Who Is A Stakeholder In Environmental Regulation?

Bleeding Heartland makes an interesting point:

Branstad's Executive Order 80 (pdf), also signed on August 20, will give business interests new influence in administrative rule-making. The "whereas" clauses speak of increasing "public participation" in rule-making to "reform burdensome rules and prevent overregulation or red tape."
Iowa already provides for public input during administrative rule-making, but Branstad considers "stakeholder groups" an "effective way for government to interact with those who are affected by regulations." To that end,

1. Each agency shall create a stakeholder rulemaking group for a specific rulemaking if requested to do so by the head of the agency or the Administrative Rules Coordinator in the office of the Governor ("Administrative Rules Coordinator"). 2. Creation of Stakeholder Group: The Stakeholder rulemaking group shall be appointed by the agency, in consultation with the Administrative Rules Coordinator. [...] Membership in the group is in the sole discretion of the agency. The group shall consist of stakeholders that can adequately represent the varying interests that will be significantly affected by any contemplated draft rule proposal [...] The stakeholder rules group is an advisory group only and is not an agency for rulemaking purposes. [...]
5. Public Input: A stakeholder rulemaking group shall receive public comment and input and deliberate on the desirability and content of any rule it may recommend to the agency for adoption.
6. Results: After the stakeholder rulemaking group has completed its work, its recommendations, if any, shall be forwarded to the agency with rulemaking authority. The agency shall consider any recommendation of the rulemaking group and if the agency decides to initiate rulemaking on the basis of such a recommendation it must do so pursuant to the Iowa Administrative Procedure Act (Iowa Code Chapter 17A).

"Stakeholder" can be understood broadly to mean "one who is involved in or affected by a course of action." By way of example, if the Department of Natural Resources considers a new air quality rule, I would define the stakeholder group to include members of the public at risk of respiratory illnesses and those living downwind of the emitting enterprises, along with the potentially regulated business owners.
If the DNR considers a new rule regarding runoff from agricultural facilities, I would define water utilities and citizens who rely on public drinking water as stakeholders, along with the potentially regulated farm owners. It is "burdensome" for hundreds of thousands of Des Moines Water Works customers to cover the cost of the world's largest nitrate removal system.

Don't expect a lot of input from the 99% on that stakeholder group.  I'd never heard of the Des Moines Water Works nitrate removal system.  But hey, water that can kill infants isn't that big of a deal anyway.  All I can say is that business owners must be the most successful crybabies in the history of mankind. You would think they could barely make a living, what with our terrible regulations and taxes, and yet, they seem to be doing pretty good.  I just don't understand.