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Existing literature on epistemic communities assumes that government decision-makers generally play a passive role in the development of expertise and policy solutions because they lack the necessary advanced degrees to clear the bar for entrance into the community. In this paper I argue to the contrary that government decision-makers play important roles spurring the development of epistemic communities. While most government participants in epistemic communities may lack the necessary formal training, they can use government agencies and regulations to provide resources, access to information, and opportunities for networking to help an emerging epistemic community. Government decision-makers can also work effectively to block the formation, consolidation, and political influence of epistemic communities counter to the interests or principles of the prevailing government. I examine the emergence and evolution of the epistemic communities around the issues of ozone depletion and nuclear arms control and disarmament in order to better understand the role of government actors and fill gaps in existing theories of epistemic communities.