1. 21 Environmental Policy

2. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.21 - 2 Table 21.1: Major Federal Environmental Laws

3. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.21 - 3 Environmental Policymaking: all four styles 1.Entrepreneurial Politics (dominant role in most environmental programs): a.Unorganized public benefits at the expense of a well-organized group. b.To prevent client groups from directing how the laws will be implemented, bills must be written so that courts can force action 2. Majoritarian Politics a.An unorganized public benefits at its own expense (gas taxes, etc.) b.Whether proposal wins or loses depends on public acceptance (carpooling) 3. Interest Group Politics a.Two organized groups fight over who will pay and who will benefit (Acid rain) b.Congress tends to find workable compromises rather than sweeping legislation 4. Client Politics a.Organized group gets benefit; unorganized public must pay (ANWAR oil drilling) Federal government has typically been the pacesetter in environmental policy through uniform national standards, creating adversarial situations with the chief polluters: businesses. Federalism reinforces adversarial nature as Congress allows fights to take place at local and state levels. Mechanics vary with type above: 1. Global warming 2. Auto pollution 3. Acid rain 4. Timber harvests

4. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.21 - 4 Transportation and The Environment 1.Most of nation’s regulation here: size of nation/individual culture a.Cars produce : greenhouse effect, ozone depletion, smog b.150 million vehicles in US; rate growing faster than population c.Pave the planet: parking lots cover more land in US than Georgia does 2. Situation will get worse before it gets better a.Americans are driving more, not less b.1991: GHW Bush upgrades highways, cuts funds for mass transit c.Clinton (with VP Gore) as “environmental President” maintains policy 3. Majoritarian issue, but tough to regulate a.Car owners will be required to finance any policy to address problem b.They’ll finance hidden costs (catalytic converters), but not changes requiring adopting different driving habits c.When costs are high, public support can be rallied by linking a tax increase to a concrete project, such as a bridge or a highway d.Presidential role crucial in the adoption of a proposal

5. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.21 - 5 Map 21.1: The Politics of Energy: Sources of Fossil Fuels in the United States Source: Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report (January 20, 1990): 160.

6. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.21 - 6 Figure 21.1: Government Regulation Source: Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report (January 20,1990): 185, updated with Wirthlin Worldwide Survey.