United States
                              Environmental
                              Protection Agency
                       Office of the
                       Administrator
              EPA100-R-97-001
              January 1997
"Protect people,

not bureaucracy.

Promote  results.
not rules.
Get  action,

not  rhetoric."
                               — ^  ^>/l  M  ^*^   /OOR9700/
                               fl^Zl/directions
                              A  REPORT ON  REGULATORY  REINVENTION
foreword

During President Clinton's first term in
office, EPA joined other Federal agencies in
an unprecedented effort to "reinvent gov-
ernment" so that it works better and costs
less. At EPA, that challenge has meant
closely examining our programs and priori-
ties and acting on opportunities for reduc-
ing costs and unnecessary regulatory bur-
den. Doing so will help State and local
governments, private businesses, and EPA's
own staff focus on areas offering greater
gains for environmental and public health
protection. This report is designed to pro-
vide readers with a better understanding
of what reinvention is, how it is being pur-
sued, and what is being accomplished as a
result. Each edition will feature an in-depth
look at a major reinvention effort as well
as brief updates on other projects that are
underway or under development.
                              inside
 Milestone:
 New Agreement Under Project XL  2
 Spotlight: List of Key Projects    4
 Reinvention Ombudsmen Named  6
 Reducing Regulatory Burden     6
                                                                 1001^700 /
Performance

Partnerships

Building a Stronger
Relationship Between
EPA and the States


         An important milestone
         towards reinventing envi-
         ronmental and public
health protection was reached on May
17, 1995, when Administrator Carol
Browner and Deputy Administrator
Fred Hansen joined State
Environmental Commissioners  in
establishing Performance Partnerships
to reform the ways States and EPA
work together.

What Are Performance
Partnerships?
Performance Partnerships establish a
new working relationship whereby the
States and EPA determine on an annual
basis what and how work will be per-
formed. Traditionally, the process for
funding and addressing environmental
and public health priorities has been
conducted with a single media focus.
States have submitted up to 16 annual
workplans and received multiple grants
to support air, drinking water, hazardous
waste, and other pollution control pro-
grams. While reflective of the media-
specific focus that has characterized
environmental management over
             (CONTINUED ON PAGE 2)

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        Tuesday, November 18,1996,
        marked an important date
        for Project XL as
Administrator Carol Browner
approved a new agreement with
Intel Corporation officials, the
Arizona State Department of
Environmental Quality, and communi-
ty leaders in Chandler, Arizona.
Project XL is a national pilot program
that allows regulated facilities to test
alternative management strategies on
the condition that they exceed mini-
mum standards and achieve higher
levels of environmental performance.
Under the agreement, Intel will adopt
a 5-year environmental management
plan that includes  meeting more
stringent air pollution standards in
exchange for an air quality permit
that eliminates the usual permit modi-
fication process each time the plant
needs to make an operational change
to its manufacturing process.  In addi-
tion, the plant will be allowed to file
a single, consolidated report for all
pollution emissions to Arizona's
Department of Environmental Quality,
rather than separate reports for air,
water,  and hazardous waste to sepa-
rate agencies. The agreement will
benefit the public  as well—Intel has
agreed to make all the plant's envi-
ronmental information available on
the Internet. Intel  is the first company
to do so.
Performance
Partnerships
(FROM PAGE 1)
the past quarter century, this approach
has fueled administrative management
and oversight activity, diverting
resources from on-the-ground improve-
ment efforts. To overcome this dilemma,
Performance Partnerships are designed
to place much greater emphasis on envi-
ronmental results and to achieve better
coordination between Federal and State
environmental programs.

How Do Performance
Partnerships Work?
Performance Partnerships begin with a
comprehensive assessment of a State's
problems and conditions to establish a
stronger basis for decision-making. In
some cases, this step may be the first
such undertaking. In other cases, States
may use an existing assessment, such as
an annual State of the Environment
report or a comparative risk assessment.
Based on this information, the State
proposes environmental and public
health objectives and an action plan as a
basis for negotiating an annual agree-
ment with EPA. At this point, if not
before, the State also conducts outreach
efforts to ensure appropriate public
understanding and support.
Next, EPA and the State begin negotiat-
ing the actual agreement. Ideally, this
agreement includes specific roles for
EPA and the State, including how EPA's
oversight of State roles will be reduced
in those areas of strong performance. In
addition, it includes measures of envi-
ronmental and program management
performance to better measure success.

