Superfund Program
Breakdown of Appropriations Data Gao ID: GAO-04-787R May 14, 2004On February 18, 2004, we issued a report updating the appropriations and expenditure data for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Superfund program that we included in our July 2003 report on the status of the program. To supplement this information, Congress requested that we provide a breakdown of the appropriations data, showing the amounts for the Superfund program, amounts designated for the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and the Brownfields program. Superfund program operations are funded by appropriations from the general revenue fund and the Superfund trust fund. Historically, a tax on crude oil and certain chemicals and an environmental tax on corporations were the primary sources of revenues for the trust fund; however, the authority for these taxes expired in 1995. The trust fund continues to receive revenues in the form of cost recoveries, interest on the fund balance, fines and penalties, and general revenue fund appropriations that supplement the trust fund balance.
Total Superfund program appropriations decreased from fiscal year 1993 to fiscal year 2004, in constant 2003 dollars, from $1,884 million to $1,242 million. Since fiscal year 2000, the Superfund program has increasingly relied on revenue from general revenue fund appropriations. In fiscal year 2004, the appropriations form the general fund was the only source of funds for the program. The net Superfund program appropriations--excluding the amounts for ATSDR, NIEHS, and the Brownfields program--decreased from $1,757 million to $1,242 million, in constant 2003 dollars, from fiscal year 1993 to fiscal year 2004.
GAO-04-787R, Superfund Program: Breakdown of Appropriations Data
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United States General Accounting Office:
Washington, DC 20548:
May 13, 2004:
The Honorable James M. Jeffords:
Ranking Minority Member:
Committee on Environment and Public Works:
United States Senate:
Subject: Superfund Program: Breakdown of Appropriations Data:
Dear Senator Jeffords:
On February 18, 2004, we issued a report updating the appropriations
and expenditure data for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA)
Superfund program that we included in our July 2003 report on the
status of the program.[Footnote 1] To supplement this information, you
requested that we provide a breakdown of the appropriations data,
showing the amounts for the Superfund program, amounts designated for
the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and the
Brownfields program. Superfund program operations are funded by
appropriations from the general revenue fund and the Superfund trust
fund. Historically, a tax on crude oil and certain chemicals and an
environmental tax on corporations were the primary sources of revenues
for the trust fund; however, the authority for these taxes expired in
1995. The trust fund continues to receive revenues in the form of cost
recoveries, interest on the fund balance, fines and penalties, and
general revenue fund appropriations that supplement the trust fund
balance.
In preparing this report, we relied primarily on our prior work on
EPA's Superfund program, updated where appropriate through discussions
with EPA officials in the Office of the Chief Financial Officer and the
Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. We determined that the
appropriations and expenditure data used were sufficiently reliable
through our interviews with EPA officials. We conducted our work from
February through April 2004 in accordance with generally accepted
government auditing standards.
As enclosure I shows, total Superfund program appropriations decreased
from fiscal year 1993 to fiscal year 2004, in constant 2003 dollars,
from $1,884 million to $1,242 million.[Footnote 2] Since fiscal year
2000, the Superfund program has increasingly relied on revenue from
general revenue fund appropriations. In fiscal year 2004, the
appropriation from the general fund was the only source of funds for
the program. Enclosure II provides a breakdown of the appropriations
for the Superfund program, including amounts designated for ATSDR,
NIEHS, and the Brownfields program. The enclosure shows that the net
Superfund program appropriations--excluding the amounts for ATSDR,
NIEHS, and the Brownfields program--decreased from $1,757 million to
$1,242 million, in constant 2003 dollars, from fiscal year 1993 to
fiscal year 2004.
We provided EPA with a draft of this report for review and comment. EPA
generally agreed with the information in the report and provided
several technical comments, which we incorporated as appropriate.
As agreed with your office, unless you publicly announce the contents
of this report earlier, we plan no further distribution of it until 5
days from the report date. At that time, we will send copies to the
appropriate congressional committees; the Administrator, EPA; and other
interested parties. We will also make copies available to others upon
request. In addition, the report will be available at no charge on the
GAO Web site at http://www.gao.gov.
If you or your staff have any questions, please call me at (202) 512-
3841. Key contributors to this report were Ellen Crocker, Tim Guinane,
Jerry Laudermilk, Nico Sloss, and Tatiana Winger.
