On January 22, 2018, U.S. EPA’s Assistant Administrator issued a memorandum to all U.S. EPA Regional Administrators that contained interim guidance on enforcement of environmental violations by State EPAs and the federal EPA.  The interim guidance is a significant shift away from the traditional federal/state balance on enforcement giving much greater leeway to the States.

The Trump Administration has made rollback of environmental regulations a top priority.  Through the use of Executive Orders and the Congressional Review Act(CRA), the Administration has already undone significant Obama era regulations, including the Waters of the U.S. Rule (WOTUS) and the Clean Power Plan.

The Trump Administration has also proposed significant budget cuts to

On November 2, 2015, President Obama signed into law the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Improvement Act of 2015.  The law required all federal agencies to increase civil penalties with inflation. While there were previous requirements to increase civil penalties, the new law provides for more dramatic increases attributable to the following changes:

  • Requires

On December 6, 2012, the Ohio Supreme Court issued a rare opinion pertaining to the proper calculation of civil penalties in the context of an environmental enforcement action.  The decision has serious ramifications for any company that is required to perform stack tests to demonstrate compliance with air emission standards.  It also may impact any

U.S. EPA’s Environmental Audit Policy encourages companies to self-evaluate their compliance with environmental requirements and disclose any violations to EPA.  As an incentive to disclose violations to EPA, the Audit Policy provides up to 100% forgiveness of gravity-based civil penalties if certain conditions are met. 

U.S. EPA’s audit policy contains nine (9) conditions that must