The broad and diverse agenda of the Slovak Environmental Inspectorate distorts its core activities. In 2013, the inspectorate's responsibilities were significantly expanded to include permitting activities, leading to the creation of an integrated permitting and control model. Over the past two decades, both agendas have expanded significantly, and this trend continues. "Currently, the environmental inspectorate oversees 29 laws, more than fifty decrees, and ten government regulations. Additionally, it supervises the implementation of nearly forty European Union regulations. This extensive legal framework requires adequate personnel and technical resources, which are currently insufficient," stated Ľubomír Andrassy, the chairman of the national audit authority. Although planned staffing levels have increased over the past four years, positions remain unfilled. For example, in 2020, the staffing rate was 90%, but by 2023, it had dropped to 78%. The environmental inspectorate's annual budget from 2020 to 2023 was approximately €7 million. "The mandate and competencies of environmental inspectors should be adjusted so that these professionals become respected authorities in environmental protection, which significantly affects the quality of life in every region of Slovakia," Andrassy emphasized.

The situation within the inspectorate is further complicated by the continuous increase in reports from citizens and organizations, as well as how they are handled. Between 2020 and 2023, the reported cases tripled, rising from over 1,300 to more than 5,300. Inspectors also reviewed many cases that had little or no environmental impact. Many general reports were passed between environmental inspectors and district office employees, resulting in bureaucratic inefficiencies. For instance, the Nature and Landscape Protection Inspection Unit was burdened with handling issues such as unauthorized vehicle entry into protected areas, tourists straying from marked trails, non-compliance with visitor regulations, and tree damage. Environmental inspectors had to investigate complaints personally, issue first-instance penalty decisions in administrative proceedings, and conduct second-instance reviews in the event of appeals. "Such prolonged administrative proceedings often did not correspond to the severity of the imposed fines, typically a few dozen euros. Handling these minor offences could have been delegated to nature guards and resolved immediately through on-the-spot fines," said Andrassy. In the field of nature and landscape protection, legislative changes could transfer certain responsibilities to other environmental organizations, such as the State Nature Conservancy of the Slovak Republic and national park administrations. The inspectorate's effectiveness is also hindered by the lack of risk-based control plans, which were used by only two out of six departments, and the fact that risk analyses were conducted by inspectors themselves rather than by a specialized analytical unit.

Efforts to further expand SIE's responsibilities without proper analysis continue under the goals outlined in the Recovery and Resilience Plan. This initiative aims to integrate processes related to integrated prevention and control, environmental impact assessments, and renewable energy sources. The Ministry of the Environment, as the governing body for this public policy, is expected to propose necessary legislative changes in the second quarter of this year. Through a survey of audit institutions in EU countries, SAO found that permitting and inspection activities are combined into a single authority or organizational unit in approximately half of the EU member states. "Merging permitting and inspection activities into a single unit presents multiple risks, including potential conflicts of interest, opportunities for corruption, and managerial and jurisdictional confusion," warned the chairman of the national authority for external control. According to auditors, it is necessary to adjust the scope, competencies, and organizational structure of SIE to minimize the risks identified in the audit report as much as possible.