.1MM for concluded projects. While this is the largest amount of the five years compared by EPA statistics, it is not far off the adjusted statistics during the Bush Administration. Lawsuits filed by the Department of Justice increased in both 2009 and 2010 over the previous three Bush Administration civil filings. Same with concluded civil judicial complaints. Interestingly, final administrative orders issued dropped during the Obama administration signaling what appears to be a more get tough civil litigation posture, although EPA appears to be issuing more administrative orders. The number of inspections appears to have actually dropped from the Bush Administration, which may signal more targeted inspections. On the criminal side both 2009 and 2010 show record number of criminal referrals and in 2010 the most criminal charges ever filed. Criminal sentences in terms of years imprisonment is also up in 2009 and 2010 over 2007 and 2008. Notably compliance assistance dropped substantially in 2009 and 2010. One could conclude that compliance assistance under the Obama Administration was not as much a priority as enforcement based on the numbers.
The EPA statistics probably should not be read in a way that proves or disproves any particular trend; however, it appears to me that EPA is focusing more on civil and criminal enforcement over administrative enforcement and compliance assistance. Whether such an observation is statistically valid is for others to ponder.
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