Addendum to the 

Fourteenth (2010) Annual Report 

on Federal Agency Use of 

Voluntary Consensus Standards 

and Conformity Assessment 
2

Table of Contents for Supplemental Appendices

Note: Appendices A, B, and C are contained in the full report to the Office of Management and Budget

Table of Contents

Appendix D – Individual, Unabridged Departmental Reports ................................... 3

Department of Agriculture (USDA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report.............................. 3

Department of Commerce (DOC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report................................. 7

Department of Defense (DoD) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report .................................... 23

Department of Education (ED) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report ................................... 34

Department of Energy (DOE) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report ..................................... 36

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report .... 42

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report.................. 58

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency 

Report................................................................................................................................ 78

Department of the Interior (DOI) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report................................ 80

Department of Justice (DOJ) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report....................................... 87

Department of Labor (DOL) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report ....................................... 88

Department of State (DOS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report......................................... 94

Department of Transportation (DOT) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report ......................... 96

Department of the Treasury (TRES) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report ......................... 106

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report....................... 108

Appendix E – Individual, Unabridged Commission and other Agency Reports.... 109

Access Board (ACCESS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report.......................................... 109

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

......................................................................................................................................... 111

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report....... 111

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report................. 115

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report .......... 129

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report..... 132

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report ............................ 136

General Services Administration (GSA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report................... 137

Government Printing Office (GPO) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report .......................... 141

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency 

Report.............................................................................................................................. 144

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

......................................................................................................................................... 146

National Science Foundation (NSF) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report ......................... 149

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report .................. 149

Appendix F – Federal Agency Activities Related to Conformity Assessment......... 153

Appendix G – Federal Agency Activities Related to Use of Private Sector Standards166

Appendix H – The Interagency Committee on Standards Policy (ICSP)................ 179

Appendix I – Publications Related to the National Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act (NTTAA) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-119 ..... 180
3

Appendix D – Individual, Unabridged Departmental Reports 

Note: This appendix contains the unabridged reports submitted to NIST by the Cabinet level 

Departments as they were submitted to NIST. 

Department of Agriculture (USDA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The United States Department of Agriculture follows various voluntary consensus standards 

adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies such as the International Organization for 

Standardization (ISO). The benefits of utilizing consistent standards are significant. For example, 

conforming to the international standards adopted by ISO has allowed USDA to interface more 

readily with other industry partners within and outside of the United States. They agree on 

specifications and criteria to be applied consistently in the classification of materials, in the 

manufacture and supply of products, in testing and analysis, with sharing data, in terminology 

and in the provision of services. In this way, the standards provide a reference framework, or a 

common technological language, between USDA and USDA stakeholders that facilitates trade 

and the transfer of technology. In utilizing these standards, the time and cost spent in translating 

and converting data are significantly reduced. Using and conforming to standards and embracing 

widely accepted methods, promotes professional credibility and acceptance.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 1

1. Government Unique Standard: WILDLAND FIRE FOAM: GUS Number: 5100-307a; 

June 2007. Title: Specification for Fire Suppressant Foam for Wildland Firefighting 

(Class A Foam). (Incorporated: 2010) 

Voluntary Standard

NFPA 1150 - Standard on Fire-Fighting Foam Chemicals for Class A Fuels in Rural, 

Suburban, and Vegetated Areas.

Rationale

Foam fire suppressants contain foaming and wetting agents. The foaming agents affect 

the accuracy of an aerial drop, how fast the water drains from the foam and how well the 

product clings to the fuel surfaces. The wetting agents increase the ability of the drained 

water to penetrate fuels. Foam fire suppressants are supplied as wet concentrates. This 

standard was developed with international cooperation for Class A Foam used in 

wildland fire suppression situations and equipment. Standard was created by the USDA 

Forest Service in cooperation with the Department of Interior (DOI), the State of 

California, Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the Canadian Interagency 
4

Forest Fire Center. The Forest Service has not chosen to utilize NFPA 1150 as it is 

designed specifically for application by municipal fire agencies in the wildland-urban 

interface, utilizing apparatus and situations that they are likely to encounter. The Forest 

Service’s GUS for foam products is specific to use by wildland fire equipment and 

situations that are unique, e.g. helicopter use of foams, remote storage situations, and 

varied quality of water sources in the wildland settings. The agency feels this standard 

more accurately reflects the needs and mission of the federal wildland fire suppression 

agencies.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 22

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 47

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

3-A Sanitary Standards, Inc 3-A SSI

3A/NSF International Meat and Poultry Equipment Standards 3A/NSF

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry ATSDR

American Association for Laboratory Accreditation A2LA

American Association of Cereal Chemists AACC

American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists AATCC

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Oil Chemists Society AOCS

American Railway Engineering & Maintenance-of-Way Association AREMA

American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers ASABE

American Society of Agricultural Engineers ASAE

Analytical Environmental Immunochemical Consortium AEIC

ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board ANAB

AOAC International AOAC

Appraisal Standards Board ASB
5

Association of American Seed Control Officials AASCO

Association of Official Seed Analysts AOSA

Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies AOSCA

ASTM International ASTM

Codex Alimentarius Commission CODEX

Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity COP/CBD

European Food Safety Authority EFSA

GS1 US GS! US

Industry-wide Cooperative Meat Identification Standards Committee ICMISC

International Cooperation on Harmonization of Technical Requirements for 

Registration of Veterinary Products VICH

International Dairy Federation IDF

International Electrotechnical Commission IEC

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Plant Protection Convention/International Standards for 

Phytosanitary Measures IPPC/ISPM

International Seed Testing Association ISTA

International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants UPOV

Joint Cotton Industry Bale Packaging Committee JCIBPC

Joint FAO/WHO Expert committee on Food Additives JEFCA

Meat and Poultry Business-to-Business Data Standards Organization mpXML

National Conference on Weights and Measures NCWM

National Cooperation for Laboratory Accreditation NACLA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Information Standards Organization NISO

National Institute of Standards and Technology NIST

National Type Evaluation Program NTEP

North American Plant Protection Organization/Regional Standards for 

Phytosanitary Measures NAPPO/RSPM

Object Management Group OMG

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development OECD

Project Management Institute PMI

Transportation Technology Center, Inc. TTCI

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNECE

World Organization for Animal Health OIE

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 127
6

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

N/A

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

The OMB Circular A-119 policy is sufficient. However, an examination of the effectiveness of 

the annual reporting methodologies needs to be conducted. Who is using the information 

generated by individual agencies? Is it useful? Is it user friendly (once the actual users are 

identified)? Is there a method to obtain user feedback on the information provided, along with 

suggestions for change?

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No additional comments.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

No additional comments.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; C

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 3

Title: Department of Agriculture (USDA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report
7

Department of Commerce (DOC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Standards have been an integral part of the mission of the Department of Commerce’s (DOC) 

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), since its establishment in 1901. NIST 

staff contribute to the development of voluntary consensus standards by providing measurement 

methodologies and related laboratory research to underpin technical content and by participating 

on standards developing committees. This participation supports NIST's mission to promote U.S. 

innovation and industrial competitiveness. 

Reducing Standards-Related Barriers to Trade 

In fulfillment of U.S. obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on 

Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), 

the National Center for Standards and Certification Information (NCSCI) at NIST serves as the 

U.S. national Inquiry Point and national Notification Authority. In addition, in fulfillment of U.S. 

obligations under twelve bilateral Free Trade Agreements, NCSCI is responsible for timely 

communications of proposed regulatory activities. 

Signatories to the WTO TBT Agreement are required to notify the WTO Secretariat in Geneva 

of proposed technical regulations that could affect world trade and provide a 60-day period for 

review and comment by other WTO Members. Since July 1, 2005, NCSCI has offered a webbased service, Notify U.S., to disseminate WTO summary notifications at no charge to U.S. 

entities (citizens, industries, organizations) and other WTO TBT Inquiry Points on request. 

Notify U.S. provides U.S. industry with an opportunity to review and comment on proposed 

foreign technical regulations that can affect their businesses and their access to international 

markets. NCSCI acquires the full texts of the proposed technical regulations from the relevant 

foreign Inquiry Points and distributes them via Notify U.S. to interested U.S. export and trade 

stakeholders. Additional details regarding Notify U.S. can be viewed online at 

www.nist.gov/notifyus. 

NCSCI is the U.S. member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 

Information Network (ISONET). NCSCI networks with other national standards organizations to 

exchange standards-related information and share access to foreign trade-related standards, 

technical regulations, and conformity assessment procedures. 

NCSCI is the U.S. source for standards and standards-related information at home and abroad. 

The Center provides bibliographic information on U.S., foreign, regional, and international 

voluntary standards, mandatory government technical regulations, and conformity assessment 

procedures for non-agricultural products. Resources include an extensive collection of electronic 

reference materials, including U.S. military and other Federal Government specifications, U.S. 

industry and national standards, international standards, and selected foreign national standards. 
8

NCSCI responds to requests for specialized standards information and disseminates information 

concerning proposed foreign regulations and general standards issues. NCSCI provides contact 

points for translations of foreign standards and regulations. 

In 2010, NCSCI staff processed over 45,000 information requests for standards (2,500+) and 

technical barriers to trade (43,000+). NCSCI hosted or participated in training for six U.S. and 

foreign visiting delegations interested in the operations of a WTO TBT Inquiry Point. 

Standards in Trade Workshops 

Since 1995, U.S. industry has looked to the NIST Standards in Trade Workshop Program (SIT) 

to provide opportunities for cooperation on important topics related to standards or conformity 

assessment related to trade that are important to the success of their businesses. SIT has 

conducted over 45 workshops on various product sectors ranging from Intelligent Transportation 

Systems to Renewable Energy and Lighting to Building and Boiler and Pressure Vessel Codes 

and much more. A major activity of the Standards Services Group (SSG), SIT helps U.S. 

industry compete overseas and has yielded many tangible results. SIT workshops are designed to 

introduce U.S. stakeholders to emerging standards and conformity assessment issues in other 

countries and regions; identify technical barriers to trade; and provide timely information to 

foreign officials on U.S. practices in standards, metrology, and conformity assessment. The goals 

of the workshops are directly aligned with the NIST mission and vision, and each workshop aids 

U.S. industry in becoming more competitive through increased transparency and promotion and 

use of U.S. and international standards, thus increasing trade opportunities and exports. 

The SSG also provides training on standards, conformity assessment, and relevant trade-related 

topics to federal, state and local government partners. Each workshop is tailored to meet the 

specific needs of an agency, division, or work group and is available free of charge upon request. 

SSG staff also participate at relevant training events offered by other government agencies upon 

request. 

During FY10, various government agencies participated in the SSG training opportunities noted 

in Table 1 below including: 

Office of the United States Trade Representative 

Philadelphia U.S. Export Assistance Center (USEAC) 

The InterAgency Board for Equipment Standardization and Interoperability (IAB) 

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission 

U.S. Department of Agriculture 

U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration 

U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology 

U.S. Department of Homeland Security 

U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration 

U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovation Technology Administration (RITA) 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

U.S. Food and Drug Administration 

U.S. General Services Administration 

U.S. International Trade Commission 

Washington State Department of Transportation, King County 
9

Table 1: SIT Workshops FY2010 

Name of Workshop/ Date(s)/Location/ Number of Attendees 

1. Standards and Regulatory Essentials for the Federal Sector/ October 29-30, 2009/ Washington, 

DC/ 40 

2. Workshop on Standards and Conformity Assessment/ June 2-3, 2010/ EPA, Arlington, VA/ 45 

3. MENA Quality Infrastructure Stakeholders Meeting/ June 21-22, 2010/ Amman, Jordan/ 40 

4. CPSC Voluntary Standards Training/ June 29, 2010/ Bethesda, MD/ 60 

5. Standards, Conformity Assessment, Regulation and Market Access/ July 29, 2010/ 

King of Prussia, PA Pennsylvania U.S. Export Assistance Center (USEAC), Export University/ 

24 

6. Fundamentals of Standards and Conformity Assessment/ September 20-21, 2010/ 66 

7. Workshop on Intelligent Transportation Systems/ September 29-October 1, 2010/ Prague, 

Czech Republic/ 55 

For more information please contact sit@nist.gov.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 103

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Acoustical Society of America ASA

Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions ATIS

American Association of Physicists in Medicine AAPM
10

American Concrete Institute ACI

American Dental Association ADA

American Gas Association AGA

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics AIAA

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Nuclear Society ANS

American Petroleum Institute API

American Public Transportation Association APTA

American Society for Quality ASQ

American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers ASHRAE

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Vacuum Society AVS

American Welding Society AWS

AOAC International AOAC

ASC X9, Inc. ASC X9

Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation AAMI

ASTM International ASTM

Basic Linear Algebra Subprograms Technical Forum BLAS

Biometrics Application Programming Interface Consortium BioAPI

British Standards Institution BSI

Canadian Standards Association CSA

Center for Applied Special Technology CAST

Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute CLSI

Codex Alimentarius Commission CODEX

Committee on Data for Science and Technology CODATA

Consumer Electronics Association CEA

Council for Optical Radiation Measurements CORM

Council on Ionizing Radiation Measurements and Standards CIRMS

Dimensional Metrology Standards Consortium DMSC

Electronic Industries Alliance EIA

Engineering Sciences Data Unit International ESDU

Health Level Seven HL7

Health Physics Society HPS

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America IESNA

Industrial Truck Association ITA

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Institute of Nuclear Materials Management INMM
11

Inter-American Metrology System SIM

International Association for the Properties of Water and Steam IAPWS

International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA

International Bureau of Weights and Measures BIPM

International Cartographic Association ICA

International Code Council ICC

International Commission on Illumination CIE

InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards INCITS

International Committee for Weights and Measures CIPM

International Council for Science ICSU

International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service IERS

International Electrotechnical Commission IEC

International Federation on Information Processing IFIP

International Hydrographic Organization IHO

International Institute of Welding IIW

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Organization of Legal Metrology OIML

International Society of Automation ISA

International Telecommunication Union ITU

International Union of Laboratories and Experts in Materials, Systems and 

Structures RILEM

International Union of Laboratories and Experts in Materials, Systems and 

Structures/International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and 

Construction

RILEM/CIB

International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry IUPAC

International Union of Pure and Applied Physics IUPAP

Internet Engineering Task Force IETF

IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries IPC

Java Grande Forum JGF

JEDEC - Solid State Technology Association JEDEC

Laser Institute of America LIA

National Conference on Weights and Measures NCWM

National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements NCRP

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Fluid Power Association NFLPA

National Institute of Standards and Technology NIST

NCSL International NCSLI

North American Open Math Initiative NAOMI
12

NSF International NSFI

Object Management Group OMG

Open Applications Group OAGi

Open DeviceNet Vendor Association ODVA

Open Geospatial Consortium OGC

Open Math Society OMS

Optical Laboratories Association OLA

Optical Storage Technology Association OSTA

Optics and Electro-Optics Standards Council OEOSC

Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards OASIS

Pan-American Standards Commission COPANT

Robotics Industries Association RIA

Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International SEMI

Simulation Interoperability Standards Organization SISO

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Society of Fire Protection Engineers SFPE

Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers SMPTE

Standards Engineering Society SES

Telecommunications Industry Association TIA

Underwriters Laboratories UL

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe WP .29/GRSP UNECE

Versailles Project on Advanced Materials and Standards VAMAS

Web3D Consortium Web3D

World Intellectual Property Organization WIPO

World Meteorological Organization WMO

World Wide Web Consortium W3C

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 399

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP) 

Overview 

The National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP) provides third-party 

accreditation to testing and calibration laboratories. NVLAP's accreditation programs are 

established in response to legislative or administrative actions by the Federal Government or to 
13

requests from government agencies and private-sector organizations. NVLAP operates its 

accreditation system in accordance with the international conformity assessment standard 

ISO/IEC 17011, Conformity assessment – General requirements for accreditation bodies 

accrediting conformity assessment bodies, which is published by the International Organization 

for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). NVLAP 

accredits laboratories that are found competent to perform specific tests or calibrations through a 

rigorous assessment against the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025, General requirements for the 

competence of testing and calibration laboratories. Information about accredited laboratories is 

published in NVLAP Directory of Accredited Laboratories, which is published online and 

updated monthly. 

NVLAP is a signatory to the following Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRAs), which 

support international trade by promoting international confidence and acceptance of accredited 

laboratory data: International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC), the Asia-Pacific 

Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC), and the InterAmerican Accreditation 

Cooperation (IAAC). By participating in these MRAs, NVLAP facilitates the mutual recognition 

of accredited test and measurement results of its signatory partners, thereby reducing the need for 

redundant testing and lowering costs to customers. 

NVLAP Certificate of Accreditation 

When NVLAP grants initial or continuing accreditation to a laboratory, it issues a Certificate of 

Accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025:2005, which includes the following statement to convey that an 

accredited laboratory management system meets the principles of ISO 9001:2000, Quality 

management system – requirements. 

"This laboratory is accredited in accordance with the recognized International Standard ISO/IEC 

17025:2005. This accreditation demonstrates technical competence for a defined scope and the 

operation of a laboratory quality management system (refer joint ISO-ILAC-IAF Communique 

dated January 2009)" 

NVLAP-accredited laboratories may use the above statement on their test reports and calibration 

certificates if they supply, or provide access to via a website, the Joint ISO-ILAC-IAF 

Communique as part of the package for their laboratory customers. 

Accreditation Program Activities in 2010 

Solid State Lighting 

In FY 2010 NVLAP granted its first accreditations of solid-state lighting (SSL) test methods 

(LM-79 and LM-80) as part of its Energy Efficient Lighting Products laboratory accreditation 

program. Laboratories accredited by NVLAP for SSL test methods are also recognized by the 

Department of Energy’s (DOE) CALiPER program, which was established to provide accurate 

and comparable data on LEDs by arranging for reliable independent testing and data reporting of 

commercially available products. Program testing for the CALiPER program is conducted by 

qualified, verified, and contracted independent testing laboratories, and the program recognizes 

all laboratories that obtain NVLAP accreditation for LM-79 and LM-80. NVLAP accreditation 

involves a rigorous process demonstrating technical competence, quality control, proficiency 
14

testing, and laboratory impartiality and objectivity. 

NVLAP Recognition for ENERGY STAR® 

NVLAP has received recognition from the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 

ENERGY STAR Program as an accrediting body. NVLAP anticipates that a majority of its 

accredited Energy Efficient Lighting, some of its Electromagnetic Compatibility and 

Telecommunications, and some of its Thermal Insulation product testing laboratories will 

become recognized under the new EPA requirements. Accreditation is a necessary step for test 

data to be accepted under the enhanced Energy Star program. 

EPA recently enhanced the ENERGY STAR conformity assessment program, and testing at an 

EPA-recognized laboratory is now required. The enhanced program will require not only 

accredited laboratory testing, but accredited certification of ENERGY STAR products. The 

ENERGY STAR program has grown to encompass more than 60 product categories and is used 

by millions of Americans to identify products that reduce energy costs and protect the 

environment. To ensure that ENERGY STAR remains a trusted symbol for environmental 

protection and superior energy efficiency, all ENERGY STAR product partners will be required 

to follow a new set of Third-Party Certification procedures effective January 1, 2011. Details of 

the program can be found on the following web page 

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=partners.enhanced_test_verification. 

