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Welcome to the One Stop Reporting Program
Program Overview
Mission: To create a rational framework for environmental regulatory reporting via
standards-based information management practices of the US Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) and state environmental agencies.
Introduction and Program Goals:
The One Stop Reporting Program began in 1995 as a Presidential Initiative to reinvent
environmental reporting and data management systems to achieve three goals:
- Integrate environmental information to improve state and Federal regulatory
program management and promote multimedia approaches to solving environmental problems.
- Improve public access to information about environmental decisions and performance
and assist communities in understanding and making environmental choices.
- Reduce the burden of environmental reporting on industry, states, and communities
by streamlining and rationalizing requirements and capitalizing on new technologies.
Reinventing Environmental Information
In a July 21, 1997 directive entitled, Reinventing Environmental Information (REI), Administrator
Carol Browner committed to reinvent environmental data management through principles
developed and tested in the early stages of One Stop, and invited all 50 states to join the
One Stop Program. The REI program commits EPA to:
- Full data integration across media and program lines based on formal data standards.
- Universal access to electronic reporting as a way to reduce reporting burden and
improve the timeliness and consistency of environmental performance data.
- To build a State/EPA partnership in data management as a foundation for the overall goal
of a seamless, efficient, national environmental data management system that effectively
serves regulators, the public, and the regulated community.
The One Stop Strategy and Grant Program
One Stop leverages much larger investments by many states which, for business reasons,
are committing resources to data management improvements. One Stop offers states a
$500,000 grant in return for agreeing to join EPA in:
- Adopting consistent, formal data standards.
- Enhancing public access.
- Reducing reporting burden for industry and communities, with an emphasis on the goal
of universal access to electronic reporting.
By August 1999, a total of 25 states will have received the One Stop grants through four application
periods. The first group to receive grants included Massachusetts, New Jersey, Missouri, Utah,
and Washington. The second group to enter One Stop was comprised of Pennsylvania, West Virginia,
Georgia, Mississippi, Minnesota, Texas, New Mexico, and Oregon. In May 1998, eight additional
states were awarded One Stop grants: Arizona, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, New Hampshire, New York,
Oklahoma, and Wisconsin. By the end of FY 99 additional One Stop grant awards will be made to
California, Michigan, Nebraska, and Virginia.
EPA hopes to extend One Stop grant offers to all 50 states by the end of FY 2003.
Data Architecture
In July 1997, the Environmental Council of States (ECOS), the Washington Department of
Ecology, and the US EPA One Stop Program sponsored a workshop with representatives from
One Stop grantee states, EPA regions, and EPA headquarters to discuss approaches for integrating
identification information about sites of environmental interest. The states and EPA recognized the
need to improve how sites of environmental interest were identified and how information about them
was recorded. They consequently developed a "generic" or basic approach to site identification information.
Rather than reflecting the specific and detailed needs of one particular organization, the guidelines
distill the real experiences of a number of states to try to meet the majority of needs of most states.
The results of these guidelines is the FITS data model which is a template that states can use for
defining, relating, and integrating their site identification information. The basics areas for recording
information are site, site affiliation, individual, organization, mailing address, and program interest.
The Facility Identification Template for States (FITS) Data Model is under Construction
This data model, which is formally known as an "Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD)", is a way of
illustrating the types of data to be contained within a system and how that data is to be inter-related.
The FITS data model does not attempt to provide permitted values for the information to be stored,
but states are strongly encouraged to rely on existing standards wherever possible, both to simplify
system development and to enhance compatibility for data sharing. You may access additional information
on data standards and facility information by clicking on one of the links below:
EPA Data Standards
EPA is developing, reviewing, approving, and implementing data standards. To view
the standards go to the Data Standards page.
State/EPA Data Standards Process
States and EPA have become increasingly aware of the importance of data standards to the management and sharing of environmental information. To review the work from this partnership click on the link below:
What's New at One Stop
To access additional information on the integration strategies being employed by a few leading state agencies and implementation of
similar strategies at US EPA and the other states, click on the link below:
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