Environmental Legislation and the Problem of Collective Action

Abstract

"While the remarkable political forces that produced this legislation remain a subject of considerable debate, the durability of these laws hardly can be questioned now. This essay offers some observations on why they have been so durable and what implications this has for our understanding of the collective action problem. The paper begins by reviewing theories of environmental legislation, most of which have focused on the remarkable burst of federal regulatory legislation enacted by Congress during the 1970s and 1980s. It then examines some significant changes that have occurred during the 1990s as both industry and environmental interest groups have become increasingly sophisticated in their efforts to influence the legislative process. The paper then seeks to derive some lessons that can be learned from this history and it explores how they can contribute to improving the legislative process."