Stantec to Pay $4 Million Over False EPA Grant Certifications After Years of Skirting Procurement Rules

Key Takeaways

• $4M Settlement: Stantec and Cardno agreed to pay $4 million to settle allegations they submitted or caused false certifications in EPA grant applications.
• Conflict of Interest: The firms allegedly helped draft procurement documents, then bid on the same contracts, violating federal grant rules.
• Longstanding Conduct: The alleged violations occurred between 2014 and 2022 under the EPA’s Brownfields Program.

Deep Dive

Stantec Inc., a Canadian-based environmental and engineering firm, has agreed to pay $4 million to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting, or causing others to submit, false certifications in applications for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Brownfields Assessment Grants.

The settlement centers on conduct that spanned nearly a decade and involved Stantec’s subsidiary, Stantec Consulting Services Inc., and Cardno Consulting LLC, a separate company Stantec acquired in 2021. Federal authorities say the firms helped draft requests for proposals (RFPs) and statements of work tied to EPA grants, then turned around and bid on, and won, the very work they helped define.

Under federal procurement rules, that’s a clear conflict. And when those rules are certified as being followed, as applicants are required to do, false certifications can open the door to liability under the False Claims Act.

“Applicants for federal grant funds must comply with applicable procurement requirements,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate, head of the Justice Department's Civil Division. “The department will hold accountable those who undermine the integrity of the federal grant process.”

At issue were grants awarded between 2014 and 2022 through the EPA’s Brownfields Program, which supports communities in assessing and rehabilitating contaminated properties for safe reuse. Program guidelines are clear that contractors who help draft key procurement documents must be excluded from bidding on the resulting work. But the government alleges Stantec and Cardno bypassed that restriction and either falsely certified compliance or caused municipalities to do so.

“The EPA’s Brownfields Grant Program aims to help communities around the country transform contaminated sites into community assets,” said Acting EPA Inspector General Nicole Murley. “Fair competition is critical to the integrity of this program, and the EPA Office of Inspector General will vigorously pursue allegations of false certifications to protect both the program and the taxpayer dollars that fund it.”

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