Biometrics Testing 

In September 2010 NVLAP staff attended the 2010 Biometric Consortium Conference & 

Technology Expo in Tampa, Florida. The Conference is supported by the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Security Agency (NSA), and is focused on 

Biometric Technologies for Defense, Homeland Security, Identity Management, Border Crossing 

and Electronic Commerce. 

NVLAP is accepting applications for accreditation of laboratories that perform conformance 

testing, interoperability testing, technology testing, scenario testing and operational and usability 

testing for biometrics products. The Biometrics accreditation program was established in 2008 at 

the request of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. 

Termination of Commercial Products Testing Laboratory Accreditation Program 

On September 30, 2010, the Commercial Products Testing Laboratory Accreditation Program 

(LAP) was terminated. The LAP included paints and related coatings, paper and related products, 

building seals and sealants, plastics, plumbing, roofing, and mattresses. The decision to terminate 

the program was based upon the low number of laboratories enrolled in these programs and the 

availability of accreditation through nongovernmental ILAC signatory accrediting bodies. 

NVLAP is no longer accepting applications for accreditation in the LAP. Those laboratories 

currently accredited will remain so until the expiration of the current accreditation at the 

discretion of the laboratory and provided all accreditation requirements continue to be 

implemented. 

National Voluntary Conformity Assessment System Evaluation (NVCASE) Program 
15

The National Voluntary Conformity Assessment System Evaluation (NVCASE) Program 

enables U.S. industry to satisfy mandated foreign technical requirements using the results of 

U.S.-based conformity assessment programs that perform technical evaluations comparable in 

their rigor to practices in the receiving country. Under this program, the Department of 

Commerce, acting through the National Institute of Standards and Technology, evaluates U.S.-

based conformity assessment bodies in order to be able to give assurances to a foreign 

government that qualifying bodies meet that government's requirements and can provide results 

that are acceptable to that government. The program provides a technically-based U.S. approval 

process for U.S. industry to gain foreign market access; the acceptability of conformity 

assessment results to the relevant foreign government will be a matter for agreement between the 

two governments. Currently, there are two NVCASE sub-programs that are operational: (1) 

EMC/Telecommunications; and (2) Organic Production and Processing. Additional information 

about the NVCASE Program can be found at http://gsi.nist.gov/global/index.cfm/L1-4/L2-38. 

Conformity Assessment Activities under Mutual Recognition Agreements/Arrangements 

(MRAs) 

The United States and the European Community Mutual Recognition Agreement (US - EU 

MRA) is a multi-sector bilateral government-to-government agreement between the United 

States and the 27 Member States of the European Union. Under this MRA, NIST is responsible 

for designating organizations in the US Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs) for two sectors: 

1) Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) and 2) Telecommunications. After a NIST review and 

designation process, CABs that meet certain criteria are formally recognized by the EU and may 

operate as a CAB as described in the U.S. - EU MRA and the specific technical regulations of 

the EU governing the appropriate product sectors. The U.S.-EU MRA is an important regulatory 

and trade agreement which provides greater market access in a timelier manner for U.S. 

manufacturers exporting to Europe and European manufacturers exporting to the United States. 

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Mutual Recognition Arrangement for Conformity 

Assessment of Telecommunications Equipment (APEC TEL MRA) is intended to streamline the 

Conformity Assessment Procedures for a wide range of telecommunications and 

telecommunications-related equipment and thereby to facilitate trade among the parties. It 

provides for the mutual recognition by the importing parties of CABs and mutual acceptance of 

the results of testing and equipment certification procedures undertaken by those bodies in 

assessing conformity of equipment to the importing parties’ own technical regulations. 

Under Phase-I of the APEC TEL Mutual Recognition Arrangement, NIST-designated CABs are 

able to produce test data in their facilities that are accepted as evidence that the tested product 

satisfies an APEC economy's appropriate technical requirements. CABs operating under Phase-II 

of the MRA are able to certify products as being in compliance with the technical and 

administrative requirements of the importing economy. NIST publishes general and specific 

requirements that must be met in order to be nominated as a CAB under the APEC TEL MRA. 

The United States and Japan Mutual Recognition Agreement (US-Japan MRA) is a single sector 

bilateral agreement. The scope of the US-Japan MRA includes radio and telecommunications 

equipment, including telephone terminal equipment. The MRA provides for the mutual 
16

recognition of qualified Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs) and mutual acceptance of the 

results of equipment certification undertaken by recognized CABs (similar to Phase II of the 

APEC TEL MRA as described above). The US-Japan MRA is intended to streamline the 

conformity assessment procedures for a wide range of telecommunications and 

telecommunications-related equipment and facilitate trade between the United States and Japan. 

The Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL) Mutual Recognition Agreement 

is almost identical to the APEC Tel MRA in purpose and structure. The goal of the CITEL MRA 

is to facilitate trade among the 34 Member States of the Organization of American States. The 

conformity assessment activities under this Agreement have yet to become operational. When 

operational, NIST will serve as the Designating Authority of U.S. CABs. In the meantime, NIST 

continues to work towards implementation of the Agreement. 

Additional information on the telecom MRAs can be found at 

http://gsi.nist.gov/global/index.cfm/L1-4/L2-16/L3-101 

NIST Committee Participation in Conformity Assessment Standards Development and Activities 

Under the NTTAA, NIST is responsible for coordinating conformity assessment activities with 

private sector technical standards activities and conformity assessment activities, with the goal of 

eliminating unnecessary duplication and complexity. FY10 NIST activities in this area include: 

Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) –NIST has 

consulted with and advised the ONC on the development of a temporary (transitional) and a 

permanent testing and certification program for health information technology. This consultation 

and collaboration between ONC and NIST will continue during the implementation and 

operational phases of the permanent certification program. Under the temporary certification 

program the ONC has authorized 6 testing and certification bodies and listed over 400 certified 

electronic health record products. 

Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 – Under EISA, NIST has “primary 

responsibility to coordinate development of a framework that includes protocols and model 

standards for information management to achieve interoperability of smart grid devices and 

systems..." NIST, in consultation with industry, government, and other stakeholders, is working 

to develop a plan for a testing and certification framework for Smart Grid related devices, 

systems, and processes. This is essential to ensure interoperability and security under realistic 

operating conditions. NIST has initiated a program to develop a Smart Grid Conformity Testing 

Framework which will be further refined and maintained by the Smart Grid Interoperability 

Panel. 

NIST’s intention is to leverage existing programs wherever practical. Additional information 

about NIST’s Smart Grid activities can be found at http://www.nist.gov/smartgrid. 

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Conformity Assessment Activities - NIST continues 

its work with the Department of Homeland Security Standards Executive to develop the DHS 

Science and Technology standards and conformity assessment infrastructure as well as 
17

requirements, standards, testing protocols, and conformity assessment methods. For example, 

NIST is assisting with the implementation of a conformity assessment program for radiation 

detectors for DHS’s Domestic Nuclear Detection Office including accreditation for testing 

laboratories whose testing will support the Graduated Rad/Nuc Detector Evaluation and 

Reporting (GRaDER) program. See http://www.dhs.gov/xres/programs/gc_1218637329931.shtm 

for additional information. 

National Institute of Justice Body Armor Program - In cooperation with the Department of 

Justice’s National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and the National Law Enforcement and Corrections 

Technology Center (NLECTC), NIST developed and implemented a significant enhancement to 

the current body armor certification program including a revised NIJ performance standard for 

the safety of law enforcement officers. Under the NIJ Body Armor Compliance Testing Program, 

119 distinct body armor models have been listed on the NIJ Body Armor Compliant Products 

List. 

Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act – NIST continues to provide technical assistance 

and support to the Consumer Product Safety Commission and to the private sector in the 

development of model certification programs to address toy safety issues. CPSC successfully 

implemented their program utilizing existing conformity assessment schemes and there are now 

over 329 laboratories listed from 34 countries, accredited by 43 different accreditation bodies. 

Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Project on Greener Cleanups – NIST continues to 

provide assistance to EPA to develop a standards and certification program for Brownfield 

remediation (clean ups).

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

None

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

DOC BUREAUS (EXCLUDING NIST) - SUMMARY OF STANDARDS-RELATED 

ACTIVITIES (2010) 

Bureau of the Census - DOC's Bureau of the Census is active in the development of standards 

and specifications for: (1) the capture and storage of geographic information in computerreadable formats along with metadata, documenting the characteristics of those data; and (2) the 

definitions of statistical, economic, and geographic terms. 

The Census Bureau participates in the following groups: Federal Geographic Data Committee 

(FGDC) – as Co-Chair of the FGDC Coordination Group and Chair of the Cultural and 

Demographic Statistics Subcommittee, the Census Bureau provides direct oversight of and 

participates in the US Thoroughfare, Landmark, and Postal Address Data Standard Work Group 

and the Cultural Resources Standard Work Group. It also participates on various other 

subcommittees and work groups of the FGDC including the Standards Work Group, the Marine 

Boundary Work Group, the Cadastral Subcommittee, the Geodetic Subcommittee, the National 
18

Digital Orthophotography Program (NDOP) Subcommittee, the National Digital Elevation 

Subcommittee, and the Transportation Subcommittee. 

The Census Bureau contributed to the development of the Roadmap for the Geospatial Platform, 

serving as Co-Chair of the Common Services, Data, and Applications Group. The FGDC 

adopted 63 Voluntary Consensus Standards (ISO, OGC, ANSI) at the recommendation of this 

and other FGDC work groups. Census Bureau staff were active with the Geospatial Line of 

Business participating on work groups for Lifecycle Management and Performance Management 

of geospatial data. 

The Census Bureau participates on the ANSI/INCITS-L1 -Geographic Information Committee; 

ISO Technical Committee 211, and staff are nominated experts for ISO 19157-Data Quality 

Standards and the 19160 Addressing Standard. 

The Census Bureau additionally participates on the Ad hoc Baseline Committee on the U.S. 

International Boundary; International Cartographic Association, as member of the Geography 

Commission of the U.S. National Section of the Pan American Institute on Geography and 

History, the U.S. National Committee for the International Cartographic Association, 

Commission on National and Regional Atlases, the Working Group on Census Cartography; 

U.S.G.S. National Atlas of the United States Steering Committee; the Open GIS Consortium 

(OGC); and the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. The Census Bureau is a member of the 

Executive Steering Committee and the Steering Committee of the Transportation For the Nation 

Initiative. 

International Trade Administration (ITA) - The ITA participates on the Board of Directors of the 

American National Standards Institute (ANSI), ASTM International, and the American Society 

for Mechanical Engineers’ Codes and Standards, as well as in numerous ANSI committees, eight 

CODEX committees and five ISO and/or IEC technical committees/advisory groups. ITA 

chaired ANSI’s Technical Advisory Group on Privacy and represented the U.S. ICT sector in the 

ISO Privacy Steering Committee. ITA participates in several trade-related ISO activities for 

biotechnology, packaging materials, and social responsibility standardization. ITA was also 

active in standards capacity building in APEC and ASEAN. By closely coordinating with 

industry, ITA is well-poised to alert regulators of potential technical barriers to trade and ensure 

true trade facilitation in global standards development. 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) – Standardization of data 

acquisition and data management practices are vital to the mission of NOAA. NOAA seeks to 

establish voluntary standards with selected industrial associations, academia, and national 

organizations of state and local governments (e.g., the American Association of State 

Climatologists), as well as through participation in professional societies (e.g., American 

Meteorological Society) and standards development organizations (e.g. Open Geospatial 

Consortium). All NOAA line organizations participate in standards development activities. In 

general, standards used in many NOAA activities are established in conjunction with other 

federal agencies (e.g., DOD, Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 

and the Federal Geographic Data Committee) either through joint participation in international 

organizations such as the World Meteorological Organization, or by means of bilateral and 
19

multilateral agreements with other nations. These standardization activities apply to all phases of 

environmental data acquisition, processing, and distribution. 

National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) - The NTIA contributes 

to the development and application of national and international telecommunication standards by 

participating and holding leadership roles in various voluntary standards committees at the 

national and international levels, e.g., Telecommunications Industry Association, International 

Telecommunication Union, and ATIS (Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions). 

These standards enhance the quality and reliability of the domestic telecommunications 

infrastructure, promote healthy competition in telecommunications products and services, and 

expand international trade opportunities for U.S. telecommunications firms. 

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) - The USPTO participates and contributes 

to the resolution of identified requirements for international standards, primarily through the 

Committee on WIPO Standards of the World Intellectual Property Organization. USPTO staff 

also participates in standardization activities of the International Patent Classification Union. 

OTHER NIST STANDARDS ACTIVITIES 

FEDERAL INFORMATION PROCESSINGS STANDARDS (FIPS) 

Under the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), TITLE III of the EGovernment Act of 2002, the Secretary of Commerce approves standards and guidelines that are 

developed by NIST for federal computer systems. This includes standards and guidelines needed 

to ensure the cost-effective security and privacy of sensitive information in federal computer 

systems. These standards and guidelines are issued by NIST as FIPS for use government wide. 

FIPS are issued when there are compelling federal government requirements such as for security 

and interoperability and there are no acceptable industry standards or solutions. When FIPS are 

considered necessary, NIST announces proposed FIPS in the Federal Register for public review 

and comment. 

During FY2010, NIST made the following FIPS announcement: 

A Federal Register notice dated December 11, 2009, announced the Revised Draft Federal 

Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 140-3, Security Requirements for Cryptographic 

Modules. The Revised Draft FIPS 140-3 is the second public draft of NIST’s proposed revision 

of FIPS 140-2. The Revised Draft was developed using the comments received on the first public 

draft, which was posted for public review and comment on July 13, 2007, and the FIPS 140-3 

Software Security Workshop held on March 18, 2008. While the 2007 Draft proposed 5 levels of 

security, the Revised Draft FIPS 140-3 reverts to 4 levels of security as currently specified in 

FIPS 140-2. In contrast to the 2007 Draft, the Revised Draft also reintroduces the notion of 

firmware cryptographic module and defines the security requirements for it, limits the overall 

security level for software cryptographic modules to Security Level 2, and removes the formal 

model requirement at Security Level 4. Differences with the current FIPS 140-2 standard include

limiting the overall security level for software cryptographic modules to Security Level 2, 

requirements for mitigation of non-invasive attacks at higher security levels, elimination of the 
20

requirement for formal modeling at Security Level 4, modified conditions for preoperational/power-on self-tests, and strengthened integrity testing. All comments to the Revised 

Draft FIPS 140-3 must be received on or before March 11, 2010. 

SMART GRID 

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has primary responsibility to coordinate the 

development of a framework including protocols and model standards to achieve interoperability 

of Smart Grid devices and systems [Energy Independence and Security Act Title XIII, Section 

1305]. NIST’s work to accelerate the development of Smart Grid standards by private sector 

standards development organizations is needed to ensure that technologies currently being 

developed or implemented with sizable public and private funding will be interoperable with 

other Smart Grid equipment, have necessary security measures, and do not result in stranded 

investments. To carry out its responsibility, NIST, in consultation with a large diverse group of 

stakeholders – including utilities, vendors, regulators, consumers, government agencies and 

standards developing organizations – has implemented a three phase plan which establishes a 

collaborative and robust standards process that supports cycle after cycle of Smart Grid 

innovation – innovation which has the power to transform our economy. The resulting process 

fully engages the private sector voluntary standards developers and supports collaborative 

methods and vehicles for developing and deploying standards in technology-based markets, 

especially during the early phases when standards—or the lack of standards—can strongly 

influence the course of further technology development and diffusion and the growth and 

competitiveness of industries. 

The output of the first phase of the NIST plan, a document drafted through an open public 

process engaging both the Smart Grid stakeholder communities and the general public, entitled, 

"NIST Framework and Roadmap for Smart Grid Interoperability Standards, Release 1.0" may be 

accessed via: 

http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/releases/upload/smartgrid_interoperability_final.pdf. In 

addition, as part of the second and third phases of the NIST plan, NIST established a Smart Grid 

Interoperability Panel, a public-private standards panel forum with over 620 participating 

organizations, to support NIST’s coordination and facilitate development and evolution of 

additionally needed standards, as well as establish a framework for testing and certification for 

Smart Grid devices and systems. Major accomplishments of NIST and the SGIP for this past 

year include the Cyber Security Working Group (CSWG) development and publication of 

NISTIR 7628 Guidelines for Smart Grid Cyber Security, the Testing and Certification 

Committee development of the Interoperability Process Reference Manual, the completion of 

Priority Action Plans and associated standards (including the NAESB PAP10 Energy Usage 

Information standard), the initiation of new Priority Action Plans and Working Groups, and the 

identification of five families of core Smart Grid standards to the Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission as being ready for consideration by regulators. 

HEALTH IT 

As health IT has become a top priority around the nation, it is clear that standards, 

interoperability, and conformity assessment are key to the fulfillment of the goals of health IT:
21

• higher quality and more efficient care; 

• seamless, secure, and private movement of data between healthcare providers without 

compromise or loss of information; 

• access to medical histories (including diagnoses, diagnostic tests, laboratory tests, and 

medication lists) at the point of care and in emergency settings; 

• fewer errors and redundant tests; 

• more efficient and effective reporting, including surveillance and quality monitoring; and 

• quick detection of adverse drug reactions and epidemics. 

NIST has a diverse portfolio of activities supporting our nation’s health IT effort and has been 

collaborating with industry and others to improve the healthcare information infrastructure since 

the 1990s. NIST IT researchers have an internationally respected reputation for their knowledge, 

experience, and leadership. Since 2005, NIST has worked closely with the Department of Health 

and Human Services' Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (HHS/ONC). The role of 

NIST is further articulated in the 2008 – 2012 Federal Health IT strategic plan and the American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to: 

• Advance healthcare information enterprise integration through standards and testing 

• Consult on updating the Federal Health Strategic Plan 

• Consult on voluntary certification programs 

• Consult on health IT implementation 

• Provide pilot testing of standards and implementation specifications, as requested. 

The NIST Health IT program will help improve the quality and availability of healthcare and 

reduce healthcare costs by enabling the establishment of an emerging health IT network that is 

correct, complete, secure, usable, and testable. 

The primary goals for the program are: 

1. Enable the accelerated development and harmonization of standards for health IT 

technologies. 

NIST enables the acceleration of industry-led, consensus-based standards development and 

harmonization to help ensure that the full set of necessary basic query and retrieval functions, 

including security and privacy provisions, for clinical information exist. NIST also advances 

other selected health IT technology standards as appropriate. Work is done in collaboration with 

relevant standards developing organizations (SDOs), federal agencies, professional societies, and 

industry. 

