2007 - 2008
Syllabus

Lesson 3. Sources of Legal Authority

In the previous two lessons we have briefly discussed the practice of environmental health and the evolution of our legal system and laws. With this background, as a referent, we will now turn to a more specific and detailed examination of the sources, scope and limits of governmental powers as they apply to the practice of environmental health. Since this is a relatively extensive topic, we have divided it into two parts. In this lesson we will focus our attention on the classifications of law which provide the legal bases for the exercise of governmental powers and on how these laws are translated into governmental authority. In lesson 4 we define the scope and boundaries of, or limits to, that authority. These, however, are arbitrary divisions made for the sake of convenience. In practice, and as will be evident from the material presented in this lesson, it is difficult to discuss one without the other.

Lesson Objective

The objectives for this lesson are for you to be able to:

1. Discuss the the scope and limits of the powers of a regulatory agency in terms of its constitutional and statutory mandates; and,
2. Take the general concepts covered in this lesson and apply them to the particular issues and situations with which we will deal in the others lessons in the course..

Lesson Assignment

1. Grad: Chapter 3 -- Public Health as a Branch of Administrative Law, pp. 27-36.
2. Buck: Chapter 4 -- Legal Concepts in Environmental Law, pp. 53-79.
3. Statutes & Regulations:
   • Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) (21 USC 3301-3331).
   • Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) (42 USC 6901-6905).
   • State Board of Health (43.20 RCW Secs.20.025-20-050).
   • Local Health Departments (70.05 RCW Secs. 05.010-05.030).
   • Solid Waste Management (70.95 RCW Secs. 95.010-.020).
   • Solid Waste Handling (173-304 WAC Sec. 010).
   • Food Service Sanitation (248-84 WAC Sec. 001).
   • King Co. Food Code, Parts I & II (King Co. Board of Health).
   • King Co. Solid Waste Regulations, Part I (King Co. Board of Health).
   • Nuisances (7.48 RCW).
   • Nuisances (18-5901-5903 & 52-201-206 Idaho Code).
4. Readings:
   • Reading #4 - Fletcher RL. Sources of Public and Environmental Health Law in Washington, University of Washington, 1976.
   • Reading #5 - Huntington v. State Water Commission, 73 S.E.2d 833 (1953).
   • Reading #6 - Philadelphia v. New Jersey, 437 U.S. 617 (1978).
   • Reading #7 - Department of Environmental Quality v. Chemical Waste, Storage and Disposal, Inc., 19 Ore 712 (1974).

Lesson Outline

1. Administrative Law
   1. General Powers
   2. Types of Administrative Laws
      • Statutes
      • Ordinances
      • Rules and Regulations
2. Common Law
   1. Nuisances
      • Private
      • Public
   2. Trespass

Key Points

References / Additional Readings

1. Gellhorn E, Levin RM. "Delegation of Authority to Agencies", Chapter 1 in Administrative Law and Process in a Nutshell, West Publishing Co., 1990, pp. 8-34.
2. Gellhorn E, Levin RM. "Rules and Rulemaking", Chapter 8 in Administrative Law and Process in a Nutshell, West Publishing Co., 1990, pp. 309-352.
3. Arbuckle, J. Gordon, et. al., "Fundamentals of Environmental Law", Ch. 1 in Environmental Law Handbook [6th Ed.], Governmental Institutes, Inc., Washington DC, 1979, pp. 1-53.
4. Summers, Robert S. and Charles G. Howard, Law: Its Nature, Functions, and Limits [3rd Ed.], Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, 1972.
5. Tobey, James A., Public Health Law, The Commonwealth Fund, New York, 1949.
6. Minnesota v. Clover Leaf Creamery, 101 S.Ct. 715 (1981).
7. U.S. v. New York, 437 U.S. 617 (1978).

Progress Assessment Exercise

Please proceed to Lesson 4. Scope and Limits of Government Authority