Reinventing Environmental Enforcement and the State/Federal Relationship - Softcover

One of the most controversial issues in environmental law and policy-and one that of considerable importance to the EPA-is the allocation of power and authority between the federal and state governments. The recent evolution in approaches of environmental enforcement highlights many of the tensions inherent in this debate. During the past several years, the federal and state governments have spent a good deal of energy attempting to "reinvent" their relationship. The shifts in federal/state enforcement relations are highly significant, with the potential to fundamentally reorder the division of authority that has existing over the past 25 years.This book thoroughly documents the changing nature of federal/state relations in enforcing environmental law. It breaks new ground in analyzing the federal/state enforcement relationship, particularly in light of the many recent developments that have occurred in this area. The author's findings provide important lessons about the interplay between federal and state efforts in other regulatory areas, and for the structure of federal/state relations generally. Professors Rechtschaffen's and Markell's clear, in-depth analysis will be essential reading for legal and regulatory experts, attorneys who are involved in environmental enforcement matters, the judiciary, legislators, political scientists, public policy experts, and anyone with an interest in environmental law and policy.

Clifford Rechtschaffen is a professor at Golden Gate University School of Law. He is also Co-Director of Golden Gate's Environmental Law and Justice Clinic, which he co-founded in 1994. He is a graduate of Princeton University and Yale Law School. David Markell is the Steven M. Goldstein Professor of Law at Florida State University Law School. Prior to that he was a member of the faculty at Albany Law School, and a Director for the North American Commission on Environmental Cooperation. He is a graduate of Brandeis University and the University of Virginia School of Law.