2. Create a health IT technology testing infrastructure. 

During the standards development and harmonization process, appropriate test tools and 

procedures can determine and provide feedback on ambiguities and gaps. NIST collaborates with 

interested entities to ensure that a testing infrastructure is created. As additional standards are 

recognized, appropriate test tools can be developed, using the same infrastructure. In particular, 

ONC consulted with NIST to establish a program for the voluntary certification of health 

information technology as being in compliance with applicable certification criteria to meet 

defined meaningful use requirements. In collaboration with ONC, NIST developed the necessary 

functional and conformance testing requirements, test cases, and test tools in support of the 

health IT certification program. In summary, as an extension of the NIST testing activities, NIST 

has developed the test method for meaningful use Stage 1. 
22

3. Support the usability of health IT technologies. 

NIST researches and enables the application of usability principles to improve electronic health 

record (EHR) workflow and adoption. 

4. Address healthcare delivery beyond traditional physical locations. 

There is an ever-growing need to provide remote and home healthcare for aging, underserved 

(e.g., rural), and chronically ill populations, which can be facilitated by leveraging existing and 

emerging health IT standards and testing. Pervasive healthcare explores the use of emerging 

technologies such as body sensors, implants, and medical equipment for routine monitoring of 

chronic conditions. NIST collaborates with industry to ensure that these technologies can be 

integrated into the nationwide healthcare infrastructure. 

5. Perform cutting edge R&D on related emerging technologies. 

The knowledge-base of the healthcare enterprise is increasing rapidly, and new technologies are 

constantly emerging. In many of these emerging technologies NIST has pilot projects and/or 

programs doing basic research that has immediate and big pay off applications in healthcare. 

Examples include medical device interoperability, data preservation, advance imaging, color 

fidelity, body/home sensors, robotics, text retrieval into structured databases, genomics and 

proteomics, etc. 

VOTING SYSTEM IMPROVEMENTS 

Under the 2002 Help America Vote Act (HAVA), NIST has a key role in helping to realize 

nationwide improvements in voting systems (http://www.nist.gov/itl/vote/). NIST HAVA efforts 

include: 

NIST works with the Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC) which is charged 

by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to provide technical guidance on 

implementing election-related technologies and to foster the development of voluntary, 

consensus guidelines. The NIST Director chairs the TGDC and NIST staff conduct the 

committee's technical work in accordance with HAVA. The TGDC and NIST are currently 

working on high level guidelines to support the Federal Voting Assistance Program as it carries 

out its mandates to ensure that military and overseas voters can vote in a timely fashion. They are 

also working to update the Voluntary Voting Standards Guidelines (VVSG). 

NIST is developing a set of public test suites to be used as part of the U.S. Election Assistance 

Commission's (EAC) Testing and Certification Program authorized under the HAVA. The tests 

correspond to Voluntary Voting System Guideline (VVSG) requirements in the 2007 VVSG 

Recommendations, which is currently under review by the EAC, and certain parts of the 2005 

VVSG revision, which is currently under public review by the EAC. Test labs will be able to use 

these publicly available test suites to help determine that the VVSG requirements are met by 

voting systems. 

NIST’s National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP) has established an 

accreditation program for laboratories that perform testing of voting systems, including hardware 

and software components. This program provides for the accreditation of laboratories that test 
23

voting systems using standards determined by the Election Assistance Commission (EAC). The 

EAC, not NIST, certifies voting systems for use in elections.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; E

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Department of Commerce (DOC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Defense (DoD) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The primary goal of the Department of Defense (DoD) is to support our nation's warfighter in the 

most efficient, effective, and cost conscious means possible while meeting mission requirements 

within criticial timeframes. Standards and standarization are essential elements to ensuring cost 

containment and operational effectivess is achieved during the development and continued 

maintenance of DoD systems and subsytems. 

Standardization has historically been relied upon throughout the Department to promote 

interoperability, reduce the logistics footprint, trim costs, and sustain readiness. DoD standards 

and standardization activities serve a number of logistics, operational, acquisition, and 

sustainment communities by providing material standardization products and services which 

enhance and promote communication and coordination that are integral to improving 

interoperability, reducing costs, and ensuring DoD readiness. 

The following are examples of the many standardization activities which have taken place over 
24

the past year that have made singular improvements in technical performance, enhanced safety, 

and cost avoidance. 

The Army Materiel Command (AMC) develops and acquires the materiel needed by warfighters. 

That materiel ranges from meals ready to eat, uniforms, ammunition, and communication 

systems to complex, sophisticated weapon systems. AMC is also responsible for the sustainment 

of the materiel, including maintaining and distributing spare parts. To optimize its development, 

acquisition, and sustainment missions, AMC maximizes its use of military and other government 

standards as well as commercial standards. Historically, individual AMC units would establish 

contracts to purchase standards related information including government-owned documents. 

This practice was not only expensive, due to duplicative purchases and purchase of information 

that was available at no cost, but inefficient as well. AMC consolidated the acquistion of 

standards-related information into a single contract managed by a single office. Not only was the 

quality, access, and oversight improved but the cost savings was substantial. 

The Virginia class of submarines is the first class of U.S. submarines designed for a broad 

spectrum of open ocean missions around the world. These submarines incorporate many 

innovations and are one of the most flexible in the fleet. Although designed for maximum 

flexiblity, allowing for technological insertion and innovation, obsolescence issues, particularly 

with electronic systems arise. To ensure the submarines are up to date, a multidisciplinary team 

of engineers and logisticians has been formed. This team identifies the obsolescence issues early, 

identifies all the systems affected, selects a solution, executes the solution, and measures and 

reports results. These solutions have resulted in millions of dollars in cost avoidance.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010:

This agency reports voluntary consensus standards usage on a category basis

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 192

Voluntary Standard Government Standard

MIL-39029/101A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/101

MIL-39029/102A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/102

MIL-39029/103A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/103

MIL-39029/104A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/104

MIL-B-18/207C NOT1 IEC86-1

MIL-B-18/21D NOT1 ANSI C18.1M

MIL-B-49030/9 NOT3 NEMA-C18.1

MIL-B-55130/2 NOT1 ANSI-C18.2M-PART 1

MIL-B-55130/3 NOT1 ANSI-C18.2M-PART 1

MIL-B-55130/4 NOT1 ANSI-C18.2M-PART 1
25

MIL-B-55130/5 NOT1 ANSI-C18.2M-PART 1

MIL-B-85560(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS85560

MIL-B-85560/1(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS85560/1

MIL-B-85560/2 NOT 2 SAE-AS85560/2

MIL-C- 24066C NOT 2 NAS 1463

MIL-C-14550B(3) NOT 1 SAE-AMS 2418

MIL-C-16536C NOT 1 ANSI-MH27.1

MIL-C-19853D NOT 1 SAE-AMS-C-19853

MIL-C-19876D NOT 1 UL 1236

MIL-C-20159C NOT 1 ASTM-B369

MIL-C-21768A NOT 2 ASTM-B36

MIL-C-22542B NOT 1 SAE-AMS-C-22542

MIL-C-22587B SAE -AMS-C-22587

MIL-C-22909B SUP 1 NOT 2 SAE-AS 5259 and SAE-AS 5259/1

MIL-C-24066/2E NOT 2 NASM 24066/2

MIL-C-24066/3C NOT 2 NASM 24066/3

MIL-C-24066/4D NOT 1 NASM 24066/4

MIL-C-29169A NOT 1 UL 6

MIL-C-38334A(2) NOT 2 SAE-AMS 1640

MIL-C-38404E NOT 2 SAE-AS 38404

MIL-C-39029/105 NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/105

MIL-C-39029/106A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/106

MIL-C-39029/107A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/107

MIL-C-39029/108 NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/108

MIL-C-39029/109 NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/109

MIL-C-39029/10E(1) NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/10

MIL-C-39029/11J NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/11

MIL-C-39029/12J NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/12

MIL-C-39029/13A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/13

MIL-C-39029/14A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/14

MIL-C-39029/16C NOT 3 SAE-AS39029/16

MIL-C-39029/17C NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/17

MIL-C-39029/18C NOT 3 SAE-AS39029/18

MIL-C-39029/19A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/19

MIL-C-39029/1F NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/1

MIL-C-39029/20A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/20

MIL-C-39029/21A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/21

MIL-C-39029/22B NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/22
26

MIL-C-39029/23B NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/23

MIL-C-39029/24B NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/24

MIL-C-39029/25C NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/25

MIL-C-39029/26C NOT 3 SAE-AS39029/26

MIL-C-39029/27D (1) NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/27

MIL-C-39029/28C (4) NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/28

MIL-C-39029/29B NOT 4 SAE-AS39029/29

MIL-C-39029/30A NOT 3 SAE-AS39029/30

MIL-C-39029/31B NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/31

MIL-C-39029/32B NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/32

MIL-C-39029/33C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/33

MIL-C-39029/34B NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/34

MIL-C-39029/35C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/35

MIL-C-39029/36A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/36

MIL-C-39029/37A(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/37

MIL-C-39029/3B NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/3

MIL-C-39029/44D (2) NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/44

MIL-C-39029/45D (1) NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/45

MIL-C-39029/46C (1) NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/46

MIL-C-39029/47C (1) NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/47

MIL-C-39029/48D NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/48

MIL-C-39029/49D NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/49

MIL-C-39029/4F NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/4

MIL-C-39029/50A NOT 3 SAE-AS39029/50

MIL-C-39029/51A NOT 3 SAE-AS39029/51

MIL-C-39029/54B (1) NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/54

MIL-C-39029/55B (1) NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/55

MIL-C-39029/56E NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/56

MIL-C-39029/57C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/57

MIL-C-39029/58E NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/58

MIL-C-39029/59D NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/59

MIL-C-39029/5G NOT 2 SAE -AS39029/5

MIL-C-39029/60D NOT 1 SAE -AS39029/60

MIL-C-39029/63C NOT 1 SAE -AS39029/63

MIL-C-39029/64C NOT 1 SAE -AS39029/64

MIL-C-39029/69B NOT 2 SAE -AS39029/69

MIL-C-39029/6A NOT 2 SAE -AS39029/6

MIL-C-39029/70B NOT 2 SAE -AS39029/70
27

MIL-C-39029/71 NOT 2 SAE -AS39029/71

MIL-C-39029/72D NOT 2 SAE -AS39029/72

MIL-C-39029/73C NOT 2 SAE -AS39029/73

MIL-C-39029/75B NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/75

MIL-C-39029/76A NOT 3 SAE-AS39029/76

MIL-C-39029/77B NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/77

MIL-C-39029/78B NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/78

MIL-C-39029/79A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/79

MIL-C-39029/80A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/80

MIL-C-39029/83C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/83

MIL-C-39029/84D NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/84

MIL-C-39029/85C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/85

MIL-C-39029/86C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/86

MIL-C-39029/86C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/86

MIL-C-39029/87C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/87

MIL-C-39029/88A NOT 2 SAE-AS39029/88

MIL-C-39029/89C NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/89

MIL-C-39029/8B NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/8

MIL-C-39029/90A (1) NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/90

MIL-C-39029/91A (1) NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/91

MIL-C-39029/92B NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/92

MIL-C-39029/93A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/93

MIL-C-39029/94A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/94

MIL-C-39029/97A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/97

MIL-C-39029/98A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/98

MIL-C-39029/99A NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/99

MIL-C-39029/9E NOT 1 SAE-AS39029/9

MIL-C-39029D SUP 1A NOT 2 SAE-AS39029

MIL-C-43391A(1) NOT 1 ASTM-D4306-88

MIL-C-50709 NOT 2 ASTM-B438

MIL-C-55442B NOT 1 NAS3417

MIL-C-81582/10 NOT 1 SAE-AS1582/10

MIL-C-81582/1C NOT 1 SAE-AS1582/1

MIL-C-81582/2C NOT 1 SAE-AS1582/2

MIL-C-81582/4B NOT 1 SAE-AS1582/4

MIL-C-81582/5A NOT 1 SAE-AS1582/5

MIL-C-81582/6A NOT 1 SAE-AS1582/6

MIL-C-81582/8B NOT 1 SAE-AS1582/8
28

MIL-C-81582/9 NOT 1 SAE AS81582/9

MIL-C-81582B(1) SUP 1 NOT 1 SAE AS81582

MIL-DTL-16878/30B NOT 2 NEMA-HP6

MIL-DTL-5015H(1) SUP 1 NOT 1 SAE-AS50151

MIL-F-13927A(3) NOT 1 ASTM-G21

MIL-H-8775D(1) NOT 1 SAE-AS8775

MIL-I-81550C(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS 81550

MIL-I-85080/2 NOT 2 SAE-AS85080/2

MIL-I-85080/3 NOT 2 SAE-AS85080/3

MIL-I-85080/4 NOT 1 SAE-AS85080/4

MIL-P-5510C NOT 4 SAE-AMS-P-5510

MIL-R-46082B(6) NOT 3 ASTM-D5363

MIL-S-46163A(2) NOT 4 ASTM-D5363

MIL-S-5594/1A NOT 2 SAE-AS55941/1

MIL-S-5594/2B (1) NOT 2 SAE-AS55941/2

MIL-S-5594/3A NOT 3 SAE-AS55941/3

MIL-S-5594/6 NOT 3 SAE-AS55941/6

MIL-S-5594B (1) SUP 1 NOT 2 SAE-AS55941

MIL-STD-973(3) NOT 5 EIA649

MIL-T-18830C NOT 1 ASTM-F-1066-87

MILI-85080(1) NOT 3 SAE-AS85080

MILI-85080/1A NOT 2 SAE-AS85080/1

MS 21903C NOT 1 SAE-AS21924

MS14153C NOT 1 SAE-AS14153

MS20004 THRU MS20024 NOT 1 NASM20004 THRU 20024

MS20426L NOT 1 NASM2046

MS21936 NOT 2 SAE-AS21936

MS24388H NOT 1 SAE-AS1031

MS24389F NOT 1 SAE-AS1032

MS24390F NOT 1 SAE-AS1033

MS24395G NOT 1 SAE-AS1039

MS24396E NOT 1 SAE-AS1040

MS24401D NOT 1 SAE-AS1034

MS24402D NOT 1 SAE-AS1035

MS24403E NOT 1 SAE-AS1036

MS25042K NOT 2 SAE-AS25043

MS25043K NOT 2 SAE-AS25043

MS25183C(1) NOT 3 SAE-AS25183
29

MS25189C NOT 3 SAE-AS25189

MS25441C NOT 2 SAE-AS5259/1

MS25442C NOT 2 SAE-AS5259/1

MS25472G NOT 1 SAE-AS5259/1

MS3100F(1) NOT 3 SAE-AS31001

MS3101D(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS31011

MS3102E(1) NOT 3 SAE-AS31021

MS3103D(1) NOT 3 SAE-AS31031

MS3105A(1) NOT 1 SAE-AS31051

MS3105A(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS31051

MS3106D(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS31061

MS3107C NOT 3 SAE-AS31071

MS3108D(1) NOT 3 SAE-AS31081

MS3142D NOT 3 SAE-AS31421

MS3155C(1) NOT 2 SAE-AS31551

MS33649C NOT 2 SAE-AS 5202

MS3400G NOT 3 SAE-AS34001

MS3401G NOT 3 SAE-AS34011

MS3402G NOT 3 SAE-AS34021

MS3404G NOT 3 SAE-AS34041

MS3406H NOT 3 SAE-AS34061

MS3408D NOT 1 SAE-AS34081

MS3409B NOT 2 SAE-AS34091

MS3412D NOT 2 SAE-AS334121

MS3420C NOT 4 SAE-85049/139

MS3436A NOT 2 SAE-AS34361

MS3441 NOT 2 SAE-AS34411

MS3450E NOT 1 SAE-AS34501

MS3451C NOT 2 SAE-AS34511

MS3452D NOT 1 SAE-AS34521

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 53

Other Technical Standards: 0
30

Rationale: The types of Other Technical Standards DoD began to use in FY 2010 is located in a 

classified database, therefore, this number can not be reported.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 122

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Aerospace & Defense Industries Association of Europe ASD

Aerospace Industries Association of America AIA

Air Movement and Control Association AMCA

Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions ATIS

AMCA International AMCA

American Architectural Manufacturers Association AAMA

American Association for Laboratory Accreditation A2LA

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials AASHTO

American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists AATCC

American Bearing Manufacturers Association ABMA

American Bureau of Shipping ABS

American Concrete Institute ACI

American Dental Association ADA

American Gas Association AGA

American Gear Manufacturers Association AGMA

American Hardboard Association AHA

American Industrial Hygiene Association AIHA

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics AIAA

American Institute of Steel Construction AISC

American Institute of Timber Construction AITC

American Leather Chemists Association ALCA

American National Metric Council ANMC

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Petroleum Institute API

American Plywood Association APA

American Railway Engineering & Maintenance-of-Way Association AREMA

American Society for Nondestructive Testing ASNT

American Society for Quality ASQ

American Society of Cinematographers ASC

American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers ASHRAE

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME
31

American Society of Safety Engineers ASSE

American Society of Sanitary Engineering ASSE

American Water Works Association AWWA

American Welding Society AWS

American Wood Preservers Association AWPA

American Wood Protection Association AWPA

APA - The Engineered Wood Association APA

Architectural Woodwork Institute AWI

Association for Automatic Indentification & Mobility AIM

Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation AAMI

Association of Automatic Indentification and Data Capture Technologies AIM

ASTM International ASTM

British Standards Institution BSI

Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association BHMA

Building Officials and Code Administrators International, Inc BOCA

Canadian General Standards Board CGSB

Cast Iron Soil Pipe Institute CISPI

Compressed Gas Association CGA

Construction Specifications Institute CSI

Cooling Technology Institute CTI

Cordage Institute CI

Data Interchange Standards Association, Inc. DISAI

Deep Foundations Institute DFI

Deutsches Institut fur Nomung - German Institute for Standardization DIN

Electronic Commerce Code Management Association ECCMA

Electronic Components Assemblies & Materials Association ECAMA

Electronic Industries Alliance EIA

Electrostatic Discharge Association ESDA

FM Global FMG

Government Electronics & Information Technology Association GEITA

Graphic Communications Association GCA

Gypsum Association GA

Hardwood Plywood & Veneer Association HPVA

High Frequency Industry Association HFIA

Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, Inc. HFES

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America IESNA

Information Technology Industry Council ITI

Institute for Interconnecting and Packaging Electronic Circuits IPC
32

Institute of Clean Air Companies ICAC

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Institute of Environmental Sciences & Technology IEST

Insulated Cable Engineers Association ICEA

International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials IAPMO

International Code Council ICC

InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards INCITS

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical 

Commission ISO/IEC

International Society of Automation ISA

International Telecommunication Union ITU

IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries IPC

JEDEC - Solid State Technology Association JEDEC

Machinery Information Management Open Systems MIMOSA

Magnetic Materials Producers Association MMPA

Manufacturers Standardization Society of the Valve and Fittings Industry MSSVFI

National Aerospace Standards Committee NASC

National Association of Chain Manufacturers NACM

National Association of Corrosion Engineers International NACE

National Association of Relay Manufacturers NARM

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Fluid Power Association NFLPA

