3.02.01 Purpose

3.02.02 Scope

3.02.03 Definitions

3.02.04 Policy

3.02.05 Procedures for Establishing NIST Membership in Organizations Where NIST Has Not Previously Been a Member

3.02.06 Procedures for Approval of Staff Participation in Outside Organizations

3.02.07 Approval Procedures for Acceptance of Standards Committee Secretariat Functions

 3.02.08 Funding

Appendix A - NIST Policy on Voluntary Standards
 

3.02.01
PURPOSE
a.  This subchapter establishes policies and procedures for the acceptance and maintenance of membership on government and nongovernment standards bodies working in areas related to the activities of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.  Policies for standards bodies are consistent with federal guidelines for participation in the development and use of voluntary standards as set out by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in OMB Circular A-119, revised February 19, 1998.  In addition, the Guidelines for NIST Staff Participating in Voluntary Standards Developing Activities (NISTIR 6778) provides a brief overview of the U.S. documentary standards process and detailed guidance for NIST staff who now or will in the future participate in the development of voluntary standards.

b.  This subchapter also establishes policies and procedures for the acceptance and maintenance of membership in professional organizations working in areas related to the activities of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
 

3.02.02
SCOPE
a. The policies and procedures in this subchapter apply to all NIST employees.

b. This subchapter covers all standards bodies and professional organizations, whether national or international in scope.
 

3.02.03
DEFINITIONS
a. Body - Any institute, board, commission, council, conference, panel, task force, committee, or other similar group or organization, or any subcommittee or other subgroup thereof.

b. Standard - Any voluntary or mandatory set of rules, conditions, or requirements concerned with the definition of terms; classification of components; delineation of procedures; specification of dimensions, materials, performance, design, or operations; measurement of quality and quantity in describing materials, products, systems, services, or practices; or descriptions of fit and measurement of size.

c. Standards Body - Any governmental or private sector group that exercises policy control over standards activities, or that administers one or more standards programs, or that develops or approves or promulgates standards. Examples are the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and committees accredited by ANSI, ASTM International, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the BioAPI Consortium, and the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standards Association (IEEE-SA).

d. Professional Organization - Any entity or body concerned with the accomplishment of professional, technical, or scientific objectives other than the development of standards.

e. National (or Domestic) Standards Body - Any governmental or private sector entity or group concerned primarily with standards that apply within the United States or with the development of positions to be put forth for consideration in international arenas on behalf of U.S. interests.  Examples of the latter include U.S. Working Groups for the International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML), the U.S. National Committee for the International Electrotechnical Commission (USNC/IEC) and Technical Advisory Groups (TAGs) for committees of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

f. International Standards Body - Any standards entity or group sponsored by an international private sector or governmental (treaty or non-treaty) organization.  Examples include the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), the International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML), and the International Committee of Weights and Measures (CIPM).
 

3.02.04
POLICY
In accordance with PL 104-113 (the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995), OMB Circular A-119, and DoC or NIST policy, staff members are encouraged to participate in domestic and international standards body activities, whenever such participation is in the public interest and is compatible with NIST priorities and available resources.  Those who participate in activities related to the professional basis of their employment carry an inseparable identification with NIST.  Consequently, they have a fundamental obligation to know and act in conformity with established policies and program objectives of NIST, DoC, and the Administration. Participation in an organization or body does not necessarily connote NIST agreement with, or endorsement of, the decisions reached by the organization or body or the standards developed by voluntary standards bodies.
 

