Abstract

Policies to regulate pesticides at the national level have not changed as new issues, such as groundwater contamination, have emerged. Therefore, various states are responding. This paper discusses recent state initiatives in regulating pesticides to prevent groundwater contamination, and suggests trends in these policies. A survey of legislators who have sponsored pesticide/groundwater contamination legislation is presented. Survey results show the factors affecting bill introduction, the influence of interest groups on the bills, important issues in bill debate, and trends in future legislation. A statistical analysis of the survey states and survey responses is also presented, using economic, political, and physical factors as explanatory variables.