National Information Standards Organization NISO

National Petroleum Management Association NPMA

NCSL International NCSLI

NSF International NSFI

Optics and Electro-Optics Standards Council OEOSC

Parachute Industry Association PIA

Pipe Fabrication Institute PFI

Plastic Pipe Institute PPI

Plumbing and Draining Institute PDI

Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association PHCCA

Quarter-Inch Cartridge Drive Standards, Inc. QCDS

Rack Manufacturers Institute RMI

Resistance Welders Manufacturers Association RWMA

Rubber Manufacturers Association RMA
33

Scientific Apparatus Makers Association SAMA

Sheet Metal & Air Conditioning Contractors National Association SMACNA

Simulation Interoperability Standards Organization SISO

Society of Allied Weight Engineers SAWE

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Standards Engineering Society SES

Steel Door Institute SDI

Steel Founders Society of America SFSA

Steel Window Institute SWI

The Aluminum Association, Inc. AA

The Soap and Detergent Association SDA

The Tire and Rim Association, Inc. TRAI

Truck Trailer Manufacturers Association TTMA

Underwriters Laboratories UL

Window and Door Manufacturers Association WDMA

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 0

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

The Department of Defense does not collect information on DoD wide conformity assessment 

activities.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

The Department of Defense encourages the National Institute of Standards and Technology 

consider highlighting in the NTTAA annual report to Congress examples of government 

agencies are participating in the development of voluntary consensus standards and using these 

documents to meet requirements. The resources government entities commit to voluntary 

consensus standards development should not go unrecognized by Congress.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

In consideration of government security restrictions, the Department is unable to collect actual 

personnel information related to participation in voluntary consensus activities.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:
34

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 5

Title: Department of Defense (DoD) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Education (ED) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Section 515 of the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2001, 

Public Law 106-554 requires agencies subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act, including the 

U.S. Department of Education, issue guidelines by October 1, 2002, for the purpose of "ensuring 

and maximizing the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of information (including statistical 

information) disseminated by Federal agencies." The Department's guidelines can be found at: 

http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/infoqualguide.html 

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the principal statistical agency within the 

U.S. Department of Education uses standards to provide high quality, reliable, useful, and 

informative statistical information to public policy decision makers and to the general public. In 

particular, the standards that NCES follows are intended for use by NCES staff and contractors 

to guide them in their data collection, analysis, and dissemination activities. These standards are 

also intended to present a clear statement for data users regarding how data should be collected 

in NCES surveys, and the limits of acceptable applications and use. Beyond these immediate 

uses, NCES hope that other organizations involved in similar public endeavors will find the 

contents of some of NCES standards useful in their work. (Source: NCES Statistical Standards: 

NCES 2003-601) 
35

The Department of Education also uses standards in the implementation of Information 

Technology for the Department which ultimately enhances the delivery of Department Education 

services to citizens. The Department of Education uses Information Technology Standards to 

implement common enabling services and infrastructure services. These Information Technology 

standards used in the Department of Education’s Enterprise Architecture also fulfill OMB’s 

requirement for a Standards Profile. (Source: Department of Education Enterprise Standards and 

Guidelines Technology Standards Profile, Volume I: Enterprise Standards Profile Version 1.0)

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 4

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

National Forum on Education Statistics NCES Forum

Postsecondary Electronic Standards Organization PESC

Schools Interoperability Framework Association SIFA

Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems (El/Sec) SLDS

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 24

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

None
36

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

No Comment

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No Comment

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

No Comment

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: Department of Education (ED) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Energy (DOE) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The Department of Energy (DOE) uses voluntary consensus standards (VCSs) extensively in 

managing, operating, and implementing requirements applicable to its diverse sites, laboratories, 

operations, and facilities. The VCSs are used to support a wide range of program areas, including 

those addressing nuclear weapons and materials production, energy research, energy efficiency, 

oil storage, hydroelectric power, accelerator operations, and nuclear facility decommissioning. 

VCSs are consulted, referenced and 
37

applied in mission-related design, procurement, construction, operations, maintenance, 

emergency operations, and decommissioning efforts; in environment, safety and health 

management; in DOE research and development activities; in security and safeguards programs; 

and in overall business operations and management. 

Other areas where DOE and its contractors use VCSs include: 

a. Writing procedures; 

b. Establishing safety criteria (e.g., for worker job task analyses, fire protection, nuclear 

criticality safety, nuclear facility safety); and 

c. Supporting internal DOE Technical Standards. 

DOE’s Technical Standards Program website is located at 

www.hss.energy.gov/NuclearSafety/ns/techstds/. 

Examples/Case Studies: 

(1) DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has successfully applied ANSI/HPS Standard 

N13.12, "Surface and Volume Radioactivity Standards for Clearance". The standard, N13.12, is 

a standard providing consensus-based surface and volume radioactivity criteria for release of 

property in developing release limits under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 

Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) for concrete slabs. 

(2) DOE’s Savannah River Site has implemented the transition from site standards to The 

National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 2009 Annual Report for The 

Department of Energy 

national codes and standards to comply with Public Law 104-113 and OMB A-119. This 

transition resulted in the reduction of over 700 site-specific standards and guides to the present 

day use of national codes and standards, supplemented by 12 site standards and 64 site guides. 

(3) DOE’s Y-12 Site has several employees involved with the American Glovebox Society 

(AGS), writing and publishing documents related to gloveboxes. Y-12 has found that by 

developing common requirements and expectations for gloveboxes and related equipment, 

vendors have been able to standardize their products so that features and components can be 

standardized for various customers. Gloveboxes used by the various DOE facilities, as well as 

industries such as pharmaceutical, biological, and other laboratories, all have unique 

requirements and are generally designed around a specific operation. However, by standardizing 

such features as glovebox windows and their attachment to gloveboxes, fabricators are able to 

standardize tooling and fabrication methods that reduce the cost for all customers. Another 

benefit to DOE is the use of proven, widely-applied standardized designs and practices. The Y12 Site uses AGS standards to execute new designs. The Y-12 Site also specifies AGS standards 

in procurement subcontracts for the glovebox fabricators to follow. One example of where this 

has been beneficial is in the standardization of requirements for welding related to glovebox 

fabrication. Before using AGS standards, vendors had to carefully evaluate potentially unique Y12 Site requirements and specifications related to glovebox fabrication. However, the Y-12 Site 

now specifies that welding shall be in accordance with AGS-G006-2005, "Standard of Practice 
38

for the Design and Fabrication of Nuclear-Application Gloveboxes." Vendors know exactly what 

they must do to meet the requirements of this standard. 

(4) Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has several new facility construction projects and 

hundreds of facility or system modification projects underway at any given time. Every one of 

these projects and modifications follows national codes and standards such as the National 

Electric Code, and the International Building Code. These codes reference hundreds of 

supporting national consensus standards which are integral to the work done at LANL.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 9

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: Throughout the year 2010, DOE had a total of 1,783 adopted, non-govenment VCSs 

documented.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 91

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Air Movement and Control Association AMCA

Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute ARI

American Architectural Manufacturers Association AAMA

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials AASHTO

American Chemical Society ACS

American Chemistry Council ACC

American Concrete Institute ACI

American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists ACGIH

American Industrial Hygiene Association AIHA

American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE

American Institute of Steel Construction AISC

American Iron and Steel Institute AISI
39

American Medical Association AMA

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Nuclear Society ANS

American Petroleum Institute API

American Public Health Association APHA

American Railway Engineering & Maintenance-of-Way Association AREMA

American Society for Nondestructive Testing ASNT

American Society for Quality ASQ

American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers ASHRAE

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Trucking Association ATA

American Water Works Association AWWA

American Welding Society AWS

Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association ARMA

Associated Air Balance Council AABC

Association for Information and Image Management AIIM

Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering AACEI

ASTM International ASTM

Building Officials and Code Administrators International, Inc BOCA

Ceilings and Interior Systems Construction Association CISCA

Compressed Gas Association CGA

Construction Safety Association of Ontario CSAO

Cooling Technology Institute CTI

Crane Manufacturing Association of America CMAA

Electronic Industries Alliance EIA

Factory Mutual Research Corporation FMRC

Glass Association of North America GANA

Gypsum Association GA

Health Physics Society HPS

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America IESNA

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Institute of Makers of Explosives IME

Institute of Transportation Engineers ITE

Insulated Steel Door Systems Institute ISDSI

International Air Transport Association IATA

International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials IAPMO

International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA
40

International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO

International Code Council ICC

International Commission of Non-ionizing Radiation Protection and 

Measurements ICNIRP

International Commission on Radiation Protection ICRP

International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements, Inc. ICRU

International Conference of Building Officials ICBO

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical 

Commission ISO/IEC

International Society of Automation ISA

Metal Building Manufacturers Association MBMA

Metal Lath/Steel Framing Association, A Division of NAAMM MLSFA

National Association of Architectural Metal Manufacturers NAAMM

National Concrete Masonry Association NCMA

National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements NCRP

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Ground Water Association NGWA

National Information Standards Organization NISO

National Roofing Contractors Association NRCA

National Safety Council NSC

National Window and Door Association NWDA

NCSL International NCSLI

Painting and Decorating Contractors of America PDCA

Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association PHCCA

Portland Cement Association PCA

Post-Tensioning Institute PTI

Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute PCI

Resilient Floor Covering Institute RFCI

Scaffolding, Shoring, and Forming Institute, Inc. SSFI

Screen Manufacturers Association SMA

Sheet Metal & Air Conditioning Contractors National Association SMACNA

Single Ply Roofing Institute SPRI

Society of American Value Engineers SAVE

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Society of Fire Protection Engineers SFPE

Steel Deck Institute SDI
41

Steel Door Institute SDI

Steel Joist Institute SJI

Steel Window Institute SWI

Underwriters Laboratories UL

Water Environment Federation WEF

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 488

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

The Department of Energy does not track conformity assessment activities.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

OMB A-119 continues to effectively provide the framework of requirements for DOE’s 

involvement in national VCS standards-setting initiatives, and requirements for consideration of 

VCSs applicable to DOE needs prior to our development of agencyspecific standards.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

The Department of Energy and its Standards Executive recognize the valuable role that VCSs 

play in facilitating the implementation of DOE requirements, and in supporting the Department’s 

mission, strategic themes, and diverse program areas. DOE will continue to participate in and 

sponsor, as appropriate, VCS initiatives to ensure that the Department’s needs and interests are 

represented in national and international VCS initiatives important to the success of DOE’s 

mission, programs and operations.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C
42

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 5

Title: Department of Energy (DOE) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency 

Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) 

AHRQ’s mission is to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for 

all Americans. AHRQ’s standards program aims to improve the uniformity, accuracy, validity, 

and computerization of health care data so that AHRQ-funded, and all, health research is more 

robust and applicable to practitioner, patient, consumer, and policy decisions. Our household and 

patient health data uses voluntary consensus health care data standards to organize, report on, 

and undertake research on individual and aggregated data that represent common concepts in the 

United States. This avoids researcher activity that would duplicate private sector consensus on 

linking concepts with health data. This also reduces the effort needed to define research concepts 

and practically apply them. Further, it improves the understanding of AHRQ’s research results 

and broadens their applicability. At www.ahrq.gov you will find AHRQ research programs, 

specific projects, and project findings. In many cases, you will find summaries of research 

program findings and evidence-based reports on specific topics. 

Because health data standards have a public good aspect to their development and use, AHRQ’s 

support of VCS by participating standards developing organization (SDO) meetings generates 

substantial good will. At www.ushik.ahrq.gov, you will find data elements and their metadata 

linked to the use cases that generated them and linked to the VCS from which they were chosen. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

CDC is the leading federal public health agency that monitors the nation’s health and detects and 

investigates health problems. In 2010, the CDC has prioritized the standards activities in support 

of ARRA initiatives, Health IT (HIT) meaningful use and standards for public health emergency 

response. Those activities had direct impact on a development, implementation and promotion of 

standards. 

• CDC has collaborated with ONC and CMS in the development of the HITECH Meaningful Use 

regulations (Meaningful Use Stage 1 final rules and planning for Stages 2 and 3). 

• CDC participated in international activities for informatics support of electronic health records 

through WHO, HL7, IHE etc. 
43

• CDC’s Public Health Informatics Network (PHIN) Vocabulary Access and Distribution System 

(VADS) led activities on development, maintenance and promotion of standard vocabularies and 

terminology. This activity is very important for supporting ARRA. 

• The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) continued to be one of 

CDC entities that is directly involved in development and implementation of performance 

standard, and certification programs for respirators 

• The National Center for Health Statistics, (NCHS) Classifications and Public Health Data 

Standards Staff (CPHDSS) has been working collaboratively with the Division of Vital Statistics 

(DVS) and the National Association of Public Health Statistics and Information Systems 

(NAPHSIS) to lay the foundation for developing vital records standards to enable interoperable 

electronic data exchanges among electronic health record systems, U.S. vital records systems and 

potentially other public information systems for birth, death and fetal death events. 

• A number of CDC systems have been actively engaged in the use of these standards. Some of 

the examples are: StarLIMS, National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), National Electronic 

Disease Surveillance System (NEDSS), Public Health Laboratory Interoperability Project 

(PHLIP), PHIN VADS 

• The Agency is also very involved in the voluntary standards process and has been for a number 

of years. See http://www.cdc.gov/phin/activities/standards/index.html for an example of a 

current system using voluntary consensus standards. Information on the CDC/NCHS/DVS 

eVitals initiatives is available on our website at: 

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/about_nvss.htm#eVitals. The Internet link for rulemaking 

activities to revise the current respirators’ standards is: 

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/respstds.html#rule 

• The CDC, in collaboration with the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, supports 

the activities of the National Committee of Vital and Health Statistics (NCVHS). See 

http://www.ncvhs.hhs.gov/index.htm 

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid’s (CMS) mission is “To ensure effective, up-to-date 

health care coverage and to promote quality care for beneficiaries.” The agency strategic action 

plan incorporates usage of national standards, not only for electronic data interchange (EDI) 

transaction, code set and identifier standards, but also for electronic prescribing, maintenance of 

beneficiary (and all patient) medical records, and interoperability of usage of standards to enable 

all facets of the health care industry to freely exchange medical information where warranted to 

avoid unnecessary duplicative tests, reduce medical errors, and allow beneficiaries and health 

care providers to make informed health care decisions. 

CMS recognizes the value of adopting standards and is committed to encouraging their adoption 

as they are approved by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). 

Since most of CMS’ business processes depend to a large degree on contractor systems, as well 

as other industry stakeholder systems, it is vital that the standards creation and adoption process 

involves these entities and that careful analysis is done to minimize risk. 

We are working closely with the HHS Office of the National Coordinator for HIT (ONC) to 

determine how we can promote interoperability through a common set of standards. CMS is a 
44

member of standards setting organizations such as HL7, NCPDP, and X12, and regularly 

participates in meetings of these as well as other organizations. An OESS representative serves 

as the lead staff member on the NCVHS Subcommittee on Standards and Security. 

In addition, CMS is involved in standards development, adoption and implementation activities 

in the following areas: 

1) Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Standards Adoption – CMS has 

been actively involved in standards adoption as a regulator and health plan for over a decade. 

Besides writing regulations related to HIPAA, CMS has conducted extensive outreach to educate 

and promote the adoption of HIPAA transactions that standardize administrative transactions. 

CMS has also worked with its contractors to make the systems changes necessary to 

accommodate HIPAA compliant transactions. 

2) E-Prescribing Standards – The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization 

Act of 2003 (the MMA) established a process for adopting e-prescribing standards for use under 

the Medicare Part D prescription drug program. In November 2005, HHS adopted a set of 

foundation standards for e-prescribing that took effect with the start of the Medicare Part D 

program on January 1, 2006, and we also conducted a pilot program in 2006 testing additional eprescribing standards. Results from the pilot were the basis for the selection of three additional 

standards developed by VCSBs, which took effect on April 1, 2009. 

CMS has made the determination to implement when possible consensus endorsed quality 

measures in its pay-for-reporting quality improvement and value-based purchasing programs. 

The National quality Forum process for endorsement of measures has been identified as the only 

recognized source that engages a comprehensive call for measures, review of scientific and 

statistical evidence, and a forum for the in-depth study of existing tools for comparing the 

performance of health care providers in various settings and is consistent with the NTTAA

standards criteria. As such, NQF has been the primary organization that CMS uses to obtain 

consensus and/or endorsement of the quality measures that it publicly reports and uses in its 

programs. 

Links: 

1) Office of Clinical Standards & quality Website:

http://www.cms.gov/CMSLeadership/11_Office_OCSQ.asp#TopOfPage 

2) CMS Quality Measures: http://www.cms.gov/QualityMeasures/ 

3) National Quality Forum: http://www.qualityforum.org/ 

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 

The development and use of standards have been integral to the execution of the mission of FDA 

since its establishment. Standard-setting activities include matters such as the development of 

performance characteristics, testing methodology, manufacturing practices, product standards, 

scientific protocols, compliance criteria, ingredient specifications, labeling, or other technical or 

policy criteria. FDA staff has historically participated in a range of standard setting activities 

outside the Agency. As noted in 21 CFR 10.95 (a), “FDA encourages employee participation in 
45

outside standard-setting activities that are in the public interest.” 

Standards developed through interactions with various standard development bodies, including 

voluntary consensus standard organizations and or industry consortia, can provide benefit to both 

the Agency and our stakeholders in multiple ways such as: 

1) Standards can assist reviewers with assessment of product applications; 

2) Standards often result in better utilization of limited internal resources; 

3) International standards can be used by multiple regulatory regions, following our legal 

mandate to facilitate harmonization on an international level; and 

4) Direct participation by various stakeholders in development of standards results in a 

consensus among users, manufacturers and government regulators on safety and effective use of 

regulated products. 

For more information about standards in the achievement of FDA's mission, please see: 

http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/ReportsManualsForms/StaffManualGuides/ucm193332.htm 

Indian Health Service (IHS) 

Standards are an integral part of the effective operations of the Indian Health Service (IHS). 

Health-related standards, such as Health Level Seven (HL7), allow interoperability among health 

information systems improving the standard of patient care for the American Indian/Alaskan 

Native populations, the primary mission of the IHS. Other standards provide for the efficient 

transmission of insurance data for revenue generation and interoperability among disparate 

systems for information sharing, such as immunization data (IHS currently exchanges 

immunization data with several states). The IHS is pursuing certification of its ambulatory and 

inpatient electronic health record (EHR) to support the attainment of Meaningful Use of an EHR 

incentives authorized by the HITECH Act. The standards necessary to meet certification and 

Meaningful Use are or will be incorporated into IHS’ health information systems. IHS adopted 

and uses standards for security and privacy of patient and employee data, for communication of 

biomedical diagnostic and therapeutic information for digital imaging, for technical 

specifications used in telemedicine and technical services, for national drug codes, for energyand environmentally-friendly construction, and for reporting medical services and procedures. 

Indian Health Service Standards Success Story 

The IHS provides health care to a service population of 1.9 million American Indians and Alaska 

Natives who reside in 35 states. The Resource and Patient Management System (RPMS) is a 

comprehensive health information system created to support the delivery of high quality health 

care to American Indians and Alaska Natives who attend several hundred Federal and Tribal 

hospitals and clinics nationwide. The RPMS integrates practice management, medical, 

behavioral health, population health and performance reporting functions into a fully capable 

electronic health record (EHR) suite. 