3.02.05
PROCEDURE FOR ESTABLISHING NIST MEMBERSHIP IN ORGANIZATIONS WHERE NIST HAS NOT PREVIOUSLY BEEN A MEMBER
All NIST memberships must be, or have previously been, approved by the Director of Technology Services, since it is usually considered to be inappropriate for NIST to become a member of a private organization, a policy that is applicable at all organizational levels within NIST.  The Standards Services Division (SSD) maintains lists of approved exceptions for NIST memberships in standards bodies and professional organizations.

a. With respect to standards bodies, requests for exceptions to this policy and for approval of a NIST institutional or NIST individual employee (only if institutional unavailable) membership must be sent through the Chief, Standards Services Division and the Chief Counsel for NIST to the Director of Technology Services.  The Chief Counsel will review the organizational documentation and related forms to determine whether NIST membership is legally permissible.

b. With respect to professional organizations, requests for exceptions to this policy and for approval of a NIST institutional membership should be sent to the Director of Technology Services, through the Chief Counsel for NIST.  The Chief Counsel will review the organizational documentation and related forms to determine whether NIST membership is legally permissible.
 

3.02.06
PROCEDURES FOR APPROVAL OF STAFF PARTICIPATION IN OUTSIDE ORGANIZATIONS
For each proposed new or previously unreported standards body assignment, the following steps are to be taken by the applying staff member:

a. Register their membership intent in the Standards Committee Participation Database (SCPD) at https://standards.gov/scp/data/index.cfm by creating an authorized user account and completing the information requested for a new assignment.  An electronic notification to the staff member’s supervisor is generated by the SCPD; supervisory approval is required in order for the staff member to participate in a new standards activity and for the SCPD administrator to confirm the new assignment information and add it to the database. The staff member is notified by email of the supervisor’s decision.  In the event that a staff member is joining a standards body/committee that is not currently registered in the SCPD, the procedures set out in 3.02.05 must first be followed.

b. Invitations to serve on a board or other policy-making body of a professional organization require legal review by the Ethics Division of the DoC Office of General Counsel.  After approval by the Ethics Division, a staff member who is invited to serve on a board or other policy-making body of a professional organization, must forward a memo detailing the proposed service and its benefits to NIST, through the Chief Counsel for NIST, to the Director, Technology Services, for approval.  This request for NIST approval should include a recommendation as to the voting or non-voting status of the proposed participation.
 

3.02.07
APPROVAL PROCEDURES FOR ACCEPTANCE OF STANDARDS COMMITTEE SECRETARIAT FUNCTIONS
a. NIST operating units (OU) may assume secretariat responsibilities for national and international standards committees and their subgroups, and may serve as Administrators of U.S. Technical Advisory Groups that provide input to international standards committees.  If acceptance of a secretariat is considered necessary and appropriate for accomplishment of NIST objectives, and if no reasonable sponsor or cosponsor is willing to accept responsibility for ensuring due process procedures, a NIST unit may take that responsibility only if approved by the Director of the appropriate operating unit.

b. Proposals for acceptance of standards committee secretariat functions are to be submitted to the Chief, Standards Services Division, for policy review and forwarded through line management for the OU Director's approval.

c. A NIST operating unit that accepts approved secretariat functions should not automatically assume final responsibility for ensuring that all appropriate due process procedures are followed in the course of standards development.  Instead, the OU should attempt to persuade the parent organization sponsoring the committee to retain this responsibility.  The OU Director or designee should reach an agreement with the parent organization that indicates that the latter is responsible for ensuring that all appropriate procedures are followed.
 

3.02.08
FUNDING
a. Standards Bodies - Standards Body Institutional Membership Fees (also referred to as "organizational" or "sustaining" membership fees) - Fees for institutional representation in a voluntary standards body are intended to support the organization's standards-related programs and objectives, including educational activities to publicize the societal benefits of standardization and awards programs to recognize individual accomplishments in the field of standardization.  Institutional membership may provide voting privileges, to be exercised by an officially designated representative of the institutional member. However, NIST institutional membership in a standards body signifies only that such membership is deemed appropriate and necessary in the accomplishment of NIST's mission.  Institutional membership does not indicate NIST endorsement or support of positions taken by the standards body on any specific subject or issue.  NIST institutional membership in a standards body does not confer any individual membership rights or privileges to any member of the NIST staff, including officially designated representatives to the standards body.  Institutional membership fees for a standards body may be paid only to entities currently on the approved list maintained by the Standards Services Division.  NIST operating units may elect to pay for approved institutional memberships by direct (i.e., STRS) or indirect appropriated funds (transferred from other agencies) or funds generated by overhead.

