FDMS User Guide 

For Rule Writers

 
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Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) 

Rule Writer Training Guide 

January 2015 

FDMS Version 4.7

Developed for: 

Office of Environmental Information 

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. 

Washington, DC 20460 
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Table of Contents 

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................7

Docket Center Processing ............................................................................................................................. 8

Docket Center Contact List ................................................................................................................... 9

Reading Room.......................................................................................................................................9

Scanning................................................................................................................................................9

FR Feed................................................................................................................................................11

Comment Posting................................................................................................................................11

Comments Delayed in Processing....................................................................................................... 11

Help the Docket Center Help You ....................................................................................................... 11

Login............................................................................................................................................................13

Password Issues..................................................................................................................................13

Home Screen...............................................................................................................................................15

Menu.......................................................................................................................................................15

Inbox .......................................................................................................................................................16

My Favorites............................................................................................................................................16

Recently Viewed .....................................................................................................................................17

Flagged Documents.................................................................................................................................17

Doc List Icons and Features .................................................................................................................... 18

The Filter.............................................................................................................................................18

Search Dockets / Documents field...................................................................................................... 18

Docket Tree Icon .................................................................................................................................19

Expand / Contract Arrows................................................................................................................... 19

Refresh List..........................................................................................................................................19

Back arrow ..........................................................................................................................................20

News Panels............................................................................................................................................20

Tools Panel..............................................................................................................................................21

Batch Jobs ...........................................................................................................................................21

Username............................................................................................................................................22

User Profile .........................................................................................................................................22
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Logout .................................................................................................................................................22

Search..................................................................................................................................................22

Advanced Search.................................................................................................................................23

Saving Search Results.......................................................................................................................... 25

Dockets .......................................................................................................................................................27

Docket Organization ........................................................................................................................... 27

Docket Creation ..................................................................................................................................27

Docket Details.....................................................................................................................................29

Docket Tree.........................................................................................................................................29

Document Management............................................................................................................................. 31

Add Document / Bulk Import.................................................................................................................. 31

Document Order in the Docket........................................................................................................... 33

Document Metadata............................................................................................................................... 34

Document Details Tab......................................................................................................................... 34

Optional Details Tab............................................................................................................................ 35

The Submitter Info Tab ....................................................................................................................... 35

Attachments Tab.................................................................................................................................36

Actions Menu......................................................................................................................................37

Regulations.gov...........................................................................................................................................39

Find a FR with Open Comment Period................................................................................................ 40

Create a New Comment...................................................................................................................... 41

Email Alerts.........................................................................................................................................42

Features from FDMS 3 ................................................................................................................................43

Switching to FDMS 3 ........................................................................................................................... 43

Notifications........................................................................................................................................43

Other Features....................................................................................................................................43

 
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Introduction 

Welcome to the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS). This system is a cross 

Agency online platform that provides federal agencies with extensive features to facilitate 

Agency regulatory and business activities. The FDMS has been online and in use by 

Federal Agencies since November 2005. 

This guide will describe the newest version of FDMS, version 4. This version uses new 

software to support the system, increasing system response time and decreasing 

complexity. Version 4 was fully released in December 2013. 

The FDMS allows Rule Writers to:

 Create and manage documents electronically, including adding and updating 

document metadata 

 Accept and manage comments electronically 

 Search for dockets and documents 

 Mark dockets and documents as Favorites 

Additional information about FDMS is be located on the EPA intranet at 

http://intranet.epa.gov/fdmsinfo/. This site offers information in the following areas:

 Frequently Asked Questions about FDMS (FAQs)

 Support and Contact Information

 Training Information

 Assorted Forms

 EPA Docket Center Information

 Policy & Guidance
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Docket Center Processing 

The EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC) is comprised of the Headquarters Docket Offices and 

Shared Services, including a Public Reading Room that offers a variety of access tools, 

security and comfort for members of the public seeking access to hardcopy or electronic 

public dockets. Regional Offices are not participants in the EPA Docket Center. 

