Notice and Comment
Get involved in the federal regulatory process
About
Submitting a comment for a federal or state notice of proposed rulemaking is one of the simplest and essential ways for the public to participate in the rulemaking process. ACS’s Notice and Comment initiative identifies opportunities to comment on key regulations put forth by federal and state agencies. ACS monitors the federal register for notices of proposed regulatory changes and highlights select opportunities that may be of interest to our members. ACS encourages our members to write and submit comments, but we are also looking for volunteers to research comments and provide expert talking points to guide comment writing. For more information, check out our Notice and Comment Webinar.
Please email LCEmails@acslaw.org with the subject line “Notice and Comment” for more information.
State Regulation Monitors
Seeking Volunteers for Monitoring Proposed Regulatory Changes in the States
ACS is expanding its Notice and Comment Project, which monitors regulations and policy-making and then highlights select opportunities that may be of interest to our members, to include all 50 states. There is currently no single location to find proposed regulatory changes for all 50 states. Not only that, but many state proposed regulatory changes are difficult to monitor and not easily accessible to the general public. ACS is looking for volunteers to monitor, on a weekly basis, state notices of proposed rulemaking. Please email LCEmails@acslaw.org for more information.
Federal Opportunities
Top Notice and Comment Opportunities
- The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is seeking comment by July 8 on a proposed rule to amend and clarify the regulations concerning the 9-11 Response & Biometric Entry-Exit Fee for H-1B and L-1 Visas. The proposed regulatory changes would clarify DHS’s interpretation of ambiguous statutory language to require that covered employers submit the 9-11 Biometric Fee for all extension-of-stay petitions, regardless of whether a Fraud Fee applies, so as to include extension-of-stay petitions that do not involve a change of employer. Comments may be submitted electronically at https://www.regulations.gov.
- The Department of Education (ED) is seeking comment by July 8 on a proposed rule that sets priorities, requirements, and definitions for use in the Postsecondary Student Success Grant program. The Department of Education intend for these priorities, requirements, and definitions to support projects that equitably improve postsecondary student outcomes, including retention, upward transfer, and completions of value, by leveraging data and implementing, scaling, and rigorously evaluating evidence-based activities to support data-driven decisions and actions that lead to credentials that support economic success and further education. Comments may be submitted electronically at https://www.regulations.gov.
- The Department of Justice (DOJ) is seeking comment by July 22 on a proposed rule to transfer marijuana from schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to schedule III of the CSA, consistent with the view of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that marijuana has a currently accepted medical use as well as HHS’s views about marijuana’s abuse potential and level of physical or psychological dependence. Comments may be submitted electronically at https://www.regulations.gov, or by mail to: Drug Enforcement Administration, Attn: DEA Federal Register Representative/DPW, 8701 Morrissette Drive, Springfield, Virginia 22152. Read more from Forbes and NBC.
- The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is seeking comment by August 6 on a proposed rule to exempt a new system of records maintained by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from certain requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974. The new system of records will cover criminal and non-criminal law enforcement investigatory material maintained by the NIH Division of Police, a component of NIH which performs criminal law enforcement as its principal function. The exemptions are necessary and appropriate to protect the integrity of law enforcement proceedings and records compiled in the course of NIH Division of Police activities, prevent disclosure of investigative techniques, and protect the identity of confidential sources involved in those activities. Comments may be submitted electronically at https://www.regulations.gov, or by mail to Daniel Hernandez, NIH Regulations Officer, Office of Management Assessment, National Institutes of Health, 6705 Rockledge Drive, (RK1) 601-U, Rockville, MD 20892-7901.
Members can also search the Federal Register for other comment opportunities.
State Opportunities
- The City of Boston Reparations Task Force will hold a public meeting on June 24, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. (ET), Bruce C. Bolling Building, 2300 Washington, Roxbury, MA 02119 to discuss healing racial inequities for descendants of slavery. The public is encouraged to join the meetings here.
- The Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission will hold a public meeting on July 8, 2024, at 11:30 am EST, to discuss cases of racially motivated lynching with the public. More information about the meeting can be found here.
- The Iowa City Council has established the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to bear witness to the truth of racial injustice in Iowa City and to carry out restorative justice, through the collection of testimony and public hearings. The public can attend in-person hearings or remotely, by signing up for meetings on the first and third Thursdays of each month at 7 PM in Emma J. Harvat Hall, City Hall, 410 E. Washington Street, Iowa City. More information about the next meeting can be found here.
Webinar
On September 19, ACS hosted a webinar on notice and comment procedure. Whether you care about environmental regulations, conditions for millions of workers across the country, financial controls, or any number of regulatory issues, this valuable training seminar covers the basics of the process that underlies all regulatory action with two seasoned experts. Notice and comment is a key oversight tool for agency activity, particularly in the current political environment, and it’s also a great way to develop knowledge in a particular area of the law. Whether you are an experienced practitioner or a law student still developing your experience, you can participate in notice and comment procedure to bring about change.
Featuring
Jill Dash, American Constitution Society, moderator
Emily Hogin, Perkins Coie
Raj Nayak, National Employment Law Project
Karl Sandstrom, Perkins Coie
Get involved in the federal regulatory process. Submitting a comment for a federal or state notice of proposed rulemaking is one of the simplest and essential ways for the public to participate in the rulemaking process. ACS’s Notice and Comment initiative identifies opportunities to comment on key regulations put forth by federal and state agencies.