vitDsj^.	09-P-0176
	X U.S. Environmental Protection Agency	June 24,2009
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	 % Office of Inspector General
At a Glance
Catalyst for Improving the Environment
Why We Did This Review
The Office of Inspector
General (OIG) evaluated the
actions taken by the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency's (EPA's) Office of
Solid Waste and Emergency
Response (OSWER) to
implement its Regional Public
Liaison (RPL) program.
We also reviewed program
changes resulting from a 2003
OIG report.
Background
Responding to the 2003 OIG
report, EPA in 2004 revised its
Superfund Regional
Ombudsman program,
renamed staff RPLs, and
established national program
guidance. The RPLs help the
public and regulated
community by (1) providing
information and facilitating
informal contact with EPA
staff, (2) helping resolve
problems, and (3) making
recommendations for
improvement to Agency
senior management.
For further information,
contact our Office of
Congressional, Public Affairs
and Management at
(202) 566-2391.
Regional Public Liaison Program Needs Greater
Focus on Results and Customer Awareness
What We Found
OSWER's RPL program does not sufficiently focus on or measure specific
outputs and outcomes and is not consistently implemented across offices. RPLs
report results in varied formats, and OSWER does not consolidate program results
into a comprehensive report. As a result, RPLs reported annual results that could
not be readily consolidated to show what RPLs had achieved. The program does
not sufficiently focus on results because it lacks clear program logic. Developing
a logic model would help define outputs and outcomes and encourage a results-
oriented approach to program implementation. A more consistent and
comprehensive approach would also raise stakeholder awareness of the RPL
program.
Despite limited resources, RPLs have assisted many stakeholders since the
program was revised in 2004. New guidance more clearly described program
expectations and sought to provide more consistent program implementation
across regional offices.
What We Recommend
We recommend that OSWER use a logic model approach to revise the RPL
program to help focus on outputs and outcomes and ensure stakeholders are aware
of the RPL resource. Also, OSWER should revise the 2004 RPL guidance to
reflect program revisions and build in minimum requirements for stakeholder
awareness activities, including a national RPL Website.
OSWER concurred and described planned corrective actions to address all of our
recommendations. OSWER stated it has requested assistance from OSWER's
Center for Program Analysis to conduct a logic model assessment starting during
the RPLs' National Meeting, June 16-18, 2009. OSWER's response explains that
this assessment will lead to revised guidance that will include minimum
requirements for stakeholder awareness activities.
To view the full report,
click on the following link:
www.epa.qov/oiq/reports/2009/
20090624-09-P-0176.pdf

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