EPA Whistleblower
We Help Whistleblowers Report All Types of Violations to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Whistleblower Team Lead
Former DOJ Attorney
Whistleblower Team Lead
Whistleblower Team
Former U.S. Attorney and District Attorney
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plays an important role in protecting human health and our nation’s air, water, and other natural resources. It also helps fund critical environmental research, and it promotes scientific integrity in all aspects of contractors’ and grantees’ work. The EPA plays an important role in the government’s ongoing fight against fraud, waste, and abuse (FWA) as well—and, after proclaiming 2024 the “Year of Fighting Fraud,” it is continuing to aggressively target contractors and grantees that violate the law. All of these are areas where EPA whistleblowers can help.
If you believe that you may be eligible to serve as an EPA whistleblower, we strongly encourage you to speak with a whistleblower lawyer at Oberheiden P.C. We represent whistleblowers nationwide at no out-of-pocket cost. We represent current and former EPA employees, contractor and grantee employees, and other individuals, and we work with the EPA on behalf of our clients to help the agency hold bad actors fully accountable.
Types of Issues Whistleblowers Can Report to the EPA
Whistleblowers can report a wide range of issues to the EPA. If you are considering filing a whistleblower complaint with the EPA for any reason, we invite you to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with a lawyer at our firm. Our lawyers can determine if the information you have in your possession makes you eligible to serve as an EPA whistleblower; and, regardless, we can help you make informed decisions about what to do next.
Some examples of the types of issues that whistleblowers can report to the EPA include:
Environmental Violations
Whistleblowers can report all types of violations of environmental laws to the EPA. This includes, but is by no means limited to, violations of the following federal environmental statutes related to air, water, chemical safety, and hazardous waste:
- Clean Water Act (CWA)
- Clean Air Act (CAA)
- Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA)
- Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
- Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA)
- Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
While the EPA conducts inspections and other enforcement efforts, it relies heavily on whistleblowers to come forward. Like other federal agencies, the EPA simply does not have the resources to examine and enforce compliance on a nationwide scale. By identifying violators to the EPA, whistleblowers can help the agency pursue targeted enforcement—and this targeted enforcement can lead to administrative, civil, or even criminal penalties.
Unpaid Royalties for Oil, Gas, and Other Natural Resources
EPA whistleblowers can also report companies’ failure to pay royalties for oil, gas, and other natural resources extracted from federal lands and under offshore leases. This is a widespread issue—and, here too, the EPA relies heavily on whistleblowers to disclose underreporting of companies’ natural resource extractions.
EPA Contract and Grant Fraud
The EPA has prioritized fraud enforcement under its contracts and grants in recent years. Contract and grant fraud are pervasive issues across the federal government, and they cost taxpayers untold billions of dollars every year. By informing the EPA of procurement fraud, billing fraud, and other similar types of issues (or filing a False Claims Act complaint in federal court), EPA whistleblowers can both help the government recover taxpayer funds and deter similar fraud in the future.
EPA Program Fraud (Including Superfund Fraud)
Whistleblowers can report laboratories and other entities for committing fraud under EPA programs as well. This includes Superfund fraud—as well as fraud under many other EPA programs. According to the EPA Office of Inspector General (EPA OIG), laboratories and other entities routinely use fraudulent representations regarding remedial measures, test results (including those for lead paint), and other similar types of issues to improperly “earn contract incentives, falsely or to avoid operations shutdown, or to increase profits or limit costs.”
False Representations to the EPA
Along with false representations under EPA programs, EPA whistleblowers can report false representations to the agency in other contexts as well. Numerous types of false representations have the potential to compromise public health, interfere with the EPA’s objectives, or lead to fraudulent taxpayer losses. If you have any information that you believe the EPA should know, our EPA whistleblower lawyers can help you make informed decisions about coming forward.
Loss of Scientific Integrity
The EPA also accepts whistleblower complaints involving allegations of loss of scientific integrity. This includes, but is not limited to, allegations of financial conflicts of issues and other ethical issues involving EPA employees and other federal employees and personnel. If you are aware of a loss of scientific integrity in environmental research, we strongly encourage you to consider coming forward.
