On May 1st, 2008, the “Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information” and the” Ministry of Environmental Protection Measures on Open Environmental Information” (trial) went into effect. These regulations represent major milestones for Chinese environmental governance. In order to systematically evaluate the first year of implementation for these regulations, the Institute of Public & Environmental Affairs (IPE) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) have developed the Pollution Information Transparency Index (PITI). The PITI assesses the degree of pollution information transparency at the municipal level of government by reviewing eight metrics, including records of facility violations, results of environmental petition and complaint cases, and responses to public requests for information. The evaluation establishes a quantitative score for each city that that can track and rank their individual performances.