Sincerely yours,
Signed by:
John B. Stephenson:
Director, Natural Resources and Environment:
Enclosures:
Enclosure I: Sources and Amounts of Appropriations to the Superfund
Program, Fiscal Years 1993 through 2004:
Dollars in millions.
Enacted appropriations in current year dollars: From general revenues;
Fiscal year: 1993: $250;
Fiscal year: 1994: $250;
Fiscal year: 1995: $250;
Fiscal year: 1996: $250;
Fiscal year: 1997: $250;
Fiscal year: 1998: $250;
Fiscal year: 1999: $325;
Fiscal year: 2000: $700;
Fiscal year: 2001: $634;
Fiscal year: 2002: $635;
Fiscal year: 2003: $633;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,258.
Enacted appropriations in current year dollars: From the Superfund
trust fund;
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,323;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,247;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,104;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,063;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,144;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,250;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,175;
Fiscal year: 2000: $700;
Fiscal year: 2001: $636;
Fiscal year: 2002: $635;
Fiscal year: 2003: $633;
Fiscal year: 2004: $0.
Total in current year dollars:
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,573;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,497;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,354;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,313;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,394;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,500;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,500;
Fiscal year: 2000: $1,400;
Fiscal year: 2001: $1,270;
Fiscal year: 2002: $1,270;
Fiscal year: 2003: $1,265;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,258.
Enacted appropriations in constant 2003 dollars[B]: From general
revenues;
Fiscal year: 1993: $299;
Fiscal year: 1994: $293;
Fiscal year: 1995: $287;
Fiscal year: 1996: $282.
Fiscal year: 1997: $277;
Fiscal year: 1998: $274;
Fiscal year: 1999: $351;
Fiscal year: 2000: $741;
Fiscal year: 2001: $656;
Fiscal year: 2002: $645;
Fiscal year: 2003: $633;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,242.
Enacted appropriations in constant 2003 dollars[B]: From the Superfund
trust fund;
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,585;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,462;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,268;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,198;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,267;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,368;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,269;
Fiscal year: 2000: $741;
Fiscal year: 2001: $658;
Fiscal year: 2002: $645;
Fiscal year: 2003: $633;
Fiscal year: 2004: $0.
Total in constant 2003 dollars;
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,884;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,755;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,555;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,479;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,544;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,641;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,620;
Fiscal year: 2000: $1,482;
Fiscal year: 2001: $1,314;
Fiscal year: 2002: $1,291;
Fiscal year: 2003: $1,265;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,242.
Source: GAO analysis of EPA data.
Note: Through fiscal year 2000, the Superfund program appropriations
included funds for the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
(ATSDR) and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
(NIEHS); through fiscal year 2002, the appropriations included funds
for the Brownfields program.
[A] For the purposes of this analysis, we excluded a $40 million
emergency supplemental appropriation from the fiscal year 2002
Superfund program appropriations because it was designated specifically
for homeland security purposes.
[B] We converted the annual appropriations to constant 2003 dollars
using the Gross Domestic Product (Chained) Price Index.
[End of table]
Enclosure II: Breakdown of Funding for the Superfund Program, Fiscal
Years 1993 through 2004:
Dollars in millions.
Enacted appropriations in current year dollars: Superfund program
appropriations;
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,573;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,497;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,354;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,313;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,394;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,500;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,500;
Fiscal year: 2000: $1,400;
Fiscal year: 2001: $1,270;
Fiscal year: 2002: $1,270[A];
Fiscal year: 2003: $1,265;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,258.
Enacted appropriations in current year dollars: Amount designated for
ATSDR and NIEHS;
Fiscal year: 1993: $106;
Fiscal year: 1994: $117;
Fiscal year: 1995: $128;
Fiscal year: 1996: $110;
Fiscal year: 1997: $118;
Fiscal year: 1998: $132;
Fiscal year: 1999: $136;
Fiscal year: 2000: $130;
Fiscal year: 2001: [B];
Fiscal year: 2002: [B];
Fiscal year: 2003: [B];
Fiscal year: 2004: [B].
