Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Public Participation In Regulatory Decision-Making: Cases From Regulations.Gov, Thomas Bryer

Thomas A Bryer

Regulations.gov is an award winning government website that has democratized the rulemaking process by making it easier for citizens to search, read, and comment on proposed rules advanced by federal agencies. Submitted comments from three cases are analyzed; cases come from the Department of Health and Human Services, Environmental Protection Agency, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The issues in each are classified as low salience/high complexity, high salience/high complexity, and high salience/low complexity, respectively. Quality of comments submitted is analyzed across cases. It is suggested in conclusion that if costs are not accepted to better prepare citizens to be …