Notice provided over the E-rulemaking ListServ announces the availability of a new report. “The Internet Still Might (but Probably Won’t) Change Everything: Stakeholder Views on the Future of Electronic Rulemaking,” is “about the impact of modern information technology and the Internet on the federal rulemaking process.” Dr. Stuart W. Shulman, a professor at University of Pittsburgh, authored the report. The press release describes the report in the following terms:
The report examines such questions as: “What’s the proper role of public discussion in rulemaking? How do these technologies both create new opportunities and liabilities for people who want to engage in the process?”
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Shulman argues that by creating databases of the public’s comments and building appropriate tools to analyze them, federal agencies will be able to make their decisions with the best available information. How these tools are designed and used will impact the nature and scope of public participation.
“The report argues that we should talk openly about this, because the regulatory process results in literally billions of dollars of costs and benefits to the economy every year,” said Shulman. “It is important that these issues be aired openly before technical choices are made that have far-reaching practical implications.”
The report is available at http://erulemaking.ucsur.pitt.edu/doc/reports/e-rulemaking_final.pdf. Additional information above E-rulemaking is available at http://erulemaking.ucsur.pitt.edu/.
Update 2/11/2015: Links for E-Rulemaking resources is now https://www.law.upenn.edu/institutes/regulation/erulemaking/index.html.