Rulemaking
Purpose: To gain exposure to and a greater understanding of the public rulemaking process.
Task: First, find a proposed rule or other administrative action using regulations.gov. You can use a variety of search parameters to find something of interest. Second, research the proposed rule and write and submit a public comment informing the agency of your perspective on the issue. You can either support or oppose the rulemaking. Whatever your position, make sure you support it using appropriate facts and argument.
The Paper: In the first few paragraphs, explain which proposed administrative action you decided to comment on and why. What agency? What is the basic problem being addressed by the proposed action? What research did you do to learn more about the proposed action? Then share the actual text of the public comment you submitted. Lastly, you should reflect on your experience in a paragraph or two. Some representative questions include: What types of individuals or organizations are most likely to have an opinion about the proposed action? Who is going to support/oppose it? What did you learn about the administrative rulemaking process in completing this assignment? Your assignment should be 500-700 words in addition to the text of your public comment.