Watchdog Warns of Fraud, Conflicts of Interest in EPA Grants

An EPA program that gives grants to small businesses is increasingly beset by undisclosed personal relationships that can indicate fraud, the agency’s internal watchdog said in a Thursday report.

The new findings appear to validate Environmental Protection Agency Inspector General Sean O’Donnell’s concerns about the growing risk of abuse of agency grant money.

In one case, the inspector general found that a husband and wife in central Florida had sent in applications for money under the Small Business Innovation Research program for two separate companies. Each company was owned by a different spouse and employed the other spouse as a ...