[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 136 (Friday, July 16, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42727-42729]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-16328]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Docket No. OEI-2004-0002; FRL-7789-1]


Forum on Public Access to Federal Rulemaking Through the 
Internet; Announcement of Public Meetings and Request for Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The eRulemaking Initiative, a federal government-wide effort, 
will hold a series of public meetings and an online dialogue to obtain 
public input on its major projects.
    The Initiative will use information technology to expand public 
understanding and involvement in the rulemaking process by providing an 
easy and consistent way for the public to search, view, and comment on 
proposed federal regulations online. It is

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comprised of three major parts. In January 2003, an inter-agency team 
launched http://www.regulations.gov, the first component of the 
Initiative. This Web site allows the public to search, view, and 
download all rulemaking documents published in the Federal Register. It 
also allows the public to submit comments on proposed regulations 
currently open for comment.
    The second part of the Initiative is the development of a full-
featured electronic docket management system that will provide the 
public with online access to the broad set of documents routinely 
included in regulatory and non-regulatory dockets (e.g., Federal 
Register notices; technical, scientific, and legal analyses; and public 
comments). It will continue to provide the public with the same 
capabilities as Regulations.gov and will ultimately replace existing 
electronic and paper-based docket systems. The federal docket system 
will include additional features, such as full-text and Boolean search 
capabilities, e-mail notification, data export, and reporting and 
tracking functions.
    The last part of the eRulemaking Initiative is the development of 
an online workspace containing a variety of tools and templates to 
assist in the development, review, and publication of federal 
regulations and the analysis of public comments. Such tools will be 
available to federal regulation writers and the public and may include 
databases, collaboration applications, and content categorization 
software.
    The Environmental Protection Agency, as managing partner of the 
eRulemaking Initiative, will convene a series of public meetings to 
solicit feedback on the usability and features of the Regulations.gov 
Web site, the planned government-wide electronic federal docket 
management system, and the online rulewriter toolbox. Comments received 
will be considered during the development and/or enhancements of these 
systems. In addition to these public meetings, Harvard University's 
John F. Kennedy School of Government, in partnership with the 
eRulemaking Program Office, will host an online national dialogue to 
solicit additional public input.
    Individuals planning to attend the public meetings or participate 
in the online dialogue should contact the individual listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT for the location of the meeting. Please 
register no later than one week before the event.

DATES: Public meetings are scheduled to be held on the following dates:
    1. August 2, 2004; 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., San Francisco, CA.
    2. August 3, 2004; 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Chicago, IL.
    3. August 9, 2004; 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 pm., Cambridge, MA.
    4. August 9, 2004; 12:00 p.m. to 6 p.m., Online Dialogue.
    5. August 12, 2004; 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Washington, DC.
    Should a meeting be rescheduled, registrants will be notified via 
e-mail.
    Comments must be received on or before August 16, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. OEI-2004-
0002, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     Agency Web site: http://www.epa.gov/edocket. EDOCKET, 
EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, is EPA's preferred 
method for receiving comments. Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
     Mail: OEI Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, 
Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.
     Hand Delivery: OEI Docket, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room B102, 
1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. Such deliveries are only 
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays), and 
special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed 
information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. OEI-2004-0002. 
EPA's policy is that all comments received during the open comment 
period will be included in the public docket without change and may be 
made available online at: http://www.epa.gov/edocket, including any 
personal information provided, unless the comment includes information 
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit 
information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through 
EDOCKET or Regulations.gov.
    The EPA EDOCKET and the federal Regulations.gov Web sites are 
``anonymous access'' systems, which means EPA will not know your 
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of 
your comment. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that 
you include your name and other contact information in the body of your 
comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your 
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic 
files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of 
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the EDOCKET index 
at: http://www.epa.gov/edocket. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted. Certain other material, such as 
copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be 
publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket 
materials are available either electronically in EDOCKET or in hard 
copy at the OEI Docket, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 
a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The 
telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the 
telephone number for the OEI Docket is (202) 566-1752.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kristin Tensuan, eRulemaking Program 
Branch, Collection Strategies Division (Mail Code 2822V), Office of 
Environmental Information (OEI), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 
632-0338; fax number: (202) 632-0349; e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Background

    The eRulemaking Initiative is an E-Government Initiative authorized 
by Section 206 of the E-Government Act of 2002. The Initiative's goals 
include:
     Expand public understanding of the rulemaking process by 
providing an easy and consistent way for public to search, view, and 
comment on federal rules.
     Improve the quality of federal rulemaking decisions and 
transparency of the rulemaking process.
     Increase the amount, breadth, and ease of citizen and 
intergovernmental access and participation by using the Internet to 
enhance public access to information on federal rulemaking.
    The eRulemaking Initiative consists of three modules:
    Module 1--Regulations.gov. Launched in January 2003, this Web site 
provides one-stop, online access to every open rule published by more 
than 160 different federal agencies. The Web site allows the public to 
view and download Federal Register notices of every federal rule 
currently open for

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comment as well as allow the public to submit comments to the 
appropriate federal agency.
    Module 2--Federal Docket Management System. This system, currently 
under development, will build upon Regulations.gov to establish a full-
featured docket management system. It will serve as a central 
repository for federal rulemaking dockets, which are comprised of 
Federal Register notices, supporting materials, and public comments. 
The docket management system also will be designed to include non-
rulemaking documents, such as Information Collection Requests that 
agencies can post online for public comment.
    Module 3--Online Rulewriter Toolbox. The Initiative also will 
explore deploying information technology tools to assist in the 
development, review, and publication of federal regulations and the 
analysis of public comments. Tools will be available to federal 
regulation writers and the public. Such tools may include templates, 
collaboration applications, databases and content categorization 
software.
    The Environmental Protection Agency leads an inter-agency team that 
manages the Initiative. Other participating federal agencies include: 
Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of 
Defense, Department of Energy, Department of Health and Human Services, 
Department of Homeland Security, Department of Housing and Urban 
Development, Department of Interior, Department of Justice, Department 
of Labor, Department of Transportation, Department of Treasury, Equal 
Employment Opportunity Commission, Federal Communications Commission, 
National Archives and Records Administration, General Services 
Administration, the Government Printing Office, and the Small Business 
Administration.

B. Topics of Discussion

    The eRulemaking Program Office is seeking public feedback on the 
usability and features of the Regulations.gov Web site, the planned 
government-wide electronic federal docket management system, and the 
rulewriter's toolbox. The following topics will be discussed at the 
meetings:
     Web site designs that maximize ease-of-use and public 
utilization,
     Features that users consider most important and would 
frequently use,
     Additional capabilities that users can apply, and
     Other considerations regarding the eRulemaking Initiative.
    We welcome comments from stakeholders interested in electronic 
rulemaking including, but not limited to, advocacy groups, trade 
associations, labor unions, regulated industries, small businesses, 
state and local governments, and the academic community.

II. Additional Information

    Additional information about the eRulemaking Initiative is 
available online at: http://www.regulations.gov. You may also contact 
the person listed under the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this notice. Help in understanding the Federal rulemaking process and 
terminology is available from the Federal Register at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html.

    Dated: July 13, 2004.
Mark A. Luttner,
Director of Information Collection, Office of Environmental 
Information.
[FR Doc. 04-16328 Filed 7-15-04; 8:45 am]
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