An added element of Performance
Partnerships is grants flexibility. States
are given a new option of combining
two or more single-media grants into a
single Performance Partnership Grant.
They also have the option of maintain-
ing media-specific grants or requesting a
combination of both.

What Are the
Advantages?
Most significantly, Performance
Partnerships provide an enhanced focus
on improving environmental conditions
and reducing the amount of time spent
on administrative and managerial activi-
ties. Greater management flexibility is
another significant benefit for the
States. Under Performance Partnership
Grants, States can target and leverage
their resources for greater gains than
could normally be achieved.

With regard to EPA's responsibilities,
this new approach provides a clearer
understanding of actual problems and
conditions, and added assurance that
States will focus on the issues most in
need of attention. The public will gain
similar assurance as they are given more
opportunity to learn about conditions
and trends and to participate in the
decision-making process.

What Are the Challenges
Ahead?
The actual content of each Performance
Partnership agreement will differ
depending on the players, conditions,
and issues involved. In nearly every
case, certain challenges must be recog-
nized and addressed. One of these chal-
lenges will be overcoming basic resis-
tance to change in the States and EPA.
It's far easier, and in the short term pos-
sibly even less expensive, for managers
and staff to continue operating with the
status quo. Creating more effective
approaches for the future will require
time, money, and, most importantly, a
willingness to experiment and make
necessary adjustments along the  way.

Another challenge is how to best
achieve a balance between flexibility and
                      REPORT  ON   REINVENTION
                                            January 1997

-------
accountability. The added management
flexibility under Performance
Partnerships is one of the strongest
incentives for State participation. When
used properly, it has the potential to sig-
nificantly increase productivity. This
flexibility cannot be provided, however,
without first ensuring adequate safe-
guards to protect public health and our
environment. Exactly what those safe-
guards should be will continue to be an
issue for debate and negotiation.

Finally, it will be important to develop
better ways for informing and involving
the public. Protecting public health and
the environment is a job beyond EPA
and the States—it requires the active
involvement of individuals and organiza-
tions throughout the country. To be
most successful, Performance
Partnerships have to fully reflect the
concerns and interests of those they
affect.

At this time, over two-thirds of the
States are negotiating Performance
Partnership agreements with EPA for FY
1997. This level of participation is largely
due to the response from the six States
that originally participated in 1996. In a
 meeting of the State Environmental
 Commissioners, Bharat Mathur, director
 of the Illinois state air program, explained
 how this new process has generated better
 information than ever before on environ-
 mental trends in the State and how their
 environmental programs affect those
 trends. Jim Pauk, the Illinois water pro-
 gram director, described how the process
 has focused the dialogue between his staff

             see signifi-
             cant benefit
             from the
 thought process
 involved  in
 developing these
 agreements  .  . . we
 are in  a much better
position  to achieve
our mission."
Christophe Tulou, ENVIRONMENTAL
COMMISSIONER OF DELAWARE
                                                                                     Performance
                                                                                     Partnerships
                                                                                     1997 State
                                                                                     Participation*
                                                                                       .*jt\ /. Agreement Only
                                                                                       ^H Grant Only
                                                          Agreement and
                                                          Grant
                                                   * Completed or Negotiating

