The Code of Federal Regulations

The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government. The CFR divides regulatory text into fifty titles representing broad subject areas of federal regulation. Each title contains regulations promulgated by agencies with jurisdiction over that subject matter.

Distinction from the Federal Register

The Federal Register and the CFR serve different documentary functions within the federal regulatory system. The Federal Register operates as a daily publication that prints proposed rules, final rules, notices, and presidential documents in chronological order as agencies issue them. The CFR, by contrast, presents the current, codified version of regulations organized by subject matter. When an agency publishes a final rule in the Federal Register, that rule eventually becomes incorporated into the relevant section of the CFR, replacing or supplementing existing regulatory text. The Federal Register thus functions as the official journal of federal regulatory activity, while the CFR functions as the compilation of regulations currently in force.

Organizational Structure

The CFR’s fifty titles correspond to broad regulatory domains. Title 7 addresses agriculture, Title 21 addresses food and drugs, Title 26 addresses internal revenue, and Title 40 addresses environmental protection, among others. Each title subdivides into chapters, which typically correspond to individual agencies or bureaus. Within chapters, the structure further divides into parts, which address specific regulatory programs or topics. Parts then divide into sections, which contain the actual regulatory text. Sections represent the most granular level of organization in the CFR hierarchy.

A complete CFR citation identifies the title number, the part number, and the section number. The citation format places the title number first, followed by “CFR,” followed by the section number. The section number incorporates the part number before the decimal point. For example, 40 CFR 50.4 refers to Title 40, Part 50, Section 4. When citing an entire part rather than a specific section, the citation format uses “Part” explicitly, as in 40 CFR Part 50.

Agency Role in Organization

Federal agencies determine the internal organization of their respective chapters within CFR titles. An agency with regulatory authority over multiple subject areas may have chapters in several different titles. Conversely, a single title may contain chapters from multiple agencies when those agencies share jurisdiction over related subject matter. The Office of the Federal Register, a component of the National Archives and Records Administration, maintains the overall structure and publication of the CFR but does not determine the substantive content of regulations or their organization within agency chapters.

Regulatory Development Process

Regulations typically originate when an agency publishes a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register. The NPRM presents the proposed regulatory text and provides a period for public comment. Following the comment period, the agency may publish a final rule in the Federal Register, which includes the regulatory text as adopted. The final rule specifies an effective date, after which the regulation takes legal effect. The regulatory text from the final rule then becomes incorporated into the CFR during the next revision cycle for the relevant title.

Some regulations bypass the proposed rulemaking stage. Agencies may issue interim final rules that take effect immediately while still soliciting public comment, or direct final rules when the agency anticipates no adverse comment. Emergency situations may warrant immediate final rules without prior notice. The Administrative Procedure Act establishes the general framework for federal rulemaking, though specific statutes may impose additional procedural requirements for particular agencies or regulatory programs.

Updates and Revisions

The CFR undergoes continuous revision as agencies amend existing regulations or promulgate new ones. The Office of the Federal Register publishes revised volumes of the CFR on a staggered quarterly schedule. Titles 1-16 receive annual revision as of January 1, titles 17-27 as of April 1, titles 28-41 as of July 1, and titles 42-50 as of October 1. Each revised volume reflects all amendments published in the Federal Register through the revision date for that title.

Between annual revisions, the Federal Register serves as the authoritative source for regulatory amendments. The List of CFR Sections Affected (LSA) tracks changes to CFR sections by documenting Federal Register citations for rules that have amended, removed, or added CFR provisions. The LSA publishes monthly and cumulates changes from the most recent annual CFR revision through the end of the previous month. Daily updates to affected CFR sections appear in the Federal Register’s reader aids section.

Relationship to Statutes and Other Legal Materials

Regulations in the CFR derive their legal authority from statutes enacted by Congress. When Congress passes legislation granting rulemaking authority to an agency, that agency may promulgate regulations to implement the statutory provisions. Each CFR section typically includes an authority citation identifying the statutory provisions under which the agency issued the regulation. These citations reference the United States Code, which codifies federal statutes, or public law numbers for recently enacted legislation not yet incorporated into the Code.

The CFR exists within a broader ecosystem of federal legal materials. Statutes in the United States Code provide the foundational legal authority. Public laws represent individual pieces of legislation as enacted. The Federal Register documents the chronological development of regulations and agency actions. Presidential documents, including executive orders and proclamations, may direct agency regulatory activity or establish regulatory requirements directly. Agency guidance documents, policy statements, and interpretive rules may supplement CFR regulations without undergoing the full rulemaking process, though such materials lack the binding legal force of regulations published in the CFR.

Administrative decisions and adjudications by agencies also interact with CFR regulations. Agency adjudicatory bodies interpret and apply regulations to specific factual situations, generating precedential decisions that may influence regulatory interpretation. These decisions do not appear in the CFR itself but exist in separate reporting systems maintained by individual agencies or commercial publishers.