U.S. Environmental Protection Agency	08-P-0245
Office of Inspector General	September 3,2008

At a Glance
Why We Did This Review
We initiated this review to
examine the impact of Border
2012's program management
and organization on its ability
to meet the program's
mission: to protect the
environment and public health
in the U.S.-Mexico border
region. Specifically, we
evaluated whether the
program management and
organizational structure of
Border 2012 impact program
outcomes.
Background
The Border 2012 Program
emphasizes a bottom-up,
regional approach,
anticipating that local
decision-making, priority-
setting, and project
implementation will best
address environmental issues
in the border region. Program
goals address water, air, land,
environmental health,
chemical exposure, and
compliance concerns.
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.aov/oia/reports/2008/
20080903-08-P-0245.pdf
Catalyst for Improving the Environment
Border 2012 Program Needs to Improve Program
Management to Ensure Results
What We Found
We found that the current organizational structure of the Border 2012 Program
allows it to achieve a collaborative relationship at the U.S.-Mexico border and
address environmental and public health issues unique to the border region. The
structure also creates opportunities for stakeholder involvement from local, State,
and national groups while providing the program with the ability to leverage
diverse partners and create an effective convening mechanism to discuss border
issues.
However, we found management controls do not ensure that project and program
results are documented or that the Border 2012 goals are achieved. Specifically,
we found that Border 2012 lacks a systematic roadmap that defines the
relationships between resources, activities, and intended outcomes. We also
found a lack of management oversight regarding program progress towards
meeting goals and objectives. For example, supporting documentation regarding
program accomplishments was not obtained or reviewed by Border 2012 staff.
Furthermore, the current performance measures focused on outputs rather than
outcomes; several of the performance measures were not assessable. As a
consequence of the conditions cited in this report, the Agency is unable to assess
the environmental and health benefits actually achieved.
What We Recommend
EPA should strengthen management controls to effectively demonstrate program
performance. We recommend the Agency develop a strategic plan, issue
guidance to better support program results, improve performance measures, and
develop criteria for determining what constitutes successful completion of
program goals. The Agency concurred with all recommendations.

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