£
<
33
V
^60S%
V PRO^4-0
o
LU
a
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Inspector General
At a Glance
2007-P-00003
November 14, 2006
Catalyst for Improving the Environment
why we Did This Review Partnership Programs May Expand EPA's Influence
Prior to our review, the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) did not have
comprehensive information
describing each of its
partnership programs. We
conducted this evaluation to
collect current and consistent
information about EPA's
headquarters partnership
programs.
Background
Over the last few years, EPA
has worked to develop new
types of environmental
solutions. The Agency now
relies more heavily on
partnership programs to help
protect the environment.
EPA's 54 headquarters
partnership programs are
diverse, providing a variety of
benefits to several different
customer groups, including
some nongovernmental
organizations and the public.
For further information,
contact our Office of
Congressional and Public
Liaison at (202) 566-2391.
To view the full report,
click on the following link:
www.epa.qov/oiq/reports/2007/
20061114-2007-P-00003.pdf
What We Found
Partnership programs may expand EPA's environmental influence. These programs
may achieve this effect by broadening EPA's potential participant base and
addressing environmental problems not governed by regulations. Partnership
programs are diverse in staff size and budget levels. The number of EPA's
partnership programs has grown in the last few years.
We found that partnership programs reported contributing to EPA's overall
environmental mission. The majority of the programs also reported having annual
goals and program outputs or outcomes. All 54 headquarters partnership program
managers we spoke with stated that their program contributed to at least one EPA
strategic goal. Thirty-eight managers reported that their programs contribute to
more than one goal. In a few cases, managers said they work together to solve a
large environmental problem. Partnership programs build on the Agency's
traditional regulatory efforts, but are not intended as substitutes for regulations.
Instead, some partnership programs work together with regulatory efforts to help
participants go beyond compliance with existing regulations. Other programs work
to address environmental concerns that are not governed by Federal regulations,
such as recycling and climate change.
Many partnership program managers said they collect complete and reliable data
that they then use to make changes to their programs. However, barriers to data
collection, including data collection costs, exist. Partners and participants
contribute to some partnership programs by sharing program tasks. In a few cases,
this includes participants undertaking program management roles. However, this
type of collaboration may make it difficult to determine the outcomes of individual
programs.
Next Steps
The Agency has had difficulty in defining, identifying, and characterizing these
programs. Managers claim that their programs help to achieve EPA strategic goals,
but we have not yet gathered sufficient measurement and outcome data to verify
that partnership programs are achieving these claims. Since as many as half of the
programs receive marketing assistance through collaboration, as well as other in-
kind services and occasional participation fees, we will need to conduct further
evaluation work to determine:
1.	How partnership programs manage their collaborative relationships.
2.	How those collaborative relationships support program outcomes.

-------