ABSTRACT
Among the many issues raised by the Smog Check story are questions involving the roles of the public and the press in setting and implementing environmental policy. In 1992, under pressure from a court-ordered deadline to issue enhanced I/M regulations, EPA used standard rulemaking approaches to solicit public feedback on its proposed I/M rule, and then issued its final regulations. The process, hurried as it was, allowed little opportunity for EPA to engage the public to measure the acceptability and practicality of its proposals. Yet as the agency noted when developing its enhanced I/M policy, “I/M programs need to be accepted and supported by the public to be successful” (U.S. EPA 1992e). Although the agency met its court-ordered schedule, the resulting Smog Check conflict, and later real-world implementation problems, substantially altered and delayed programs around the United States.
