January
13,
2005
The
Honorable
Michael
O.
Leavitt
Administrator
U.
S.
Environmental
Protection
Agency
1200
Pennsylvania
Avenue,
NW
(
MC
1101A)
Washington,
DC
20460
Dear
Mr.
Leavitt:

It
was
certainly
a
pleasure
to
meet
with
you
at
the
Environmental
Council
of
the
States
(
ECOS)
meeting
in
Oklahoma
City
to
discuss
our
joint
views
regarding
Performance
Track
programs
and
how
to
advance
them.
That
meeting
confirmed
that
there
is
considerable
state
support
for
Performance
Track
and
other
performance­
based
approaches
to
environmental
management.
There
is
clearly
also
a
commitment
to
work
together
to
strengthen
them.
At
the
conclusion
of
those
discussions,
you
asked
that
the
states
confer
to
gage
support
and
make
recommendations
to
build
a
high
profile
program
recognized
for
its
commitment
to
environmental
excellence.
We
are
attaching
our
report
in
response
to
your
request.

First,
let
us
say
that
the
states
are
grateful
for
the
opportunity
you
have
provided
for
us
to
partner
with
EPA
in
this
effort.
We
were
able
to
hold
interviews
with
the
Commissioner
or
his/
her
designee
in
40
states
to
form
the
basis
of
this
report.
Massachusetts,
Colorado,
Minnesota
and
Virginia
conducted
the
interviews,
and
we
want
to
thank
them
for
their
contribution.
More
than
half
of
all
states
currently
have
or
are
developing
performance­
based
environmental
programs.
We
applaud
your
vision
in
raising
the
profile
of
performance­
based
programs
and
making
them
a
high
priority
for
the
agency.
It
is
clear
that
many
states
have
been
and
are
continuing
to
embrace
this
vision
and
the
opportunity
it
provides
to
achieve
environmental
excellence
beyond
regulatory
requirements.

Our
report
contains
a
number
of
recommendations
we
believe
will
make
Performance
Track
and
state
performance­
based
programs
more
effective.
While
Performance
Track
and
many
of
the
state
programs
are
strong
there
is
always
more
that
can
be
done.
In
particular,
we
hope
that
these
programs
can
ultimately
become
core
programs
at
EPA
and
state
environmental
agencies.
We
have
received
broad­
based
support
from
the
states
in
support
of
these
recommendations.
The
Executive
Officers
of
ECOS
support
this
report,
and
the
chairs
of
the
Cross­
Media,
Planning
and
Compliance
Committees
stand
ready
to
work
with
EPA
to
carry
out
these
recommendations.

We
want
to
reiterate
our
appreciation
for
the
opportunity
to
work
with
you
to
strengthen
these
programs.
The
partnership
that
has
developed
between
the
Environmental
Protection
Agency
and
the
Environmental
Council
of
the
States
has
proven
very
effective
and
we
look
forward
to
continuing
the
partnership
in
the
years
ahead.

Sincerely,

David
K.
Paylor
Chairman,
ECOS
Cross­
Media
Committee
Arleen
O'Donnell
Co­
Chair,
ECOS
Cross­
Media
Committee
Enclosure
Copies:
Mr.
Stephen
L.
Johnson
Mr.
Jay
Benforado
Mr.
Steve
Thompson
Ms.
Stephanie
Hallock
Mr.
Bob
King
Mr.
Steve
Brown
Mr.
Steve
Owens
Mr.
Howard
Roitman
Ms.
Sheryl
Corrigan
