Rule Approval by the Regulatory Policy Officer (RPO)
The Chief Management Officer (CMO), Department of Defense, as the DoD RPO, is responsible for monitoring regulatory activities within DoD to ensure uniform compliance with the implementation of executive and legislative requirements and priorities, to include the specific requirements of EO 12866. All rulemakings will be approved by the RPO prior to review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
The Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Privacy, Civil Liberties, and Transparency (ATSD(PCLT)) is the functional proponent for the DoD Regulatory Program (DRP) and shall manage the operational requirements of the rule approval process. The Regulatory Directorate (RD) administers the program on behalf of the ATSD(PCLT). The RD reviews, processes, and forwards the rule submission package to the RPO and monitors all DoD rulemaking under consideration at OMB.
In addition to the text of the rule in Federal Register format, the following documents must be included in each regulatory package:
Component Federal Register Liaison Officer (FRLOs) and Office of the Secretary and Health Affairs Action Officers should send fully coordinated rule packages to osd.mc-alex.odcmo.mbx.osdfederalregister@mail.mil. In the e-mail, please attach electronic files of the rule and the required paperwork in MSWord format. The RD has developed a database to capture much of the information in these files. We will review for completeness and then prepare the Action Memo that the ATSD(PCLT), as the DoD RPO, will sign approving the rule for transmission to OMB.
Once RPO approval has been obtained, the RD will transmit a copy of the signed (approving) action memo to your FRLO who should then forward it to you. At that time, RD will proceed with the rulemaking process by sending a copy of the rule text to the appropriate OMB Desk Officer, requesting review and approval to publish the rule (see section titled OMB Approval).