A revised look: EPA rulemaking processes

Abstract

Scholars have not analyzed the decision-making processes (i.e., administrative rulemaking) of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in great detail since the 1990s. Therefore, this paper uses original interview data to examine a contemporary case, the EPA's Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Rule, to offer an up to date perspective on how the agency produces rules. This paper argues that, at the very least, the EPA's Climate Change Division, part of the Office of Air and Radiation is a quintessential example of effective outreach across all of the stages of administrative rulemaking. The findings from these interviews suggest that understanding the process the EPA uses to produce environmental regulations is particularly relevant for practitioners, politicians, and scholars. Therefore, we suggest that scholars should use this research as a baseline for future scholarship about the rulemaking processes of the EPA. © 2013 AESS.