NISTIR 7930

Sixteenth Annual Report on Federal 

Agency Use of Voluntary Consensus 

Standards and Conformity Assessment

Nathalie Rioux

http://dx.doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.7930
NISTIR 7930

Sixteenth Annual Report on Federal 

Agency Use of Voluntary Consensus 

Standards and Conformity Assessment 

Nathalie Rioux

Standard Coordination Office

Standards Services

http://dx.doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.7930

April 2013

U.S. Department of Commerce 

Rebecca Blank, Acting Secretary

National Institute of Standards and Technology 

Patrick D. Gallagher, Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and Director
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Sixteenth Annual Report on Federal Agency Use of Voluntary Consensus 

Standards and Conformity Assessment 

The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) presents this summary report to the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) in compliance with OMB Circular A-119 and Public Law 104-113, the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA). As required by Section 9 of the Circular, this 

report, prepared by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), describes activities 

related to the use of voluntary consensus standards (VCS) by 26 federal agencies during fiscal year (FY) 

2012. These federal agencies, listed in Appendix A, fulfilled the reporting requirements of both the 

OMB Circular A-119 and Section 12 (d) (3) of the NTTAA by providing information on their activities 

related to the use of voluntary consensus standards in regulation, procurement, and conformity 

assessment.

In FY 2012, only one agency, the Department of Labor (DOL), reported issuing a government-unique 

standard (GUS) in lieu of VCS as noted in Appendix B. With this addition, the total is now 53 GUS

replacing VCS since the inception of this report in 1997. DOL developed its Hazard Communication 

Standard to align with other countries using the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of 

Classification and Labeling. In addition DOL wished to avoid burdening the regulated community with 

requirements to purchase and use numerous individual consensus standards to cover this issue.

In FY 2012, federal agencies reported 423 new uses of VCS, which is nearly double the number (261) 

reported in FY 2011. Of the reported new uses, HHS accounted for 32%, DoD accounted for 29%, and 

DHS accounted for 19%. Federal agencies reported substituting eight VCS for GUS, all within DoD. 

Continued adoption of significant numbers of VCS, coupled with the review and substitution of existing 

GUS for VCS, indicate an appropriate level of awareness and acceptance of private sector standards by 

federal agencies. Taken together with the careful consideration and low rate of development of new 

GUS in lieu of VCS, these indicators demonstrate the NTTAA’s success in encouraging agencies to 

consider using VCS to meet their regulatory, procurement, and conformity assessment needs.

Agencies reported 3,085

personnel participating in a 

total of 552 standardsdeveloping organizations 

during FY 2012. Figure 1

displays data describing the 

last five years of reported 

federal engagement with 

standards bodies. The 

continued high level of federal 
2

participation reflects a sustained commitment of the U.S. government to the activities of the private 

sector led VCS system.

Evaluation of the Effectiveness of OMB Circular A-119

During FY 2012, the majority of reporting agencies either had no comment on the effectiveness of OMB 

Circular A-119, or indicated that they found the Circular effective in helping them manage their 

standards development programs. Presented below are a few individual agency comments and their 

recommended changes to the Circular.1

Department of Agriculture (USDA) – The USDA continues to believe that it is appropriate to examine 

the effectiveness of the annual reporting methodologies.

Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) – Federal agencies would benefit from access to 

guidance on benefit-cost analysis models for agency decision making about using VCS that impose a 

cost to the public and private sector users of the standard that is mandated by government regulation.

Department of Justice, DOJ – DOJ’s National Institute of Justice suggests that guidance on OMB 

Circular A-119 could help agencies understand how to address performance requirements and gaps in 

research. Some standards are incomplete, lacking valid test methods addressing articulated performance 

requirements. Federal agencies may be in a unique position to provide research support that addresses

gaps in standards and that may improve the usefulness of the standards to both the government and 

private sector.

Department of Transportation (DOT) - DOT continues to recommend that OMB Circular A-119 be 

revised to require NTTAA reporting only on instances of government-unique standards being used in 

lieu of voluntary consensus standards, with the default position being that agencies use VCS for 

regulatory work. The Circular should continue the policy that there is no requirement to report on 

government-unique standards developed when a voluntary consensus standard is unavailable, per 

sections 6g and 9a of the Circular.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – While the Circular is effective, the reporting tool presents a 

significant problem given the lack of resources for accurate, systematic cross-agency data collection. 

