Federal Document Management System (FDMS) is a document management solution structured by dockets (or file folders) which offer a wide range of regulatory activities routinely performed by The Department of State.
Many agencies rely on FDMS and Regulations.gov to support a number of activities beyond rulemaking for public viewing and/or to solicit public comment such as publication of guidance documents, agency directives and policy interpretations.
Through FDMS.gov, FDMS enables Department users to manage their docket materials through the use of role-based access controls; workflow and collaboration processes; creating/managing/revising content and comment management.
FDMS receives proposed rules, rules, and notices published by the Office of Federal Register via govinfo. These documents are available on Regulations.gov.
Public users may submit a comment on any of these documents open for public comment via the Regulations.gov website.
The State Department utilizes FDMS to upload additional regulatory and non-regulatory documents, supporting materials, and public comments into the system and make these additional documents accessible on Regulations.gov.
Initially conceived as a simple comment submission and comment administration system, Regulations.gov has evolved to allow public access to the entire rulemaking docket, providing a user-friendly web form to submit comments and supporting documents, offering simple and sophisticated searches, bookmarking, email notifications and other social media tools.
The FDMS was implemented in the Department in December 2006. Within FDMS, rule writers are assigned work by the docket manager, and can view or work on items they have been given access by the docket manager. Rule writers have the same level of access as docket staff and have the additional capabilities of adding questions and place or move documents into their appropriate phases; rule writers can also copy and move Federal Register documents, supporting documents and public submissions.