RPMS is one of the nation’s earliest and most respected EHR systems. For more than 25 years, 

RPMS has been instrumental in tracking, improving, and assisting patient care. A governmentdeveloped and owned system, RPMS evolved alongside the Veteran’s Health Administration’s 

acclaimed VistA system, but occupies a unique place as the only system designed specifically to 
46

support the direct care and public health mission of IHS. 

The RPMS is critical to operations at IHS, Tribal and Urban health facilities, offering a 

repository of historical medical information, documentation of care, medication management, 

order entry and results reporting, third party billing, and numerous other features. As a high 

quality, low cost public domain system, RPMS has also proven attractive to private and public 

sector health care entities. 

Two hundred forty-seven (247) facilities across the country now use the RPMS EHR in the 

provision of health care services. In addition, RPMS is used outside of Indian Country by the 

Community Health Network of West Virginia, which has RPMS EHR running at about 45 

ambulatory clinics throughout the state. A group at the University of Hawaii is supporting the 

implementation of RPMS at a number of community health centers, state hospitals, and critical 

access hospitals. 

The Indian Health Service’s (IHS) innovative and advanced electronic health information system 

was recently certified in 2008 as a developmental ambulatory Electronic Health Record (EHR) 

by the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT) and is in the 

process of certifying under the Meaningful Use criteria. 

Standards included in the criteria include: Health Level 7 (HL7), Logical Observation Identifiers 

Names and Codes (LOINC), National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP), and 

Accredited Standards Committee X-12 (ASC X12). IHS is currently working to meet the 

certification for Meaningful Use for RPMS as an Inpatient Electronic Health Record system. 

The IHS Immunization Exchanges 

The IHS strives, through work in the registry community, to stay on the forefront of the HL7 

standards for immunization exchange and has demonstrated leadership as a provider entity with a 

standards-based exchange. These activities are supported by the Immunization module of the 

IHS Resource and Patient Management System (RPMS). This module enables tracking and 

forecasting of immunizations, immunization coverage reports, reminders, due lists, and doses 

administered reports. In addition, immunization data is available for submission to state 

immunization information systems. Currently, IHS participates in immunization data exchanges 

with 12 states, either bi-directionally or uni-directionally. Seven more states are in the planning 

stages. These exchanges all use the Health Level 7 standard message and will be compliant with 

Meaningful Use standards 

National Institutes of Health / National Cancer Institute (NIH/NCI) 

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) established the Clinical Proteomic Technologies for Cancer 

(CPTC) to accelerate the translation of proteomics from a research tool into a reliable and robust 

clinical application. This program is designed to accelerate the translation of proteomics from a 

research tool into a reliable and robust clinical application by improving protein measurement 

capabilities and evaluating promising technologies for applicability in both analytical and 
47

clinical validation studies. This is to be achieved through identifying major sources of 

experimental variability and optimizing existing proteomic platforms to enable labs to compare 

data and results; developing innovative and advanced proteomic technologies capable of 

identifying rare cancer-related proteins circulating in bodily fluids such as blood; and developing 

a much needed clinical reagents and resources core of well-characterized biological samples, 

reagents, reference sets, and standards available to the scientific community. More information is 

available at http://proteomics.cancer.gov 

Additionally, the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL) is part of the National 

Cancer Institute (NCI)’s Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer, within the National Institutes of 

Health (NIH). The NCL is a formal interagency collaboration between NCI, the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 

and is operated through the NCI’s Federally Funded Research & Development Center (FFRDC) 

at SAIC/NCI-Frederick. The intent of the NCL is to accelerate the transition of basic 

nanotechnology research into clinical cancer applications. NCL seeks to establish and 

standardize analytical methods for nanomaterial characterization and to facilitate clinical 

development and regulatory review of nanomaterials. The use of voluntary consensus standards 

(VCS) is, and will continue to be, critical in this endeavor. NCL is taking a leadership role in 

developing standard protocols for characterization of nanoparticles, which then enable 

appropriate assessment of the biological activity of these products. 

One of the NCL’s objectives is the development of standard methods to assess safety, toxicity, 

and quality control of biomedical nanotechnology. Without such standards, nanotechnology drug 

developers have to design and validate their own methods, and regulatory agencies must evaluate 

data generated from techniques without a substantial history of supporting literature. The NCL 

now has more than 30 standardized assays for nanomaterial characterization on its website: 

http://ncl.cancer.gov/working_assay-cascade.asp, with new assays being added as they are 

validated. 

NCL works with standards developing organizations (SDOs), such as ASTM International (the 

American Society for Testing and Materials), ANSI (the American National Standards Institute), 

and ISO, in working toward this goal. The NCL also participates in international interlaboratory 

studies (ILS), such as one now being conducted by the International Alliance for NanoEHS 

Harmonization (IANH). NCL has also initiated an international effort aimed at development and 

validation of in vitro and ex vivo methods to assess nanoparticle effects on adapted immunity. 

National Institutes of Health / National Library of Medicine (NIH/NLM) 

For more than four decades, NLM has conducted and supported groundbreaking research and 

development related to the representation, interpretation, and use of biomedical knowledge in 

electronic forms including electronic health records. NLM was designated the central 

coordinating body for clinical terminology standards within the Department of Health and 

Human Services (HHS) in 2004. In this role, NLM is the official depository and distribution 

center for clinical terminologies, responsible for integrating them within the Unified Medical 

Language System (UMLS) Metathesaurus, and responsible for the development and maintenance 

of mappings between designated standard clinical terminologies and important related 
48

terminologies, including the HIPAA code sets. 

NLM is working with (and, in some cases, providing funding to) vocabulary developers, 

message standards development organizations, other Federal agencies, and users of standards to 

respond to these recommendations. NLM produces the UMLS Metathesaurus, which 

incorporates many different vocabularies, classifications, and code sets; funds the ongoing 

maintenance and distribution of LOINC (Logical Observations Identifiers Names and Codes); 

pays the annual membership fee that permits U.S.-wide use of SNOMED CT (accessible within 

the UMLS Metathesaurus and in native format); produces and distributes RxNorm (accessible 

both within the UMLS Metathesaurus and separately); and pays the annual license fee that 

permits U.S.-wide use of ICF and ICF-CY (accessible within the UMLS Metathesaurus). 

LOINC, SNOMED CT, and RxNorm have all been designated as U.S. Government-wide clinical 

standards via the Consolidated Health Informatics (CHI) eGov project for use in U.S. Federal 

Government systems. They, along with ICF and ICF-CY, were subsequently identified in various 

interoperability specifications of the Healthcare Information Technology Standards Panel 

(HITSP) for use throughout the U.S. healthcare spectrum. In July 2010 LOINC, SNOMED CT, 

and RxNorm were all named as standards to support meaningful use in the “Health Information 

Technology Standards, Implementation Specifications, and Certification Criteria and 

Certification Programs for Health Information Technology” Final Rule. 

NLM, on behalf of HHS, is the U.S. Member of the International Health Terminology Standards 

Development Organisation (IHTSDO) which owns, maintains, and distributes SNOMED CT 

internationally and promotes global standardization of health information. In FY2010 NLM 

continued working with the IHTSDO to facilitate use of their new tooling workbench to facilitate 

distributed input to the ongoing development of SNOMED CT by experts in different locations 

around the world. This new platform will allow the U.S. to establish a network for U.S. 

contributions to the development of SNOMED CT by both government agencies and private 

sector organizations and enable collaboration with other IHTSDO member countries in the 

development of SNOMED CT content and subsets. NLM continues working with the IHTSDO 

to facilitate negotiations for the alignment and harmonization between SNOMED CT and key 

health terminologies including LOINC and RxNorm. 

Initially released in 2009, NLM continues to update the CORE Problem List Subset of 

SNOMED CT with each new release of SNOMED CT and the UMLS Metathesaurus. The 

primary purpose of this Subset is to facilitate the use of SNOMED CT for coding of problem list 

data in electronic health records and to enable more meaningful use of EHRs to improve patient 

safety, health care quality, and health information exchange. Development and distribution of 

this initial subset is being used as a model for development of other frequency based subsets that 

will facilitate implementation of SNOMED CT, LOINC, and RxNorm throughout the U.S. In 

June 2010 NLM and the Regenstrief Institute (the owners of LOINC) released the first version of 

the Common Lab Orders Value Set. These common lab orders, covering more than 95% of the 

test ordering volume in the US, was developed using both empirical and consensus-driven 

approaches. 

In June 2010 NLM added the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health 

Administration (VHA) National Drug File-Reference Terminology (NDF-RT) as a source 
49

vocabulary in its RxNorm database. NDF-RT is a terminology used to classify drugs according 

to their clinical properties, including mechanism of action, physiologic effect, therapeutic 

category, structural class and the established pharmacologic class used by the U.S Food and 

Drug Administration (FDA). It is an extension of the VHA National Drug File (VANDF), 

another RxNorm source vocabulary. The addition of NDF-RT to RxNorm is a major step 

towards achieving interoperability of computerized drug information systems. 

NLM continues working on projects to create mappings between standard clinical vocabularies, 

HIPAA code sets, and other key vocabularies used in Federal health information systems. The 

initial projects are focused on creating maps between the core clinical vocabularies 

recommended by the NCVHS (SNOMED CT, LOINC, and RxNorm) and the required HIPAA 

code sets (CPT and ICD-9-CM). Availability of these mappings should facilitate development 

and implementation by health care providers of electronic health records that capture clinical 

data at the point of care and subsequently support generation of required HIPAA code set data 

for claims and other administrative transactions. In FY 2010 the initial draft SNOMED CT to 

ICD-9-CM Rule Based Map to Support Reimbursement was released for testing. 

NLM works closely with Dr. David Blumenthal, and other representatives from the HHS Office 

of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) to ensure NLM’s 

vocabulary harmonization and standards efforts are in sync with those of ONC and the HIT 

Standards Committee. NLM participates (both as co-chair and members) in the Health IT 

Standards Committee, Clinical Operations Working Group, Vocabulary Task Force. The Task 

Force evaluates the vocabularies needed for “Meaningful Use” and other purposes specified 

under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. 

A complete list of NLM’s activities relating to health information technology and health data 

standards is available from the NLM Website at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/healthit.html. 

In addition, there is a set of information standards that relate to the basic functions of a library 

including interlibrary loan, collection preservation, bibliographic control, and database creation 

and access. NLM is very active at a national level in the creation, review and ongoing 

maintenance of these standards so they are workable for the library community as a whole. 

Through NLM participation in the National Information Standards Organization (NISO), NLM’s 

activities extends to the development of these standards at an international level since decisions 

made by NISO feed into the decision making process of the American national Standards 

Institute (ANSI), the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for 

Standardization (ISO). 

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) mission is to 

reduce the impact of substance abuse and mental illness on America's communities. To focus the 

Agency's work on improving lives and capitalizing on emerging opportunities, SAMHSA has 

identified the following 8 Strategic Initiatives: Prevention of Substance Abuse and Mental

Illness; Trauma and Justice; Military Families; Health Care Reform Implementation; Recovery 

Support; Health Information Technology; Data, Outcomes, and Quality; Public Awareness and 
50

Support. To accomplish its work, the Agency administers a combination of competitive and 

formula/block grant programs and data collection activities. SAMHSA has incorporated 

language requiring use of national standards into applicable grants, contracts, and cooperative 

agreements. 

The first area in which SAMHSA participates in voluntary consensus standards (VCS) bodies is 

the use of HL7 standards such as the Reference Information Model (RIM) and the Clinical Data 

Architecture (CDA) as they apply to Electronic Health Records (EHRs). EHRs are viewed as a 

technical innovation that can reduce costs and improve the efficiency of data reporting, 

accountability and improved outcomes. In addition, EHRs can support improvements in clinical 

care and foster more effective coordination of care between the mental health and substance use 

specialty treatment sectors and general health care. To advance the state of behavioral health 

EHR capability, SAMHSA has initiated a behavioral health ERR project using national data 

standards as the basis for ensuring our behavioral health stakeholders can participate in all 

aspects of healthcare reform. To assure the capability for health information exchange while 

maintaining appropriate confidentiality protections for substance abuse and mental health 

records, SAMHSA joined voluntary consensus organizations to create technical options for 

patient consent in an e-health environment. Membership in Health Level 7 (HL7) and Healthcare 

Information Technology Standards Panel (HITSP) allows SAMHSA to utilize a far wider range 

of expertise than allowed for by limited numbers of agency staff. In both HL7 and HITSP, 

SAMHSA participates in creating usable, consensus driven products that can support the health 

information exchange of sensitive information through all health care environments. SAMHSA 

is also collaborating with ONC to facilitate the exchange of behavioral health information with 

all health providers through the use of data standards promulgated by ONC including SNOMEDCT, RxNorm, ICD 9/10, etc. In addition, SAMHSA supported the development of a HL7 

behavioral health EHR profile which was selected for review by the Certification Commission 

for Healthcare Information Technology. This work supports uniformity of standards for 

behavioral health across the public and private sectors. 

SAMHSA is also a member of the National Quality Forum (NQF), a voluntary consensus body 

for performance measurement. SAMHSA collaborated with NQF, ASPE and CMS to include 

two behavioral health quality measures in Stage 1 meaningful use. SAMHSA is also active with 

NQF, VA and IRS as well as the previously listed HHS agencies to add additional quality 

measures to Stage 2 meaningful use and will also add additional quality measures to Stage 3 

meaningful use. SAMHSA participates in HHS inter-agency workgroups which collaborate on 

the discussion, selection and promotion of new quality measures for inclusion in healthcare 

reform. Over several years, SAMHSA developed clinical process of care performance measures 

for mental health and substance use treatment services. Two of these measures were successfully 

submitted for NQF endorsement in FY2010. Additional measures, including a consumer 

perception of care assessment instrument, were submitted in FY 2008. National endorsement 

allows states and providers in the public and private sectors to have common standards that can 

be used for reporting activities related to quality and accountability, thereby reducing data and 

reporting burden 'on providers who report to different funders. 

Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) 
51

The HITECH Act directs the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information 

Technology (ONC) to support and promote meaningful use of certified EHR technology 

nationwide through the adoption of standards, implementation specifications, and certification 

criteria as well as the establishment of certification programs for HIT. Standards are an integral 

component of ONC’s mission to support development of a nationwide Health IT infrastructure 

that allows for electronic use and exchange of information, to promote the adoption of 

interoperable Health Information Technology as well as to provide leadership in the 

development, recognition, and implementation of standards and the certification of Health IT 

products. The implementation of consistent HIT standards is a necessary requirement to achieve 

interoperability of health information, which is a central key to reducing health care costs. 

By producing guidance regarding recommended HIT standards, ONC is also supporting 

accelerated innovation and development of interoperable health technology within both the 

public and private sectors. For example, during fiscal year 2010 ONC published the standards 

and certification criteria final rule and the temporary certification program final. These establish 

the required capabilities, related standards, and implementation specifications that Certified EHR 

Technology will need to include to, at a minimum, support the achievement of meaningful use 

Stage 1 by eligible health care providers under the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive 

Programs. 

Online Resources: 

• http://healthit.hhs.gov/portal/server.pt?open=512&mode=2&objID=2999 

• http://healthit.hhs.gov/tempcert 

• http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-17210.pdf 

• http://healthit.hhs.gov/portal/server.pt?open=512&mode=2&objID=3002 

• http://healthit.hhs.gov/standardsandcertification

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 1

1. Government Unique Standard: FDA Guidelines on Asceptic Processing (2004)

(Incorporated: 2004) 

Voluntary Standard

ISO 13408-1 Asceptic Process ing of Health Care Products, Part 1, General Requirements

Rationale

FDA is not using the ISO standard because the applicability of these requirements is 

limited to only portions of aseptically manufactured biologics and does not include 

filtration, freeze-drying, sterilization in place, cleaning in place, or barrier-isolator 

technology. There are also significant issues related to aseptically produced bulk drug 

substance that are not included in the document

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0
52

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 63

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: The enters for Medicare and Medicaid Services implemented 44 voluntary consensus 

health measurement standards while The Office of the National Coordinator recommended an 

additional 19 voluntary consensus standards as part of “Meaningful Use.”

