# Federal Register Rules Scraper (`nexgendata/federal-register-rules-scraper`) Actor

Scrape Federal Register documents — final rules, proposed rules, notices, presidential docs. Title, type, abstract, document number, pub + effective dates, agencies, CFR references, RIN, docket IDs, comment-close dates. Regulatory affairs, contractors, legal compliance, GovTech.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/nexgendata/federal-register-rules-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Stephan Corbeil](https://apify.com/nexgendata) (community)
- **Categories:** Business, Lead generation
- **Stats:** 1 total users, 0 monthly users, 0.0% runs succeeded, NaN bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $80.00 / 1,000 federal register documents

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md):

```bash
npm install apify-client
```

In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md):

```bash
pip install apify-client
```

In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md):

````bash
# MacOS / Linux
curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash
# Windows
irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex
```bash

In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md).

If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).


# README

## 📋 Federal Register Rules Scraper — Regulatory Compliance Tracker

**Pull every final rule, proposed rule, notice, and presidential document — direct from the official Federal Register API. No paywall, no API key, every weekday's publication.**

The Federal Register is the official daily journal of the US government — every legally-binding rule, every proposed rule open for comment, every executive order, every regulatory notice. ~10K documents publish each year across 300+ agencies. This Actor wraps `federalregister.gov/api/v1/documents.json` and ships clean rows for regulatory-affairs teams, government contractors, legal compliance, lobbyists, and GovTech sales.

### What you get (per document)

- `document_number` — the unique FR ID
- `title`, `type` (Rule / Proposed Rule / Notice / Presidential Document), `subtype`
- `abstract` — the agency's summary
- `action` — e.g. "Final regulations" / "Notice of proposed rulemaking"
- `publication_date`, `effective_on`, `comments_close_on`, `dates_text`
- `agencies[]` — every issuing agency with id, name, raw_name, slug, parent_id
- `agency_slugs[]`, `agency_names[]` — flat lists for easy filtering
- `topics[]` — agency-tagged subject keywords
- `cfr_references[]` — `[{title, part, chapter}]` arrays of affected CFR
- `regulation_id_numbers[]` — RIN (e.g. "1545-BR17")
- `docket_ids[]` — agency docket IDs (e.g. "TD 10024", "EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0072")
- `executive_order_number` — for EO-tied documents
- `start_page`, `end_page`, `page_views`
- `significant` — Significant Rule flag (per E.O. 12866)
- `html_url`, `pdf_url`, `raw_text_url`, `body_html_url`, `public_inspection_pdf_url`
- `regulations_dot_gov_info` — rule-comment-portal cross-reference

### Six high-leverage use cases

1. **Compliance: SEC rule alerts** — `agencies: ["securities-and-exchange-commission"]`, `documentTypes: ["RULE","PRORULE"]`. Every SEC rule the day it publishes, with dockets + comment-close dates.
2. **GovTech sales: every new rule = sales opportunity** — pipe Final Rules tagged with topics like "data security" / "privacy" / "cybersecurity" into your CRM as opportunity records.
3. **Lobbying ROI** — match `regulation_id_numbers` against your tracked LDA filings. Did your client's lobbying actually shape the final rule?
4. **Legal practice intake** — set `cfrTitle: 17` (SEC) and watch for new actions affecting securities-law practice.
5. **Government-contractor monitoring** — `agencies: ["defense-acquisition-regulations-system"]` for DFARS/FAR changes.
6. **Open public-comment dashboard** — aggregate all `PRORULE` with `comments_close_on` in the next 14 days for your subject-matter experts.

### JSON quick start

```json
{
  "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
  "dateTo": "2025-01-15",
  "documentTypes": ["RULE", "PRORULE"],
  "agencies": ["securities-and-exchange-commission"],
  "maxDocuments": 50
}
````

POST to `https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/nexgendata~federal-register-rules-scraper/runs?token=YOUR_TOKEN`.

