
7. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is responsible for the licensing, construction, and
operation of nuclear reactors. It is also responsible for regulating the possession, use, transportation,
8. The Clean Air Act is designed to limit pollution from vehicles and from stationary sources such
factories and manufacturing centers. The act authorizes the EPA to initiate regulations to limit air
pollution. The Clean Water Act, which was passed by Congress in 1972 as an amendment to the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948, sets requirements for limiting the pollution of the nation’s
9. The ownership rights bestowed by the government on a person holding intellectual property
includes the right to give permission to use the property in exchange for some sort of consideration.
This consideration is usually referred to as a royalty. The power of the government to grant the
exclusive rights to intellectual property is expressly mentioned in Article I of the Constitution, where
10. The four main issues that must be considered in developing a science policy are (1) the necessity of
focusing on long range results; (2) the need to create partnerships among the government, business, and
Cases for Analysis
1. No. Federal pollution laws regulate the discharge of pollution whether or not the
2. A federal law like the Clean Air Act will preempt state and local law only in two cases: first, if
the state or local law clearly introduces a conflict between the state or local law and the federal law, or,
second, when the federal law specifically and expressly declares that Congress intends to preempt other
laws. In this case, neither situation applies. There is no conflict with federal law. In fact, the Village