Law Commons^™

Multicultural Participation In The Public Hearing Process: Some Theoretical, Pragmatical, And Analeptical Considerations, John C. Duncan, Jr.

Journal Publications

Ideally, public participation in rule-making leads to better rules. Failure to involve the public obviously dilutes or vitiates democracy in crucial ways. This Article will discuss the hearing process of administrative rule-making, and ways that agencies can accommodate multi-cultural differences so as to improve both access to participation and the efficacy of that participation. Specifically, this paper will discuss the environmental justice movement. Part II of this Article places participation problems in context by looking at specific issues of environmental equity in the rule-making process. Part III examines the need to expand public participation as a desirable goal, discusses obstacles …