Since President Reagan issued Executive Order 12291¹ establishing his system to review rulemaking actions by executive agencies, environmental and other public interest groups have sought to preclude the President and his delegatee, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), from reviewing or influencing agency decision-making. These groups believe that agencies will provide stronger protection for health, safety, and environmental values if freed from the disciplines of the regulatory review process which require that the agencies, to the extent permitted by their enabling legislation, promulgate regulations whose potential benefits outweigh their costs.

Robert V. Percival, in a recent Article in this journal,² has argued that litigation can be a useful tool for limiting the regulatory review process. Citing Judge Flannery's decision in Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) v. Thomas,³ Mr. Percival argues that in those cases in which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or another agency has missed or is about to miss a statutory deadline, "no additional time can be allowed for OMB review."⁴ Apparently, Mr. Percival would urge public interest groups to bring lawsuits precluding OMB review in the many circumstances in which an agency has not met, or is not likely to meet, the statutory deadline set by Congress.