In a major victory for the environment, the Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 decision that governments are not required by the Constitution to pay compensation to landowners in cases where development is temporarily prohibited, as reported in the April 23 Washington Post.

November 31, 1996 A recent investigation by the General Accounting Office into the regulatory costs of 15 businesses failed to produce any evidence of significant burden -- or even slight burden for that matter -- despite the fact that participating companies were largely critical of federal regulation and had a vested interest in proving their case.

There are 18.4 million employees of state and local governments nationwide, many of whom have potentially dangerous jobs, such as firefighters, highway workers, health care workers, and emergency response personnel. Yet surprisingly, none of these people are covered by the federal occupational safety and health law (OSHA) or its standards. These laws and standards apply only to the private sector; states, counties and municipalities are responsible for protecting (or not protecting, as the case may be) their own workers. States Lacking Full Protection for Public Workers Alabama Arkansas

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can finally move forward with its 1997 clean air standards for smog (ozone) and soot (particulate matter) following a ruling in its favor from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on March 26 -- marking "a victory for breathers," according to Frank O’Donnell of the Clean Air Trust.