WASHINGTON LANDSCAPE EPA Seeks to End 'Sue and Settle' Practice By Daniel Bryant E nvironmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has issued a directive that overhauls the controversial "sue and settle" practice whereby the agency would "invite" a third party to sue the EPA to compel it to promulgate a new regulation or enforce an existing rule. The agency then would settle the case, agreeing to a court-approved timetable for it to take the required administrative action. "The days of regulation through litigation are over," Pruitt said in an- 38 JANUARY 2018 | COMPOUNDINGS | ILMA.ORG nouncing the policy change. "We will no longer go behind closed doors and use consent decrees and settlement agreements to resolve lawsuits filed against the Agency by special interest groups where doing so would circumvent the regulatory process set forth by Congress." As Oklahoma's Attorney General, Pruitt had condemned the sue and settle practice and was concerned that the EPA committed itself, for example, to rulemaking timelines that were beyond its congressional authority and outside of the legal requirements of the Administrative Procedures Act. As part of the new directive, the EPA is increasing transparency in the process by: * Publishing any notices of intent to sue the agency within 15 days of receiving the notice; * Publishing any complaints or petitions for review in regard to an environmental law, regulation or rule in which the agency is a defendant or respondent in federalhttp://www.ILMA.ORG