### Python SDK example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_TOKEN")
run = client.actor("nexgendata/federal-register-rules-scraper").call(
    run_input={
        "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
        "dateTo": "2025-01-15",
        "documentTypes": ["RULE"],
        "cfrTitle": 17,
        "maxDocuments": 25,
    }
)
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item["publication_date"], item["type"], "—", item["title"][:80])
```

### cURL one-liner

```bash
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/nexgendata~federal-register-rules-scraper/runs?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -d '{"dateFrom":"2025-01-01","dateTo":"2025-01-15","documentTypes":["RULE"],"maxDocuments":25}'
```

### Pipe the output anywhere

- **Zapier** — daily watcher → new SEC final rules → Slack
- **Make.com** — Apify trigger → Notion regulatory database
- **n8n** — Apify run → CRM enrichment → opportunity creation
- **DBT / Snowflake / BigQuery** — daily ingest into your regulatory data lake

### Pricing — pay only for what you get

| Event | Cost |
|---|---|
| Actor start | $0.00005 (one-time per run, scaled by GB-RAM) |
| Each document | **$0.08** |

A typical one-month pull (~800 documents) is ~$64. The full year of Final Rules + Proposed Rules + Significant Notices (~6,000 docs) is ~$480. Compare to Bloomberg Government ($10K+/yr), Westlaw Regulatory ($15K+/yr), or RegHub ($24K+/yr).

**Cost calculator:** `documents × $0.08 + $0.00005 × memoryGB`. No subscription, no minimum.

### FAQ

**Q. How fresh is the data?**
A. The Federal Register publishes daily on weekdays. Documents appear in the API the morning of publication.

**Q. Can I get the full document text?**
A. Yes — every record carries `raw_text_url`, `body_html_url`, `pdf_url`, and `public_inspection_pdf_url`. Follow those links for the full Federal Register notice text. Our Actor returns metadata + abstract + agency-supplied dates, not the full body (keeps response sizes reasonable).

**Q. What's the difference between `effective_on` and `dates_text`?**
A. `effective_on` is parsed when the agency uses a clean ISO date; `dates_text` is the agency's free-text "DATES" section which often includes multiple effective dates for different parts of a rule.

**Q. How do I know which CFR title 17 etc. corresponds to?**
A. Common: 17 = SEC, 21 = FDA, 26 = IRS, 40 = EPA, 42 = HHS, 47 = FCC, 49 = DOT, 31 = OFAC.

**Q. Is the data free / public?**
A. Yes — federalregister.gov is a public-domain government source. We charge for the engineered pipeline.

### Related actors from the same author

- **[CourtListener Federal Docket Scraper](https://apify.com/nexgendata/courtlistener-federal-docket-scraper)** — federal court dockets, $0.008/docket. Companion legal/regulatory dataset.
- **[FTC Enforcement Actions Scraper](https://apify.com/nexgendata/ftc-enforcement-actions-scraper)** — FTC cases & proceedings, $0.10/case. Companion compliance dataset.
- **[LDA Lobbying Disclosure Scraper](https://apify.com/nexgendata/lda-lobbying-disclosure-scraper)** — lobbying filings, $0.10/filing. Pair with rule-tracking for lobbying-ROI analysis.

### Try the full nexgendata fleet

[Browse 170+ scrapers](https://apify.com/nexgendata?fpr=2ayu9b) — SEC EDGAR, government contracts, ATS jobs, FEC, court records, real estate, MCP servers and more. Get $5 free Apify credit when you sign up via that link.

***

Built and maintained by the [nexgendata](https://apify.com/nexgendata) team. Bug reports & feature requests welcome via Apify Console messaging.

# Actor input Schema

## `dateFrom` (type: `string`):

Inclusive start date for the publication-date range. The Federal Register publishes daily on weekdays.

## `dateTo` (type: `string`):

Inclusive end date for the publication-date range. Use a small window (1–14 days) for ad-hoc research; longer windows for bulk pulls.

## `documentTypes` (type: `array`):

Which document types to include. RULE = final rule (legally binding). PRORULE = proposed rule (open for comment). NOTICE = informational notice. PRESDOCU = presidential documents (executive orders, proclamations, memoranda).

## `agencies` (type: `array`):

Restrict to documents issued by these agencies. Use Federal Register agency slugs (e.g. 'securities-and-exchange-commission', 'environmental-protection-agency', 'federal-trade-commission'). Leave empty for all agencies.

## `cfrTitle` (type: `integer`):

Restrict to documents that affect a specific CFR title (e.g. 17 = SEC, 21 = FDA, 26 = IRS, 40 = EPA, 42 = HHS, 47 = FCC).

## `maxDocuments` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of documents to return (1–10000). Each document is one dataset row.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
  "dateTo": "2025-01-15",
  "documentTypes": [
    "RULE",
    "PRORULE"
  ],
  "agencies": [],
  "maxDocuments": 5
}
```

