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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Small Business Compliance Policy

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Small Business Compliance Policy. Effective date: May 11, 2000. Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA). Signed into law on March 29, 1996

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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Small Business Compliance Policy

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  1. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Small Business Compliance Policy Effective date: May 11, 2000

  2. Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) • Signed into law on March 29, 1996 • Response to concerns expressed by the small business community that federal regulations were too numerous, too complex and too expensive to implement • Designed to give small businesses assistance in understanding and complying with regulations and more of a voice in the development of new regulations • Includes small businesses, small governmental jurisdictions (population of less than 50,000), and small organizations (e.g., not-for-profit organizations)

  3. What is SBREFA? • Contains five distinct sections: • Subtitle A–Regulatory Compliance Simplification • Subtitle B–Regulatory Enforcement Reforms • Subtitle C–Equal Access to Justice • Subtitle D–Regulatory Flexibility Act Amendments • Subtitle E-Congressional Review of Agency Rulemaking

  4. Small Business Audit Policy • Revised on May 11, 2000, superseding the 1996 version while expanding 1994 Section 507 program • Provide incentives to participate in onsite compliance assistance programs • Conduct environmental audits

  5. Small Business Audit Policy • To promote environmental compliance among small businesses by encouraging them to participate in on-site compliance assistance programs or to conduct voluntary environmental audits, and then promptly correct violations • As incentive, EPA may forgo all or a portion of monetary penalties where the small business satisfies all policy conditions

  6. Small Business Audit Policy con’t • Who Qualifies? • 100 or fewer employees across all facilities and operations • Cannot have received two or more enforcement actions for violations of environmental requirements in the past five years • Business did not obtain a significant economic benefit from the violations and thus did not have an economic advantage over its competitors

  7. Small Business Audit Policy con’t • Violations can be discovered by any voluntary means (compliance management systems, P2 assessments, participation in mentoring programs, training classes, on-line CA centers, checklists) in addition to on-site compliance assistance visits or a voluntary environmental audit

  8. The Policy Excludes • Violations that result in serious actual harm or present an imminent hazard to public health, safety, or the environment • Violations that involve criminal conduct • Repeated violations (within three years)

  9. Must promptly disclose violations in writing to EPA (within 21 calendar days regardless of how the violation was discovered) Must correct violations (usually within 90 days) Violations can be discovered by any voluntary means (compliance management systems, P2 assessments, participation in mentoring programs, training classes, on-line CA centers, checklists) in addition to on-site compliance assistance visits or a voluntary environmental audit How to Qualify?

  10. Additional Resources • Compliance Assistance Centers:The centers provide compliance assistance for specific industry sectors heavily populated with small businesses and other entities facing federal environmental regulation. The centers provide information through Web sites, hotlines, training sessions, and fax lines. This information can help locate compliance information and tools for certain industry sectors.

  11. Additional Resources • Compliance Assistance Centers • Small Business Environmental Homepage - http://www.smallbiz-enviroweb.org/ • National Environmental Compliance Assistance Clearinghouse - http://cfpub.epa.gov/clearinghouse/ • EPA Small Business Ombudsman Homepage - http://www.epa.gov/sbo/ • Industry Sectors - http://www.smallbiz-enviroweb.org/industry/indlinks.html

  12. Additional Assistance Information • EPA Audit Policy - http://www.epa.gov/region02/capp/cip/policy.htm • Self Assessment Tools - http://www.epa.gov/region02/capp/cip/chklists.htm • Auditing for Small Businesses - http://www.epa.gov/region02/capp/cip/smallbus.htm

  13. Additional Resources • Sector Notebooks -The notebooks describe the operations performed at facilities within various industrial sectors. They describe the regulatory requirements and compliance status for the sectors. • Sector Notebooks - http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/publications/assistance/sectors/notebooks/

  14. Additional Assistance Information • Design for the Environment - www. epa.gov/opptintr/dfe/ • Self-Assessment Tools -http://www.epa.gov/region02/capp/cip/chklists.htm • EPA Small Business Ombudsman Homepage - http://www.epa.gov/sbo/ • Small Business Environmental Homepage-http://www.smallbiz-enviroweb.org/

  15. Small Business Assistance Program For further information regarding EPA's Small Business Assistance Program contact: Ron Lockwood Regional Small Business Coordinator Compliance Assistance Section 212-637-3413 lockwood.ronald@.epa.gov

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