[CPEO-BIF] GAO brownfields testimony (based on December 04 report)

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Highlights of GAO-05-450T, a testimony before the Subcommittee on
Federalism and the Census, Committee on Government Reform, House of Representatives

This testimony is based on GAO's report, "Brownfield Redevelopment:
Stakeholders Report That EPA's Program Helps to Redevelop Sites, but
Additional Measures Could Complement Agency Efforts" (GAO- 05-94,
December 2, 2004). GAO (1) obtained stakeholders' views on EPA's
contribution to brownfield cleanup and redevelopment, (2)

Statement of John B. Stephenson, Director, Natural Resources and
Environment, Government Accountability Office, April 5, 2005

Highlights

BROWNFIELD REDEVELOPMENT: Stakeholders Cite Additional Measures That
Could Complement EPA's Efforts to Clean Up and Redevelop Properties

Stakeholders said that EPA's Brownfields Program supports the initial
stages of site redevelopment by funding activities that other lenders
often do not, such as identifying contamination and cleaning up sites.
While important, the impact of EPA's funding is difficult to isolate
because it is often combined with funds from other sources. For example,
representatives of a company that combined an EPA loan with city, state,
and other federal agency funds to redevelop a brownfield site near
Seattle, Washington, said that EPA's loan, while small, provided
critical up-front funds for cleanup. Furthermore, while an unknown
number of projects rely solely on private and other federal agencies'
funding, EPA funds often go to sites with more complex cleanups, less
desirable locations, or liability issues. In addition, officials in 10
states reported that EPA's assistance has been crucial to establishing
and expanding the scope of their voluntary cleanup programs.

EPA's performance measures have provided information on achievements in
some but not all key areas of the Brownfields Program. For example, EPA
has not yet begun reporting data on progress toward cleaning up and
redeveloping sites or assisting state programs. As a result, the
agency's - and the Congress' - ability to determine the extent to which
the program is achieving its goals is limited. Furthermore, EPA has not
yet developed measures to assess the extent to which the Brownfields
Program achieves key outcomes, such as reducing environmental risks.
Similarly, EPA's Inspector General found that the agency's performance
measures do not demonstrate the program's contribution to reducing or
controlling health and environmental risks. After acknowledging the
limitations of the program's performance measures, in fiscal year 2004,
EPA began collecting additional data - such as the number of acres ready
for reuse - about properties under the program and is developing
performance measures for state voluntary cleanup programs.

Stakeholders identified three options for improving or complementing
EPA's Brownfields Program. First, they suggested eliminating the
provision in the Brownfields Act that, in effect, disqualifies from
grant eligibility those landowners who purchased a brownfield site
before January 2002. Second, they suggested changes to the stringent
technical and administrative requirements that they believe have
discouraged the use of revolving loan funds. While EPA officials
maintain that the act eased administrative burdens, stakeholders believe
that technical requirements continue to impede lending. Stakeholders
also suggested that EPA give priority to applicants with proven
administrative expertise or to coalitions that can consolidate
administrative functions. Third, stakeholders believed that a federal
tax credit for developers' remediation costs could attract developers to
brownfields sites on a broader national basis. Although EPA and other
organizations were also generally supportive of a tax credit, we did not
analyze the costs and benefits of such a tax credit or any other
potential incentives.

To download the entire testimony as a PDF file, go to
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-05-450T

-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org
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