What is Regulations.gov?
A Federal regulatory clearinghouse, Regulations.gov was officially launched in January 2003 as the first milestone of the Federal E-Government  eRulemaking Initiative . This Web site allows the public to access (or review) rules currently open for comment, read full texts of the accompanying documents, and submit comments to the appropriate Federal Department or Agency. Regulations.gov provides one-stop, online access to every rule published and open for comment, from more than 160 different Federal agencies.
Regulations.gov has created universal access to the Federal regulatory process by removing barriers that previously made it difficult for the public to navigate the expanse of Federal regulatory activities. Regulations.gov is the first one-stop Internet site for the public to submit comments on all Federal rulemakings. It is also the first site that allows the public to submit comments via the Internet to virtually all Federal Agencies.
The new generation of Regulations.gov, the eRulemaking Initiative’s Federal Docket Management System (FDMS), launched in the fall of 2005, enabled the public to access entire rulemaking dockets from participating Federal Departments and Agencies. FDMS is a full-featured electronic docket management system that builds upon the capabilities of the original Regulations.gov and gives Federal rule writers and docket managers the ability to better manage their rulemaking activities. With this system, more than 30 Federal Departments and Agencies can post Federal Register documents, supporting materials, and public comments on the Internet. The public can search, view, and download these documents on FDMS’ public side, Regulations.gov. Additional Federal Agencies will post materials on Regulations.gov over the next several years. Eventually, the eRulemaking Initiative will consolidate into a single Federal system more than 20 existing Federal IT systems and integrate 135 Federal agencies that currently utilize paper-based rule writing processes.
In developing the new system, the eRulemaking Initiative engaged participating Agencies in detailed system requirements-gathering, design, planning, and review. This collaborative approach ensures that the system functionality meets each Agency’s specific business requirements and supports their interactions with the public.