The EPA/DC contains the following docket collections: 

 Office of Air and Radiation (OAR) a-and-r-docket@epa.gov

 Office of Enforcement and Compliance (OECA) oeca.docket@epa.gov

 Office of Environmental Information (OEI) docket.oei@epa.gov

 Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) OPP_docket@epa.gov

 Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) oppt.ncic@epa.gov

 Office of Research and Development (ORD) ord.docket@epa.gov

 Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER) 

o Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) rcra-docket@epa.gov

o Superfund (SFUND) superfund.docket@epa.gov

o Oil Spills (OPA) 

o Underground Storage Tanks (UST) 

 Office of Water (OW) ow-docket@epa.gov

EPA/DC services include: 

 Assigning new docket numbers 

 Processing public comments and support documentation 

 Reviewing all comments for CBI and other protected information 

 Importing Federal Register documents to FDMS and posting dockets to 

Regulations.gov 

 Maintaining a large historical collection of documents 

 FDMS training, both in person and via webcast 

 Operating the EPA/DC Public Reading Room 

 FDMS login and password assistance 

 Providing technical assistance/answering questions 

 
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Docket Center Contact List 

The Docket Center staff provides docket support services in the areas of docket and 

document creation and management, data entry and quality assurance of metadata. 

Program Manager Email Address Phone 

OAR / OW Assem Akram akram.assem@epa.gov 202-566-0226 

OEI / ORD / OECA / 

Non-Participating 

Programs (i.e. OA) 

Amparo Castillo castillo.amparo@epa.gov 202-566-1743 

OPPT / OSWER Michael Semeniuk semeniuk.michael@epa.gov 202-566-0219 

OPP Anthia Peters peters.anthia@epa.gov 202-566-0294 

Program Manager Peter Wendolkowski wendolkowski.peter@epa.gov 202-566-0582 

Task Order Manager Lee Carothers carothers.lee@epa.gov 202-566-1619 

Training & Login 

Issues 

Michael Ofner ofner.michael@epa.gov 202-566-1027 

Reading Room 

The EPA Docket Center is a staffed facility providing access to all public documents in a 

variety of media. The center is fully 508 compliant, including appropriate assistive devices. 

In addition, the EPA/DC Customer Service staff answers upward of 50,000 requests for 

information annually from patrons across the country. 

Scanning 

The Docket Center’s scanning team processes hundreds of documents daily, including 

reports, public comments, and scientific references. This work involves scanning and 

converting the documents to Portable Document Format (PDF), performing quality checks, 

and uploading the document into FDMS. 

 
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Rule Writer and Docket Center Interactions 

Rule Writer Docket Center 

Creating a 

New Docket  Complete the Docket 

Creation 

Request 

(DCR) form 

and email it 

to your Docket Manager. 

 Docket Manager creates a new docket in FDMS 

using information from the Docket Creation Request 

(DCR) form. 

 Advises Rule Writer of the docket number via email. 

Supporting Document 

Processing  Upload supporting 

documents to your 

docket in FDMS. Set the 

document status to 

‘Metadata Ready’ when 

you are ready for the 

Docket Center to begin 

processing the new 

document. 

 Docket Manager monitors FDMS for new supporting 

documents set to ‘Metadata Ready’ status and 

reassigns those documents to staff. 

 Metadata Specialist enters metadata for the new 

document according to the Metadata Guidelines and 

sets the status to ‘QA Ready.’ 

 Quality Assurance Specialist checks metadata for 

compliance to the Metadata Guidelines, making 

corrections as necessary. Changes status to 

‘Pending Post’ when review is completed. 

FR Posting 

 Federal Register 

documents are 

automatically copied into 

FDMS on a daily basis. 

No action is required by 

the Rule Writer. 

 Docket Manager locates the FR in the FR Feed and 

moves it into the correct docket. 

 Docket Manager performs final quality checks of all 

supporting documents with ‘Pending 

Post’ status in the docket. 

 Docket Manager posts the Docket and 

all documents in the docket set to 

‘Pending Post’ status, making those 

items viewable on Regulations.gov. 

Comment Processing 

 Access FDMS to review 

comments as they come 

into your docket. 

 Docket Manager monitors FDMS for new public 

submissions (comments) and reassigns those 

documents to staff. 

 Metadata Specialist enters metadata for the new 

document according to the Metadata Guidelines and 

sets the status to ‘QA Ready.’ 