                                      and the EPA Regional Office on environ-
                                      mental results rather than on "bean count-
                                      ing" and bureaucracy. Other States have
                                      noted similar advantages. Christophe
                                      Tulou, the Environmental Commissioner
                                      of Delaware, stated, "I see significant ben-
                                      efit  from the thought process involved in
                                      developing these agreements. We've taken
                                      a hard look at our programs and their
                                      effectiveness, and based on what we've
                                      learned, we've set clear goals and objec-
                                      tives and identified what needs to be done.
                                      As a result, we are in a much better posi-
                                      tion to achieve our mission."  He also
                                      noted how the final agreement has been
                                      useful as a communication device—in
                                      working with the public and explaining
                                      programs and priorities  to the State legisla-
                                      ture. These perspectives show that
                                      Performance Partnerships are helping to
                                      shape a fundamentally different relation-
                                      ship between EPA and the States, one that
                                      should help deliver stronger, more effec-
                                      tive  environmental and  public health pro-
                                      tection for the future.
             January 1997
REPORT  ON   REINVENTION

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        In March  1995,  as  a result of the

        Clinton Administration's National

        Performance Review, EPA identified

25 high priority actions and  other significant

steps to reinvent our system of environmental

protection. These actions were designed to fix

problems  with existing regulatory programs

and to create innovative alternative strategies

to current regulatory approaches. Collectively,

they are often referred to as EPA's "reinven-

tion initiative." The profiles below  include

many of those initial actions as well as other

significant efforts  that have evolved  more

recently. This list is not all inclusive and does

not capture the full range of reinvention activ-

ities underway. Nevertheless, it does provide

the reader with a more complete understand-

ing of how programs are being reinvented

and, more importantly, why these efforts are

so important. The specific projects vary con-

siderably, and they address different problems.

But, in every case, the  overarching goal is

clear—to continuously improve environmen-

tal performance.
                                             light             A    Look
Cutting
red tape
                                              Part in
                                              ships
                   \
Flexil
for  results
  FacilH
  compliance
                                                                        Reduction in Paperwork
                                                                        Burden
                                                                       Identify obsolete, duplicative, and
                                                                       unnecessary monitoring, record-
                                                                       keeping, and reporting require-
                                                                       ments with a goal of eliminating
                                                                       total burden by 25 million hours
                                                                       PROGRESS
                                                                       • Completed line-by-line
                                                                         review of all rules
                                                                       • Eliminated over 15 million
                                                                         hours of paperwork burden
                                                                       • Identified  and initiated
                                                                         action to eliminate an
                                                                         additional 8 million hours
                           Performance
                           Partnerships
Increase effectiveness of State and
Federal environmental programs
through greater coordination and
a stronger emphasis on environ-
mental results
PROGRESS
• Developed and endorsed
 framework for cooperation
 with States
• Negotiating agreements and/or
 grants with over 30 States for
 1997
 Project XL (excellence
 and Leadership)
Allow regulated entities to test
alternative management strate-
gies that increase performance
beyond current regulatory
requirements and save resources

PROGRESS
• Signed agreements with 2 com-
  panies
• Negotiating agreements with
  and evaluating proposals from
  numerous public and private
  sector entities
 Risk-Based
 Enforcement
Target enforcement and compli-
ance efforts to activities that
present most serious threat to
human health and the environ-
ment
PROGRESS
• Issued new policies that
  reduce NPDES and RCRA
  inspections for facilities with
  strong compliance records
• Identified new methods to
  assess relative risk of specific
  facilities based on emissions
                              One Stop
                              Reporting
                             Streamline environmental report-
                             ing for regulated community, fos-
                             ter multi-media and geographic
                             approaches, and improve real-
                             time access to environmental
                             data
                             PROGRESS
                             • Supported 5 States in integrat-
                              ing reporting systems to
                              streamline regulatory processes
                             • Proposed information manage-
                              ment policy and identified
                              infrastructure needs to better
                              integrate State-EPA data
                              Center for Environmental
                              Information and Statistics
Improve EPA information on
multi-media environmental status
and trends to provide a more
integrated picture of conditions
for decision-makers and the
public
PROGRESS
• Developed options to guide
  pending decisions on Center's
  function, scale, and manage-
  ment
 Common Sense
 Initiative
Create an industry-by-industry,
consensus-based approach to
environmental protection that
improves environmental perfor-
mance and saves resources

