Duke Law Journal focuses on Hurricane Katrina
Nov. 21, 2006
How should the government respond in the face of disasters? The Duke Law Journal (DLJ) addresses this and other administrative law topics raised by the government’s response to Hurricane Katrina in its 36th Annual Administrative Law Issue. The volume builds on topics covered during DLJ’s 2006 Administrative Law Conference, with authors dissecting the Katrina response and suggesting alternative approaches.
Addressing such topics as shared accountability in emergency situations, culpability for the collapse of New Orleans’ levees and criminal justice system, and post-disaster tax legislation, the issue offers “practical forward-looking recommendations that policymakers can use to prepare for future disasters,” says DLJ Editor-in-Chief James Markham ’07.
“It’s hard to make equitable policy decisions in the midst of a crisis. My hope is that some of the proposals in our issue can spur the development of ‘off the shelf’ emergency response plans, so in the future we don’t have to witness failures of accountability and initiative like we saw in New Orleans.”
In their article “Post-Disaster Tax Legislation: A Series of Unfortunate Events,” Professor Ellen P. Aprill of Loyola-Los Angeles Law School and Duke Law Professor Richard Schmalbeck examine the constitutionality of tax legislation enacted in response to September 11 and Hurricane Katrina and offer tax relief proposals for future disasters.
“Criminal Justice Collapse: The Constitution After Hurricane Katrina,” is a narrative study of the collapse of New Orleans’ criminal justice system after the storm. Having interviewed judges, law enforcement personnel, and other public figures, Brandon Garrett of the University of Virginia and Tania Tetlow of Tulane University, argue that the system failed to serve its protective role in the face of this national emergency.
Other topics in this issue:
- “Policy Analysis for Natural Hazards: Some Cautionary Lessons from Environmental Policy Analysis” – University of Pennsylvania Professor Matthew Adler asks whether environmental hazards policy can and should be applied to natural disasters.
- “State Executive Lawmaking in Crisis” – Professor Jim Rossi of the Florida State University College of Law argues for the presumption of state executive power to respond to crises without prior legislative authorization.
- “Did NEPA Drown New Orleans? The Levees, the Blame Game, and the Hazards of Hindsight” – Professors Douglas Kysar of Cornell University and Thomas McGarity of the University of Texas at Austin examine the failure of the New Orleans levee system, highlighting the inherent complexity of hindsight analysis.
- “Horizontal Political Externalities: The Supply and Demand of Disaster Management” – University of Miami Professor Ben Depoorter suggests new lines of empirical and theoretical research to address problems of shared accountability.
The 36th annual Administrative Law Issue of the Duke Law Journal is available online..
Duke Law Journal's 37th annual Administrative Law Conference will be held February 2, 2007 and will address the administrative state’s regulation of food.
A webcast of the 36th Annual DLJ Administrative Law Conference – “Administrative Law and Emergency Management: Katrina and Beyond” is available from our webcasts page.
