Public Participation in Rulemaking by the Federal Trade Commission: A Survey of Some Recent Experiences

This paper provides a description and evaluation of activities undertaken within the public participation program of the Federal Trade Commission. Telephone interviews were held with 46 funding recipients representing organizations with substantial memberships in an effort to determine the use and benefit of public participation monies. The survey suggests that the program is working reasonably well in that the vast majority of respondents characterized their involvement in rulemaking as only possible by virtue of receiving the grant money. The major criticisms of public participation programs are also reviewed along with their relationship to the results of this survey. Some suggestions for improving the implementation of public participation funding are explored.