 Quality Assurance Specialist checks metadata for 

compliance to the Metadata Guidelines, making 

corrections as necessary. Changes status to 

‘Pending Post’ when review is completed. 

 Docket Manager posts comments that are set to 

‘Pending Post’, making them viewable on 

Regulations.gov 
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FR Feed 

New Federal Register (FR) notices are automatically imported into FDMS the day they are 

published by the Government Printing Office (GPO). This process puts all new FRs into a 

special location called the FR Feed in a Posted status. Only Docket Managers have access 

to the FR Feed. EPA HQ Docket Managers move new FRs into the correct dockets every 

business day, typically before noon EST. Rule Writers should be aware of when their FR is 

published and verify that it has been moved into the appropriate docket in FDMS. 

Comment Posting 

Only Docket Managers have the ability to post documents, making them viewable on 

FDMS. 

EPA Docket Managers post comments in batches at least twice daily, in the mornings and 

again in the afternoons. For those Dockets with above average activity, documents may be 

posted hourly or even more frequently. 

Comments Delayed in Processing 

Comments generally flow through the Docket Center at a fairly rapid pace. However, the 

following situations can cause delays in comment processing, and/or prevent comments 

from posting: 

1. Extraordinarily large mass mail or email campaigns (Delayed posting) 

2. Threatening comments are sent to the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) (Possibly 

not posted) 

3. Comments from a child under 13 years of age (Not posted) 

4. Comment attachment contains copyrighted information (Restricted to Metadata Only) 

5. Comment attachment contains Confidential Business Information (CBI) (Not posted and 

removed from FDMS) 

6. Comments from USEPA employees or contractors (deliberative materials) (Not posted) 

Help the Docket Center Help You 

The goal of the EPA Docket Center is to post all comments to Regulations.gov within three 

business days after the comment period closes. However, a large number of unique 

comments or mass mails may cause significant delays in processing. 

You can help by discussing with your Docket Manager (before the FR is drafted): 

1. Any dockets that are likely to generate enormous interest 

2. Dockets that have critical Congressional deadlines 

You can also help by contacting your Docket Manager for processing advice when you 

receive a comment directly, as by mail, fax or email. 
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Login 

To log into FDMS, use a web browser to navigate to www.fdms.gov and enter your User 

Name and Password in the fields provided. All common browsers are supported by the 

system (Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, etc.)

FDMS requires a unique username and password and is available only to government 

employees and approved contractors. 

For new users that need to establish a FDMS account, use the link on the main login page 

to register:

A FDMS Agency Administrator will review the new user application and either approve the 

account or contact the user for more information. 

Password Issues 

If you have trouble logging into FDMS, or have forgotten your username or password, you 

can email the EPA Agency Administrator for assistance at fdms@epa.gov. 

FDMS assistance is also provided by the FDMS Help Desk, which can be reached at 

877-378-5457.

 
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Home Screen 

The Home screen is the screen that displays when first logging into FDMS. It is divided into 

several sections, described below. Users can return to the Home Screen at any time by 

clicking on the fdms.gov graphic at the top left of the screen.

The image above has three numbered sections: 

1) Menu 

2) News Panels 

3) Tools 

Menu 

The Menu on the Home Screen is divided into four 

sub-sections: Inbox, My Favorites, Recently 

Viewed, and Flagged Documents. 

In most rows of this Menu there are two numbers 

separated by a slash. These numbers are the 

Dockets and Documents that you will see if you 

click on that sub-section of the Menu. 

In the image to the right, the Inbox will display 2 

dockets if clicked. The Recently Viewed section will 

show 101 documents. 

 
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Inbox

The Inbox lists items that have been assigned to you. Clicking on this line in the Menu will 

display all your dockets. At the top of this list are two tabs: Dockets and Documents. To 

view the documents in your Inbox, click on that tab. Clicking on any of the individual entries 

in the Docket or Document lists will bring that item up for review in the right side window of 

the screen.

To preserve system loading speeds, the Inbox is limited to dockets and documents that are 

both assigned to you and have been created within the last year. 

My Favorites

My Favorites lists any dockets and documents you have previously marked as a Favorite. 

Marking items as Favorites makes it easy find the items that you frequently open, or are 

high priority for you. 