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 197

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

3-A Sanitary Standards, Inc 3-A SSI

Accredited Standards Committee X12 X12

Acoustical Society of America ASA

Adeno Associated Virus Reference Materials Working Group ARMWG

Adeno Associated Virus Reference Standard Working Group AAVSWG

Advisory Committee on Casualty Assessment Health Canada ACCA

Almond Board of California ABC

American Academy of Pediatrics AAP

American Association for Clinical Chemistry AACC

American Association of Blood Banks AABB

American Association of Cereal Chemists AACC

American Association of Physicists in Medicine AAPM

American Association of Tissue Banks AATB

American Backflow Prevention Association ABPA

American Bureau of Shipping ABS

American Chemical Society ACS

American College of Nuclear Physicians ACNP

American College of Radiology ACR

American College of Surgeons Cancer Programs COC

American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists ACGIH

American Dental Association ADA

American Foundation for the Accreditation of Haematopoietic Cell Therapy FAHCT

American Industrial Hygiene Association AIHA

American Institute of Ultrasound Manufacturers AIUM
53

American Medical Association AMA

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Pacific Economic Conference APEC

American Psychiatric Association APA

American Public Health Association APHA

American Society for Gene Therapy ASGT

American Society for Healthcare Engineering ASHE

American Society for Reproductive Medicine ASRM

American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers ASABE

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers ASHRAE

American Society of Mass Spectrometry ASMS

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Society of Quality Control ASQ

American Society of Safety Engineers ASSE

American Society of Sanitary Engineering ASSE

American Type Culture Collection ATCC

American Veterinary Medical Association AVMA

American Water Works Association AWWA

AOAC International AOAC

Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care 

International AAALAC

Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation AAMI

ASTM International ASTM

Baking Industry Sanitary Standards Committee BISSC

Brighton Collaboration BC

California Strawberry Commission CSC

Canadian General Standards Board CGSB

Canadian Standards Association CSA

Cantaloupe Board of California CBC

Central Laboratory for Blood Transfusion CLBT

Chocolate Manufacturers Association CMS

Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute CLSI

Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium CDISC

Codex Alimentarius Commission CODEX

College of American Pathologists CAP

Committee on Operating Rules CORE

Conference for Food Protection CFP

Corn Refiners Association CRA
54

Cosmetic Ingredient Review CIR

Cosmetic Toiletry and Fragrance Association CTFA

Council for International Organizations of Medical Science CIOMS

Cousel for Affordable Quality Healthcare CAQH

Designated Standards Maintenance Organizations Board DSMO

Deutsches Institut fur Nomung - German Institute for Standardization DIN

Electronic Products Codes Global EPCG

ESD Association ESD

European Centre for Validation of Alternative Methods ECVAM

European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization CENELEC

European Committee for Standardization CEN

European Directorate for Quality of Medicines EDQM

External RNA Controls Consortium ERCC

Eye Bank Association of America EBAA

Facility Guidelines Institute FGI

Federal Facilities Council FFC

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO

Foundation for Accreditation of Cellular Therapies FACT

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association FFVA

Fresh Produce Association of America FPAA

Gelatin Manufacturers of America GMA

Global Harmonization Task Force GHTF

GS1 GS1

Health Canada Advisory Committee on Causality Assessment HCAA

Health Level Seven HL7

Health Physics Society HPS

Health Protection Branch Health Canada HPB

Healthcare Information Technology Standards Panel HITSP

Healthcare Interpretations Task Force HITF

Honey Board HB

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America IESNA

Industrial Safety and Equipment Association ISEA

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Institute of Nuclear Materials Management INMM

Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise IHE

International Alliance for NanoEHS Harmonization IANH

International Association of Cancer Registrars IACR

International Association of Color Manufacturers IACM
55

International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials IAPMO

International Blood Group Reference Laboratory IBRGL

International Bottled Water Association IBWA

International Cellular Therapy Coding and Labeling Advisory Group CTCLAG

International Commission on Harmonization of Technical Requirements for 

Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Veterinary Use VICH

International Commission on Illumination CIE

International Committee for Cosmetic Harmonization and International 

Cooperation CHIC

International Committee of Medical Journal Editiors ICMJE

International Conference on the Harmonization of Technical Requirements 

for Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Human Use ICH

International Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative 

Methods

ICCVAM

International Crystal Foundation ICF

International Dairy Federation IDF

International Dairy Foods Association IDFA

International Electrotechnical Commission IEC

International Federation of Fruit Juice Producers IFFJP

International for Electronic Healthcare Transactions AFEHCT

International Fragrance Association IFRA

International Fresh-cut Produce Association IFPA

International Health Terminology Standard Development Organization IHTSDO

International Life Sciences Institute ILSI

International Natural Sausage Casing Association INSCA

International Nomenclature Committee INC

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Pharmaceutical Excipients Council IPEC

International Society for Analytical Cytology ISAC

International Society for Cardiovascular Surgery ISCVS

International Society for Cell Therapy ISCT

International Society for Measurement and Control ISA

International Society of Automation ISA

International Society of Oncology Pharmacy Practitioners ISOPP

International Society on Thrombosis and Homeostasis ISTH

International Sprout Growers Association ISGA

International Union Against Cancer UICC

International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry IUPAC

Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference ISSC
56

Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations JCAHO

Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives JECFA

Laser Institute of America LIA

Logical Observation Identifier Names and Codes LOINC

National Academies of Science Institute of Medicine IOM

National Association of Photographic Manufacturers NAPM

National Automatic Merchandising Association NAMA

National Cancer Registrar Association NCRA

National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards NCCLS

National Conference for Interstate Milk Shipments NCIMS

National Council for Prescription Drug Program NCPDP

National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements NCRP

National Egg Regulators Association NERO

National eHealth Collaboration NeHC

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Food Processors Association NFPA

National Information Standards Organization NISO

National Institute for Biological Sciences and Controls NIBSC

National Marrow Donor Program NMDP

National Oilseed Processors Association NOPA

National Quality Forum NQF

National Sanitary Foundation International NSFI

National Toxicology Program NTP

National Uniform Billing Committee NUBC

National Uniform Claim Committee NUCC

North America Free Trade Association NAFTA

North America Millers Association NAMA

North American Association of Central Cancer Registries NAACCR

Northwest Horticultural Council NHC

Optical Laboratories Association OLA

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development OECD

Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards OASIS

Pan American Health Organization PAHO

Pan American Network for Drug Regulatory Harmonization PANDRH

Parenteral Drug Association PDA

Personal Care Products Council PCPC

Plasma Protein Therapeutics Association PPTA
57

Produce Marketing Association PMA

Public Health Data Standards Consortium PHDSC

Regulated Product Submission RPS

Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North 

America RESNA

Research Institute for Fragrance Materials RIFM

SDO Charter Organization SCO

Society for Glassware and Ceramic Decorations SGCD

Society for Toxicology SOT

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Society of Cosmetic Chemists SCC

Society of Toxicologic Pathology STP

Tea Association of America TAA

Technical Committee for Juice and Juice Products TCJJP

Therapeutic Goods Administration TGA

U.S. Green Building Counsel USGBC

Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society UHMS

Underwriters Laboratories UL

United Egg Producers UEP

United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association UFFVA

United States Adopted Names Council USANC

United States Animal Health Association USAHA

United States Egg and Poultry Association USEPA

United States Pharmacopoeia USP

Western Growers Association WGA

World Health Organization WHO

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 922

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

Conformance activities are conducted under applicable regulations and guidance. Standards may 

become part of conformance activities as they may provide an acceptable approach to be in 

compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:
58

No changes recommended.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No comments.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

AHRQ supports the United States Health Information Knowledge Base (USHIK) that organizes 

and publishes (www.ushik.ahrq.gov) the data elements and their metadata that the HHS 

Secretary has endorsed, recognized, adopted, or otherwise officially named for federal use when 

exchanging health information. USHIK contains three public portals and two pilot portals for the 

purposes of (1) making health data more uniform, accurate, valid, and computerized, (2) 

reducing the time and effort for health data standards users to apply these standards to their own 

use cases, (3) making HHS standards requirements and activity results more understandable to 

users and to the public, and (4) promoting the uniformity and harmonization work of US SDO’s. 

US SDO’s voluntarily supply AHRQ with the data element specifications that appear in USHIK.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.
59

The Department of Homeland Security’s overriding and urgent mission is to lead the unified 

national effort to secure the country and preserve our freedoms. While the Department was 

created to secure our country against those who seek to disrupt the American way of life, our 

charter also includes preparation for and response to all hazards and disasters. The citizens of the 

United States must have the utmost confidence that the Department can execute both of these 

missions.

Homeland Security leverages resources within federal, state, and local governments, 

coordinating the transition of multiple agencies and programs into a single, integrated agency 

focused on protecting the American people and their homeland. More than 87,000 different 

governmental jurisdictions at the federal, state, and local level have homeland security 

responsibilities. The comprehensive national strategy seeks to develop a complementary system 

connecting all levels of government without duplicating effort. Homeland Security is truly a 

“national mission.” Therefore, national standards developed by consensus through public and 

private cooperation are vital to achieving the mission of department. 

The department executes it mission through 16 major components and many more 

subcomponents, offices, divisions, and programs. The following is a description of the 

importance of standards in the achievement of DHS’s mission by component. It also includes a 

description of how DHS uses standards to deliver its many services in support of its mission to 

secure the country and preserve our freedoms. 

It should be noted that the descriptions offered below underscore the importance of all standards 

in fulfilling the mission of the Department: international standards, mandatory standards, 

government standards, internal (DHS) standards, as well as, voluntary consensus standards 

(VCS). In responding to this questions, DHS feels that it is necessary to discuss how all the 

different types of standards fit together to form a robust framework for governance, cooperation, 

coordination, and mission effectiveness. 

Information sharing and interoperability continue to be high priority areas that standards help 

support. Of particular note, and one that continues to be reported in response to this survey, are 

the standards being developed under the framework of the National Information Exchange 

Model (NIEM). These standards are what the Department is using to share data internally as well 

as with external stakeholders. 

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 

FEMA prepares the nation for hazards, manages Federal response and recovery efforts following 

any national incident, and administers the National Flood Insurance Program. It utilizes 

standards in two basic areas: mitigation and national preparedness. 

National Preparedness 

In 2010 the Secretary announced the adoption of the final standards for the Voluntary Private 
60

Sector Preparedness Accreditation and Certification Program (PS-PrepTM)—a major milestone in 

DHS' implementation of a program recommended by the 9/11 Commission to improve private 

sector preparedness for disasters and emergencies. "Private organizations across the country—

from businesses to universities to non-profit organizations—have a vital role to play in bolstering 

our disaster preparedness and response capabilities," said Secretary Napolitano. "These new 

standards will provide our private sector partners with the tools they need to enhance the 

readiness and resiliency of our nation." PS-Prep is a partnership between DHS and the private 

sector that enables private entities to receive emergency preparedness certification from a DHS 

accreditation system created in coordination with the private sector. 

The standards—developed by the National Fire Protection Association, the British Standards 

Institution and ASIS International—were published for public comment in the Federal Register 

in Oct. 2009. The adoption of the final standards was published in a Federal Register Notice 

following a series of regional public meetings and the incorporation of public comments. 

Temporary Housing 

As set forth in the National Disaster Housing Strategy 

(http://www.fema.gov/emergency/disasterhousing/) FEMA Housing seeks to engage all levels of 

government, nonprofits, the private sector and individuals to address disaster survivors’ housing 

needs such that individuals, households, and communities can restore their way of life as soon as 

possible after a disaster. The use of standards to manage Temporary Housing Units (THUs) helps 

us achieve the goal of housing disaster survivors. 

THU-related standards, maintained by both industry and government bodies of subject matter 

experts outside of FEMA, provide the means to communicate important lessons learned from the 

construction, building and other industries, helping FEMA provide quality, safe, reliable homes 

for disaster survivors. Standards use helps FEMA prevent the occurrence of known potential 

THU problems, and operate more efficiently by avoiding the need to develop FEMA-specific 

instructions for common products and activities. Use of local standards allows FEMA to ensure 

the compliance, reliability and acceptance of housing units and missions according to local 

expectations and lessons learned (e.g., using local building code for infrastructure on a housing 

mission group site). Use of trade and professional licensing standards (e.g. electricians, 

Professional Engineers [PE]) allow us to assume a regulated minimum level of professional 

competency. (e.g., transportation vehicles are maintained and operated safely). 

In addition, there are key differences between FEMA THUs and commercially-available 

permanent single-family dwellings or recreational (or seasonal) vehicles. FEMA temporary 

emergency housing may be subject to continuous road travel, use in various remote locations, 

limited infrastructure, long-term storage as well as multiple installations and deactivations under 

various weather conditions, and other requirements applying to the use of federal funds. As a 

result of these unique conditions, FEMA asks THU manufacturers to comply with additional 

“Rugged Manufactured Home Procurement Specifications” regarding mobility, durability, and 

accessibility standards not common to off-the-lot product inventories. 
61

Use of Standards 

The following FEMA, industry, and other government standards are used by FEMA Housing to 

manage its full life cycle of temporary housing unit operations: 

FEMA-Specific Standards 

• Rugged Manufactured Home Procurement Specifications, as provided in our most recent 

traditional housing solicitation: 

• Northern Units (non-UFAS and UFAS, respectively: 

https://www.fbo.gov/files/archive/ae5/ae560fb6df52c0ca2ee7bf79131d7583.pdf, 

https://www.fbo.gov/files/archive/edf/edfec9e84610762c962841bd73501520.pdf) 

• Southern Units (non-UFAS and UFAS, respectively: 

(https://www.fbo.gov/files/archive/4a9/4a9ffa5fc69430a2af5e5e56a56d4755.pdf, 

https://www.fbo.gov/files/archive/405/40531889d3d10a4ef9342d9a1df09a84.pdf) 

• UFAS (https://www.fbo.gov/files/archive/efd/efd06d788ecb0e38cbf509aa2a9c41c2.pdf) 

Industry Standards 

• International Building Code (IBC) and International Residential Code (IRC) (both 

www.iccsafe.org) 

• Recreational Park Trailer Industry Association (RPTIA, www.rptia.org) 

Additional Government Standards 

• U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD, www.HUD.gov) 

• Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS, www.access-board.gov) 

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), The National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health (NIOSH), NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods (NMAM) 2016: 

Formaldehyde (http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2003-154/pdfs/2016.pdf) 

• National Fire Protection Association (NFPA, http://www.nfpa.org/), including: 

o NFPA 1 - Fire Code; 

o NFPA 70 - National Electrical Code; 

o NFPA 72 - National Fire Alarm and Signal Code; 

o NFPA 101 - Life Safety Code; 

o NFPA 225 - Model Manufactured Home Installation Standard; 

o NFPA 501A - Standard for Fire Safety Criteria for Manufactured Home Installations, Sites and 

Communities; 

o NFPA 720 - Standard for the Installation of Carbon Monoxide(CO) Detection and Warning 

Equipment; 

o NFPA 1192 - Standard on Recreational Vehicles 

• U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration , 

o 49 CFR Subtitle B related to Commercial Motor Carriers transporting THUs, including: 

• Part 395 - Hours of service of drivers;

• Part 658 - Size and Weight, Route Designations... [and] Limitations;

• Part 381 - Waivers, exemptions, and pilot programs; 383 - CDL standards, 

requirements, and penalties; 

• Part 392 - Driving of commercial motor vehicles; 396 - Inspection, repair, and 

maintenance; 

• Part 399 - Employee safety and health standards; 
62

• Part 571 - Motor Carrier Vehicle Safety Standards; and 

• Part 40 - Procedures for transportation workplace drug and alcohol testing 

programs 

• State regulations for transportation of oversize vehicles through each jurisdiction 

• State standards for trade licenses in each jurisdiction 

• State standards for professional work required above and beyond the normal THU installation 

missions (e.g. licensed architects and/or Professional Engineers for group site design, or licensed 

electricians for electrical connections) 

• Federal regulations when land is leased through Government Services Administration (GSA) 

• Applicable EPA and state-equivalent environmental regulations and standards for THU 

disposal 

• Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) to procure other goods and services related to THUs 

• State & Local Codes pertaining to installation and occupancy of recreational vehicles and 

manufactured housing. 

• Any other applicable standards as adopted in each sub-governmental municipality where we 

install THUs 

Examples of Standards Use 

For an example of past traditional housing requirements for manufactured homes, please visit 

https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=e0cc0345d43272488ba153ed63495

379&tab=core&_cview=1. 

For an example of past alternative unit requirements, please visit 

https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=162f14de545a84262308398429696

7a0&tab=core&_cview=1. 

Federal Assistance 

Grant Program Division (GPD) issues annual grant program guidance for multiple programs 

totaling almost $2 billion in federal assistance for national preparedness. GPD grant program 

guidance generally requires that, unless otherwise stated, equipment must meet all mandatory, 

regulatory, and/or DHS-adopted standards to be eligible for purchase using these funds. GPD 

coordinates with the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) to incorporate standards 

reference information to assist grantees where appropriate. The 21 allowable prevention, 

protection, response, and recovery equipment categories and equipment standards are listed on 

the web-based version of the Authorized Equipment List (AEL) on the Responder Knowledge 

Base (RKB), at https://www.rkb.us. 

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) 

ICE is the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, is responsible for 

identifying and shutting down vulnerabilities in the nation’s border, economic, transportation and 

infrastructure security 
63

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement National Firearms and Tactical Training Unit 

(NFTTU) Ballistics Laboratory (BALLAB) uses a combination of government, private industry, 

and internal standards in its firearm and ammunition testing. The standards used are the most 

relevant for testing the law enforcement equipment used by ICE. 

NFTTU’s most successful use of a VCS is the use of ANSI/SAAMI standards. ANSI/SAAMI 

standards, used by the arms and ammunition industry, provide a common base that many of 

ICE’s vendors are familiar with and have helped standardize test procedures throughout the 

industry. 

NFTTU also successfully uses VCS in BALLAB’s ISO 9001.2008 certification. NFTTU’s 

Ballistic Laboratory Management System was created under the ISO model and is the basis for 

NFTTU’s internal standards and all work performed by the BALLAB. Complying with the ISO 

standard has greatly improved the consistency and quality of the BALLAB. 

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 

CBP is responsible for protecting our nation’s borders in order to prevent terrorists and terrorist 

weapons from entering the United States, while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and 

travel. 

Among the offices dedicated to standards use and activities, the Office of Training and 

Development (OTD), ensures that training delivered to CBP employees meets established quality 

standards of instruction and evaluation. Training standards apply to all accredited training 

programs, including e-learning components, and meet Federal Law Enforcement Training 

Accreditation (FLETA) Standards (see http://www.fleta.gov/). The standards also adhere to 

Federal training mandates such as Shared Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) 

requirements and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 regarding accessibility to 

electronic media. 

OTD standards address specific components required for all training developed for CBP and 

CBP contract personnel. The standards apply to all CBP national training programs and are to be 

used in concert with CBP training style guides as complete direction for the development of all 

CBP training. 

The objective of the standards is to ensure that training is developed, conducted, and evaluated 

using a systematic approach that provides continuous self-evaluation and improvement based on 

analysis, design, development, implementation, evaluation, and revision processes. 

http://cbpnet.cbp.dhs.gov/xp/cbpnet/otd/tpsd/ 

Additionally, Laboratories and Scientific Services(ISO/IEC 17025 standard accreditation) 

scientific analyses and contributions to HSC classification and other enforcement of various 
64

trade commodities involving standardized scientific methodologies developed in conjunction 

with agencies such as Food & Drug Administration, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade 

Bureau, Center of Disease Control – Laboratory Response Network, Consumer Product Safety 

Commission.. 

Office of Health Affairs (OHA) 

OHA coordinates all medical activities of DHS to ensure appropriate preparation for and 

response to incidents having medical significance. It utilizes VCS to evaluate candidate 

biological and chemical detection systems. 

The use of voluntary consensus standards is critical to our mission as principal agent for the 

Department's medical and health security matters. The Health Threats Resilience (HTR) Division 

is the lead for the Department’s biological and chemical defense activities. This includes 

providing a robust biological and chemical detection capability in partnership with State and 

local jurisdictions and the private sector. Specifically for the State, local, and private partners, 

HTR provides an operational perspective to the DHS S&T Test & Evaluation and Standards 

Division process and, as a customer of S&T, represents the first responder/first receiver 

communities of interest. In supporting this mission, HTR began development of the Detection 

Technology Evaluation and Reporting (DeTER) Program to evaluate candidate biological and 

chemical detection systems employed to protect the public at the Federal, State, and local levels. 

This voluntary “pay-to-play” program will provide a capability to conduct equipment and 

operational validation of biological and chemical detection technologies based on agreed upon 

voluntary, consensus standards at independent, accredited laboratories. If agreed to by the 

manufacture of the technology, the results of those tests will be available to DHS components; 

State, local, and tribal governments; public safety officials and first responders in order to assist 

them in making more informed acquisition and funding decisions. Specifically, this information 

will provide consistent guidance to DHS and other granting authorities for inclusion of 

evaluation information on their equipment lists, such as FEMA’s Authorized Equipment List 

(AEL). OHA has submitted proposed legislation to receive statutory authority for the DeTER 

program and will continue to develop the program while awaiting Congressional legislation. 

To ensure a coordinated effort across DHS, HTR is engaged in the development of biological 

and chemical detection standards with DHS S&T and NIST and working to align and leverage 

capabilities to initiate the development of the DeTER program. These activities are essential for 

successful implementation of the DeTER program but take an extended amount of time to 

develop and transition to OHA. While awaiting the development of these standards and 

protocols, OHA is developing interim specifications to help guide the FEMA grant programs. 

Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO) 

DNDO works to enhance the nuclear detection efforts of federal, state, territorial, tribal, and 

local governments and the private sector and to ensure a coordinated response to such threats. 

