[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 53 (Thursday, March 18, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 12781-12783]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-6198]



 ========================================================================
 Rules and Regulations
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents 
 having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed 
 to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published 
 under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
 
 The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents. 
 Prices of new books are listed in the first FEDERAL REGISTER issue of each 
 week.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 53 / Thursday, March 18, 2004 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 12781]]



ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE OF THE FEDERAL REGISTER

1 CFR Part 11

RIN 3095-AB35


Price Changes to Federal Register Publications

AGENCY: Administrative Committee of the Federal Register (ACFR).

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Administrative Committee of the Federal Register (ACFR) is 
prescribing the prices to be charged for the paper and microfiche 
editions of Federal Register publications. The price changes apply to 
the daily Federal Register (paper and microfiche editions), the Federal 
Register Index, the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) (paper and 
microfiche editions), and the Weekly Compilation of Presidential 
Documents. The Administrative Committee has determined that it is 
necessary to increase prices to enable the Government Printing Office 
(GPO) to recover the full cost of producing and distributing Federal 
Register publications.

DATES: This final rule is effective April 19, 2004.

ADDRESSES: For access to supporting documents, go to http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/acfr/docket.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael White at (202) 741-6025 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Under the Federal Register Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 15), the 
Administrative Committee of the Federal Register is responsible for 
prescribing the prices charged for Federal Register publications. These 
prices must be set according to the funding mechanisms authorized under 
law for the Federal Register program. By law, Federal Register 
publications are sold and distributed to the public by GPO's 
Superintendent of Documents. GPO receives no appropriation for the 
costs associated with producing Federal Register publications. 
Operating funds for the sales program are derived from subscribers and 
single copy buyers. The Administrative Committee periodically reviews 
data submitted by the Superintendent of Documents to determine whether 
subscription rates and single copy charges produce sufficient revenue 
to fully recover the Superintendent of Document's printing, handling, 
and distribution costs, including postal rate increases.
    Over the past decade, the Administrative Committee has balanced two 
imperatives: the need to produce and price the paper editions of 
Federal Register publications in a fiscally sound manner, and the 
public benefit derived from making this essential regulatory 
information available to the public free of charge online via the GPO 
Access system (http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara). Since 1994, when the 
Administrative Committee began providing online access to the Federal 
Register, the number of paid subscriptions has declined by 85 percent. 
The decline in paper subscription revenue far exceeds the savings 
realized from producing fewer paper copies. Over the same time period 
in which sales of Federal Register publications have fallen, use of 
online Federal Register publications through GPO Access has expanded 
rapidly. Information retrievals from the online edition of the Federal 
Register grew from just under 15 million documents in calendar year 
1996 to over 68 million documents downloaded in calendar year 2002. 
Over the same period, information retrievals from the online edition of 
the CFR grew from about 725,000 documents to more than 87 million 
documents downloaded. At the same time, there are still some 
subscribers who prefer to pay for the convenience of receiving bound, 
paper editions for their libraries and internal distribution systems. 
The price of these paper publications must reflect the economic reality 
of producing and distributing them.
    While the Federal Register Act does not provide any specific 
guidelines on the prices to be charged for Federal Register 
publications, the longstanding policy of the Administrative Committee 
is that the program should be operated on a break-even basis. Due to 
fluctuations in subscriptions and single copy buying patterns, some 
temporary funding shortfalls may be unavoidable. But it is implicit in 
the statutory scheme that the Federal Register sales program may not be 
operated over the long term with a built-in deficit caused by a known 
insufficiency of funds. GPO's current analysis indicates that the 
portion of its revolving fund dedicated to the Federal Register sales 
program has been depleted to the point that prices should be raised to 
support the program in the future.
    To determine current costs and prepare a price schedule, the 
Superintendent of Documents conducted an in-depth study of actual costs 
from prior years and made conservative estimates of future costs. This 
final rule takes into account GPO's actual production and distribution 
costs since 2001 and projected costs for fiscal year 2004. The pricing 
analysis includes GPO's recent cost-cutting initiatives to streamline 
and improve its operations. Specific actions to cut costs that have 
been taken or are presently underway include: Reducing personnel 
expenses through an employee buyout plan; reorganizing the 
Superintendent of Documents organization and operations; consolidating 
distribution facilities; and closing GPO Bookstores. GPO has also 
reevaluated and subsequently reduced estimated handling charges as they 
apply to Federal Register products. The new handling charges of $1.46 
per copy for the Federal Register (down from $2.39) and $1.59 for the 
CFR (down from $2.39) were factored into the pricing analysis.
    Based on all the information available, it has been determined that 
price adjustments should be made to certain publications to accurately 
reflect the current costs of production and distribution, and thereby 
avoid running a deficit. A proposed rule was published on December 17, 
2003, at 68 FR 70191. In the rulemaking analysis, the Administrative 
Committee projected that adopting the proposed pricing schedule would 
enable the Federal Register program to achieve full cost