PROGRESS
• Streamlining reporting and
 permitting
• Identifying alternative regulato-
 ry approaches
• Examining opportunities to
 improve small businesses' access
 to capital for pollution preven-
 tion and remediation activities
 Incentives for Auditing,
 Disclosure, and Correction
Promote compliance by providing
incentives for systematic discovery
of violations through environ-
mental audits or management sys-
tems, and publicly disclosing and
correcting violations
PROGRESS
• Developed and issued final
  policy
• Received self-disclosures from 83
  companies and settled 19 cases,
  all of which eliminated or signif-
  icantly reduced the penalty
                         REPORT   ON   REINVENTION
                                            January 1997

-------
at     Major    Reinvention     Projects
     Consolidated Federal
     Air Rule
     Consolidate all Federal air
     quality requirements specific
     to an industry into a single
     rule
     PROGRESS
     • Established agreement
      with chemical industry and
      States to develop rule for
      synthetic organic chemical
      industry
    Regulatory Negotiation
    and Consensus-Based
    Rulemaking
   Improve quality and effectiveness
   of rulemaking and policy devel-
   opment efforts by early involve-
   ment of outside stakeholders
   PROGRESS
   • Routinely assess regulatory
     negotiation opportunity prior
     to any new rulemaking
   • Initiated and presently
     involved in negotia-
     tions or consensus-based activi-
     ties to support new rules or
     policies in all media
    Open-Market Air
    Emissions Trading
   Provide a more flexible approach
   for complying with ozone
   standards

   PROGRESS
   • Drafted guidance; expect final
     document Spring 1997
   • Supportred trading demonstra-
     tion project involving 37 facili-
     ties and over 40 trades in the
     northeast and mid-atlantic
     regions
  Reinvent Pesticide
  Registration Process
  Simplify and expedite process
  of reviewing and approving
  pesticide products

  PROGRESS
  • Issued final rule exempting
    31 low-risk active pesticide
    ingredients and 160 inert
    ingredients from registration
  • Established self-certification
    process for minor product
    changes
  • Automated and standardized
    precautionary labelling
 Electronic Public
 Access
Make EPA information widely
available and easily accessible to all
interested parties
PROGRESS
• Developed capability to make envi-
  ronmental Federal Register notices
  available electronically within 1 day of
  publication.
• Developed ENVIROFACTS to provide
  access to and easier integration of
  data from multiple environmental
  databases
• Re-designed EPA homepage to facili-
  tate use by specific stakeholders
• Established on-line ordering capabili-
  ties for EPA publications
 Effluent Trading in
 Watersheds
Implement on a national scale as
a cost-effective approach for
reducing water pollution

PROGRESS
• Issued final policy
• Developed and released for
  public comment draft "how-to"
  framework document
 Refocus Drinking Water
 Treatment Requirements
 on Highest Risks
Focus EPA drinking water
resources on highest risks and
increase flexibility for States and
water suppliers

PROGRESS
• Renegotiated court-ordered
 schedule for setting drinking
 water requirements to allow
 for more risk-based approach
• Help define significant reforms
 in Safe Drinking Water Act
 reauthorization
• Established  "Partnership for
 Safe Drinking Water" to
 reduce risks of microbial cont-
 amination
 Community-Based
 Environmental Protection
 Help communities achieve sustainabili-
 ty through management approaches
 more tailored to local conditions.
 PROGRESS
 • Increased internal and external
  understanding of how EPA authori-
  ties, programs, and resources can be
  applied at the community level to
  achieve stronger environmental
  results
 • Identified and providing access to
  new tools that support local deci-
  sion-making and action
 • Providing technical and financial
  support to scores of communities
  nationwide
  Brownfields
 Refocus Hazardous Waste
 Regulation on High-Risk
 Wastes
Better target public and private sector
resources toward higher risk problems
related to hazardous wastes

