Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) use of funds for its brownfield-related initiatives, focusing on the: (1) amount of funds that EPA actually obligated in fiscal years (FY) 1997-1999; (2) amount it plans to obligate in FY 2000; and (3) number of grants and agreements that EPA awarded or plans to award with these funds, along with the recipients of these awards.

GAO noted that: (1) EPA obligated $37.2 million in FY 1997, $88.2 million in FY 1998, and $91.1 million in FY 1999 for brownfield assessments and cleanup activities; (2) the agency plans to obligate $91.2 million in FY 2000; and (3) EPA is conducting these activities primarily through more than 800 grants, agreements, and contracts with states, tribes, local governments, and private entities, such as universities and research organizations.