On April 23, 2026, the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) announced that it is seeking consultants for six projects directed towards the development of formal recommendation to federal agencies and, where appropriate, Congress, the President, and the Judicial Conference.

Proposals must be received by June 12, 2026, 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time to be guaranteed consideration for the following projects:

• Compliance Assistance Programs
• Discovery in Agency Adjudication
• Periodic Rules
• Preventing, Detecting, and Resolving Overpayments in Federally Administered Programs
• Processing Public Comments in Rulemaking
• Regulatory Experimentation

Read on to learn more about ACUS, consulting for ACUS, and the six projects for which ACUS is currently seeking consultants.

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About ACUS

ACUS is a federal agency in the executive-branch charged with identifying and promoting improvements in the efficiency, adequacy, and fairness of the procedures by which federal agencies conduct administrative processes. Many of the hundreds of recommendations ACUS has issued since 1968 have resulted in reforms by federal agencies, the President, Congress, and the Judicial Conference of the United States. All are available at acus.gov/recommendations.

Recommendations are issued by the Conference, which consists of a Chairman appointed by the
President and confirmed by the Senate; ten presidential appointees; 50 senior federal officials
designated by the heads of participating agencies; and 40 leading academics, practitioners, and
other private-sector experts. Except for the Chairman, all members are unpaid.

Consulting for ACUS

Recommendations are typically informed by a report prepared by a consultant or team of consultants. Consultants also work closely with committees of Conference members and the full Conference membership to develop the recommendations. Final consultant reports are published on the ACUS website and distributed widely among government policymakers. Previous reports are available on the ACUS website.

The consultant(s) for each project below will prepare a report; work with a committee of ACUS members to produce recommendations to federal agencies, the President, Congress, and/or the Judicial Conference; and participate in a plenary session of the full ACUS membership in December 2027 or June 2028. The total value of consulting fees for this project will not exceed $25,000, to be apportioned in accordance with the number of consultants and division of responsibilities.

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Compliance Assistance Programs

Compliance assistance programs are formal programs administered by federal agencies that help members of the public comply with regulatory requirements before violations occur, often on a systematic or comprehensive basis. This project addresses best practices for compliance assistance programs, including the types of compliance assistance that federal agencies should provide to the public, the methods and formats agencies should use to provide such assistance, and how agencies should manage their compliance assistance functions and coordinate those functions with other agency responsibilities.

Discovery in Agency Adjudication

This project examines the diversity of agency rules and practices and make recommendations that agencies can use to develop rules and practices that best promote fairness, efficiency, accuracy, and timeliness in the types of proceedings they conduct. Among other things, the project examines the availability of and limitations on discovery tools (e.g., depositions, interrogatories, requests for production, requests for admission) as well as protective orders and subpoenas; strategies adjudicators use to manage discovery; the use of technology to facilitate and streamline discovery; and the availability of discovery-related resources for adjudicators, parties, and representatives. Given the diversity of agency adjudications, the project will identify factors that agencies should consider in determining which rules and practices are appropriate for the types of proceedings they conduct.

Periodic Rules

This project will study agencies’ use of periodic rules—that is, rules that are updated on a fixed, recurring schedule—and identify best practices for agencies when using, updating, amending, and engaging with the public on periodic rules. Among other topics, the project will address in what circumstances and how often agencies are required to use periodic rules; particular programs under which agencies engage in periodic rulemaking; the costs and advantages of periodic rulemaking; publication practices for the Federal Register and Code of Federal Regulations; and public engagement when developing periodic rules.

Preventing, Detecting, and Resolving Improper Payments in Federally Administered Programs

This project examines how agencies prevent, detect, and resolve improper payments in federally administered programs under which the federal government disburses funds directly to private individuals and organizations for their own use. Among other topics, the project studies the protocols and systems agencies have in place for preventing improper payments from occurring and detecting improper payments that do occur, as well as processes for resolving improper payments when they occur (e.g., appeals, requests for waivers, payment plans).

Processing Public Comments in Rulemaking

This project examines how agencies receive public comments related to rulemaking proceedings; make those comments available to agency staff, contractors, and the public; analyze the content of the comments; and develop responses to them. The project includes consideration of the organizational practices agencies use to process comments; how agencies use contractors in comment processing; and how agencies procure and use various technological tools (including artificial intelligence or other algorithmic tools) in receiving, analyzing, and responding to comments.

Regulatory Experimentation

This project examines how federal agencies can use regulatory experimentation to promote fairness, accuracy, and efficiency in the administration of federal programs. Among other topics, this project will identify best practices for determining when regulatory experimentation may be beneficial; designing regulatory experiments, including choosing among different models and mechanisms; administering regulatory experiments; collecting and evaluating information associated with regulatory experiments; and using such information to guide policymaking.