Association of American Law Schools
2001 Annual Meeting
Wednesday, January 3, 2001 - Saturday, January 6, 2001
San Francisco, California
Friday, January 5, 2001
4:00–5:45 p.m.

Plaza A
Hilton San Francisco and Towers
Lobby Level

Joint Program of Sections on Administrative Law and Environmental Law
Thomas Owen Mc Garity, The University of Texas, Chair, Section on Administrative Law
Lee P. Breckenridge, Northeastern University, Chair, Section on Environmental Law
Rena I. Steinzor, University of Maryland, Program Chair

Dinosaur or Phoenix? Choosing Between Old-Fashioned Regulation and "Second Generation" Strategies in the New Millennium

Moderator:

Thomas Owen McGarity, The University of Texas

Speakers:
Debra Knopman, Environmental Policy Director, Progressive Policy Institute, Washington, D.C.
David B. Spence, Assistant Professor, University of Texas at Austin School of Business, Austin, Texas
John Walke, Attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council, Washington, D.C

The legal, economic, and political science literature is increasingly preoccupied with the notion that "command and control" regulation of health and safety issues has run its course and should be replaced with flexible, "second generation" systems that establish broad goals, but leave decisions on how to achieve those goals up to regulated entities. With the enactment of the Government Performance and Results Act, the continuing efforts of the Clinton Administration's National Performance Review, and widespread efforts to devolve more regulatory authority to the states, such ideas are beginning to have a substantial effect on regulatory programs without much public debate on the implications of those changes. This session will explore the implications of the movement to diminish centralized control and expand second generation approaches, using the Environmental Protection Agency as an example.

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