The Transatlantic Shift in Health, Safety, and Environmental Risk Regulation, 1960 - 2010

35 Pages Posted: 1 Aug 2011 Last revised: 28 Jan 2014

See all articles by David J. Vogel

David J. Vogel

University of California, Berkeley - Haas School of Business; University of California, Berkeley - Business & Public Policy Group

Date Written: 2011

Abstract

This paper describes and explains an important discontinuity in the politics of consumer and environmental risk regulation in Europe and the United States, If a regulation was adopted between 1960 and 1990, American regulations were more likely to be more risk averse, innovative and comprehensive than those adopted in Europe. Since around 1990, the EU has adopted many more stringent risk regulations than the United States. This policy shift is due to three factors. First, there have been more public pressures for more stringent regulations in Europe than in the United States: more health, safety and environmental risks have been more politically salient in Europe than in the United States. Second, influential policy-makers in the European Union have been more supportive of stricter regulations than have policy-makers in Washington. Third, the criteria for assessing risks has changed on both sides of the Atlantic: while the precautionary principle has become more influential in Europe, regulatory impact assessments have grown in importance in the United States. The final section of the paper explores the factors that shape the political construction and public perception of risks.

Keywords: risk, regulation, consumer and environmental protection, European Union, United States

Suggested Citation

Vogel, David J., The Transatlantic Shift in Health, Safety, and Environmental Risk Regulation, 1960 - 2010 (2011). APSA 2011 Annual Meeting Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1901855

David J. Vogel (Contact Author)

University of California, Berkeley - Haas School of Business ( email )

545 Student Services Building, #1900
2220 Piedmont Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94720
United States

University of California, Berkeley - Business & Public Policy Group ( email )

545 Student Services Building
Berkeley, CA 94720
United States
(510) 642-5294 (Phone)

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