The regulation of transgenic plants is at the very early stages of dialog between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Herbicide resistance is discussed in the broader terms of resistance management and of the cooperative efforts underway involving governments, industry, academia, and the environmental community on an international level. A new body, the International Organization for Resistant Pest Management (IOPRM) was formed to implement pesticide resistance management programs worldwide. The research base for integrated pest management programs which form the context for pesticide resistance management programs is in need of expansion. Public and private efforts to expand this base converge in an ambitious collaborative program between the U.S. EPA and USDA entitled the National Integrated Pest Management Forum. Finally, the potential role of EPA in the regulation of resistance management is discussed.