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WASHINGTON--A one-stop online shop has opened for citizens who want to research and comment on any of the thousands of regulatory actions considered yearly by the federal government.

The Bush administration has launched Regulations.gov, a Web site designed to streamline and increase public participation in the federal regulatory process.

"It's not nirvana, but it's an enormous step in the right direction," says Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project, a Washington, D.C. nonprofit group that researches the cultural impact of the Internet.

"The distance between Washington and the rest of the country has been shrinking for almost two centuries, and this shrinks it almost to zero."

Easier Access

Any rule proposed by an agency is subject to "notice and comment," a window in time when individuals, businesses, and interest groups can critique the proposal.

On the new site, surfers can search for regulations by agency or by keyword, which retrieves all relevant rules. For example, a search for the word digital dredges up rules under a number of agencies, including the Federal Communications Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Each rule links to a comment template, where citizens can submit messages of up to 4000 characters and electronic attachments critiquing or praising the proposition. Once submitted, the feedback is routed directly to the appropriate agency.

"[Before] you always [had to have] an intermediary," says Mark Forman, assistant director of Internet technology at the Office of Management and Budget. "For the first time, citizens are literally going to be able to see how government is proposing to do its work, and they're going to be able to comment on whether the measures are appropriate or not."

The new Web site is intended to enhance the quality and efficiency of the government's decision-making process, according to Bush administration representatives. The central regulatory forum will also save millions of dollars every year spent on operating and maintaining separate rulemaking Web sites, they say.

Digital Door Opens

In 2001, 42 million Americans viewed federal regulations on the Internet, while 23 million commented on the proposals, according to the Washington, D.C.-based Pew Foundation, which funds cultural research.

Rainie predicts that public comment will increase "exponentially" thanks to the new Regulations.gov site. However, he warns that the new pipeline could become clogged with the formatted feedback of lobbying factions.

"There's potential in this for essentially stuffing the ballot box," Rainie says. "So what, if it invites more people into the process? A much bigger problem in this country is that Americans are disconnected from politics. Anything that gives them an idea that their voice can count and that they can have a say in their own government's process has to be a good thing."

In its first 6 hours, the Web site garnered 68,000 hits.

The OMB's Forman says agencies that deal with controversial legislation have sufficient personnel and infrastructure to deal with a massive increase in comment.

"We hope it will get swamped, so we built in excess capacity for that," Forman says. "To be honest, some people in the agencies did say they feared getting electronic comment, but the law is very clear and the president is very clear; this is the people's government."

The new Web site is a result of the Electronic Government Act, which Congress passed last December. The act earmarks $345 million over the next four years for federal technology projects and establishes a new Office of Electronic Government.