[[Page 12782]]

recovery, and invited public comment on the proposed pricing schedule. 
No comments were received.
    In the past, ACFR price regulations have generally included postage 
in the prices listed. In this final rule, postage is excluded from the 
stated prices, except for single issues of certain editions, since 
postal rate making decisions and the timing of increases are separately 
determined by the United States Postal Service. Therefore, the 
prevailing postal rates will be applied to orders, based on the method 
of delivery requested by customers. The prices for single issues of the 
Federal Register (paper and microfiche) and the Weekly Compilation of 
Presidential Documents, and single volumes of the CFR on microfiche 
continue to include postage because the cost of delivery is only a 
small component of the total cost.
    This final rule increases the subscription rates for the paper 
editions of the daily Federal Register, the Federal Register Index, the 
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and the Weekly Compilation of 
Presidential Documents. The cost to customers for the LSA (List of CFR 
Sections Affected), with postage calculated at the current periodical 
rate, is unchanged. The subscription rates and the single copy prices 
of the microfiche editions of the daily Federal Register and CFR also 
increase slightly. In addition, the Administrative Committee is 
prescribing a multi-tiered price schedule for single copies of the 
Federal Register to account for the true cost of publishing issues of 
varying size.
    The following figures state the percentage of increase for Federal 
Register publications. To be consistent with past analyses, the 
calculation includes the current basic postal rates applicable to each 
publication. Under this analysis, it is necessary to increase the price 
of the paper Federal Register subscription by 21 percent, and the price 
of the paper CFR subscription by 12 percent. The average increase for 
all paper Federal Register subscriptions amounts to 16 percent. The 
overall price change for paper and microfiche editions combined amounts 
to a 14 percent increase. The increases are primarily attributable to 
higher labor expenses, paper costs, and a substantial decline in sales 
of printed publications, causing upward pressure on the average cost 
per subscription. Pricing for the microfiche editions of the Federal 
Register and the CFR are determined through a competitive bidding 
process.
    While the rate increases discussed in this rulemaking will affect 
subscribers of the paper and microfiche editions, the success of our 
online publications demonstrates that the Federal Register system is 
fulfilling its mission to provide the broader public with essential 
information on the functions, actions, and regulatory requirements of 
the Federal government. The Office of the Federal Register (OFR) and 
GPO are constantly engaged in efforts to improve the quality of their 
online publications, including investments in new technology 
applications that will enhance e-government services to the public. In 
early 2003, the OFR and GPO helped the Environmental Protection Agency 
and other agency partners launch Regulations.gov as part of the 
President's eRulemaking initiative. OFR and GPO created a one-stop 
regulatory clearinghouse for this application to enhance public 
participation in the rulemaking process (see http://www.regulations.gov). This system is based, in large part, on OFR/GPO 
production systems and online Federal Register publications. More than 
2 million users have accessed proposed and final regulations through 
this new resource, and the system has garnered a number of awards from 
various e-Government organizations. In addition, GPO, in consultation 
with OFR, recently completed an effort to thoroughly rewrite and 
reorganize its Federal Register and CFR Web pages to improve the user 
experience. And GPO is also actively engaged in acquiring a new search 
and retrieval engine for Federal Register databases, including the e-
CFR, which is a prototype for a currently updated, online version of 
the CFR (http://www.gpoaccess.gov/ecfr). For members of the public who 
prefer to read the printed editions, GPO continues to provide free 
access to Federal Register publications at Federal Depository libraries 
located throughout the nation.

The Amendments

    The increased prices for Federal Register publications are 
reflected in amendments to 1 CFR part 11. The following rates are 
effective 30 days after publication of this final rule. The annual 
subscription rate for the daily Federal Register paper edition is $749. 
For a combined Federal Register, Federal Register Index and LSA (List 
of CFR Sections Affected) subscription, the price is $808. The price of 
a single copy of the daily Federal Register is based on the number of 
pages: $11 for an issue less than 200 pages; $22 for an issue between 
200 and 400 pages; and $33 for an issue with more than 400 pages. The 
annual subscription price of the microfiche edition of the Federal 
Register, which includes the Federal Register Index and LSA, is $165. 
The price of a single copy of the daily Federal Register microfiche 
edition is $3. The annual price for the Federal Register Index is $29. 
The annual subscription price for the monthly LSA is $30. The annual 
subscription rate for a full set of CFR volumes is $1,019 for the paper 
edition and $247 for the microfiche edition. The price of a single 
volume of the CFR microfiche edition is $4. The annual subscription 
rate for the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents is $113. The 
price of a single copy of the Weekly Compilation of Presidential 
Documents is $5.