DNDO continues to use consensus standards as the basis for specific performance specifications 

used in DNDO test and development programs. The American National Standards Institute 

(ANSI) N42 series standards are referenced in the on-going Advanced Spectroscopic Portal 

program and the Human Portable Radiation Detection Systems (HPRDS) projects, as part of the 
65

Graduated Radiation Detector and Evaluation Reporting (GRaDERTM) program, and in the Illicit 

Trafficking Radiation Assessment Program (ITRAP) +10 test campaign. HPRDS activities will 

lead to improved handheld detection systems that will be viable for all environment, GRaDER 

results will augment the FEMA grant program by identifying equipment that has met at least 

some part of existing voluntary consensus standards, and ITRAP+10 is using voluntary 

consensus standards as the basis for test procedures for nine classes of detection equipment. 

In addition, DNDO is the designated steward for DHS for the CBRN Domain of the National 

Information Exchange Model (NIEM), a consensus standards-based data exchange architecture 

that provides the information sharing backbone for the Global Nuclear Detection Architecture. 

DNDO has developed the necessary NIEM Information Exchange Packet Documents (IEPDs) 

that incorporate standards for data content and message structure. These include a number of the 

OASIS EDXL family of standards. 

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) 

The USCG protects the public, the environment, and U.S. economic interests—in the nation’s 

ports and waterways, along the coast, on international waters, or in any maritime region as 

required to support national security. 

The U.S. Coast Guard remains committed to developing and adopting nationally and 

internationally recognized standards as a means to improve maritime safety and marine 

environmental protection, and to promote an internationally competitive U.S. maritime industry. 

One of the goals of our Standards program is to develop a comprehensive set of nationally 

recognized, internationally compatible standards through active participation in national 

standards organizations. While the adoption of VCS enables the Coast Guard to fulfill its 

regulatory functions more efficiently, this capability would be useless without the existence of 

meaningful standards. Recognizing this reality early on, the Coast Guard aggressively pursued 

membership on a full range of standards-organizations. We support at least 23 non-government 

organizations and actively participate on over 100 standards-committees. This active 

participation enables us to raise genuine issues of public safety and preservation of the marine 

environment. Additionally, where industry has not established suitable safety requirements, we 

catalyze their development. Visit our Director of Commercial Regulations & Standards website 

at http://www.uscg.mil/hq/cg5/cg52/. 

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) 

TSA uses existing VCS to define requirements and guide the engineering of security systems it 

utilizes; ensuring deployed systems are safe and meet the requirements of end-users and 

stakeholders. Moreover, TSA uses standards to streamline procedures for the ongoing 

development of detection technologies and facilitate the development of test methods. Virtually 

all TSA technology procurements and qualification activities (such as evaluations supporting the 

Air Cargo Screening Technology List ) use standards extensively as critical components of 

statements of work and as metrics to assess the suitability of products. 

National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) 
66

NPPD works to advance the Department's risk-reduction mission. Reducing risk requires an 

integrated approach that encompasses both physical and virtual threats and their associated 

human elements. 

Biometrics 

DHS through the US-VISIT program has been active in the development of biometric standards 

and the ANSI/NIST-ITL standard. They participate in the development of biometric standards 

for the following reasons and benefits: 

• Establishing clear guidelines for the use of biometrics while respecting social, legal, and 

privacy concerns, which may differ between government and commercial systems 

• Guiding the development of data interchange formats and technical interfaces to mitigate the 

ongoing development and use of stand-alone commercial proprietary solutions 

• Driving vendor development of compatible data capture and exchange systems that employ 

standards and best practices for data interchange formats and technical interfaces 

• Encouraging vendors to produce hardware, software, and systems that compete on performance 

and best value by encouraging standards-based approaches instead favor of proprietary solutions 

• Eliminating the need to repeat testing of a given component for applications with identical 

requirements, i.e. Qualified Product Lists 

• Verifying vendor claims that products conform to standards 

In 2008, when the ANSI/NIST-ITL 2-2008 standard was first introduced, there were five 

vendors of iris capture cameras. This version of the standard introduced the Type-17 iris image 

record. As a direct result of the standard the number of vendors had grown to 27 by 2010. The 

standard allowed multiple vendors to enter the marketplace. The presence of additional vendors 

increased competition in the marketplace. The availability of products grew causing the price of 

products to decrease. For example, hand-held iris capture cameras fell from approximately 

$12,000 to the $2,000 range. Additionally, several camera vendors added a full-face image 

capture capacity to their product. Therefore, the standard drove manufacturers to add additional 

features to their products without a significant cost impact. 

Those organizations that already owned iris technology were not immune to this marketplace 

activity. When the iris patent expired, those organizations that had purchased this proprietary 

equipment were “stuck” because the patented equipment did not meet the standard. Therefore, 

the equipment had essentially become extinct in the current market. Thus, operations and 

maintenance costs increased significantly. When equipment needed to be replaced procurement 

officers were not interested in replacement equipment that was not compliant with the standard. 

In general, data sharing, strategic planning, and enterprise data management and architecture rely 

on the use of VCS, which are necessary to achieve full data interchange and interoperability in 

an open- systems environment. 

Risk Mitigation 

The Office of Risk Management & Analysis (RMA) works to ensure that risk information and 

analysis are provided to inform a full range of homeland security decisions, including strategy 

formulation, preparedness priorities, and resource allocations. RMA actively monitors VCS 
67

related to risk management and risk analysis. Where possible, RMA seeks to generate risk 

management policies and provide risk analyses that are informed by key standards put forth by 

VCSBs on applicable topics (e.g. ISO 31000:2009 - Risk Management - Principles and 

Guidelines). 

In addition to ISO31000:2009, RMA has used ASNZ 4360 (Australian and New Zealand 

Standard on Risk Management )and ISO/IEC 31010:2009 (Risk Management - Risk Assessment 

Techniques) as starting points for the development of documents related to integrating risk 

management at DHS. Where appropriate and relevant, RMA seeks to align publications to these 

standards, as reflected in the Interim Integrated Risk Management Framework, DHS Risk 

Lexicon – 2010 Addition, among other documents. 

Cyber Security 

The National Cyber Security Division (NCSD) serves as the Federal government’s lead in 

assessing, mitigating and responding to cyber risks in collaboration with Federal, State and local 

governments, the private sector, academia, and international partners. Its mission is to work 

collaboratively with Federal, State, and local governments, private sector, and international 

partners to protect and secure cyberspace and America’s critical information infrastructure. 

NCSD consists of five branches: 

• Critical Infrastructure Cyber Protection and Awareness (CICPA) 

• Federal Network Security (FNS) 

• Global Cyber Security Management (GCSM) 

• Network Security Deployment (NSD) 

• United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) 

Below is a description of the importance of standards to the mission of the NCSD as well as 

some specific examples. 

CICPA: 

Critical Infrastructure Protection-Cyber security (CIP-CS) 

• CIP-CS uses a variety of standards to guide decisions made for the mitigation of risks identified 

within the Information Technology (IT) Sector and cross sector communities. CIP-CS 

collaborates with private and public sector partners to leverage and communicate cyber security 

and risk management principles and concepts in sector-wide IT and cyber risk management 

activities. 

Control Systems Security Program (CSSP) 

CSSP uses standards in three ways to achieve its mission. 

1. Promotes and captures the requirements of multiple federal, commercial, and international 

standards in its Cyber Security Evaluation Tool (CSET), which is being used by hundreds of 

asset owners. Tool users are evaluated against these standards based on answers to a series of 

standard-specific questions. This tool is also used by assessment teams to train and help bolster 

an asset owner’s control system and cyber security posture. 
68

2. Provides guidance to standards developers. CSSP has developed a document titled “Catalog of 

Control Systems Security: Recommendations for Standards Developers” which brings together 

the most pertinent elements from the most comprehensive and current standards related to 

control systems. This document is designed as a “superset” of control systems cyber security 

requirements and is available in the CSET and on the website for standards developers and asset 

owners, cross-referencing 15 published standards. 

3. Provides resources, including time and expertise, to standards development organizations 

including the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the International Society 

of Automation (ISA), and the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). Experts 

provide content, participate in topic discussions, and review text being considered by the 

standard body. 

During FY 2010 CICPA used standards to: 

• support the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) publication of “Securing 

Control and Communications Systems in Transit Environments – Part 1: Elements, Organization 

and Risk Assessment/Management” APTA RP-CCS-1-RT-001-10, July 30, 2010. The DHS 

publication “Catalog of Control System Security: Recommendations for Standards Developers” 

was heavily used in guiding the published Part 1 and the developing Part 2 recommended 

practice. 

• evaluate a facility’s security posture . During FY 2010 there were 49 on-site assessments 

performed using the CSET. 

• provide input into the original framework for advanced metering infrastructure cyber security 

controls in Appendix A “Crosswalk of Cyber Security Documents” in the NISTIR 7628 

“Guidelines for Smart Grid Cyber Security: Vol. 1, Smart Grid Cyber Security Strategy, 

Architecture, and High-Level Requirements.” 

FNS: 

The NCSD FNS Requirements and Acquisition Support program uses Secure Content 

Automation Protocol (SCAP) standards, various Federal Information Processing Standards 

(FIPS), and NIST Special Publications as requirements for many of the tools and services FNS 

seeks through acquisitions in support of the FNS Information Systems Security Line of Business 

(ISSLOB) initiatives. 

• During FY 2010 in the process of soliciting for tools and services under the Situational 

Awareness & Incident Response (SAIR) Tier II and Risk Management Framework Acquisitions 

Service (RAS)/ISSLOB, FNS used SCAP and FIPS as requirements. The Continuous Monitoring 

Working Group, in conjunction with NIST, National Security Agency (NSA), and DHS, is 

working to mature and improve the use of SCAP in the vendor community and throughout the 
69

federal government 

GCSM Research and Standards Integration(RSI): 

For standards, RSI’s mission is to enhance and advance the state of VCS that encourage effective 

cyber security, with a particular emphasis on promoting adoption of relevant standards into 

CS&C operational systems and programs. 

GCSM Software Assurance (SwA): 

Through our Software Assurance Forum and Working Groups, SwA has ongoing engagement 

with representatives in the IT sector and Banking and Finance sector. SwA coordinates in the 

development (or evolution), assessment, and sharing of cyber security standards respective to 

systems and software assurance. 

GCSM Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM) 

SCRM uses standards to determine the current set of best practices with regard to the 

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) supply chain and to promote the adoption of 

these practices by government agencies, their suppliers and ICT integrators. 

NSD National Cyber security & Protection System (NCPS) – Architecture: 

NCPS Architecture will always reference, implement, and use standards (from a variety of 

sources) to define, design, and guide development of services and capabilities to be used within 

the NCPS Architecture. 

NSD NCPS Deployment/ Logistics 

Deployment/Logistics will use standards to facilitate the exchange of information related to 

cyber incidents, cyber indicators and warnings, malware, phishing, computing platform 

vulnerabilities and configurations, etc. Use of these standards is imperative to the timely 

exchange of information necessary to protect federal networks. 

US-CERT 

US-CERT seeks to employ standards for information sharing during cyber security incident 

detection, response management and coordination, including support to incident or impact 

mitigation. US-CERT’s acquisition process also uses standards to define functional requirements 

for new systems and capabilities. Capability needs or gaps are identified by comparing USCERT’s operations with existing standards. 

Infrastructure Protection: 

Office of Infrastructure Protection Infrastructure Information Collection Division (IICD) 

implements several data standards to ensure consistency and integrity of data collected in support 

of the Infrastructure Protection mission. The IICD is the steward of the Information Protection 

NIEM Data Domain. 
70

The standards development and management activities in IICD are focused on primarily two 

standards: the Baseline Elements of Information and the Infrastructure Data Taxonomy. IICD is 

also working on the implementation of VCS metadata standards to ensure consistency of data 

documentation. The Baseline Elements of Information (BEIs) represents a set of data elements 

necessary to sufficiently describe an infrastructure asset, and was developed under consensus by 

participants in the BEI Working Group. The BEI Standard version 2 was approved in the fall of

2009 and is the basis of the NIEM IP Data Domain. Currently the BEI working group is revising 

the second version. 

IICD has also led the development of the Infrastructure Data Taxonomy (IDT). The IDT is a 

nomenclature standard that provides a method to categorize an infrastructure asset. This data 

standard provides a detailed terminology that promotes data discovery and management, and 

facilitates data sharing among mission partners and systems. The current version of the IDT is 

version 3 and was approved in November of 2008. The IDT working group has been facilitating 

the revision of the IDT version 3, with the release of the version 4 expected in early 2011. 

Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) 

S&T is the primary research and development arm of the Department. It provides federal, state 

and local officials with the technology and capabilities to protect the homeland. S&T support the 

development of VCS for use by Department’s many components, subcomponents, offices, 

divisions, and programs. Within S&T there are two Offices that invest and participate in 

development of VCS, which are ultimately used by DHS to achieve its mission 

Office of Standards: 

The Office of Standard mission is to develop and coordinate the adoption of national standards 

and appropriate evaluation methods to meet homeland security mission needs. The Office of 

Standards works closely with standards development organization to establish capabilities to 

support the Department’s need for VCS. The Office of Standards manages the adoption of VCS 

as DHS National Standards. In 2010, DHS adopted 11 VCS as DHS National Standards. A list of 

DHS National Standards may be found at 

http://www.dhs.gov/files/programs/gc_1218226975457.shtm. 

Office for Interoperability and Compatibility (OIC) 

The First Responder Group’s Office for Interoperability and Compatibility (OIC) focuses on the 

research, development, testing, and evaluation necessary to improve emergency communications 

capabilities for day-to-day operations and major incidents. OIC improves these public safety 

communications by supporting the development of public safety standards, specifications, and 

usage guidance by working closely with Public Safety specific standards development 

organizations. OIC’s standards efforts are focused in the following areas: 

• Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP): Public safety agencies are investing millions of dollars in 

devices that allow agencies to patch non-interoperable radio systems together. These are 

commonly referred to as bridging systems, and many of these systems use VoIP technology. 
71

While IP itself is a formal standard that allows for interoperability, the VoIP technology built on 

top of that standard is often proprietary and prevents interoperability. In June 2010, the project 

completed the updated Bridging System Interfaces (BSI) Core profile 1.1. Version 1.1 describes 

a backwards-compatible update to the BSI-Core 1.0 profile. Additional information can be found 

at http://www.safecomprogram.gov/SAFECOM/currentprojects/voip/

• Audio and Video Quality Measurements: The Department has also been involved in the 

development of International Telecommunication Union (ITU) standards regarding test 

methodologies used for public safety specific evaluation of audio and video quality 

measurements. Specifically, a standard was developed by OIC for video quality assessment for 

recognition tasks through the ITU-T Study Group 9 as Recommendation ITU-T P.912. OIC, in 

coordination with NIST, lead the Video Quality in Public Safety (VQiPS) working group which

provides a forum in which stakeholders can educate each other on their work, and collaborate on 

next steps and future solutions, thereby reducing the duplication of efforts. Participants include 

public safety practitioners at the local and state levels, Federal partners, academia, non-profit 

entities, and manufacturers. In July 2010, the VQiPS working group released a user guide 

entitled Defining Video Quality Requirements: A Guide for Public Safety. 

• Emergency Data Exchange Language (EDXL) Messaging Standards: OIC is partnering with 

emergency responders, Federal agencies including FEMA, and standards development 

organizations, such as the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information 

Standards (OASIS), to accelerate the creation of data messaging standards. The EDXL initiative 

is a practitioner-driven, public-private partnership to create information sharing capabilities 

between disparate emergency response software applications, systems, and devices. The 

resulting Extensible Markup Language (XML) standards assist the emergency response 

community in sharing data seamlessly and securely while responding to an incident. EDXL 

standards include Common Alerting Protocol (CAP), which provides the ability to exchange allhazard emergency alerts, notifications, and public warnings that can be disseminated 

simultaneously over many different warning systems (e.g., computer systems, wireless, alarms, 

TV, radio). 

• CAP is used by Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs) across the Nation as a means to share 

information. In 2010, OIC collaborated with OASIS and FEMA to update the CAP standard; 

FEMA adopted the updated standard, CAP Version 1.2, in September 2010 for use with the 

Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS). This open standard will enable alert 

messages to be easily composed by emergency management officials for communication with 

citizens using a much broader set of devices to reach as many people as possible. CAP is also 

used by other Federal agencies, including DHS, the National Weather Service, the National 

Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the United States Geological Survey, to send 

alerts and warnings. OIC supported the EAS-CAP Industry Group’s development of a CAP to 

EAS Implementation Guide which was developed to facilitate the success of any CAP-to-EAS 

system, including existing and planned state, local, territorial and tribal systems, IPAWS, and the 

National Weather Service system. 
72

• The Hospital AVailability Exchange (HAVE) messaging standard, enables the exchange of 

hospital status, capacity, and resource availability/usage information among medical and health 

organizations and emergency information systems. HAVE allows dispatchers and emergency 

managers to make sound logistical decisions, such as where to route victims, based on up-to-date 

information about nearby hospitals’ availability and services. EOCs, 9-1-1 centers, EMS 

agencies, and the Department of Health and Human Services are already using HAVE to better 

respond to both day-to-day and major incidents. In 2010, HAVE was used by earthquake relief 

personnel in Haiti to collect data on hospital and health facility location, operating status, 

medical services, and capacity. Specifically, HAVE’s Extensible Mark-up Language (XML) 

schema allowed the data to be accessible by multiple devices including cellular phones, personal 

digital assistants and laptops. OIC conducted a case study of HAVE’s use in Haiti and 

determined the standard’s flexibility and adaptability was well-suited to support the lack of 

infrastructure in Haiti, and was effective in sharing life-saving information. 

• The Resource Messaging (RM) messaging standard enables the seamless exchange of resource 

information, such as requests for personnel or equipment, which are necessary to support 

emergency and incident preparedness, response, and recovery. In 2010, OIC continued to 

coordinate with the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Incident 

Management System Supporting Technology Evaluation Program to evaluate products for 

compliance to EDXL standards. 

Commercial Mobile Alert Service (CMAS): A component of IPAWS, CMAS is a national 

capability to broadcast geographically targeted alert messages to be received by the public on 

their mobile connected devices (e.g., cell phones). CMAS messages can be effectively delivered 

to the entire population at the county or national level within minutes of establishing the need for 

an emergency alert message. CMAS is scheduled to deploy in 2012, and as an opt-out service, 

will enable the American public to receive alerts associated with three main classifications; 

Presidential, Imminent Threat, and America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Alerts (AMBER). 

