Frequently Asked Questions
About the e-CFR
Starting on January 1, 2015, each update that is posted to the e-CFR by the OFR is captured and can be retrieved along with the most current e-CFR data. By default, the current e-CFR is always displayed on the landing page.
To view past updates, use the "Browse / Search Previous" toggle in the left navigation pane of the main page. Select the date that you wish to view and press "Go" to load the update posted to the e-CFR for that day. If you select a date that had no posted update, you will receive notification along with the closest previous update available.
To perform a search, select the date that you wish to search and press "Go" to load data for that date. Then enter your detailed search criteria and press "submit search"
There are two methods of retrieving an entire part. Within the browse feature, request the specific part. To print the part, click the "File" button on your browser, and "Print".
Within the Boolean search feature, in the first box, insert the title number. In the next box, type in the part number only, and select the search within "Part Number." This will normally yield one result. Retrieve the result. To print the file, click the "File" button on your browser, and "Print".
If you want to download the text, select "File" and "Save As". You can choose from several formats, depending on the word processing software you want to use.
There are some occasions where a part spans more than one CFR file, like 26 CFR part 1, 29 CFR part 1910, 40 CFR parts 52, 60, 63, and 86. In these cases, you will not be able to retrieve the entire part by itself. You will get part retrievals for each volume. Similarly, 50 CFR 17.11 spans more than one volume of the CFR. You will not be able to retrieve the entire section by itself.
If you are using Internet Explorer, go to "File" and "Page Setup". When the page setup window opens, select legal size paper, and at the bottom of the window under "Orientation", select landscape. Then press "OK", then press your print button.
"[Reserved]" is a term used as a place holder within the Code of Federal Regulations. An agency uses "[Reserved]" to simply indicate that it may insert regulatory information into this location some time in the future. Occasionally "[Reserved]" is used to indicate that a portion of the CFR was intentionally left empty and not accidentally dropped due to a printing or computer error.
Yes, you can create persistent bookmarks or links to e-CFR material. If you set a link while looking at Point-in-Time data, you will always link to that date. If you set a link while looking at current data, that link will always retrieve current data. There is one caveat: Links to the part level for parts that span several volumes—for example 26 CFR part 1, 40 CFR part 52, 40 CFR part 63, and 50 CFR part 17—will occasionally change URL addresses and may break.
There are no plans to make the e-CFR available in PDF format.
The Administrative Committee of the Federal Register (ACFR) has the authority under 44 U.S.C. 1510 to regulate the collation and republication of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) with the aim of keeping it as current as practicable. Until recently, it has not been economically practical to update the CFR more frequently than once per year. With the advent of web-based publication formats, the ACFR has requested that the Office of the Federal Register (OFR) and the Government Publishing Office (GPO) develop and maintain the e-CFR as an authoritative informational resource, which will serve as the model for a currently updated, official edition of the CFR.
The e-CFR will be maintained as an unofficial editorial compilation until all remaining technical and performance issues are satisfactorily resolved. When this is accomplished, the OFR/GPO partnership will propose to the ACFR that the e-CFR become an official edition of the CFR and a permanent record of the United States Government.
If you need more information about any regulation that appears in the e-CFR, contact the agency that issued the regulation. The agency that issued the regulation is listed in the chapter heading, which can be found by using the browse feature and selecting the title number. This opens a page with a table that shows chapters and their headings.
The e-CFR is supported and maintained by the Office of the Federal Register (OFR), which is an office under National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), and the Government Publishing Office (GPO).
The OFR is responsible for the accuracy of the content in the e-CFR. E-CFR content must reflect what is published in the Federal Register. OFR staff are editors and are not qualified or allowed to evaluate scientific formulas, provide legal analysis or explain any regulations other than those of the OFR (1 CFR Ch. I and II). That said, if you believe the e-CFR content does not agree with the Federal Register content, please contact the OFR at: ecfr@nara.gov.
The GPO is responsible for maintenance of the website itself, ensuring that the date is current, that the pages are opening and that the website is displaying the content correctly. If you have a question or concern about the website display, please contact: webteam@gpo.gov.
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