Roundtables

ACUS’s Office of the Chair convenes several bodies that meet periodically to discuss topics of interest governmentwide. ACUS also participates as a member of the White House Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable.


The Interagency Roundtable meets every several months. Most meetings begin with a presentation by an agency official or outside expert, followed by a moderated discussion, on a topic to be announced in advance. Meetings conclude with an opportunity for participants to suggest new ACUS initiatives. Each government member of ACUS and liaison representative from a government agency is deemed a member of the Roundtable and will receive meeting notifications automatically. All other Conference members are welcome to attend Roundtable meetings, as are colleagues at member agencies, and should email Kazia Nowacki (knowacki@acus.gov) if they wish to receive meeting notifications.

The Council of Independent Regulatory Agencies (CIRA) provides a unique forum for officials at independent regulatory agencies to exchange information, hear the perspectives of outside experts, and identify issues that may be appropriate for Conference study. Each government member from an independent regulatory agency and liaison representative from an independent regulatory agency is deemed a member of CIRA and will receive meeting notifications automatically. The Office of the Chair convenes CIRA meetings on a periodic basis as issues warranting CIRA’s attention arise. For more information about CIRA, please contact Ben Birkhill (bbirkhill@acus.gov).

The Council on Federal Agency Adjudication provides a forum for the heads of agency adjudication programs to exchange information—about procedural innovations, best management practices, and other subjects of mutual interest—that may be "useful in improving administrative procedure" (5 U.S.C. § 591). The Council also offers a forum for identifying subjects appropriate for ACUS study. A consultative group of leading administrative law scholars and other outside experts assists the Council by sharing academic research and helping to identify subjects for further study. For more information about the Council, please visit its webpage or contact Matthew Gluth (mgluth@acus.gov).

The ADR Advisory Group advises ACUS on potential new initiatives to improve—through potential ACUS-recommended administrative and legislative reforms—the design and administration of ADR programs throughout the federal government. The ADR Advisory Group builds on ACUS’s longstanding study and implementation of ADR in federal administrative processes. All members of the ADR Advisory Group are government officials. (The Advisory Group is distinct from the agency or interagency committee designated under 5 U.S.C. § 573(c).) For more information about the ADR Advisory Group, please contact Kazia Nowacki (knowacki@acus.gov).

The Roundtable on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Federal Agencies will help agencies develop and improve protocols and practices for using AI tools in their administrative processes. It will provide a forum for officials representing agencies across the federal government to exchange information and best practices related to uses of AI in rulemaking, adjudication, enforcement, and other administrative processes. For more information about this Roundtable, please contact Kazia Nowacki (knowacki@acus.gov).

The administrative procedural practices of state and local governments might provide helpful lessons for federal agencies. Through this program, ACUS's Office of the Chair is interested in learning more about state and local practices related to rulemaking, enforcement, adjudication, and other aspects of administrative procedure. The Office of the Chair will, on an ongoing basis, identify and share relevant practices with federal agencies. ACUS may also periodically convene meetings on specific topics of interest to federal officials. For more information about the Roundtable on State Administrative Procedural Practices, please contact Benjamin Birkhill (bbirkhill@acus.gov).