To mark something as a Favorite, open any docket or document and check the star icon at 

the bottom of the screen.
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Items can later be removed from your Favorites list in the same manner: click on the star 

icon. Yellow stars denote a Favorite. 

Recently Viewed

The Recently Viewed list will display up to the 

last 100 dockets and documents you have 

viewed in FDMS. As elsewhere, this list is 

divided between dockets and documents. 

To switch between dockets and documents 

click on the tabs at the top of the list. The 

Filter is available here to help find entries in 

the list.

Flagged Documents

FDMS allows items to be Flagged, highlighting them as items that have a high priority for 

work, or as something that needs further consideration. While any user can Flag a 

document, every other FDMS user will see that the item has been Flagged. There is no 

method of Flagging a document that only a single user can see. 

Flagging an item is similar to marking an item as a Favorite. At the bottom of any docket or 

document, there is a flag icon. Click on this flag icon to Flag it.

 
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Doc List Icons and Features

The Docket / Document (Doc) List comes up when selecting Inbox, Favorites, Recently 

Viewed, or Flagged Items from the Home Screen. It also appears when performing a 

Search or Advanced Search. Descriptions of the various icons and functions associated 

with the Doc List follow below.

The Filter

Filter options are available whenever a Doc List is 

displayed. The purpose of the Filter is to limit the items 

shown via selectable criteria. To open the Filter, click 

on the downward pointing double arrow: 

Select criteria from the options available and click the 

Filter button at the bottom. Any documents (or 

dockets) that do not match your criteria will be filtered 

out of the Doc List. 

There are different filter options depending on whether you are looking at dockets or 

documents.

Search Dockets / Documents field 

Just below the Docket and Document tabs is a search field, titled Search Dockets or Search 

Documents. 

Entering a search term here will search through any dockets or documents currently 

displayed in the Doc List for matches to your search term. 

For example, typing in Proposed Rules in this 

field on the Document tab will filter out all 

documents except Proposed Rules from the list.
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Docket Tree Icon 

To get a full listing of the documents within a 

docket, open one of the Menu items (Inbox, My 

Favorites, etc) and click the Docket tab. Next to 

each docket will be the Docket Tree icon: 

Click on the Docket Tree icon to display the 

Docket Tree, which shows only the documents 

within the docket you selected.

Expand / Contract Arrows

At the bottom left of the Doc List are the Expand / 

Contract controls: 

These arrows will shrink or enlarge the size of the 

Doc List box. You can also use the mouse to 

adjust the size of the left panel manually by 

grabbing the right edge and dragging.

Refresh List

You can refresh the Doc List using the two 

rounded arrows at the bottom: 

Refreshing will update the Doc List to match your 

Filter with any changes you may have made to 

documents or dockets. 

The date and timestamp is the last time the Doc 

List was updated. 

 
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Back arrow

The Doc List always has a left facing arrow at the top: 

Clicking on this will return you to the previous screen.

News Panels

The FDMS Home Screen has a News Panel with three separate tabs. These tabs highlight 

various system features for users.

The Home tab features some brief information about how to start using the system along 

with some Tips and Tricks, Training information and Announcements about the system. 

The New Features tab outlines all the latest features added to FDMS. It also lists features 

that are coming soon to the live version, and any known system bugs that users may be 

experiencing. 

The Training Resources tab features training videos that describe in detail how to perform 

key functions within FDMS. It also offers downloadable Quick Reference Guides on several 

of those same features.

 
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Tools Panel

The Tools panel, located at the top right of the screen, offers several important functions for 

FDMS users. 

Batch Jobs 

FDMS allows users to multi-select documents and perform an action on them all at one 

time. These are called Batch Jobs. 

To start a Batch Job, open the Inbox (or My Favorites, Recently Viewed, etc.) to display a 

Doc List. Click on one of the documents and then hold the shift key down and click on 

aanother document lower down in the list. All the documents become selected and change 

color to blue. The right-side screen will change to a menu of choices. 

The right-side screen offers two options: Add / Remove Favorites and Flag / Unflag 

Documents. 