Regulatory Analyses

Executive Order 12866

    This final rule has been drafted in accordance with Executive Order 
12866, section 1(b), ``Principles of Regulation.'' This rulemaking is 
not a significant regulatory action, as defined under section 3(f) of 
Executive Order 12866.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq., does not 
apply to rate increases necessary to recover the costs to the 
government of printing and distributing Federal Register publications. 
This final rule will not have a significant impact on small entities 
because it does not impose any substantive requirements, and any 
increased costs may be avoided by accessing Federal Register 
publications on the Internet via the free GPO Access service. In 
addition, Federal depository libraries located throughout the nation 
provide free access to the bound paper editions or microfiche editions 
of Federal Register publications, as well as free use of computers for 
access to the online editions.

Federalism

    This final rule has no federalism implications under Executive 
Order 13132. It does not impose compliance costs on State or local 
government or preempt State law.

Congressional Review

    This rule is not a major rule as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). A rule 
report, including a copy of this final rule, will be submitted to each 
House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the United 
States as required under the congressional review provisions of the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1986.

List of Subjects in 1 CFR Part 11

    Code of Federal Regulations, Federal Register, Government 
publications,

[[Page 12783]]

Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents.

0
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Administrative Committee 
of the Federal Register, with the approval of the Archivist of the 
United States and the Attorney General, is amending part 11 of chapter 
I of title 1 of the Code of Federal Regulations as set forth below:

PART 11--SUBSCRIPTIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 11 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 44 U.S.C. 1506; sec. 6, E.O. 10530, 19 FR 2709, 3 
CFR, 1954-1958 Comp., p. 189.


0
2. In Sec.  11.2, revise paragraph (a) to read as follows:


Sec.  11.2  Federal Register.

    (a) The subscription price for the paper edition of the daily 
Federal Register is $749 per year. A combined subscription to the daily 
Federal Register, the monthly Federal Register Index, and the monthly 
LSA (List of CFR Sections Affected) is $808 per year for the paper 
edition, or $165 per year for the microfiche edition. Six-month 
subscriptions for the paper and microfiche editions are also available 
at one-half the annual rate. Those prices exclude postage. The 
prevailing postal rates will be applied to orders according to the 
delivery method requested. The price of a single copy of the daily 
Federal Register, including postage, is based on the number of pages: 
$11 for an issue containing less than 200 pages; $22 for an issue 
containing 200 to 400 pages; and $33 for an issue containing more than 
400 pages. Single issues of the microfiche edition may be purchased for 
$3 per copy, including postage.
* * * * *

0
3. In Sec.  11.3, revise paragraph (a) to read as follows:


Sec.  11.3  Code of Federal Regulations.

    (a) The subscription price for a complete set of the Code of 
Federal Regulations is $1,019 per year for the bound, paper edition, or 
$247 per year for the microfiche edition. Those prices exclude postage. 
The prevailing postal rates will be applied to orders according to the 
delivery method requested. The Government Printing Office sells 
individual volumes of the paper edition of the Code of Federal 
Regulations at prices determined by the Superintendent of Documents 
under the general direction of the Administrative Committee. The price 
of a single volume of the microfiche edition is $4 per copy, including 
postage.
* * * * *

0
4. In Sec.  11.6, revise paragraph (a) to read as follows:


Sec.  11.6  Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents.

    (a) The subscription price for the paper edition of the Weekly 
Compilation of Presidential Documents is $113 per year, excluding 
postage. The prevailing postal rates will be applied to orders 
according to the delivery method requested. The price of an individual 
copy is $5, including postage.
* * * * *

0
5. Revise Sec.  11.7 to read as follows:


Sec.  11.7  Federal Register Index.

    The annual subscription price for the monthly Federal Register 
Index, purchased separately, in paper form, is $29. The price excludes 
postage. The prevailing postal rates will be applied to orders 
according to the delivery method requested.

0
6. Revise Sec.  11.8 to read as follows:


Sec.  11.8  LSA (List of CFR Sections Affected).

    The annual subscription price for the monthly LSA (List of CFR 
Sections Affected), purchased separately, in paper form, is $30. The 
price excludes postage. The prevailing postal rates will be applied to 
orders according to the delivery method requested.

John W. Carlin,
Chairman, Administrative Committee of the Federal Register.

Bruce R. James,
Member, Administrative Committee of the Federal Register.

Rosemary Hart,
Member, Administrative Committee of the Federal Register.

    Approved by:
James B. Comey,
Deputy Attorney General.

John W. Carlin,
Archivist of the United States.
[FR Doc. 04-6198 Filed 3-17-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 1505-01-P