How To… Make a Public Comment
Photo: @jarretto18
What are opportunities for public comment?
Anyone has the right to comment on rules and regulations proposed by the US Federal government. There are no restrictions on who can comment and no cost to commenting except a small amount of your time. You can submit a comment online at regulations.gov or send it in by mail.
Why are public comments important?
Federal agencies use regulations to implement public policies, translating laws made by Congress into practice. The details of regulations can significantly impact individuals, communities, businesses, and other organizations.
Agencies are required by law to consider public comments when making regulations. For this reason, agencies read and log comments, and sometimes change their proposals in response to the comments they receive.
Even where comments don’t directly change a regulation, they can be crucial in subsequent litigation. Comments can form part of the evidence presented in legal cases. If a judge decides that an agency has failed to consider public comments adequately in making a regulation, they might invalidate the rule.
How can I submit a comment?
You can search for public comment opportunities at regulations.gov.
Select the ‘documents’ tab:
Click the check box on the left of the page to ‘only show documents open for comment’
If you know the agency that’s proposing the regulation, you can narrow the search that way
Enter your search terms at the top of the screen
Clicking on the title link will take you to the document page. Here you can view the document details and read existing public comments.
The document details will give you a summary of the issue. You can see the due date for comments and other details in the left column. There are sometimes attachments that give more information.
Click the blue COMMENT button near the top of the page to submit a comment.
DOs and DON’Ts to be most effective
DO
Read the materials provided by the agency and respond to their specific questions and requests for information as much as possible.
If you are part of an organization or group with an interest in the issue or have relevant professional experience or expertise, mention that. You can post comments anonymously if you wish.
Explain why you are taking a particular position. If you can, include references to scientific or economic studies, specific data, or observations that tie to your expertise or experience. It can also be effective to address opposing viewpoints in your comment and explain why they are incorrect or incomplete.
DON’T
Paste in text from a mass advocacy campaign, even where you entirely agree with its content. It is better to rephrase any provided text from an advocacy group in your own words.
Feel that you have to respond to all parts of the proposal. Proposed regulations can be long and complex. It is fine to respond to only those parts where you have expertise or feel the most strongly.
Feel daunted by the task -a short comment is better than no comment! Your perspective is as valid as anyone’s in this process.
