at what level of government can environmental policy be set in the united states today
federal
title: Environmental policy of the United States text: Environmental policy of the United States The environmental policy of the United States is a federal governmental action to regulate activities that have an environmental impact in the United States. The goal of environmental policy is to protect the environment for future generations while interfering as little as possible with the efficiency of commerce or the liberty of the people and to limit inequity in who is burdened with environmental costs. As his first official act bringing in the 1970s, President Richard Nixon signed the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) into law on New Years Day, 1970. Also in title: Pollution in the United States text: The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and with safeguarding the natural environment: air, water, and land. The EPA was proposed by President Richard Nixon and began operation on 2 December 1970, when it was passed by Congress, and signed into law by President Nixon, and has since been chiefly responsible for the environmental policy of the United States. Environmental Justice is defined as "the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, sex, national origin, or income with respect title: Environmental policy of the United States text: administrative goals. They can veto legislation and, through executive orders, regulate administrative behavior. Fragmentation within the executive branch is duplicated in Congress and within the states. In other words, congress shares authority with the president for environmental federal policy. Congress can have a major impact on policy through legislative and oversight hearings. They also have the ability to influence policy by publishing studies and reports, making speeches and introducing legislation. The EPA is the concern of almost two-thirds of the House of Representatives' standing committees and subcommittees and a similar percentage in the Senate. Some seventy committees and subcommittees control title: Federal and state environmental relations text: the federal government itself, rather than states, consumers, or industry. This all changed with a flurry of environmental legislation in the early 1970s. Currently, most federal environmental laws grant both expansive regulatory authority to federal agencies, as well as authorize states to implement plans outlined in federal laws. This model is often called "cooperative federalism.". Relationships between State and Federal parties often shape environmental laws and policy. States can directly shape federal policy in the way states choose to enforce, or not enforce, environmental regulation. Federal regulation of nonpoint source water pollution is often cited as weak, in part because title: Climate change in the United States text: climate change policies, but the resulting laws vary considerably. The U.S. Congress has not adopted a comprehensive greenhouse gas emissions reduction scheme, but long-standing environmental laws such as the Clean Air Act have been used by the executive branch and litigants in lawsuits to implement regulations and voluntary agreements. The federal government has the exclusive power to regulate emissions from motor vehicles, but has granted the state of California a waiver to adopt more stringent regulations. Other states may choose to adopt either the federal or California rules. Individual states retain the power to regulate emissions from electrical generation and