[PDF] The Federal State Relationship Environmental Self Audits eBook

Author : David N. Cassuto
Publisher :
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 36,8 MB
Release : 2014
Category :
ISBN :

GET BOOK

This Article examines the evolution of EPA's audit policy, explores the reasons for states' dissatisfaction with it, and then discusses whether the federal policy should have been issued as a rule under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Part I examines the evolution of the federal audit policy and then analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of the policy in its Federal Self-Audit Policy current form. Part II explores various types of evidentiary privilege and looks at the arguments for and against extending the privilege to audit reports. It then offers a similar analysis of the case for limited immunity, concluding that neither an expanded privilege nor immunity is necessary to encourage compliance audits, and that both provisions can seriously undermine the public's right to know and the Agency's law enforcement abilities. Part III clarifies the distinction between policies and rules under the APA in order to determine whether EPA's audit policy is actually a rule in disguise. The Article concludes that the federal audit policy offers sufficient enticements to industry to self-audit. The overall goal of both the state and federal policies should be heightened compliance with environmental laws. Yet, state statutes bedeck the audit process with incentives to the point where companies potentially could gain more by auditing than through complying with the law. Such laws treat audits as an end in themselves. This is a dangerous trend. Business uncertainties concerning the interpretation and impact of environmental laws should be allayed through compliance rather than through audits alone. The federal audit policy, unadorned by privilege' or immunity clauses, does not hallow audits, but offers only limited incentives as part of an overall policy of encouraging lawful behavior.

Author : United States Government Accountability Office
Publisher : Lulu.com
Page : 234 pages
File Size : 13,33 MB
Release : 2019-03-24
Category : Reference
ISBN : 0359536395

GET BOOK

Audits provide essential accountability and transparency over government programs. Given the current challenges facing governments and their programs, the oversight provided through auditing is more critical than ever. Government auditing provides the objective analysis and information needed to make the decisions necessary to help create a better future. The professional standards presented in this 2018 revision of Government Auditing Standards (known as the Yellow Book) provide a framework for performing high-quality audit work with competence, integrity, objectivity, and independence to provide accountability and to help improve government operations and services. These standards, commonly referred to as generally accepted government auditing standards (GAGAS), provide the foundation for government auditors to lead by example in the areas of independence, transparency, accountability, and quality through the audit process. This revision contains major changes from, and supersedes, the 2011 revision.

Author : Sarah L. Stafford
Publisher :
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 47,47 MB
Release : 2007
Category :
ISBN :

GET BOOK

This article examines the factors that affect state adoption of environmental audit legislation and self-policing policies. The results of both a cross-section probit and a Weibull proportional hazard model suggest that political context and state-federal relationships are key factors in adoption decisions while environmental conditions are less significant and institutional capacity is the least important. Overall, the results for audit privilege and immunity legislation are very similar, but several explanatory factors affect adoption of audit legislation and self-policing policies in opposite ways. Finally, these results also suggest that EPA opposition to audit legislation has had a significant deterrent effect.

Author : Joseph Lee Miller
Publisher :
Page : 173 pages
File Size : 27,4 MB
Release : 1997-01-01
Category : Environmental audits
ISBN : 9781423584568

GET BOOK

The discussion begins with describing the nature of the environmental audit, defining its characteristics, examining its necessity, and explaining its weakness. Next, this paper analyzes current approaches for encouraging auditing and protecting the results of a self-evaluation. In addition to safeguards available under common law, some states offer privilege and/or immunity as protection for those who police themselves, while EPA has chosen to provided penalty mitigation. To review the treatment of audits at the federal level requires scrutinizing the policy of the EPA, as well as the approach taken by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the applicability of the U.S. Federal Sentencing Guidelines. After examining the federal approach, this paper details the initiatives adopted by state governments that offer refuge to entities conducting environmental audits. Although the state statutes contain some unique provisions, they fall largely within the parameters of providing privileged treatment to audit results and offering some form of immunity for those entities that voluntarily disclose their findings. Several of these statutes require the state regulatory agency to evaluate the success of the law in promoting compliance and to report its findings to the legislature, which may then extend the act, if it contains a sunset provision, or modify or repeal the act. This thesis concludes by noting that all states with environmental audit legislation risk disapproval and, perhaps, reversion of regulatory programs delegated to them by the federal government.