After choosing one of these options, click on the Submit button on the bottom right of the 

screen. This starts the batch job, performing the selected action on all the highlighted 

documents. Depending on the number of documents and the action selected, this may take 

anywhere from a few seconds to a couple of hours. 

You can view the current status of your changes by selecting Batch Jobs from the Tools 

panel. That screen lists batches run within the last 14 days with information about their 

status. 
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Username 

This displays the name of the currently logged in user. 

User Profile 

The User Profile menu is opened with this link. In this area users are able to update any 

changes to their User Information and change their Password. 

Logout 

Use the Logout link to exit FDMS when you are done working in the system. It is important 

to remember to do this as it prevents unauthorized access to any dockets and documents 

that you have permission to edit. 

Search 

FDMS provides the ability to search for dockets and documents from any Federal Agency. 

Search results include items that are in a posted state (any item viewable on 

Regulations.gov), and any unposted documents in dockets the user has permission to 

access.

FDMS also searches the contents of attached files if they are properly formatted using 

Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology. The PDF generator built into FDMS has 

this capability.

The Search tool is found at the top right of the screen. Enter a search term in the field 

provided and click the magnifying glass to start your search. The default search is for 

dockets, but can easily be switched to Documents using the Filter tool to the left of the 

search field: 

 
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The Search Options menu will open and display all 

search options for Dockets. 

The criteria include fields such as Docket Type, 

Subtype, Date Ranges and Agency. 

Selecting Documents instead of Dockets from the first 

dropdown menu will change the Search Options menu: 

You can search for Types and Subtypes of documents, 

as well as Status and Legacy ID. As with Dockets, you 

can select for a specific date range for the document, 

and find items from other Agencies.

Useful search terms include words from the title of the 

docket or document, or a portion of the document ID. A 

list of all documents that match your search term and any options you’ve selected will be 

displayed in a Doc List on the left of the screen.

Advanced Search 

The Advanced Search option allows users to create a more customized search. As with the 

regular search feature, users can search for dockets or documents. 

The Advanced Search feature is divided into three sections. The first section, shown 

above, lets users choose between Documents and Dockets, enter keywords and / or ID 

number information, and specific date ranges. The keywords and ID fields can both be 

adjusted using the Modify buttons to the right. These buttons let the user change which 

specific fields will be searched. 
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The next section lets users narrow their results in several ways, some of which are Agency, 

Type, Subtype, and Status. 

The last section is only for searching Public Comments. It allows users to locate comments 

from particular people or organizations. Note that EPA does not collect personal 

information from comment submitters. Using the First and Last Name fields in the 

Advanced Search tool will not return any results in FDMS. 

After selecting all the appropriate criteria, click the Search button found at the bottom right 

of the screen. As with the regular Search feature, all matching results will be displayed in 

the left side screen as a Doc List. Each entry in the Dock List can be clicked on and 

reviewed in the right side window without losing the search result. 
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Saving Search Results 

At the bottom of any Search result there is a button called Save Search Results. 

This button allows the user to save the results of the Search as a .csv file. This is a 

common file type that can be read by any spreadsheet software, including MS Excel. 

The Save Search Results button can also be found at the bottom of any Doc List in FDMS. 

This allows the user to export their Inbox contents, Favorites list, or Recently Viewed list.

Example of .csv file export opened in MS Excel 
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Dockets

Viewing a docket in FDMS allows users to see a listing of all the documents that are within 

that docket. It also displays the information that was entered when the docket was created, 

called the docket metadata. 

Docket Organization 

Dockets in FDMS are organized in a straightforward way, analogous to a filing cabinet. 

Documents are stored in a part of the docket called a phase. Phases are subsections of a 

docket, much like individual drawers in a filing cabinet. The docket itself is composed of at 

least one phase, but may have dozens of them. While dockets are viewable on 

Regulations.gov after being posted, phases remain invisible to the public and are only 

viewable in FDMS. 

Docket Creation 

Dockets are created by Docket Managers in FDMS at the request of 

Rule Writers. As a Rule Writer, you will need to work with your Program 

Office Docket Manager or Regional Docket Manager to have one 

created. 

Rule Writers that are associated with EPA Headquarters (all nonRegional EPA users) can request a docket be created by completing the 

form located on the EPA intranet FDMS site FDMSinfo. 

