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Memorandum from Administrator Jackson:

Improving Water Quality Transparency and

Effective Enforcement of Clean Water Act

Requirements

MEMORANDUM

DATE: July 2, 2009

SUBJECT: Improving Water Quality through Transparency and

Effective Enforcement of Clean Water Act Requirements

FROM: Lisa P. Jackson, Administrator

TO: Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for Enforcement and

Compliance Assurance

Clean and safe water is a priority for this Administration. The Clean Water Act plays a central role

in protecting this nation’s waters. The American public has a right to expect their water will be

clean, and EPA has an obligation to use its resources and authorities to the fullest to ensure this

result. Despite the successes we have achieved over the years, water in the United States is

not meeting public health and environmental goals. Too many of our streams, lakes and rivers do

not meet our water quality standards.

We are also falling short of this Administration’s expectations for the effectiveness of our clean

water enforcement programs. Data available to EPA shows that, in many parts of the country,

the level of significant non-compliance with permitting requirements is unacceptably high and the

level of enforcement activity is unacceptably low. Our commitment to the rule of law as a

foundational principle for EPA requires that we take action against significant violations and that

we assure a consistent standard for compliance across the country. A level playing field for

enforcement and compliance is important for fair treatment of industrial facilities across the

country and to prevent some regions from achieving an economic advantage over others.

Compliance with the Clean Water Act is a shared responsibility of EPA and the states. I recognize

that resources are limited at the federal and state level during these challenging economic times

and that we must meet our highest environmental priorities first. However, I believe that, working

together with states, there are positive steps we can take quickly to improve compliance and

enhance water quality.

The first step is to improve transparency. Americans have a right to know how their government

is doing in enforcing laws to protect the nation’s water, and government has an obligation to

clearly inform the public about water quality and our actions to protect it. An informed public is

our best ally in pressing for better compliance. Therefore I am directing you to improve and

Data and Results

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Last updated on Monday, June 11, 2012
8/31/12 EPA A dministrator Jackson Memorandum on C lean Water A ct (C WA ) Enforcement | C ompliance and En...

www.epa.gov /compliance/data/results/performance/cwa/jackson-ltr-cwa-enf.html

enhance information that is available through the EPA web site on compliance with the Clean

Water Act and the level of enforcement activity in each state, showing connections where

possible to local water quality. This information should be user-friendly and provide a way to look

at performance of individual businesses as well as state and national performance. State-bystate performance reports that have already been released under the Freedom of Information Act

should also be posted to the web, together with tools to analyze the data EPA prepared for those

reports.

Second, we need to raise the bar for clean water enforcement performance. We must make sure

that strong and effective action is taken when serious violations of law threaten water quality,

and we must boost EPA’s enforcement presence against serious violators, recognizing that

authorized states have the first opportunity to act. EPA must also improve its own enforcement

performance in states where EPA directly implements the clean water program. And we must

assure that we are doing the work that is most important to clean up our nation’s waters.

Because EPA and the states face significant and competing demands for resources, we need to

place a high priority on the problems that have the biggest impact on water quality, such as wet

weather pollution, which are not currently well represented in the information we have on Clean

Water Act compliance.

Third, we need to move EPA’s information technology into the 21st century. We need to

transform EPA to be not only a collector and disseminator of information but an analytical

resource that can present information in a form that is easily understood and useable by the

public. We have seen that when information is made public, it can be a powerful tool to help

improve the environment directly. We need to launch into a major shift of EPA’s Clean Water Act

information systems – so that data on both facilities’ discharges and compliance and water

quality and other environmental conditions will be readily available and transparent to both federal

and state regulators and the public, over the web, on a real-time basis.

So that we can identify the concrete steps that EPA should take to accomplish these goals, I am

directing you to work with the Office of Water to develop an action plan to further enhance

public transparency regarding EPA and state Clean Water Act enforcement program performance,

to strengthen that performance, and to transform our water quality and compliance information

systems. A critical part of this process should be close consultation with EPA Regional Offices and

with states, including the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) and the Association of

State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators (ASIWPCA). You should gather the

best ideas from the states and regions, as well as outside stakeholders, and report back to me

within 90 days with your recommendations.

cc: Scott Fulton

Diane Thompson

Bob Sussman

Mike Shapiro

Assistant Administrators

Associate Administrators

Regional Administrators
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Newsroom 

News Releases By State 

U.S. EPA Administrator Jackson Takes New Steps to Improve Water 

Quality 

Release Date: 07/06/2009 

Contact Information: Deb Berlin, berlin.deb@epa.gov, 202-564-4914, 202-564-4355 

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has made available comprehensive reports and data on water 

enforcement in all 50 states. This is part of Administrator Lisa P. Jackson’s larger effort by to enhance transparency, 

promote the public’s right to know about water quality and provide information on EPA’s actions to protect water under the 

Clean Water Act. 

In a memorandum issued last Thursday, Administrator Jackson directed EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance 

Assurance (OECA) to develop an action plan to enhance public transparency regarding clean water enforcement. In the 

memo, she also calls for stronger enforcement performance at federal and state levels and a transformation of EPA’s water 

quality and compliance information systems. 

In keeping with this directive, EPA has posted detailed information on the current state of clean water compliance and 

enforcement in each state, and copies of the latest clean water enforcement and compliance performance reports for each 

state to the agency’s Web site. EPA also launched new Web-based tools to help the public search, assess, and analyze the 

data the agency used to help prepare those reports. 

These actions are among of several aggressive steps taken by Administrator Jackson to improve the nation’s water quality 

by increasing the transparency and effectiveness of the agency’s national Clean Water Act enforcement program. 

The administrator’s memo directed the agency to take several actions, including: 

z Improve and enhance the information available on the EPA website on compliance and enforcement activities in 

each state, showing connections to local water quality where possible; 

z Provide information in a user-friendly format form that is easily understood and useable by the public; 

z Raise the bar for clean water enforcement performance and ensure enforcement is taken against serious violations 

that threaten water quality; and 

z Improve EPA’s enforcement performance in states where EPA directly implements the clean water program. 

Administrator Jackson directed OECA to work with EPA’s Office of Water and to consult closely with EPA’s 10 regional 

offices and the states on the action plan. After obtaining input from other stakeholders, the assistant administrator of OECA, 

Cynthia Giles, will report back to Administrator Jackson in 90 days with recommendations. 

More information on the state-by-state reports: http://www.epa.gov/compliance/state/srf/index.html

More information on EPA and state enforcement data: 

http://www.epa.gov/compliance/data/results/performance/cwa/index.html

Copy of the administrator’s memorandum: 

http://www.epa.gov/compliance/data/results/performance/cwa/jackson-ltr-cwa-enf.html

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