EPA is giving companies more of an incentive to voluntarily report and correct environmental violations. Businesses that meet policy conditions are eligible for penalty reductions and waivers and other benefits — if violations do not pose serious harm or risk, reflect repeated noncompliance, or involve corporate officials condoning criminal behavior. Key revisions to EPA's Audit Policy include lengthening the amount of time from 10 to 21 days that employers have to disclose a violation after it is discovered.

EPA's Small Business Policy, available for companies with 100 or fewer employees, reduces or waives penalties for small businesses that disclose and make good faith efforts to correct violations, provided they meet the criteria in the policy. EPA has lengthened the amount of time from 10 to 21 days that employers have to disclose a violation after discovery and has expanded the number of ways that the violations can be discovered. Both revised policies are available at: http://www.epa.gov/oeca.

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