Use the Forms link on that site to open a list of forms related to FDMS at 

EPA. Complete the FDMS Docket Request Form and email it to your 

Documents (FRNs,

Supports, Comments)

Phase

Docket
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Program Office Docket Manager. Contact information for the HQ Docket Managers can 

also be found at this site, under the subsection titled Contact Information. 

The fields on the Docket Creation Request Form that are in red are required fields. Your 

Docket Manager can answer any questions you might have about how to complete the 

form. 

Upon receipt of the Docket Creation Request Form, your Docket Manager will take the 

information provided and create a new docket in FDMS. The Docket Manager will email 
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you with your new docket number soon thereafter, allowing you to include the docket 

number in a FRN you may be preparing and to upload support documents into the docket. 

Docket Details

To view docket metadata, click on a 

Docket ID from your Inbox, My 

Favorites, or even a Search result. 

The Docket Details screen will come 

up on the right side of the screen. 

The information displayed is 

everything provided to your Docket 

Manager when the docket was 

created. Some of this information 

can be updated by the Docket 

Manager if there is incorrect 

information.

Docket Tree

The Docket Tree is a listing of all the documents within a docket. To view the Docket Tree, 

click on the small blue square Docket Tree icon that shows to the left of your Docket ID. 

You can find this icon wherever dockets are listed, like the Inbox, My Favorites, or Search 

results.

The tree can be organized in multiple ways using the Group By dropdown menu. It defaults 

to Phase-Sequence sorting, which gives expandable folders for each Phase in the docket. 

 You can also sort by Status, Date Received, and Document Type.

 
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Clicking directly on a folder title in the Docket Tree will create a detailed search result on the 

right side on the screen. This is a handy tool for getting more detailed information about a 

group of documents than the docket tree can provide.

Clicking on the arrow just to the left of the folders 

will expand the folders in the left panel, showing 

subfolders with more specific groupings of 

documents.

There is also a filter option within the docket that 

limits the docket tree to items that match text you 

enter. This field accepts partial document IDs. To use 

this option, type a search term like DRAFT into the 

filter box. All documents with DRAFT in the ID will be 

displayed, hiding all the posted documents. 

The Docket Tree is also where users create documents in FDMS. Adding documents to 

your docket will be described in full detail in the next section of this guide.

 
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Document Management

Rule Writers regularly create documents in FDMS, and review comments sent in by the 

public on FRNs. Both of these functions are performed in FDMS by opening a docket and 

using the Docket Tree. 

Add Document / Bulk Import

Document Creation in FDMS is a simple process, allowing users to quickly add documents 

to their dockets. With the Add Document/Bulk Import tool users can choose to create a 

single document with multiple attachments, or multiple documents with just one attachment 

each. 

Note that only users with Write permission to a docket can create documents within that 

docket. If you need to obtain Write permission to a docket, contact the correct Docket 

Manager for your Program Office or Region.

To create a document, first open up your docket from your Inbox or My Favorites and click 

on the blue square Docket Tree icon. This displays all the documents in the docket sorted 

by phase. 

Highlight the phase folder of the Docket Tree within 

which you want to add a document by clicking on 

the folder name. FDMS will place the documents 

you create into the highlighted phase. If there is 

only one phase in the docket you do not need to do 

this. 

After highlighting the correct phase, click on the 

Add Document/Bulk Import button. You can find the Add Document/Bulk Import button at 

the top of the Docket Tree within any docket. 

The following screen will display: 
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Select what you would like to do: 

At the top of this popup screen is a radio button choice between: 

 Add Document – Add one Document to the Docket with or without 

attachments 

 Bulk Import – Add more than one Document to the Docket 

The Add Document option will create just one document, but allows for adding as many 

attachments as needed to that document. 

The Bulk Import option is meant for adding multiple documents to the docket at once. It 

creates a new document in the docket for every file you upload, but does not allow for 

adding secondary attachments to those files at creation time. You can however open those 

documents afterwards and add secondary attachments to them. 

Document Type: 

Use this dropdown menu to select the type of document you would like to upload. The 

agency default is Supporting & Related Materials. Other choices are assorted FRN 

document types and Public Submissions. 

