TAXES, TORTS, AND THE TOXICS RELEASE INVENTORY - CONGRESSIONAL VOTINGON INSTRUMENTS TO CONTROL POLLUTION

Theories of rational political ignorance and congressional voting impl y that Congress members may take different interests into account when they vote on technical amendments than when they vote on a bill's fin al passage. This article uses votes on Superfund reauthorization to ex amine what factors influence politicians' support for different instru ments to control pollution and how the interests Congress members take into account vary with the anticipated degree of electoral scrutiny. Controlling for a legislator's general support for environmental progr ams, a representative's votes on specific policy instruments in Superf und legislation depended on the district-level costs and benefits of t he instruments.