Internal Fraud, Waste, and Abuse at the EPA
Along with financial conflicts of interest and other ethical issues, EPA employees can also blow the whistle on other forms of internal fraud, waste, and abuse at the agency. Internal EPA whistleblowers are protected under the Inspector General Act of 1978, the Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989, and the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012. Former EPA employees can come forward as well, and they are also entitled to protection under federal law. If necessary they can also file retaliation complaints with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) in many cases.
Put our highly experienced team on your side
Dr. Nick Oberheiden
Founder
Attorney-at-Law
Lynette S. Byrd
Former DOJ Trial Attorney
Partner
Brian J. Kuester
Former U.S. Attorney
Hon. Kevin McCarthy
55th Speaker, U.S. House of Representatives (ret.)
Government Consultant
Mike Pompeo
Of Counsel
Former U.S. Secretary of State
John W. Sellers
Former Senior DOJ Trial Attorney
Linda Julin McNamara
Federal Appeals Attorney
Nicholas B. Johnson
Former Prosecutor
Roger Bach
Former Special Agent (DOJ)
Chris J. Quick
Former Special Agent (FBI & IRS-CI)
Michael S. Koslow
Former Supervisory Special Agent (DOD-OIG)
Ray Yuen
Former Supervisory Special Agent (FBI)
Reporting Violations to the EPA
If you are considering serving as an EPA whistleblower, the specific steps you need to take depend on: (i) the type of wrongdoing you need to report to the EPA; and, (ii) whether you are a current EPA employee, a former EPA employee, or you work (or worked) in the private sector. The EPA OIG’s whistleblower protection coordinator and Scientific Integrity Official (SIO) both accept whistleblower disclosures, although they accept different types of complaints and have different complaint procedures.
Our EPA whistleblower lawyers can assist you with taking the correct steps to report fraud, waste, abuse, or other wrongdoing to the EPA. Again, this costs you nothing out-of-pocket; and, if you are unsure about filing a complaint, we are more than happy to help you make an informed decision about whether to blow the whistle.
In some cases, individuals who have information about fraud will be able to file whistleblower complaints with federal authorities other than the EPA. While there are a few reasons to consider alternatives to contacting the EPA directly, one of the main reasons is that filing with another federal authority may allow EPA whistleblowers to claim a financial reward.
Royalty payment violations, fraud under EPA contracts and grants, fraud under EPA programs, and other violations that are financial in nature may warrant whistleblower complaints under the False Claims Act or under the whistleblower programs administered by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). All of these alternatives provide the opportunity to seek a whistleblower reward—and, if this is of interest to you, our EPA whistleblower lawyers can explain everything you need to know.
FAQs: Serving as an EPA Whistleblower
If I File a Whistleblower Complaint, Will the EPA Keep My Identity Confidential?
The EPA Office of Inspector General (EPA OIG) is obligated to protect whistleblowers’ confidentiality to the fullest extent possible under federal law. In most cases, this means that whistleblowers’ identities will not be disclosed. Generally, the only time the EPA OIG will disclose a whistleblower’s identity is when doing so is “unavoidable” during the course of an investigation.
Can I Serve as an EPA Whistleblower Anonymously?
Yes, the EPA OIG states: “If you do not wish to disclose your identity, you may remain anonymous when contacting the OIG. However, please keep in mind that anonymity may impede a quick or thorough investigation or the success of a later prosecution.”
Does the EPA Offer Financial Whistleblower Rewards?
No, the EPA does not have a whistleblower reward program. However, individuals who have information about fraud under EPA contracts, grants, and programs may be eligible to file for whistleblower rewards under the False Claims Act or a whistleblower program administered by another federal agency. If you are interested in seeking a whistleblower reward, our attorneys can examine the options you have available.
Do I Need a Lawyer to Serve as an EPA Whistleblower?
While not legally required, hiring a lawyer to assist you with serving as an EPA whistleblower is strongly recommended. Your lawyer will be able to help you make informed decisions about working with the government, communicate with federal investigators and prosecutors on your behalf, and help protect your identity throughout the process.
How Do I File a Whistleblower Complaint with the EPA?
In many cases, filing a whistleblower complaint with the EPA involves submitting a report through the EPA OIG Hotline or using the EPA’s Environmental Violations Form. However, whistleblowers may have other options as well—and there is an entirely different process for seeking a financial reward for reporting fraud, waste, or abuse.
