Frame Analysis : Interest Groups and Environmental Rules

The focus of this paper is to present an innovative way to use frame analysis to evaluate interest group influence during the pre-proposal stage of the rulemaking process across five case studies: 1) the USFWS critical habitat designation for Nebraska's Salt Creek Tiger Beetle; 2) the USFWS critical habitat designation for Utah/Arizona Shivwits and Holmgren Milk Vetches; 3) the USFWS delisting of the Northern Rocky Wolf population from the endangered species list; 4) the EPA regulations for locomotive and marine engine emissions; and 5) the EPA standards for renewable fuels. In analyzing these five cases, this paper finds strong evidence to support that the particular frames stakeholders used during the pre-proposal stage shaped the language of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)