Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Annual Results for Fiscal Year 2025

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance advances the agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment and helps ensure all Americans have access to clean air, land, and water. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, the agency delivered strong results, including the highest number of civil enforcement case conclusions in nine years; continuing the agency’s high-level performance for compliance monitoring activities; and bringing the most criminal charges against defendants since FY 2016. These and many other achievements demonstrate that even as EPA holds others accountable for complying with the law, it also holds itself accountable for effectively and efficiently delivering measurable results.

Working for America

EPA’s enforcement and compliance assurance program works every day for America by addressing environmental noncompliance and cleaning up contaminated sites that adversely impact the health of communities through vigorous civil and criminal enforcement. Our work to secure clean air, land, and water for all Americans includes:

A Year Powering the Great American Comeback

Aligning EPA enforcement and compliance assurance with the President’s mandates and EPA’s five pillars so that environmental progress coincides with economic growth.

Improving Health for All Americans

Protecting our air, safeguarding drinking and recreational water, cleaning up contaminated sites, and reducing exposure to toxic chemicals to promote human health and flourishing.

Protecting Our Borders

Stopping the import of illegal pesticides and other toxic chemicals to prevent foreign actors who threaten human health and the environment from profiting by poisoning our communities.

Fulfilling Our Mission

Ensuring compliance with environmental laws and addressing noncompliance fulfills EPA’s mission to address the greatest threats to human health and the environment consistently with the rule of law.

FY 2025 Enforcement and Compliance Assurance by the Numbers

Conducting over 14,000 compliance monitoring activities, the second highest in the last decade.
Conducting nearly 8,300 inspections, the second highest in the last eight years.
Concluding 2,127 civil enforcement cases, the highest in nine years.
Assessing over $1.2 billion in civil penalties and criminal fines, restitution, and other court ordered relief.
Charging 156 defendants, the most since 2016, and obtaining 65 years of incarceration.
Securing more than $6.4 billion in commitments to return facilities to compliance.
Finalizing 65 Superfund enforcement instruments, valued at more than $888 million, with $714.3 million to address nearly 59.4 million cubic yards of contaminated land and water and $174.1 million to reimburse the agency for past cleanup work.
Receiving 538 voluntary disclosures or new owner audit agreements covering violations at 957 facilities under EPA's self-disclosure policies.

Compliance Assurance

EPA maintains programs to assist the public and co-regulators in ensuring compliance with the law and ensuring that enforcement offices are properly trained and certified.

Civil Enforcement

Takes actions to deter future violations and ensure prompt return to compliance.

Criminal Enforcement

Investigates and assists in the prosecution of the most culpable environmental violations.

Superfund Cleanup Enforcement

Ensures responsible parties perform cleanup or pay for it, preserving taxpayer dollars and the Superfund Trust Fund.

Federal Facilities

Oak Ridge Reservation Environmental Management Disposal Facility

Ensures federal agencies and their facilities comply with environmental laws and regulations in the same manner and to the same extent as other regulated entities.

Annual Results Maps

Find concluded enforcement cases, on-site compliance inspections, and current cleanup work on their respective interactive maps.

Data and Trends

Charts and graphs displaying the Fiscal Year 2025 Accomplishments and overall Trends from Fiscal Years 2016 – 2025.

National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives

Focuses enforcement and compliance resources on the most serious environmental violations using national program priorities.

Annual Results Press Release

Trump EPA Releases Strongest Enforcement and Compliance Results in Years