File(s) to Upload: 

In this section you will use the Browse button to select the files you wish to upload into the 

docket. It is recommended that you limit the number of files uploaded at any one time to 

100 or less. When you click the Browse button, the following popup appears: 

Navigate to the correct directory and select the files you are adding. Use the Open button 

at the bottom right to add them to the upload list. 
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All the selected files will appear in the File(s) to Upload section of the screen. You may 

continue to add more items with the Browse button, remove incorrectly selected files with 

the red circle icon on the right side of the screen, or complete the Add Document process 

by clicking the Add Document button (or Bulk Import button, depending on your selection 

beforehand). 

Once the files are finished uploading to FDMS, the popup screen will display something 

similar to the example above. Clicking on the Ok button will close the popup window and 

open the newly created document for review. In the case of multiple files created via Bulk 

Import, the system will open the first of the new documents created. 

Document Order in the Docket 

The order of documents in the docket is determined by the order in which they are uploaded 

to FDMS. These can be reordered at the time of posting if necessary. Contact the Docket 

Manager to have them reordered. Once documents are posted, they can no longer be 

reordered. 

 
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Document Metadata

Document Metadata is the term for all the different data fields that can be found within 

documents in FDMS. Metadata is typically entered by the Regional Rule Writer, or by the 

Docket Center for Headquarters Rule Writers. 

Document Details Tab 

After creating a new document or clicking on a Document ID in the Docket Tree, the 

document will display on the right side of the screen with the Document Details tab 

highlighted. This tab allows you to add or change any of the primary metadata for this 

document. 

Fields like Title, Abstract, Authors and Subtype are important to have filled out completely 

as these assist public users in finding your documents. All the fields marked with red 

asterisks (*) are required fields. 

After making any changes to document metadata, click Save at the bottom of the screen. 

 
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Optional Details Tab

The Optional Details tab contains a few more metadata fields which vary depending on the 

type of document being viewed. Complete any fields that are appropriate for the particular 

document you are working on. 

The Submitter Info Tab 

The Submitter Info tab only appears on Public Submission documents. Rule Writers use 

this tab to review comments that have come into their dockets. Once you have opened a 

Public Submission for review, you can read the actual comment from this tab. 

 
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The comment is displayed in the Comment field. Any Organization or Government 

information is displayed near the bottom of the screen. 

Comments are often submitted as separate attachments through Regulations.gov. An 

example of that is shown above. In these cases the text of the comment cannot be seen in 

the Comment field – it simply says ‘See attached file(s)’. 

You need to click on the Attachments tab to locate the comment file. These will typically be 

PDF and/or MS Word files that you can then click on to open and review. 

Attachments Tab

This tab lists all the secondary attachments associated with this Document ID. Highlighting 

any of these attachments will bring up metadata for that individual attachment in the screen 

below the list. As with Document Details, this metadata can be added and updated before 

being posted. Use the Save button to save any changes you make.
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To add attachments after creating the initial document, use the Add Attachment button on 

this screen.

Actions Menu 

The Actions dropdown menu appears at the top right of the 

screen when viewing the Document Details or Optional Details 

tabs. This menu contains several options for users when working 

on a document.

This menu allows you to:

Copy - Duplicate the current document to a different Docket or a different Phase within the 

same Docket.

Move - Move the current document to a different Docket or a different Phase within the 

same Docket. This only works on non-posted documents.

Change Document Type – Change the Document Type of the document. This field 

determines whether a document is a comment, FRN, or support. The EPA agency default 

for this field is Supporting and Related Materials.

Replace File - Swap the Primary Attachment for a new file attachment. The Primary 

Attachment is the first attachment uploaded, and is displayed on the Document Details tab. 

All other attachments are considered Secondary Attachments and are found on the 

Attachments tab. Replacing files only works on documents that are not yet posted.

Add Rendition - Select another file attachment from your computer and add it as another 

Primary Attachment. The intent of this function is to provide file type options for the public 

to select from. For instance, if your Primary Attachment is a MS Word Document, you can 

use this option to upload another document in Word Perfect (or any other) format. Both will 

display as the Primary Attachment, along with the automatically generated PDF document.