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
    "dateTo": "2025-01-15",
    "documentTypes": [
        "RULE",
        "PRORULE"
    ],
    "agencies": [],
    "cfrTitle": 0,
    "maxDocuments": 5
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("nexgendata/federal-register-rules-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
    "dateTo": "2025-01-15",
    "documentTypes": [
        "RULE",
        "PRORULE",
    ],
    "agencies": [],
    "cfrTitle": 0,
    "maxDocuments": 5,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("nexgendata/federal-register-rules-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"])
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "dateFrom": "2025-01-01",
  "dateTo": "2025-01-15",
  "documentTypes": [
    "RULE",
    "PRORULE"
  ],
  "agencies": [],
  "cfrTitle": 0,
  "maxDocuments": 5
}' |
apify call nexgendata/federal-register-rules-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "mcp-remote",
                "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=nexgendata/federal-register-rules-scraper",
                "--header",
                "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_TOKEN>"
            ]
        }
    }
}

```

## OpenAPI specification

```json
{
    "openapi": "3.0.1",
    "info": {
        "title": "Federal Register Rules Scraper",
        "description": "Scrape Federal Register documents — final rules, proposed rules, notices, presidential docs. Title, type, abstract, document number, pub + effective dates, agencies, CFR references, RIN, docket IDs, comment-close dates. Regulatory affairs, contractors, legal compliance, GovTech.",
        "version": "0.0",
        "x-build-id": "CYadQT3hH3WQDewH3"
    },
    "servers": [
        {
            "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2"
        }
    ],
    "paths": {
        "/acts/nexgendata~federal-register-rules-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items": {
            "post": {
                "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-nexgendata-federal-register-rules-scraper",
                "x-openai-isConsequential": false,
                "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.",
                "tags": [
                    "Run Actor"
                ],
                "requestBody": {
                    "required": true,
                    "content": {
                        "application/json": {
                            "schema": {
                                "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                "parameters": [
                    {
                        "name": "token",
                        "in": "query",
                        "required": true,
                        "schema": {
                            "type": "string"
                        },
                        "description": "Enter your Apify token here"
                    }
                ],
                "responses": {
                    "200": {
                        "description": "OK"
                    }
                }
            }
        },
        "/acts/nexgendata~federal-register-rules-scraper/runs": {
            "post": {
                "operationId": "runs-sync-nexgendata-federal-register-rules-scraper",
                "x-openai-isConsequential": false,
                "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.",
                "tags": [
                    "Run Actor"
                ],
                "requestBody": {
                    "required": true,
                    "content": {
                        "application/json": {
                            "schema": {
                                "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                "parameters": [
                    {
                        "name": "token",
                        "in": "query",
                        "required": true,
                        "schema": {
                            "type": "string"
                        },
                        "description": "Enter your Apify token here"
                    }
                ],
                "responses": {
                    "200": {
                        "description": "OK",
                        "content": {
                            "application/json": {
                                "schema": {
                                    "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema"
                                }
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        },
        "/acts/nexgendata~federal-register-rules-scraper/run-sync": {
            "post": {
                "operationId": "run-sync-nexgendata-federal-register-rules-scraper",
                "x-openai-isConsequential": false,
                "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.",
                "tags": [
                    "Run Actor"
                ],
                "requestBody": {
                    "required": true,
                    "content": {
                        "application/json": {
                            "schema": {
                                "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                "parameters": [
                    {
                        "name": "token",
                        "in": "query",
                        "required": true,
                        "schema": {
                            "type": "string"
                        },
                        "description": "Enter your Apify token here"
                    }
                ],
                "responses": {
                    "200": {
                        "description": "OK"
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    },
    "components": {
        "schemas": {
            "inputSchema": {
                "type": "object",
                "required": [
                    "dateFrom",
                    "dateTo"
                ],
                "properties": {
                    "dateFrom": {
                        "title": "Publication date — from (YYYY-MM-DD)",
                        "type": "string",
                        "description": "Inclusive start date for the publication-date range. The Federal Register publishes daily on weekdays."
                    },
                    "dateTo": {
                        "title": "Publication date — to (YYYY-MM-DD)",
                        "type": "string",
                        "description": "Inclusive end date for the publication-date range. Use a small window (1–14 days) for ad-hoc research; longer windows for bulk pulls."
                    },
                    "documentTypes": {
                        "title": "Document types",
                        "type": "array",
                        "description": "Which document types to include. RULE = final rule (legally binding). PRORULE = proposed rule (open for comment). NOTICE = informational notice. PRESDOCU = presidential documents (executive orders, proclamations, memoranda).",
