Standards Open for Comment

open for comment at OSAC

The following SDO-published standards are being considered for the OSAC Registry.

• None at this time. 

The following OSAC Proposed Standards are being considered for submission to an SDO. The final draft provided to the SDO will be available on the OSAC Registry as an “OSAC Proposed Standard.” 

• None at this time.

Visit the Registry Approval Process webpage for more information about the Registry approval processes for SDO-published and OSAC Proposed Standards¹. 

Open for Comment at SDOs

ASB

The following Academy Standards Board (ASB) document is open for public comment. Click on the link below to access the document and its comment template. Submit your comments to asb [at] aafs.org (asb[at]aafs[dot]org) by the deadline.

•  ASB Standard 222, Standard for the Articulation of Footwear and Tire Interpretations, 202x, 1st Ed. Comment deadline April 9, 2026.
  • NOTE: This is OSAC 2023-S-0017, currently on the OSAC Registry.

ASTM

The following ASTM standards are currently open for public comment through ANSI. To obtain an electronic copy of the document, email accreditation [at] astm.org (accreditation[at]astm[dot]org). To provide comments, download the comment template and return it to accreditation [at] astm.org (accreditation[at]astm[dot]org) (copy psa [at] ansi.org (psa[at]ansi[dot]org)) by the deadline. 

• WK96359, Standard Guide for Polarized Light Microscopy in the Forensic Examination and Comparison of Soils (new standard). Comment deadline March 30, 2026.
  • NOTE: This is OSAC 2025-S-0011, currently on the OSAC Registry.
• ASTM E2548-202x, Standard Practice for Sampling Seized Drugs for Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis (reinstatement with revisions). Comment deadline March 30, 2026.
• ASTM E3510-202x, Standard Terminology Relating to Trace Materials Analysis (revision of ANSI/ASTM E3510-25). Comment deadline March 30, 2026.
• ASTM E1732-202x, Terminology Relating to Forensic Science. Comment deadline April 20, 2026.
• ASTM E3149-202x, Guide for Facial Image Comparison Feature List for Morphological Analysis (revision of ANSI/ASTM E3149-18). Comment deadline April 20, 2026.

SWGDE

The Scientific Working Group on Digital Evidence (SWGDE) is accepting public comments on the following drafts until May 2, 2026. Visit the SWGDE website to access the documents and instructions for submitting your comments.

• 2026-02-25 Considerations for Body Worn Camera Systems (23-V-002-1.0)
• 2026-02-25 MacOS Tech Notes (13-F-002-2.0)
• 2026-02-25 Quality Management System for Digital and Multimedia Organizations (25-Q-001-1.0)
• 2026-02-20 Recommendations for Historical Cell Site Analysis (17-F-001-5.0)
• 2026-02-20 Technical Overview of Audio Files (25-A-001-1.0)
• 2026-02-19 Malware Analysis - Windows Tech Notes (25-F-004-1.0)
• 2026-02-18 Best Practices for Radio Frequency Propagation Surveys (25-F-003-1.0)

Open for comment at other standards setting organizations

FISWG

The Facial Identification Scientific Working Group (FISWG) is accepting public comments on the following drafts until May 8, 2026. Visit the FISWG website to access the documents and comment submission instructions. 

• Conflict Resolution in Facial Examinations
• Recommendations for Preliminary Legal Interactions
• Recommendations for Courtroom Preparation and Testimony
• Recommendations for Remedial Training for Face Practitioner
• Guide for Facial Comparison Training of Reviewers to Competency
• Quality Management Requirements for Forensic Facial Image Comparison
• Standard Practice for the Generation and Use of Facial Comparison Results as Investigative Leads
• Guide for Role-Based Training in Facial Comparison
• Guideline for the Use of ACE-V Methodology for One-to-Many Reviews
• Introduction to Face Recognition Technology Evaluation (FRTE) Testing

¹In January 2022, OSAC’S Forensic Science Standards Board (FSSB) approved that the requirement for an OSAC-managed comment period for Registry approval of SDO-published standards can be met during the SDO's public comment period. The public will have an opportunity to comment on a standard during its development through the SDO's public comment period. This change allows comments to be submitted during the SDO development process, prior to publication, enabling upgrades to be directly incorporated into the standard rather than receiving the comments after the standard is published. In cases where OSAC can document the SDO's public comment opportunity, OSAC will not execute a second public comment period during its Registry approval process. See the "Standards Open for Comment at SDOs" section above for the standards currently open for comment at SDOs.