EPA's previous online rulemaking system, the Regulatory Public Access System (RPAS), which served as a pilot for the new system, similarly allowed users to submit comments electronically, but did not provide complete access to rulemaking dockets, including public comments, which could only be viewed in paper format at various EPA docket libraries in Washington, D.C. Unlike other agencies, EPA will also accept comments on an anonymous basis through its new web site, though it encourages users to identify themselves to ensure consideration.
EPA will use a phased-in approach to bring all of its dockets into the new system -- which began on May 31 with the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, the Office of Air and Radiation, the Office of Water, and the Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances. However, at the moment, not all rulemaking materials from these offices are available through the new site; some public comments are only indexed -- and still available only through paper copy -- and the site only provides docket information for rulemakings in which the comment period is still open, not old rulemakings.
Dockets from other offices, including the Office of Environmental Information and the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, are to be added to the system in the fall of 2002. Look for an upcoming article comparing various agency online rulemaking systems in the next issue of OMB Watch's Executive Report.