PROGRESS
• Proposed RCRA legislative reforms
 that led Congress to exempt certain
 low-risk wastes from land disposal
 requirements
• Issued final rule on universal waste to
 encourage recycling and reduce haz-
 ardous waste regulatory requirements
 associated with commonly used products
• Proposed rules for hazardous waste
 identification that would exempt many
 low-risk wastes from RCRA require-
 ments
  Green Chemistry
  Challenge
 Promote pollution prevention and
 industrial ecology

 PROGRESS
 • Established annual award and
  grant program to recognize and
  support research, development,
  and implementation of innova-
  tive and environmentally bene-
  ficial technologies
 Empower States, communities,
 and other interested stakeholders
 to prevent, assess, safely clean up,
 and sustainably reuse
 Brownfields—abandoned, idled,
 or under-used industrial and com-
 mercial sites

 PROGRESS
 • Provided technical and financial
  support to 76 communities
 • Removed 27,000 sites from
  Superfund list
   Small Business Compliance
   Assistance Centers
   Improve compliance by improv-
   ing understanding of environ-
   mental regulatory requirements
   and increasing awareness of pol-
   lution prevention techniques and
   strategies
   PROGRESS
   • Established centers for four
    sectors—printing, farming,
    auto service, and metal
    finishing
   • Establishing two new centers
    for small chemical and printing
    wiring board manufacturers
 Environmental Leadership
 Program
Recognize and provide benefits to
facilities that take a systematic
approach to achieving environmental
regulatory compliance
PROGRESS
• Developed pilot program and
 selected 12  participants from pub-
 lic and private sectors
• Evaluated pilot results in prepara-
 tion for full-scale program
• Preparing to issue Federal
 Register notice announcing plans
 for full-scale implementation in
 1997
                       January 1997
              REPORT  ON   REINVENTION

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EPA  Reinvention
Ombudsmen  Named
              ecognizing that
              EPA's reinvention
              efforts have been
              most successful
               hen senior
managers have been actively involved,
Deputy Administrator Fred Hansen has
asked Deputy Assistant Administrators
and Deputy Regional Administrators to
serve as Reinvention Ombudsmen for
their programs or Regional offices,
          One of EPA's biggest
          reinvention opportunities
          is reducing record-keep-
ing and reporting requirements for busi-
nesses and communities. Nearly all EPA
regulatory programs require environmen-
tal monitoring and periodic reports in
order to determine what pollution con-
trols are necessary, whether compliance is
being achieved, and any impacts of pollu-
tion and pollution controls on the envi-
ronment. These requirements have
evolved over many years as programs
have been put into place. Not surprising-
ly, many of the requirements are obsolete,
duplicative, or unnecessary.
respectively. The goal is to open lines of
communication so that those on the
outside as well as EPA's own staff have a
point of contact for raising new reinven-
tion opportunities or potential problems
with existing efforts.
Specifically, the Reinvention
Ombudsmen will be ensuring that:
1) significant legal and policy issues are
brought to the appropriate management
level for timely resolution, 2) our stake-
holders have easy access to information
and issues being reviewed and an
opportunity to provide meaningful
input, and 3) people and organizations
interested in pursuing reinvention
efforts receive timely answers to their
proposals, questions, and requests. If
you have an issue that needs attention,
contact the appropriate Ombudsman
listed on the next page.
                           Reducing
                           Regulatory
                           Burden
EPA recognized and began to address this
dilemma in 1995 when it undertook a
comprehensive, line-by-line evaluation of
all its regulatory requirements in
response to a Presidential directive to all
Federal agencies to eliminate regulatory
burdens by 25 percent. At that time, EPA
estimated the total environmental regula-

 So how much of the
 total burden has EPA
 eliminated?  To date,
 over 15 million  hours!
tory burden at 81 million hours a year.
However, that estimate was increased to
100 million hours in 1996, partly because
of new statutory requirements and partly
because more complete information
became available. For example, the bur-
den for meeting land disposal require-
ments for hazardous wastes was increased
by over 4 million hours to reflect a larger
than originally estimated universe of
affected generators.

