U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Inspector General
At a Glance
09-1-0172
June 23, 2009
Catalyst for Improving the Environment
Why We Did This Audit
The Food Quality Protection
Act requires that we perform
an annual audit of the
Pesticides Reregistration and
Expedited Processing Fund
(known as the FIFRA Fund)
financial statements.
Background
The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) is
responsible for reassessing the
safety of older pesticide
registrations against modern
health and environmental
testing standards. To expedite
this reregistration process,
Congress authorized EPA to
collect fees from pesticide
manufacturers. The fees are
deposited into the FIFRA
Fund. Each year, the Agency
prepares financial statements
that present financial
information about the Fund,
along with information about
EPA's progress in
reregistering pesticides.
For further information,
contact our Office of
Congressional, Public Affairs
and Management at
(202)566-2391.
To view the full report,
click on the following link:
www.epa.qov/oiq/reports/2009/
20090623-09-1-0172.pdf
Fiscal Year 2008 and 2007 Financial Statements
for the Pesticides Reregistration and Expedited
Processing Fund
Opinion
We rendered an unqualified, or clean, opinion on EPA's Pesticides Reregistration
and Expedited Processing Fund Financial Statements for Fiscal Years 2008 and
2007, meaning that they were fairly presented and free of material misstatement.
Internal Control Significant Deficiency Noted
We noted one significant deficiency in internal controls. The Office of Pesticide
Programs was unable to provide reliable information on reporting accomplishments
for reregistration and amendment actions under the FIFRA Program Performance
Measure Two. EPA is required to annually report on its pesticide performance
measures and goals.
Noncompliance With Laws and Regulations Noted
We tested compliance with those laws and regulations that could either materially
affect the FIFRA Fund financial statements, or that we considered significant to the
audit. The objective of our audit, including our tests of compliance with applicable
laws and regulations, was not to provide an opinion on overall compliance with
such provisions. Accordingly, we do not express such an opinion. However, we
did not identify any noncompliances that would result in a material misstatement to
the audited financial statements.
Agency Comments and Office of Inspector General Evaluation
In a memorandum received on May 20, 2009, from the Acting Assistant
Administrator for Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances and the Acting
Chief Financial Officer, the Agency agreed with our findings and
recommendations, and has begun corrective actions. We concur with the Agency's
corrective actions. In its response to the final report, the Office of Pesticide
Programs needs to clearly explain in detail its corrective actions for
Recommendation 2.
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