The impact of differing state and federal audit policies
- Univ. of Houston-Clear Lake, Houston, TX (United States)
Voluntary environmental audits are encouraged by both state and federal authorities as a mechanism to discover, report, correct, and prevent violations of environmental requirements. The goal is greater compliance, and increased protection of human health and the environment. The Environmental Protection Agency has a policy of waiving gravity-based penalties for violations discovered through voluntary audits or compliance management systems, if the violations are promptly disclosed and corrected. Additionally, EPA will not recommend these cases for criminal prosecution when specified conditions are met. Many states have passed statutes that also provide immunity from penalties for violations discovered in an environmental audit. The differing state and federal positions on the treatment of environmental audits raises various concerns. This paper expands on these issues raised by the conflict between federal and state treatment of voluntary environmental audits, and examines approached to encourage audits while addressing the concerns of various stakeholders.
- OSTI ID:
- 500790
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9705100--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Voluntary Environmental auditing in light of EPA`s criminal enforcement initiatives
Performing environmental audits: An engineer's guide