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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency	May 20,2019
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At a Glance
What Are Management
Challenges?
According to the GPRA
Modernization Act of 2010
(GPRA stands for Government
Performance and Results Act),
major management challenges
are programs or management
functions within or across
agencies that have greater
vulnerability to waste, fraud,
abuse and mismanagement,
and where a failure to perform
well could seriously affect the
ability of an agency or the
federal government to achieve
its mission or goals.
As required by the Reports
Consolidation Act of 2000, the
Office of Inspector General
(OIG) identifies the issues we
consider to be the
U.S. Chemical Safety and
Hazard Investigation Board's
(CSB's) major management
challenges each fiscal year.
In fiscal year (FY) 2018, we
identified two CSB
management challenges
(Report No. 18-N-0208, issued
June 4, 2018). One has been
closed, while the other remains
a challenge for FY 2019.
This report addresses the
following CSB goal:
• Create and maintain an
engaged, high-performing
workforce.
Address inquiries to our public
affairs office at (202) 566-2391 or
OIG WEBPOSTINGS@epa.gov.
Fiscal Year 2019 U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard
Investigation Board Management Challenges
Based on our continuous work, we have
identified two management challenges for
the CSB for FY 2019. One is new, while the
other is a continuing challenge previously
identified in FY 2018.
The CSB faces two challenges in
FY 2019 that, if not addressed,
may impede its ability to
efficiently and effectively achieve
its mission or meet its goals.
Management Challenge (New): Without New Members by August 2020,
the CSB Governing Body Cannot Complete Its Mission or Meet Its Goals
The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 authorized the creation of the CSB and
established a board of five members responsible for major budgeting decisions,
strategic planning and direction, general agency oversight, and approval of
investigation reports and studies. Each board member is appointed by the
President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate for a term of 5 years. However, as of
May 2019, the governing body consisted of only three members, with their terms
expiring in December 2019, February 2020 and August 2020, respectively. It took
an average of 10.5 months to confirm the current members after they were
nominated. Following this timeline, there is a risk that if no new members are
nominated and confirmed in the next several months in anticipation of expiring
terms, the governing body will not have enough members to maintain full
functionality by February 2020 and may even have no members by August 2020.
Management Challenge (Continuing): The CSB Has Not Developed
Guidance on Board Member Responsibilities
This challenge was formerly called The Position of CSB Chairperson Lacks
Authority to Hold Board Members Accountable. In FY 2018, we reported that
there were multiple instances when a board member acted inconsistently with
established practices or inappropriately provided information to outside entities.
In December 2018, the board reported to us that there have been no new
incidents. Several people we interviewed—including board members, the acting
General Counsel and the Senior Advisor—attributed this development to better
communication among staff and board members.
Prior Management Challenge Removed
We no longer consider a management challenge identified in FY 2018—Budget
Uncertainties and the President's Proposals to Eliminate the CSB Negatively
Impact Efforts to Attract, Hire and Retain Staff—to be a management challenge.
Congressional committees expressed bipartisan support for the agency in 2018,
and the CSB reported that it is now able to attract, hire and retain staff.
List of OIG reports.

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