In 2306 we will looking at conflicts between the nation and states on various policy issues. Like Texas, West Virginia has pushed back against federal efforts to regulate and inspect chemical storage facilities and industry in general. Industry tends to have more pull at the state than the national level so there's little surprise that such states have a hands off approach to regulations. They also tend to pull out the stops in promoting rigid constitutional interpretations of the relative roles of the national and state government regarding which level has authority in determining how stringent they are.
Efforts to roll back the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency is a good example of the concept of new federalism discussed in some of the slides assigned this week. The question is whether events like the recent chemical spill in West Virginia stop this trend and allows for EPA's reinforcement. One assumes industry lobbyists are working at the federal level to ensure this does not occur.
The same happened here in Texas when a plant in West, Texas exploded last year.
I'll be on the lookout for stories describing their attempts to do so.
Here's some background reading from Wonkblog: Five big questions about the massive chemical spill in West Virginia
