Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group acquires Government Institutes Publishing.

Government Institutes was founded in 1973 in Rockville, Maryland, and achieved early success with its Environmental Law Handbook, which has become a standard reference work in the field and is used extensively as a college and law school textbook.

Its other reference books, commentary, textbooks and guides on U.S. government regulatory information are in the areas of health, safety, food and drug, environment and, more recently, homeland security.

At the beginning of this month The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group Inc. acquired the publishing division of Government Institutes from ABS Consulting.

Whitestone Communications represented ABS in the transaction, the terms of which were not disclosed.

Government Institutes will become part of RLPG's Scarecrow Press, whose vice president and publisher, Edward Kurdyla, said, "One of the qualities that most impressed us about Government Institutes is its outstanding roster of authors, including several of the most respected attorneys and law firms in the country, as well as top engineers and other professionals in the regulatory areas."

Government Institutes will retain its own identity and two of its ISBN prefixes.

RLPG, 4501 Forbes Blvd., #200, Lanham, MD 20708, 301-459-3366, www.scarecrowpress.com