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MLIC Floor Guide to Materials: Federal Register

This guide describes basic use of specific sets of books in the MLIC, and is best used in conjunction with a mobile phone and the QR Codes you will find near the sets. If you are accessing this guide via the MLIC's app, just select a floor and book set.

Federal Register

Federal administrative agencies are delegated the power to make rules/regulations by statute or Presidential Executive Order. In order for this delegated responsibility to produce rules/regulations which have the force of law, agencies must abide by procedures which call for public notice and a period of public comment prior to finalization of the rule/regulation. That procedure is accomplished by publication in the Federal Register of both proposed and final rules/regulations.

The Federal Register is published daily by the executive branch. The activities of the executive branch, including regulations and proposed regulations by agencies, are first published here. Each issue may contain:

  • Notices (Non-rulemaking documents such as notices of public meetings, investigations, environmental impact statements, et cetera.)
  • Proposed Rules (Agencies' announcements of proposed regulations.)
  • Final Rules (Regulations that have final legal effect and cites to the Code of Federal Regulations.)
  • Presidential Documents (Documents signed by the President, including Executive Orders, Presidential Memorando, and Administrative Orders.)

Once the final regulations have been published in the Federal Register, they will be codified in the Code of Federal Regulations.

If you need to access a Federal Register previous to this year, HeinOnline's Digital Library offers the full text of every Federal Register published.

You can view the current issue at FederalRegister.gov.