We're interested in your views as to what we should do to remove any unnecessary barriers to electronic transactions. In November 1999, President Clinton signed a memorandum on "Facilitating the Growth of Electronic Commerce." In the memorandum, the President notes the great promise that electronic transactions hold for the American people, including significantly greater choice and convenience as well as enhanced competition.

The President's memorandum highlights the need to update our laws and regulations that may have the unintended effect of impeding electronic transactions. In part, we've been required to do this for some time. The Government Paperwork Elimination Act, passed in 1998, calls for federal agencies to do business electronically with the public. The Act states that federal agencies must provide by October 2003 for the option of the electronic maintenance, submission, and disclosure of information, as well as for the use and acceptance of electronic signatures, when practicable.

However, the Government Paperwork Elimination Act doesn't address laws and regulations that govern electronic transactions in the private sector. Accordingly, the President asked agencies to examine their laws and regulations to determine if they have the unintended effect of impeding business-to-business and business-to-consumer electronic transactions. At the same time, it may be the case that some paper transactions shouldn't be done electronically. We want to ensure that the consumer protections that exist for paper transactions aren't lost in an electronic environment.

With this as background, we welcome your comments on the issues raised by the growth of electronic transactions. In particular, we'd like to hear from you on the following matters:

• What transactions with the Bureau of the Public Debt that you now must do through paper would you most want to have the option of doing electronically? Are there any transactions with the Bureau of the Public Debt that you'd never want to do electronically? Are there any transactions with the Bureau of the Public Debt that you'd only want to do electronically?
• Through its rules, regulations, underlying laws, or procedures, does the Bureau of the Public Debt impose--directly or indirectly--any unnecessary barriers to business-to-business or business-to-consumer online transactions? If it does, how should the Bureau of the Public Debt revise these provisions? Are there any barriers that you believe are necessary for the public interest and shouldn't be removed?