NIST Recognition and Accreditation Services for the State Lab Program

NIST recognition and accreditation programs announced in May 2026 the streamlining of services for participants in the NIST Handbook 143 Recognition Program. The NIST National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP) accreditation and the Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) recognition programs are increasing collaborations to benefit participants of the NIST Handbook 143 state laboratory program. NIST aims to minimize duplication of effort and accreditation cost for participants with dual recognition and accreditation status by requiring only one annual submission to NIST. Prior to this announcement, dual NIST accredited and recognized labs had to treat accreditation and recognition programs separately, preparing annual submission documents for both NIST services with similar requirements and products. This will no longer be the case as NIST seeks to eliminate the duplication of effort required for recognized labs to achieve accreditation. OWM will no longer require labs to submit a separate annual submission through the OWM process; instead, OWM will retrieve the necessary submission documents from the NVLAP repository. To this end, OWM is receiving NVLAP assessor training to become familiar with the NVLAP submission portal system and the ISO/IEC requirements that impact the NVLAP program; this will qualify OWM staff to access lab records, provided access is granted by the participating lab. Lab Bulletin LB-164-2026 invited accredited state metrology labs to grant OWM access to these records. As of July 1, 2026, six participating labs have agreed to this service, which will result in significant time savings for those programs.

To further streamline NIST recognition and accreditation services, OWM plans to participate in NVLAP onsite lab assessments starting in 2027. The NVLAP biennial assessments are required for accreditation and will also satisfy OWM’s requirement for periodic recognition assessments. NVLAP’s onsite assessments have long been viewed as an extension of the recognition program - as described in this 2024 OWM newsletter article - but by OWM participating directly in the assessments, where possible, will further solidify the critical role of the NVLAP assessments in the recognition program. Additionally, this will improve alignment among NIST assessment programs, ensuring that all recognized labs receive consistent feedback from both programs. Under this model, OWM personnel will serve as the technical assessor, while the NVLAP assessor serves as the lead. Furthermore, the improved coordination of the NIST programs could result in cost savings, which will be distributed evenly among participating state labs through reduced administrative accreditation fees.

NIST is committed to providing the state laboratory program with the most effective and efficient recognition and accreditation services possible and is continually seeking opportunities for improving its services. Please contact Micheal Hicks (Micheal.Hicks [at] nist.gov (Micheal[dot]Hicks[at]nist[dot]gov)) or Robert Knake (Robert.Knake [at] nist.gov (Robert[dot]Knake[at]nist[dot]gov)) for any questions or comments regarding the OWM and NVLAP program and services.