FLINT, MI — A report on how Flint’s water was contaminated and how the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency responded isn’t expected to be completed until summer, a spokesman for the EPA Office of Inspector General says.
Jeffrey A. Lagda, a spokesman for the OIG, said in an email that the program evaluation is ongoing and the completion date is only an estimate.
His comment comes the day after U.S. Sens.
Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow and U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Twp., asked the office for a status update on the report.
"The EPA OIG’s objective for this assignment is to examine the circumstances of, and the EPA’s response to, the contamination in the city of Flint’s community water system, including the EPA’s exercise of its oversight authority," Lagda’s statement says.
"EPA OIG audits and evaluations follow generally accepted government auditing standards.
The process typically takes many months to complete.
The OIG said in January 2016 that it would begin an investigation into the causes of the Flint water crisis and the agency’s role in allowing it to unfold.
In October 2016, the office issued a finding that criticized EPA’s Region 5 office, saying it should have issued an emergency order about the public health crisis in Flint seven months earlier than it did.
OIG is an independent office within EPA that performs audits, program evaluations and investigations of the agency.