Stronger Enforcement Needed Against Misuse of Pesticides
CED-82-5
Published: Oct 15, 1981. Publicly Released: Oct 15, 1981.
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Highlights
GAO reviewed Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state pesticide programs to enforce pesticide laws and suggested ways to improve program activities. GAO also reviewed special pesticide registrations to determine if some of the problems identified in an earlier GAO report had been corrected.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator of EPA should direct EPA regional office inspectors to emphasize the importance of conducting proper investigations and taking appropriate enforcement actions. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator of EPA should take action to help the states improve the quality of investigations and enforcement actions. This could include providing additional inspection and enforcement guidelines. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator of EPA should encourage the passage of state laws which provide authority for assessing civil penalties. This could include an outreach effort through the EPA regions with letters to State Governors and key legislators. |
EPA disagrees with the recommendation. EPA maintains that this is a preogative that should be left to the States.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The EPA Administrator should require EPA regional offices and states to improve recordkeeping and reporting systems so that accurate, complete, and timely data are generated and information on program results is provided. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The EPA Administrator should establish standards for increasing the frequency and scope of onsite monitoring to ensure state compliance with regulations and to evaluate the quality of investigations and enforcement action. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The EPA Administrator should strengthen coordination with FDA and improve management controls over referrals to ensure appropriate and expeditious investigations and enforcement actions. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Health and Human Services | The Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the Commissioner, FDA, should improve management controls over referrals and strengthen coordination with EPA to help assure that investigations and enforcement actions are properly carried out. This could include requiring FDA to document pesticide misuse cases that it refers to EPA and establishing a system to monitor the status of cases referred. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator of EPA should review each similar special local need registration to ensure that products or additional uses are being properly registered by the states. |
EPA views the recommendation as being in direct conflict with its established policy to delegate authority for these types of registrations to the States. EPA does not intend to implement this recommendation.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator of EPA should develop an information system which identifies emergency exemptions by state so that repetitive requests can be analyzed and reviewed for conformance with Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act guidelines. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator of EPA should notify states that repetitive emergency exemptions will not be approved unless their justifications are fully documented. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Environmental Protection Agency | The Administrator of EPA should require the EPA Registration Division, regional offices, and state offices to better coordinate experimental-use monitoring. This could include a requirement that requesters of experimental-use permits notify EPA regional and state officials when they actually plan to conduct their experiments. |
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
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Environmental lawEnvironmental monitoringstate relationsHazardous substancesLaw enforcementMonitoringPesticidesProgram evaluationProgram managementState programs