Regulatory Process: Proposed Rules, Final Rules, and the Regulatory Agenda

Proposed Rules and Supporting Documents

When an agency is writing a new regulation, the first version it normally shares with the public is called a notice of proposed rulemaking or NPRM. An NPRM typically suggests possible regulatory language, estimates the potential rule’s benefits and costs, and invites the public to submit comments on the proposal. You can find, view, and comment on recent EEOC proposed rules here or search for them at www.regulations.gov. 

Final Rules and Supporting Documents

A final rule addresses the public comments submitted in response to a proposed rule (also known as a “notice of proposed rulemaking” or NPRM) to help determine the final regulatory language and updates the rule’s estimated benefits and costs. Here, EEOC includes a few of its recent final rules for which regulatory language has been adopted and published in the Federal Register. Sometimes, when the EEOC is releasing a final rule, it also issues one or more technical assistance documents that provide a quick overview of a new regulation to help the public understand it. A final rule does not take effect until its “effective date” is reached.

Regulatory Agendas

Federal agencies, including the EEOC, share their plans for issuing proposed or final regulations in the future. Twice a year, the White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs publishes the regulatory agendas for different federal agencies in a document called the Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, or “Unified Agenda.” The Unified Agenda sets forth agencies’ short-term and long-term regulatory plans.