Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited) - USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2016	Jul. 31, 2015
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 8,230,108	$ 8,703,347
Investment securities available for sale	1,511,468	1,433,732
Contract receivables, net of allowance for doubtful accounts and contract adjustments of $5,798,094 and $5,954,261, respectively	34,458,834	42,866,156
Income tax receivable	117,475	297,246
Other current assets	2,541,826	1,330,996
Total current assets	46,859,711	54,631,477
Property, buildings and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation of $23,440,753 and $23,438,269, respectively	6,340,780	7,113,694
Deferred income taxes	3,724,250	4,812,291
Other assets	1,795,695	1,931,875
Total assets	58,720,436	68,489,337
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	5,741,455	10,409,656
Lines of credit	562,746	672,272
Accrued payroll costs	6,318,865	8,687,643
Current portion of long-term debt and capital lease obligations	225,422	551,148
Billings in excess of revenue	3,314,447	2,618,453
Other accrued liabilities	3,366,963	3,931,284
Total current liabilities	19,529,898	26,870,456
Income taxes payable	107,035	107,035
Deferred income taxes	389,088	631,889
Long-term debt and capital lease obligations	$ 219,508	$ 395,098
Commitments and contingencies (Note 14)
Shareholders' equity:
Preferred stock, par value $.01 per share (2,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued)	$ 0	$ 0
Capital in excess of par value	16,622,338	16,575,286
Retained earnings	22,570,104	23,246,483
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(2,093,649)	(1,726,339)
Treasury stock, at cost (Class A common: 38,990 and 42,245 shares; Class B common: 64,801 shares)	(1,172,071)	(1,223,899)
Total Ecology and Environment, Inc. shareholders' equity	35,970,660	36,915,469
Noncontrolling interests	2,504,247	3,569,390
Total shareholders' equity	38,474,907	40,484,859
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity	58,720,436	68,489,337
Class A [Member]
Shareholders' equity:
Common stock	30,358	30,232
Class B [Member]
Shareholders' equity:
Common stock	$ 13,580	$ 13,706