tutorials > admin law > federal register - example

Lesson Four: Using the Federal Register on the Web

Having succeeded in gathering sufficient information to answer the partner's question about phone solicitations, you now want to get some quick information on the second issue: phone companies switching customers' long distance service without permission. 

Step 1: Find FCC Page on Slamming
You repeat your successful research strategy: you check the FCC website and discover that this scheme has been a recent focus of FCC attention, and that it has become known as "slamming" (click here to see the FCC's special issue-specific "slamming" webpage). This page indicates that there are new rules regarding penalties for these kinds of practices.

Step 2: Open the Federal Register Web Site
You want to check for the very latest actions in this area, so you decide to search the Federal Register. You can search the Federal Register on Lexis, Westlaw, or the web, but only the web version currently offers a reproduction of the print pages in PDF format.

Step 3: Search the Federal Register
Step 3A: Choose a Date
At the Federal Register website, a simple search template (under the 1994 volume 59 through 2004 volume 69 section) allows you to indicate which volume(s) of the Register to search, and allows you to specify a particular date or range of dates. Here, you scroll down and check off the 2001 volume to search.

Step 3B: Enter Your Search Terms
Now you are ready to enter your search terms. One effective way to avoid irrelevant documents is to use the name of the agency as part of your search. For example, here you can enter "federal communications commission" at the beginning of your query statement. Following the instructions, you add other terms using connectors (such as "AND")  in all capital letters. One effective search to try would be: federal communications commission AND telephone AND provider AND penalt*.  Try this search now.

Step 4: Read the Results
Once you retrieve your document(s), examine the March 1 document "Implementation of the Subscriber Carrier Selection Changes." Note that you have two choices for viewing the full text - HTML (plain text) or PDF (an image of the printed Federal Register page). Choose PDF format.

If the document is lengthy, a useful technique is to use the "find in page" feature of Adobe Acrobat (click on the binocular icon) to go to the particular place in the document where a key word is mentioned. For example, here you could use the find feature to see where the term "slamming" is mentioned.

Step 5: Note the Federal Register Features

• Page numbers in the Federal Register begin with page 1 on January 2, and continue until December 31 - in recent years, there have been over 70,000 pages published in the Federal Register each year.
• At the beginning of the document above the "Summary" heading, the type of action is indicated. This particular document is a final rule, and therefore has the force of law, as of the "effective date."
• A little further down the page, note in the "Dates" section that the effective date is April 2, 2001.
• Just below that is a name and number you can call for further information.
• Following this initial information, you find the Introduction and Background section. This is the preamble, and it is extremely useful because it summarizes the history behind the regulation. The summary usually describes related documents in enough detail for you to determine which, if any, other documents you will need to retrieve in order to thoroughly answer your research question.
• Following the background information, the full text of the new rule begins on page 12892. This section indicates exactly how the new rule will be codified in the CFR. All other information from the Federal Register, including the Introduction and Background section, is not reproduced in the CFR.