Analysis of the Costs and Benefits of Regulations: Review of Historical Experience Recent legislative proposals to re form the regulatory process have included the use of benefit cost anal ysis to decide whether or not a regulation should be implemented. The purpose of this paper is to assess the current practices of benefi t cost analysis, primarily through examination of the series of regu latory impact analyses mandated by presidential executive orders. While th e record is mixed, it shows that in many, but perhaps not all, cases it is possible to develop a reasonable estimate of the benefits and cost s of proposed regulations and to decide among regulatory alternatives on the basis of these analyses. December 1996DP 086 Opposition to OCS Development, Historical Context and Economic Considerations This paper reviews the history of offshore leasing, focusing on the long conflict between the federal government and the states over control of the leasing process. The paper th en examines economic aspects of leasing and relates these to the co ntroversy surrounding leasing. The conclusions of the analysis suggest that considerati on should be given to sharing a portion of federal offs hore revenues with affected coastal communities. This sharing has the potential to reduce opposition to offshore leasing and allow the nation to realize more of the net benefits from tapping offshore oil and natural gas resources. November 1996 DP 088 Restoring Natural Resources: Legal Background and Economic Analysis This paper reviews the legislative and legal history be hind the resource damage restoration regulations under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liab ility Act (CERCLA) and the Oil Pollution Act (OPA). The damage restoration debate is whether the objective is to restore a natural res ource’s lost services or whether to restore the exact chemical, biological, and physical characteristics. This paper reviews the debate over thes e approaches to re