An institutional membership fee and administrative service fees per participant are paid to standards bodies that have been approved for this purpose by the Director of Technology Services for NIST participation in committees or on standards boards during the membership year.

b. Administrative Service Fees - Fees may be paid to private sector standards bodies to help to cover the costs associated with standards committee operations and communication, including preparation and distribution of minutes, circulation of draft standards, meeting arrangements, and committee records.  These fees may be paid to a voluntary standards body if required for a NIST unit to serve on one or more committees of that body, and if the OU Director or designee determines that the intended committee service is consonant with NIST goals and objectives.

Payment of administrative service fees does not confer individual membership rights or privileges to any member of the NIST staff, nor does it result in NIST becoming an institutional member of the standards body.

Operating units must incorporate the following language into all contracts, agreements, and letters of intent relating to the payment of administrative service fees:
"Our payment of these administrative service fees is based on the understanding that:

(1) The fees will be used exclusively to help cover costs associated with standards committee operation and communication, e.g., preparation and distribution of minutes, circulation of drafts for comment, meeting arrangements, maintenance of committee records, and allocation of dues to international standards development organizations;

(2) Payment of administrative service fees to a standards body does not signify that NIST endorses or supports positions taken by that body on any subject or issue; and

(3) Payment of the fees does not confer individual membership rights or privileges on any member of the NIST staff nor result in NIST being recognized as an institutional member of (add name of standards body)."

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) charges an administrative service fee in connection with sponsorship of secretariats of committees of international organizations of which ANSI is the recognized U.S. member body. NIST organizational units that sponsor secretariats should determine their fees from ANSI.  ANSI annually submits an invoice to SSD covering all NIST international secretariat fees.  After reviewing for completeness and accuracy, SSD informs each responsible unit of the portion it must pay.  To permit thorough and accurate review, SSD should be provided with copies of all pertinent correspondence and contracts with ANSI regarding administrative service fees.  SSD is responsible for forwarding the annual institutional membership fee to ANSI.

c. Standards Body Individual Membership Fees - Except as may occur pursuant to NIST Administrative Manual Subchapter 10.08.10(1) on Training, NIST payment for an individual membership is only permitted for membership in a standards body and only if the standards body does not itself provide for institutional memberships.  Pursuant to Section 3.02.07a of this subchapter, a formal request must be made to the Director of Technology Services, through the Chief, Standards Services Division and the Chief Counsel for NIST, seeking approval of institutional membership in the standards body for the purpose of underwriting individual membership fees.  Upon approval of institutional membership, NIST may use direct (i.e., STRS) or indirect appropriated funds (transferred from other agencies) or funds generated by overhead to pay individual membership fees either directly or indirectly (e.g., where purchase of a society journal would confer membership status on an individual) to voluntary standards bodies (5 U.S.C. 5946) as amended by Section 1115 of the Defense Authorization Act of 2002.

Operating units are responsible for paying applicable fees for standards body activities directly to the bodies concerned after obtaining all required approvals.  Copies of all contracts, purchase orders, or other correspondence regarding payment of administrative service fees or institutional membership fees to standards bodies should be sent to the SSD.

d.  Professional Organizations

(1) Professional Organization Institutional Membership - Institutional membership fees for professional (non-standards) organizations may be paid only to professional organizations currently on the approved list maintained by the Standards Services Division. NIST operating units may elect to pay for institutional membership fees for approved professional organizations by using direct (i.e., STRS) or indirect appropriated funds (transferred from other agencies) or funds generated by overhead.

(2) Professional Organization Individual Memberships - Except as may occur pursuant to the NIST Administrative Manual Subchapter 10.08.10(1), NIST has no authority for payment of professional (non-standards) organization individual memberships.