Who We Are
The Office of Inspector General is an independent office within EPA that helps the agency protect the environment in a more efficient and cost effective manner. We consist of auditors, program analysts, investigators, and others with extensive expertise. Although we are a part of EPA, Congress provides us with our funding separate from the agency, to ensure our independence. We were created pursuant to the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended.
Learn more in our OIG Brochures on Fraud, Waste and Abuse. For explanations of some commonly asked questions and misunderstood terms, visit our Frequently Asked Questions and Terms page.
Our Vision
Engaged oversight professionals inspiring innovation.
Our Mission
To drive change by fighting fraud, promoting ethical conduct, and recommending improvement in the environmental space.
How We Are Organized
Who We Are and What We Do
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General is an independent and objective office that derives its authority from the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended, 5 U.S.C. §§ 401–424, which established the OIGs’ duty to conduct oversight of their respective agencies. Since fiscal year 2004, Congress has designated the EPA inspector general to also serve as the inspector general for the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board.
Our office works to detect and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse to help the Agency protect human health and the environment more efficiently and effectively. Our efforts pursue accountability, promote good governance, and drive positive change. We conduct and oversee audits, evaluations, and investigations; make evidence-based recommendations; and keep the heads of the agencies, Congress, and the public informed about problems and deficiencies, as well as progress on needed corrective actions. We also operate a hotline that allows anyone to submit information that may lead us to initiate audits, evaluations, inspections, or investigations.
Our values support our mission by setting organizational expectations of integrity, independence, and innovation that motivate our oversight professionals, inspire new processes, and drive continuous improvement at every level.
Contact the OIG
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Inspector General
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Mail Code: (2410T)
Washington, DC 20460
202-250-8800 | 202-566-0857 (Fax)
For more contact details, please visit our Contact webpage.