 
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39

Regulations.gov 

The site for the general public to electronically submit comments to dockets is called 

Regulations.gov. This site provides complete read access to all posted documents across 

all government agencies that participate in FDMS usage. The public can access the 

assorted Federal Register documents and support documents, and all comments made by 

other citizens and organizations. 

The EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC) staff receives comments submitted by email, fax, US 

Mail, courier services, and from the Regulations.gov web site. All comments can be viewed 

by Rule Writers before they are posted (as long as the Rule Writer has permission to 

access the docket) by finding them in FDMS, or in Regulations.gov after they have been 

posted. 

A number of easy search approaches are available on the Regulations.gov home page to 

assist the public in finding posted documents of all kinds. Searches are conducted by 

examining all document metadata and the contents of the file attachments. 
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Find a FR with Open Comment Period 

Locating FRs to comment on is easy in Regulations.gov. 

Open the Regulations.gov site and enter any search term that you are interested in 

(‘Mercury’ for instance) in the Keyword search field. 

Click the Search button and the system will find all documents that use the word ‘Mercury’ 

in any of the metadata or within any of the document attachments. Note that document 

attachments can only be searched if they have been processed with Optical Character 

Recognition (OCR). Document attachments without this feature will not be included in 

search results. 

When the Search Results screen is displayed, click on the Open checkbox under the 

Comment Period header in the left hand column. This will remove all documents except 

those that you can make a comment on. In this screenshot above, this leaves 13 FRs that 

are open for comment and relate in some way to Mercury. 

You can continue to reduce the number of results by using the 

filter options along the left hand column. For instance, to look 

at only FRs from EPA, type in ‘EPA’ in the Agency box. 
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Create a New Comment 

From the results list above for ‘Mercury’, there are several FRs open for comment. All the 

results have the Comment Now! button available. Any FR or other document that is not 

accepting comments will not have this button. 

Click on the Comment Now! button to open the comment form. 

The Comment form is displayed. This page is divided into two sections: 1) Enter 

information; and 2) Type Comment & Upload File. 

The public user only needs to fill Section 1) if they represent an Organization or 

Government Agency. Private citizens should leave this section blank. 

To comment on this FR, type in your thoughts on the subject in the large text box. Use the 

Browse and Attach buttons to include a document attachment, possibly an article or a full 

comment on letterhead. Click Submit to add your comment to the FDMS database. 
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A confirmation page is displayed with a unique identifier number for the comment. The 

public can use this number in the Search field on the main Regulations.gov page to easily 

locate their document once it has been posted (typically within 3 business days of 

submission).

Email Alerts 

Users will often want to follow the latest updates to particular dockets on Regulations.gov. 

To address this, the system has a feature call Email Alerts which any user can use. Emails 

will be sent to the user when activity happens within the docket they’ve been asked to be 

notified about. 

To setup an Email Alert, search on a topic you are interested in Regulations.gov. In the 

results list, use the Open Docket Folder link to open the docket and see all the documents it 

contains. 

In the column on the right side of the screen, find the link that 

says Sign up for E-mail Alerts. That link will open a popup 

screen: 

Enter your email address in the email address field. Select the frequency at which you 

would like to be updated about the docket. Click Subscribe when finished. 
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Features from FDMS 3 

There are a few remaining features in the older version of FDMS that are net yet 

implemented in FDMS 4. Over time these features will be added to FDMS 4, but until then 

these are only available by navigating to the old version. 

Switching to FDMS 3 

To switch to the older version of FDMS, use the arrow-shaped link at the top of the screen. 

A new browser window will open and log you into FDMS 3 automatically. You can switch 

back and forth between the two versions easily by changing active tabs in your browser, or 

by using the link again to switch. 

Notifications 

The Notifications tab is found in the My Profile section of FDMS 3. 

This tab allows you to request notifications by email regarding specific docket activity. You 

can set how often you receive these emails with the frequency option, choosing between 

instant, daily, weekly, or even monthly emails. Daily, weekly, and monthly notifications will 

be received as a consolidated email notice. 

Notifications can be modified or deleted at any time from the Notifications tab. All 

Notification emails are sent to the email address listed in your user profile.

Other Features 

These other features that will also be added to FDMS 4. 

 Exporting Attachments 

 Assorted Reports