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5.23 Criterion; Tnist 



In theory, tnist would be related to such dimensions as the openness and visibility of 

 decisionmaking. In practice, trust is often strongly related to the degree to which a 

 particular agency has a mandate that favors a particular use. To the extent one group 

 feels greater trust towards an agency because it knows its concerns will be considered, 

 others are likely to nustrust that agency, for fear the other users concerns will be given 

 undue consideration. 



FORUMS 1 through 3 preserve the existing SOR decision makers. If there is increased 

 trust, it would result from the enhanced public involvement assumed in these 

 alternatives. Whether or not FORUMS 2 or 3 would result in more tnist, because 

 someone other than the three operating agencies is involved in developing a 

 recommendation, is somewhat uncertain. For those who currently mistnist the three 

 operating agencies, some greater trust might result. Those who trust the three 

 operating agencies might experience a loss of trust if another entity was given the task 

 of developing a recommendation. 



Under FORUMS 6 and 7, a single existing federal agency would make the decision, and 

 the different groups would have different levels of trust based on the degree to which 

 they were confident the agency was supportive of their aims. 



FORUM 4 acknowledges that with the addition of decisions about actions imder the 

 Endangered Spedes Act, there are in fact five decisionmaking agencies. Possibly the 

 acknowledgment of that fact, and the inclusions of all five agencies at the same table, 

 could result in improved trust. The same argument could be made that FORUM 5 

 (Decisionmaking by a new entity) might result in somewhat higher trust, since all uses 



Final Draft - September 15, 1993 78 



