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Abstract To appreciate the present, sometimes you need to reflect on the past and wonder “what if?” This is one of those times. In recognition of the 40th anniversary of the Coastal Zone Management Act and acknowledgment of the dedication of the program's practitioners, it is important to note that the successful implementation of the Nation's primary coastal law has depended, and will continue to depend, on its legitimacy and institutionalization in the political culture of the country. Today, the national coastal management program, while underfunded and, in recent years, subject to wavering political support, has nevertheless reached a certain level of stability to safeguard the country's coastal resources. It is fitting, therefore, in this special issue of Coastal Management to recall a time when the future of the CZMA was in serious doubt. Keywords: coastal managementCZARAfederal consistencycoastal nonpoint source Notes 1. Ironically, the first notable use of an omnibus budget bill to package various controversial measures together had occurred in 1981 and came from the creative mind of President Reagan's budget director, David Stockman. He successfully used this process to get the president's initial substantial tax and spending cuts before Congress in a single bill.