On September 10, 2021, EPA Region 9 and California EPA (CalEPA) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Collaborative Efforts on Enforcement and Compliance Assurance in Overburdened Communities. Implementing this MOU, in January 2023, USEPA and CalEPA released their 2023 Environmental Justice Enforcement Action Plan, which covers multiple agencies within CalEPA, including the California Water Boards, Department of Toxic Substances Control, Air Resources Board and Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.

The 2023 Action Plan creates a joint Rapid Response Task Force and establishes a “coordinated multi-agency enforcement and compliance assurance approach” to address selected environmental releases or issues where there is “a pressing environmental need and/or community concerns.” Similarly, the Action Plan sets out a process for developing coordinated multi-agency enforcement tools, including joint inspection best practices, building staff capacity and communication between federal and state agencies, and developing partnering protocols where one agency may be “particularly well suited to lead a collaborative effort” in overburdened communities. The Action plan emphasizes that when EPA and CalEPA and its boards, departments and offices enter into enforcement negotiations, “it is imperative that the agencies seek appropriate corrective actions and penalties, where appropriate,” and that corrective action “should account for community concerns while addressing statutory noncompliance.”

This continued joint agency effort demonstrates that companies in California should expect increased federal and state scrutiny in overburdened EJ communities and coordinated agency efforts to enforce environmental laws and regulations and exact penalties when significant environmental issues arise.