                        "items": {
                            "type": "string"
                        }
                    },
                    "agencies": {
                        "title": "Agency slugs (optional)",
                        "type": "array",
                        "description": "Restrict to documents issued by these agencies. Use Federal Register agency slugs (e.g. 'securities-and-exchange-commission', 'environmental-protection-agency', 'federal-trade-commission'). Leave empty for all agencies.",
                        "items": {
                            "type": "string"
                        }
                    },
                    "cfrTitle": {
                        "title": "CFR title number (optional)",
                        "minimum": 1,
                        "maximum": 50,
                        "type": "integer",
                        "description": "Restrict to documents that affect a specific CFR title (e.g. 17 = SEC, 21 = FDA, 26 = IRS, 40 = EPA, 42 = HHS, 47 = FCC)."
                    },
                    "maxDocuments": {
                        "title": "Max documents",
                        "minimum": 1,
                        "maximum": 10000,
                        "type": "integer",
                        "description": "Maximum number of documents to return (1–10000). Each document is one dataset row.",
                        "default": 100
                    }
                }
            },
            "runsResponseSchema": {
                "type": "object",
                "properties": {
                    "data": {
                        "type": "object",
                        "properties": {
                            "id": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "actId": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "userId": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "startedAt": {
                                "type": "string",
                                "format": "date-time",
                                "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z"
                            },
                            "finishedAt": {
                                "type": "string",
                                "format": "date-time",
                                "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z"
                            },
                            "status": {
                                "type": "string",
                                "example": "READY"
                            },
                            "meta": {
                                "type": "object",
                                "properties": {
                                    "origin": {
                                        "type": "string",
                                        "example": "API"
                                    },
                                    "userAgent": {
                                        "type": "string"
                                    }
                                }
                            },
                            "stats": {
                                "type": "object",
                                "properties": {
                                    "inputBodyLen": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 2000
                                    },
                                    "rebootCount": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "restartCount": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "resurrectCount": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "computeUnits": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    }
                                }
                            },
                            "options": {
                                "type": "object",
                                "properties": {
                                    "build": {
                                        "type": "string",
                                        "example": "latest"
                                    },
                                    "timeoutSecs": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 300
                                    },
                                    "memoryMbytes": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 1024
                                    },
                                    "diskMbytes": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 2048
                                    }
                                }
                            },
                            "buildId": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "defaultKeyValueStoreId": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "defaultDatasetId": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "defaultRequestQueueId": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "buildNumber": {
                                "type": "string",
                                "example": "1.0.0"
                            },
                            "containerUrl": {
                                "type": "string"
                            },
                            "usage": {
                                "type": "object",
                                "properties": {
                                    "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATASET_READS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATASET_WRITES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 1
                                    },
                                    "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "PROXY_SERPS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    }
                                }
                            },
                            "usageTotalUsd": {
                                "type": "number",
                                "example": 0.00005
                            },
                            "usageUsd": {
                                "type": "object",
                                "properties": {
                                    "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATASET_READS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATASET_WRITES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": {
                                        "type": "number",
                                        "example": 0.00005
                                    },
                                    "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    },
                                    "PROXY_SERPS": {
                                        "type": "integer",
                                        "example": 0
                                    }
                                }
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
}
```