So how much of the total burden has EPA
eliminated? To date, over 15 million
hours! The largest reduction—about 4.7
million hours—was made in discharge
             (CONTINUED ON PAGES)
                REPORT  ON  REINVENTION
                              January 1997

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 EPA Regional Reinvention Ombudsmen
 REGION
 Region 1

 Region 2


 Region 3


 Region 4


 Region 5


 Region 6



 Region 7


 Region 8


 Region 9


 Region 10
                OMBUDSMAN

                                           PHONE
                            617/565-3417

                            212/637-5000

                            215/566-2900

                         *  404/562-8357

                            312/886-3000

                            214/665-2100


                            913/551-7006

                            303/312-6308

                            415/744-1001

                            206/553-5811
                                                                         E-MAIL
                                                                                         ADDRESS
 EPA Headquarters Reinvention Ombudsmen
                        OMBUDSMAN
Air and Radiation


General Counsel
Cross-Cutting Issues

Policy, Planning, and
Evaluation


Prevention, Pesticides, and
Toxic Substances
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
Water


Enforcement and
Compliance

Inspector General
                          •  -.
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                                    202/260-7400

                                  f  202/260-5372


                                  I
                                  -.  202/260-5497
                                    202/260-2997
                                  '  202/260-2910

                                  '  202/260-4610

                                    202/260-5700

                                    202/564-2450

                                    202/260-1112
International Activities                                202/260-4870
Research and Development


Administration and
Resources Management
Henry I.«Mtgest II
                                  * 202/260-7676

                                   202/260-4083
                                                          wilson.richard


                                                          nelson.james
January 1997
                                     REPORT   ON  REINVENTION

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Reducing  Regulatory  Burden
                   (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6)
monitoring reporting (DMR) under the
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (i.e., water quality permitting).
Historically, the DMR monitoring and
reporting requirements have been the
Agency's largest regulatory burden. As a
result of new policy, however, this burden
has been cut by 26 percent. A 3 million
hour reduction was achieved for Title V
air quality permittees through a new poli-
cy that significantly reduces the amount
of information collected and the number
of facilities subject to permitting require-
ments. In addition, about 1 million
hours were cut as a result of a new two-
page certification form and similar
improvements to the Toxic Release
Inventory requirements. It is important
to note that these burden reductions have
been made without any compromise in
environmental and public health protec-
tion. For example, the reductions in
DMR monitoring and reporting are
offered to facilities that have a good com-
                   f-lY
pliance record and an ability to reduce
pollutants beyond requirements in exist-
ing permits. Similar conditions are in
effect to safeguard performance in other
areas. At this time,  an additional 8 mil-
lion hours of burden have been identi-
fied and slated for reduction as staff con-
tinue working to meet the President's
goal of a 25 percent across-the-board
reduction in Federal requirements. That
goal translates into a 25 million hour
reduction for EPA, and we are over
halfway there.
It is important to note, however, that
burden reduction is about more than just
eliminating monitoring and reporting
requirements. It also means finding ways
to make the job easier by using more
efficient reporting methods. EPA has
projects underway to do just that. Look
for articles on "One-Stop Reporting" and
"Electronic Data Transfer Systems" in
upcoming issues.
Burden Reduction  Hours by Statute*
                                             (as of December 31, 1996)
                                        H Remaining
                                        I Completed
                                        Remaining Total: 8.3 million hours
                                        Completed Total: 15.7 million hours
       CWA   CAA  TSCA
                                                                 FIFRA  SARA OPA  RCRA SDWA CERCLA Misc.
                                                                      TITLE-IN
                                                                       (TRI)
                                        *List of EPA Statutes
                                        CWA= Clean Water Act; CAA= Clean Air Act; TSCA= Toxic Substances Control Act; FIFRA= Federal
                                        Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act; SARA= Superfund; OPA= Oil Pollution Act; RCRA=
                                        Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; SDWA= Safe Drinking Water Act; CERCLA= Comprehensive
                                        Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act
 &EPA
    United States
    Environmental Protection Agency
    Washington, DC 20460
    Official Business
    Penalty for Private Use
    $300
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                                                            POSTAGE & FEES
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                                                            Permit No. G-35

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