Enacted appropriations in current year dollars: Amount designated for
the Brownfields program[C];
Fiscal year: 1993: $0[D];
Fiscal year: 1994: $1;
Fiscal year: 1995: $2;
Fiscal year: 1996: $8;
Fiscal year: 1997: $37;
Fiscal year: 1998: $89;
Fiscal year: 1999: $91;
Fiscal year: 2000: $92;
Fiscal year: 2001: $91;
Fiscal year: 2002: $95;
Fiscal year: 2003: [E];
Fiscal year: 2004: [E].
Enacted appropriations in current year dollars: Superfund program
appropriations excluding amounts for ATSDR, NIEHS, and the Brownfields program;
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,467;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,379;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,224;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,195;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,239;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,279;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,273;
Fiscal year: 2000: $1,178;
Fiscal year: 2001: $1,179;
Fiscal year: 2002: $1,175;
Fiscal year: 2003: $1,265;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,258.
Enacted appropriations in constant 2003 dollars[F]: Superfund program
appropriations;
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,884;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,755;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,555;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,479;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,544;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,641;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,620;
Fiscal year: 2000: $1,482;
Fiscal year: 2001: $1,314;
Fiscal year: 2002: $1,291[A];
Fiscal year: 2003: $1,265;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,242.
Enacted appropriations in constant 2003 dollars[F]: Amount designated
for ATSDR and NIEHS;
Fiscal year: 1993: $127;
Fiscal year: 1994: $137;
Fiscal year: 1995: $147;
Fiscal year: 1996: $124;
Fiscal year: 1997: $131;
Fiscal year: 1998: $144;
Fiscal year: 1999: $147;
Fiscal year: 2000: $138;
Fiscal year: 2001: [B];
Fiscal year: 2002: [B];
Fiscal year: 2003: [B];
Fiscal year: 2004: [B].
Enacted appropriations in constant 2003 dollars[F]: Amount designated
for the Brownfields program[C];
Fiscal year: 1993: $0[D];
Fiscal year: 1994: $1;
Fiscal year: 1995: $2;
Fiscal year: 1996: $9;
Fiscal year: 1997: $41;
Fiscal year: 1998: $97;
Fiscal year: 1999: $98;
Fiscal year: 2000: $97;
Fiscal year: 2001: $94;
Fiscal year: 2002: $97;
Fiscal year: 2003: [E];
Fiscal year: 2004: [E].
Enacted appropriations in constant 2003 dollars[F]: Superfund program
appropriations excluding amounts for ATSDR, NIEHS, and the Brownfields
program;
Fiscal year: 1993: $1,757;
Fiscal year: 1994: $1,617;
Fiscal year: 1995: $1,406;
Fiscal year: 1996: $1,346;
Fiscal year: 1997: $1,372;
Fiscal year: 1998: $1,399;
Fiscal year: 1999: $1,375;
Fiscal year: 2000: $1,247;
Fiscal year: 2001: $1,219;
Fiscal year: 2002: $1,194;
Fiscal year: 2003: $1,265;
Fiscal year: 2004: $1,242.
Sources: GAO analysis of data from EPA and the President's Budget
Appendix, Fiscal Years 1994 through 2005.
[A] For the purposes of this analysis, we excluded a $40 million
emergency supplemental appropriation from the fiscal year 2002
Superfund program appropriations because it was designated specifically
for homeland security purposes.
[B] Beginning in fiscal year 2001, appropriations for ATSDR and NIEHS
were no longer included in the Superfund program appropriations.
[C] For fiscal years 1993 through 1996, the amount designated for the
Brownfields program represents budget authority as estimated by EPA,
rather than appropriations to the program.
[D] The amount designated for the Brownfields program in fiscal year
1993 was $0.15 million in current year dollars ($0.18 million in
constant 2003 dollars).
[E] Beginning in fiscal year 2003, appropriations for the Brownfields
program were no longer included in the Superfund program
appropriations.
[F] We converted the annual appropriations to constant 2003 dollars
using the Gross Domestic Product (Chained) Price Index.
[End of table]
(360472):
FOOTNOTES
[1] U.S. General Accounting Office, Superfund Program: Updated
Appropriation and Expenditure Data, GAO-04-475R (Washington, D.C.: Feb.
18, 2004) and Superfund Program: Current Status and Future Fiscal
Challenges, GAO-03-850 (Washington, D.C.: July 31, 2003).
[2] Enclosure I shows the enacted amounts of the appropriations. In
February 2004, we provided the actual appropriation amounts, which
include amounts carried over from prior years, consistent with our July
2003 report.
