2 7 2012 Natural Resource and Environmental Planning TOPIC 2 POLICY AND ADMINIS TRATIO N Policy Principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcome s Assist in both subjective and objective decision making Subjective decision making involves a consideration of the relative merits of a number of factors Scientists like to think that their decisions are objective Policy a broad statement intended to guide decisions to be made to arrive at some outcome we would like to think that we make decisions objectively hard science in reality policies are based on a lot of input subjective human element Objective decision making are usually operational in nature and can be objectively tested Law and Regulations Law System of rules and guidelines Enforced through social institutions to govern behavior Regulations Mandatory requirements Details how to follow the law Law sets up the rules and then rules have to be enforced Law We have to write laws how we get to this structure we need a detailed list of how to follow specific laws need a set of regulations we want to pull with incentives If left alone will market attain an efficiency of its own What most effectively changes behavior or controls actions Financially benefitting people The EPA has a set of proposed rules strictly proposals available for the public to provide commentary on comments are considered published 1 2 7 2012 What is the policy push pull and prod with sticks are different approaches of getting people to do something Push Pull Prod with sticks Agreement that environmental losses are a problem push Requires you to do things and prohibits you to do things Regulate by requiring certain behaviors and forbidding others Push with command and control policies Pull with incentives Prod sticks of litigation and punishment If left alone will market attain an efficiency of its own Financially benefitting people is most effective in changing behavior or controlling actions What most effectively changes behavior or controls actions Punishments Rewards 2 2 7 2012 Economics and NR Management Natural Resource Management Addresses critical decisions of when where and how to tap supplies Economists view efficiency as their guiding principle What maximizes the net gain to society Environment suffers Benefits of habitat protection ignored in cost benefit analysis Cost of implementation of environmental regulations ignored What are primary approaches policy makers use PUSH PULL AND PROD Command and Control Regulations Incentive Based Solutions Punishment and Deterrence Who commands and controls in the US EPA The EPA has a set of proposed rules strictly proposals available for the public to provide commentary oncomments are considered published Proposed rules Federal Register Public comment revision publish Code of Federal Regulations NPDES National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System http cfpub epa gov npdes 3 2 7 2012 How do they control Variety of tools and approaches Partnerships educational programs and grants Writing regulations Regulations are mandatory requirements that can apply to individuals businesses state or local governments non profit institutions or others Congress passes the laws that govern Congress authorizes EPA to put those laws into effect Create and enforce regulations Creating a Law Step 1 Congress Writes a Bill A member of Congress proposes a bill if approved it will become law Library of Congress THOMAS website Step 2 The President Approves or Vetoes the Bill Both houses of Congress approve a bill President may approve or veto If approved the new law is called an act or statute Some of the better known laws related to the environment are the Clean Air Act the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act Summaries of the laws EPA administers THOMAS For more information on how bills are written and passed Step 3 The Act is Codified in the United States Code Act is passed the House of Representatives standardizes the text of the law and publishes it in the United States Code U S C The U S C is the codification by subject matter of the general and permanent laws of the United States Since 1926 the U S C has been published every six years In between editions annual cumulative supplements are published in order to present the most current information United States Code This database is available from the Government Printing Office GPO is the sole agency authorized by the federal government to publish the U S C Putting the law to work Congress authorizes certain government agencies including EPA to create regulations Laws often do not include details Congress authorizes certain government agencies including EPA to create regulations Regulations set specific requirements about what is legal and what isn t For example a regulation issued by EPA to implement the Clean Air Act might explain what levels of a pollutant such as sulfur dioxide adequately protect human health and the environment It would tell industries how much sulfur dioxide they can legally emit into the air and what the penalty will be if they emit too much Once the regulation is in effect EPA then works to help Americans comply with the law and to enforce it Once the regulation is in effect the EPA works to help Americans comply with the law and enforce it 4 2 7 2012 Creating a Regulation Is this regulation needed Step 1 EPA Proposes a Regulation The Agency researches the issues and if necessary proposes a regulation also known as a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking NPRM The proposal is listed in the Federal Register FR so that members of the public can consider it and send their comments to us The proposed rule and supporting documents are also filed in EPA s official docket on Regulations gov Learn more about commenting on EPA regulations and how you can get involved Step 2 EPA Considers Your Comments and Issues a Final Rule Generally once we consider the comments received when the proposed regulation was issued we revise the regulation accordingly and issue a final rule This final rule is also published in the FR and in EPA s official docket on Regulations gov Step 3 The Regulations is Codified in the Code of Federal Regulations Once a regulation is completed and has been printed in the FR as a final rule it is codified when it is added to the Code of Federal Regulations CFR The CFR is the official record of all regulations created by the federal government It is divided into 50 volumes called titles each of which focuses on a particular area