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B-201204 1 (1981-01-23)

handle is hein.gao/gaobabjyj0001 and id is 1 raw text is: GAO United States General Accounting Office Washington, DC 20548 Donald Stever, Jr. Chief, Pollution Control Section Room 2644 U.S. Department of Justice 9th & Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. Washington, D.C. 20530 Office of General Counsel In Reply Refer to: B-201204 57' January 23, 1' Q-~ Ue,&CM .4 Dear Mr. Stever: This responds to your letter of November 10, 1980. The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has remanded the case of Environmental Defense Fund v. Costle, No. 79-1473 (D.C. Cir. 1980), in which you are handling EPA's defense. On remand the Court ordered the District Court to explore the following question: whether it is ever within the authority of a district court to enter and enforce a consent judgment which restricts the discretion an agency might otherwise have in selecting the means by which it will meet its mandatory re- sponsibilities under a general framework statute * * *. Slip Op. at 57. You request our opinion as one of many potentially affected Federal agencies since the Court feels that the question may have far reaching implications affecting other federal departments and agencies. Our interest stems from our general ,concern that Federal agencies be able to meet their statutory duties in the most cost-effective and efficient manner within the bounds of the law. In this regard we view the continuing viability of court-enforced consent agreements to be of significant import to the Federal Government generally, and we offer the following coimnents in support of an affirmative answer to the Court's stated question. The instant controversy involves an agreement entered into by the EPA and environmental interest groups who initially brought suit to com- pel the agency to meet its statutory duties under the Federal Water Pol- lution Control Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq. (1976). The authority of /0 Alt.