Two things in the report that hold the most credible information for the public are: (1) the current

requirement to identify GUS standards used in lieu of voluntary consensus standards and (2) prose-style 

highlights of programs or areas where an agency made good — especially innovative — use of nongovernment standards in achieving goals.

The full text of agency individual reports may be found at 

https://standards.gov/NTTAA/agency/index.cfm?fuseaction=agencyReports.main .

 1 It is within OMB’s purview to consider and respond to these comments as appropriate.
3

During the past 16 years since the start of the NTTAA reporting requirement, federal agencies report a 

running total of only 53 GUS used in lieu of existing VCS (either added new GUS or subtracted 

discontinued GUS). This small inventory reflects the success of the NTTAA in encouraging agencies to 

use VCS and to engage with the private sector standards system for solutions to government needs, 

rather than to develop GUS.

Guided by the NTTAA and OMB A-119, NIST continues to assist federal agencies and their 

stakeholders with standards and conformity assessment information, program support, guidance, and 

policy concerns. NIST hosts http://standards.gov, offering ongoing practical guidance, tools such as the 

searchable Standards Incorporated by Reference database, and information needed by agencies to 

implement the NTTAA successfully as well as a means to report standards activities as required by the 

NTTAA and OMB Circular A-119. This report fulfills the annual reporting requirements of both the 

NTTAA and OMB Circular.
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Appendix A: FY 2012 Federal Agency Information on Participation/Adoption of Voluntary 

Standards Activities Required by OMB Circular A-119

Agency GUS used in 

lieu of VCS 

VCS 

substituted 

for GUS

New VCS 

used this 

year 

Employee 

participation in 

VCS bodies 

VCS bodies 

with agency 

participation 

USDA 1 0 0 84 49

DOC 0 0 0 517 129

DoD * 8 124 n/a 122

DOE 0 0 5 416 100

ED 0 0 0 23 4

HHS 1 0 136 918 188

DHS 0 0 82 274 43

HUD 2 0 0 9 8

DOI 0 0 3 166 87

DOJ 0 0 0 8 5

DOL 13 0 3 60 22

DOS 0 0 0 10 1

DOT 4 0 14 144 47

TRES 0 0 0 1 14

EPA 23 0 10 80 14

GSA 3 0 10 15 18

NARA 1 0 0 15 9

NASA * 0 0 82 16

CPSC 2 0 5 29 9

FCC 0 0 6 28 13

FERC 0 0 7 0 0

FTC 0 0 0 0 0

NRC 2 0 17 188 16

GPO 0 0 0 9 5

ACCESS 1 0 0 6 10

NSF 0 0 1 3 1

Totals 53 8 423 3085 **

* Agencies reporting on a categorical basis per OMB Circular A-119, Section 12

** Total not calculated to avoid duplicate counting due to participation in a standards body 

by more than one federal agency
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Appendix B: FY 2012 New Government-Unique Standard Used in Lieu of Voluntary Consensus 

Standards

Agency Department of Labor (DOL)

Government Standard: 29 CFR 1910.1200 – Hazard Communication Standard (Incorporated: May 

2012) [Incorporated: 2012]

Voluntary Standard Rationale

ASTM D 56-05, Standard Test 

Method for Flash Point by Tag 

Closed Cup Tester, Approved 

May 1, 2005, IBR approved for 

Appendix B to Sec. 1910.1200. 

• ASTM D 86-07a, Standard 

Test Method for Distillation of 

Petroleum Products at 

Atmospheric Pressure, 

Approved April 1, 2007, IBR 

approved for Appendix B to 

Sec. 1910.1200. 

• ASTM D 93-08, Standard Test 

Methods for Flash Point by 

Pensky- Martens

This revision was undertaken to align the U.S. with other countries using

the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and 

Labeling. It was based on various standards and guidance materials used in 

international negotiations under the United Nations. No single VCS is 

available to cover all the hazard communication issues that are addressed 

by OSHA in this final rule. The Agency believes that it is less burdensome 

for the regulated community to use the one OSHA standard rather than 

require the purchase and use of numerous individual consensus standards 

it used to write the rule.