U.S. government resources are limited, and the policy positions of federal agencies often realign with administrative changes. In the environmental sector, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regularly updates its enforcement focus. These updates impact not only the volume of enforcement actions, but also the specific industries and regulatory areas the agency targets. Under the Trump administration, the EPA issued a recent memorandum that signifies a major shift to its enforcement and compliance priorities.
Historically Published Priorities
Historically, the EPA outlines its intentions through enforcement initiatives published every three years. The most recent initiatives, released in 2023 for fiscal years 2024 through 2027, included anticipated enforcement emphasis on “Mitigating Climate Change,” PFAS, coal ash contamination, and “Reducing Air Toxics in Overburdened Communities.” The Biden-era EPA selected these initiatives to focus federal resources on what it then perceived as the most pressing environmental issues.
A New Approach to Enforcement Limitations
While it is standard practice for the EPA to announce its enforcement focus areas, the agency rarely articulates where it will not enforce. However, on March 12, 2026, the EPA Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) issued a memorandum detailing exactly that. Titled “Implementing National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives Consistently with Executive Orders and Agency Priorities,” the memo references recent Executive Orders and identifies two primary areas where the EPA will restrict its enforcement powers:
- Environmental Justice: The memo explicitly states that “environmental justice considerations shall no longer inform EPA’s enforcement and compliance assurance work.”
- Energy Production: According to the memo, EPA’s “enforcement and compliance assurance actions shall not shut down any stage of energy production (from exploration to distribution) or power generation absent an imminent and substantial threat to human health or an express statutory or regulatory requirement to the contrary.”
Furthermore, the memo clarifies that existing 2024 – 2027 enforcement initiatives targeting climate change mitigation and coal ash contamination must be interpreted to make sure they do not “unduly burden or significantly disrupt power generation.”
Centralization of Authority
The directive also may implement a procedural shift by pulling some enforcement discretion away from the 10 EPA regional offices, and centralizing authority at the agency headquarters. Additionally, the memo omits any discussion of threats to the environment as a basis for enforcement, focusing strictly on imminent threats to human health.
What This May Mean for You
Changes in regulatory enforcement can take time to fully materialize, but understanding where the EPA intends to focus is critical for impacted businesses. For professionals managing legal and compliance challenges, the EPA memorandum signals a period of strategic realignment.
We recommend that corporate and environmental compliance teams take the following steps to evaluate legal risks efficiently:
- Review ongoing operations in the energy sector to understand how the new emphasis on preserving energy production may impact your regulatory risk profile.
- Review state-level environmental justice considerations applicable in many states which are unaffected by this U.S. EPA policy change.
- Monitor headquarters-level enforcement trends, as regional offices may now have less autonomy in initiating enforcement actions.
If you have questions about how these updated EPA enforcement initiatives may affect your business, please contact Bill Ford, or your regular Lathrop GPM attorney.