OIC established a CMAS research, development.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 13
73

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 42

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body

Acronym

American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists AATCC

American Boat and Yacht Council ABYC

American Bureau of Shipping ABS

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Petroleum Institute API

American Public Transportation Association APTA

American Society for Industrial Security ASIS

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Society of Naval Engineers ASNE

American Welding Society AWS

AOAC International AOAC

Association of Diving Contractors International ADCI

ASTM International ASTM

British Standards Institution BSI

Committee on Marine Measurements COPM

Emergency Interoperability Consortium EIC

Emergency Management Accreditation Program EMAP

Information Security and Identity Management Committee ISIMC

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

International Association of Drilling Contractors IADC

International Association of Lighthouse Authorities IALA

International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO

International Code Council ICC

InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards INCITS

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical 

Commission ISO/IEC

International Ship and Offshore Structures Congress ISOSC

International Society of Automation ISA

International Towing Tank Conference ITTC

National Cargo Bureau, Inc NCB
74

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Marine Electronics Association NMEA

Object Management Group OMG

Open Geospatial Consortium OGC

Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards OASIS

Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services RTCM

Recreational Park Trailer Industry Association RPTIA

Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute SAAMI

Standards Engineering Society SES

The Open Group TOG

Underwriters Laboratories UL

World Wide Web Consortium W3C

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 128

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

The Graduated Rad/Nuc Detector Evaluation and Reporting Program (GRaDER) is a conformity 

assessment system that will test detectors for rad/nuc materials of interest to homeland security. 

It is a voluntary, fee-for-service program: manufacturers or vendors decide whether to have their 

products tested and, if so, will pay for the test and evaluation. Since the grant program managers 

have a fiduciary responsibility to be sure that grant funds are spent on equipment that complies 

with standards (where standards are available), an important part of the GRaDER mission is to 

report information that will enable all stakeholders to verify that the rad/nuc detection or 

identification instrument being considered for purchase is in compliance with standards. The

business incentive is that equipment that successfully completes the GRaDER program will be 

placed on the DHS GRaDER Evaluated Equipment List (GEEL), thereby enabling this 

verification. The result should lead to increasing sales to DHS components, other Federal 

departments and agencies, and state and local grantees seeking to invest in this equipment. The 

GEEL may be viewed as a qualified product list that is often an outcome of a conformity 

assessment system. 

The SAFE Port Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-347) established the Domestic Nuclear Detection 

Office (DNDO). Responsibilities given to the DNDO include testing and evaluating rad/nuc 

detectors, as well as developing technical capability standards for these instruments in 

collaboration with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and other 

departments and agencies of the Federal government. Since test and evaluation against standards 

is one of the critical components of a conformity assessment system, DNDO established the 

GRaDER program to carry out this responsibility. GRaDER is a standards-based conformity 
75

assessment system. A suite of national, voluntary consensus standards developed by ANSI, in 

conjunction with IEEE, has been adopted as DHS National Standards. The suite of standards 

known as the ANSI/IEEE N42 series formed the standards bedrock for GRaDER. 

The ultimate goal of the GRaDER program is to give confidence that the rad/nuc detectors or 

identifiers used by DHS operating Components and other homeland security practitioners will 

function as they are intended in operational environments. It will accomplish this through a 

conformity assessment system based on the ANSI/IEEE N42 suite of voluntary consensus 

standards and, where needed, government-unique technical capability standards. Key parts of the 

conformity assessment system will include:

• Voluntary participation by manufacturers and vendors in a fee-for-test program 

• A requirement that test organizations be accredited to ISO 17025 

• NVLAP will be the accrediting body 

• Use of the IEEE N42 suite of standards 

• Uniform formats for reporting test data 

• Establishing and applying criteria to evaluate the test data and base compliance levels 

• Issuing attestations for the compliance levels met by products 

• Conducting a surveillance program 

• Maintaining the GEEL (a qualified products list) 

GRaDER is intended to be a program that will provide incentives to manufacturers to build and 

continually strive to improve their radiation detection and identification products that protect the 

nation from rad/nuc threats.

US-VISIT is actively involved in the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) 

Subcommittee on Biometrics and Identity Management Standards and Conformity Assessment 

(SCA) Working Group, which, in support of biometric data exchange and interoperability across 

the U.S. Government, is charged with providing guidance and coordinating efforts for Federal 

agencies on the development of standards; the adoption and implementation of standards; and the 

establishment of associated conformity assessment and interoperability testing programs. The 

SCA working group is responsible for the development and maintenance of the Registry of U.S. 

Government Recommended Biometric Standards, Agency Actions in Support of the NSTC 

Policy for the Development, Adoption and Use of Biometric Standards, and the Catalogue of 

U.S. Government Biometric Product Testing Programs. 

US-VISIT conducts compatibility testing of e-passports issued by Visa Waiver Program 

countries to assess basic conformance to standards of the International Civil Aviation 

Organization and to ensure interoperability with e-passport readers deployed by DHS at U.S. 

ports of entry. 
76

The Coast Guard relies heavily on the use of independent laboratories (including classification 

societies) to carry out conformity assessment activities on its behalf, and maintains formal 

acceptance and recognition programs for such laboratories worldwide. The requirements for 

acceptance and recognition are specified in regulation, and compliance is assessed by means of 

documentation provided by the laboratory, or where appropriate, site visits by technical experts. 

A searchable listing of accepted laboratories can be found at 

http://cgmix.uscg.mil/EQLabs/EqLabsSearch.aspx. With few exceptions, such laboratories 

supervise approval and production tests and examinations as specified in regulation to ensure 

that equipment and materials approved by the Coast Guard and sold for use in regulated 

applications comply with the relevant regulatory requirements. In most cases, the sampling, 

testing, and quality system requirements are traceable to international requirements prescribed by 

the International Maritime Organization, and are mandatory for ships on international voyages 

under international treaty obligations. To allow for oversight by the Coast Guard, accepted 

laboratories carrying out conformity assessment activities on behalf of the Coast Guard are 

required by regulation to report at least annually on those activities. 

During FY 2010, in addition to the conformity assessment activities conducted by qualified, 

independent third parties on the Coast Guard’s behalf, the Coast Guard also completed hundreds 

of conformity assessment activities, comprising evaluation of equipment and material for 

compliance with standards established in marine safety regulations

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

Comments on the effectiveness of the Circular were generally positive: 

• NCSD believes the circular is effective in explaining background, policies and intent. However, 

we suggest that OMB use examples to illustrate points in the circular. 

• USCG continues to encourage government-wide use of risk-based methodologies in standards 

development and assessments. USCG uses risk-based methodologies to determine the level and 

degree of standardization needed. Using risk-based methods in a top down systems engineering 

approach we can determine the relative safety hazards and determine the effective level of 

standardization needed. 

• USCG encourages its technical offices to partner with industry counterparts to develop VCS 

that support Coast Guard marine safety regulations. We have found that this type of partnership 

helps us strike the balance among the interests of Government, industry, and the public. 

• Ongoing programs to establish and maintain VCS when possible are beneficial to both industry 

and TSA. TSA will continue to use industry, or standardization organization, standards whenever 

feasible. 

However, one DHS component felt that the Circular was deleterious to interoperability. 

“ OMB A-119 appears to inherently weaken the case for interoperability which most standards 

bodies seek to enable and establish... “ 

They recommended that the Circular be revised to recognize the use of “government use 

standards by industrial and State and Local partners”. It is clear that the commenter did not fully 

understand the guidance provided by the Circular. However, the Circular may need to provide 

guidance on when the use of GUS is preferred to VCS.
77

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

The following comments were offered: 

• US-VISIT supports interoperability with the FBI Electronic Biometric Transmission 

Specification (EBTS), DOD EBTS, and Interpol’s Implementation (INT-I). In addition to 

participating in the interagency SCA working group and co-chairing the DHS BSWG, US-VISIT 

also participates actively in the Department of Defense BSWG. 

• NCSD offices believe it is important for them to continue to participate with NIST in standards 

development and review. 

• NCSD believes that NIST should clarify whether the activities of supporting contractors should 

be included in the response for Question 6 relating to government agency participation in 

standards activities. 

• OHA oversees the Department's biodefense activities; leads a coordinated national architecture 

for biological and chemical WMD planning and catastrophic incident management; and ensures 

that Department employees have an effective occupational health and safety program. Standards 

are integral to success in each of these key mission areas. 

• TSA is continuing its initiatives to properly categorize and characterize various documents that 

have previously been erroneously called “standards.” For example, TSA Detection Requirements 

are no-longer classified as “standards.” Additionally, all procurement specifications are classified 

as “requirements”, and not as “standards.” This type of activity, along with reinvigorated 

participation in DHS departmental standards activities, will pay benefits in both the long and 

short terms. 

The issues which may be of note concern the widespread of contractors to support standards 

development and the relationship between ‘specifications’ and ‘standards’.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

US-VISIT developed the Biometric Standards Requirements for US-VISIT, Version 1.0, March 

15, 2010, as a primary reference for implementing biometric standards requirements for USVISIT systems. It provides a baseline for implementing new and improved biometric 

technologies, capabilities, and services, with the aim of promoting and achieving maximum 

stakeholder interoperability. The information in this document supports the development of USVISIT data-sharing agreements with other U.S. Government agencies and foreign government 

partners.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C
78

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 5

Title: Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Fiscal Year 2010 

Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Standards are used to guide the work of the grantees and other HUD supported agencies in 

providing quality housing and improvements in America's communities. Generally, standards 

play a supporting role in the achievement of the HUD mission. In most cases, we are able to use 

standards developed in conjunction with other related users, such as model building codes that 

are adopted for use by communities nationwide. Because there are virtually no differences 

between HUD-assisted and market-based development, standards such are building codes that 

are developed for the entire construction industry are relevant. In some cases, HUD is 

responsible for the standards. This is the case with the Government Standard: 24 CFR 3280 –

Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards, where HUD publishes and enforces the 

construction standard for manufactured housing.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 2

1. Government Unique Standard: 24 CFR 200.935 - Administrator qualifications and

procedures for HUD building products and certififcation programs (Incorporated: 2000) 

Voluntary Standard

ANSI A119.1 N - Recreation Vehicles

Rationale

HUD Building-Product Standards & Certification Programs. HUD was required by 

legislation to “establish Federal construction and safety standards for manufactured 

homes and to authorize manufactured home safety research and development”. Recently, 

HUD retained a private consensus body (NFPA) to update and modernize the 

Manufactured Home Standards. At the conclusion of the development process, NFPA 

will submit the revised standard to HUD for regulatory adoption.

2. Government Unique Standard: 24 CFR 3280 - Manufactured Home Construction and 

Safety Standards (Incorporated: 2000) 
79

Voluntary Standard

ANSI A119.1 - Recreation Vehicles and NFPA 501C - Standard on Recreational 

Vehicles

Rationale

HUD-Unique Manufactured Home Construction & Safety Standards. HUD was required 

by legislation to “establish Federal construction and safety standards for manufactured 

homes and to authorize manufactured home safety research and development”. Recently, 

HUD retained a private consensus body (NFPA) to update and modernize the 

Manufactured Home Standards. At the conclusion of the development process, NFPA 

will submit the revised standard to HUD for regulatory adoption.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 5

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

American Industrial Hygiene Association AIHA

American Society for Testing and Materials ASTM

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers ASHRAE

Federal Geographic Data Committee FGDC

International Code Council ICC

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 9

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 
80

n/a

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

Because many of the activities supported by HUD are similar to the activities in the commercial 

market, and rely on the commercial market for execution, it is reasonable to rely on a common 

set of standards. The use of the more widely adopted model building codes (adopted at a 

community level) are particularly notable in this regard

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

n/a

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of the Interior (DOI) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Standards are a critical component to the successful execution of regulatory functions associated 

with our four primary missions of resource protection, resource management, recreation, and 
81

serving communities. We evaluate, adopt and apply standards across a wide array of disciplines 

to include scientific research, engineering, safety, contract administration, information 

technology, data management, law enforcement, and facilities management. There are several 

examples of how standards have contributed to mission success at the DOI. 

The adoption of geospatial standards has enabled the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, 

Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) to integrate multiple geospatial layers within a single 

digital map viewer. This improved marine spatial planning efforts by permitting the 

standardization of previously incompatible geospatial data across federal, state, and local 

government uses, which improved the ability to identify the best location for renewable energy 

projects. 

Participation in electrical engineering standards committees (IEEE) has allowed the Bureau of 

Reclamation (BOR) to identify the impacts of proposed changes, which has promoted the 

stability of the Western electric power grid, contributed to the prevention of billion-dollar 

regional blackouts, enhanced the safety of BOR managed hydroelectric facilities, and improving 

Operations & Maintenance (O&M) testing, and diagnostics. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has adopted the Dublin Core Metadata Element Set 

(endorsed by the International Standards Organization) to describe the FWS collection of digital 

photos, videos, and other media that are currently stored in the FWS National Conservation 

Training Center (NCTC). This enhancement will reduce data anomalies and improve 

interoperability for data exchanges between NCTC and other systems. 

The Office of Surface Mining (OSM) has defined geospatial standards for coal mining 

boundaries (surface and underground) that have been adopted as international standards by the 

American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). These standards have improved miner and 

public safety, reduced the cost of regulatory compliance, and map generation, and improved the 

electronic permitting process by reducing the time required to review regulatory permit requests. 

The incorporation of consensus Government geospatial standards (approved by the Federal 

Geographic Data Committee FGDC) has resulted in improving the quality and reducing the cost 

of geospatial products produced by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). 

The National Park Service has adopted the NPS Bibliographic Metadata Exchange Standard, 

which consists of a proposed NPS enterprise core bibliographic element set based on qualified 

Dublin Core (DC). The purpose of establishing an enterprise level core bibliographic metadata 

element set, NPS Bibliographic Metadata Element Set (NPS-BMES), and application profile, 

NPS Bibliographic Metadata Application Profile (NPS-BibMAP), is to facilitate efficient 

exchange, harvesting (via ‘exposure’ of metadata in xml format), aggregation, and federated 

searching (promoting wide discovery) of NPS managed bibliographic data. 

The NPS-BMES is based on a subset of the ‘qualified’ level of the Dublin Core Metadata 

Element Set (DCMES) standard, while the NPS-BibMAP is based on the Dublin Core Library 

Application Profile (DC-Lib).

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0
82

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 2

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 84

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Advisory Committee for Water Information ACWI

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials AASHTO

American Concrete Institute ACI

American Concrete Pipe Association ACPA

American Hardware Manufacturers Association AHMA

American Institute of Steel Construction AISC

American Institute of Timber Construction AITC

American Iron and Steel Institute AISI

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Petroleum Institute API

American Rock Mechanics Association ARMA

American Society for Industrial Security ASIS

American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing ASPRS

American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE

American Society of Dam Safety Officials ASDSO

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers ASHRAE

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Water Works Association AWWA

American Welding Society AWS

American Wood Preservers Institute AWPI

Architectural Woodwork Institute AWI

ASCE Building Security Council BSC
83

ASTM International ASTM

Brick Industry Association BIA

Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association BHMA

Cast Iron Soil Pipe Institute CISPI

Center for Internet Security CIS

Concrete Pipe Association CPA

Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute CRSI

Construction Specifications Institute CSI

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and 

Flora CITES

Cultural Resources Standards with State Historic Preservation Offices SHPO

Data Management Association DAMA

Dublin Core Metadata Initiative DCMI

Electronic Industries Alliance EIA

Engineered Wood Association EWA

European Petroleum Survey Group EPSG

Federal Geographic Data Committee FGDC

Forest Stewardship Council FSC

Ground Water Protection Council GWPC

Gypsum Association GA

INCITS Technical Committee L1, Geographic Information Systems INCITS TC L1

Information Technology Service Management Forum ITSMF

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Insulated Cable Engineers Association ICEA

Interagency Trails Data Standards ITDS

International Air Transport Association IATA

international Code Council ICC

InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards INCITS

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical 

Commission ISO/IEC

International Security Council ISC

Internet Society IS

Metal Building Manufacturers Association MBMA

Modular Systems Building Council MSBC

National Association of Corrosion Engineers International NACE

National CAS Standards NCS

National Digital Elevation Program NDEP
84

National Electric Reliability Corporation NERC

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Environmental Methods Index NEMI

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Trust Banking Industry NTBI

National Water-Quality Monitoring Council NWQMC

National Wildland Fire Coordinating Group NWCG

North American Weeds Management Association NAWMA

Northwest Environmental Data Network NED

Open Geospatial Consortium OGC

Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards OASIS

Pacific Northwest Regional Geospatial Information Council PNW-RGIC

Petrotechnical Open Standards Consortium, Inc. POSC

Project Management Institute PMI

Public Petroleum Data Management PPDM

SAVE International SAVE

Sheet Metal & Air Conditioning Contractors National Association SMACNA

Telecommunications Industry Association TIA

The National Digital Orthophoto Program NDOP

The Open Geospatial Consortium OGC

United States Committee on Large Dams USCOLD

Urban and Regional Information Systems Association URISA

US Green Building Council - Leadership in Energy and Environmental 

Design USGBC - LEEDS

Web Application Security Consortium WASC

Western Electricity Coordinating Council WECC

World Wide Web Consortium W3C

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 166

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) of DOI is a 

member of the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) with representation on the 

Standards Working Group, the Coordinating Committee, the Steering Committee, the Marine 

Boundary Working Group, and ad hoc subcommittees developing standards for geospatial data. 

Bureau of Reclamation: The ISO 14001 standard requires that organizations conduct third- party 
85

conformance audits to determine conformance with the ISO Standard. Reclamation has adopted 

this requirement in a revised form and will conduct audits to determine conformance with both 

the Standard framework and the executive order. 

Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA): BIA participated in the Federal Geospatial One-Stop and the 

Enterprise Geographic Information Management Committee. 

FWS: The FWS continues to implement key security standards and guidelines developed or 

approved by NIST to support the implementation of and compliance with the Federal 

Information Security Management Act (FISMA) including: 

• Standards for categorizing information and information systems by mission impact. 

• Standards for minimum security requirements for information and information systems.

• Standards for encrypting government data. 

• Standards for applying and enforcing secure configuration baselines. 

• Standards for secure remote access. 

• Guidance for mapping types of information and information systems to appropriate security 

categories. 

• Guidance for planning and conducting technical information security testing. 

• Guidance for assessing security controls in information systems and determining security 

control effectiveness. 

• Guidance for certifying and accrediting information systems. 

The FWS is currently using secure configuration benchmarks developed by the Center for 

Internet Security (CIS), a non-profit organization whose mission is to help organizations reduce 

the risk of business and e-commerce disruptions resulting from inadequate technical security 

controls. These benchmarks have been deemed as "NIST" approved.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

As a direct result of OMB Circular A-119, DOI’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management 

Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE), continues to increase our presence in voluntary 

standards groups – both domestic and international. We believe that A-119 continues to work in 

a straightforward manner to encourage the use of voluntary consensus standards. 

BOEMRE has not requested any exemptions, nor are we contemplating making such a request. 

We have no recommendations for changes to the Circular. 

Bureau of Indian Affairs strives to use VCS, whether as promulgated directly from a consensus 

standards body or as promulgated by regulatory body, are its first choice for guidance. This 

approach has helped us garner and retain options and flexibility in handling construction and new 

systems development. In that regard, A-119 has been of great use. 

FWS: The NIST and/or OMB should identify high priority VCS and Non-consensus standards 

for implementation by Federal agencies, especially standards that pertain to E-Gov initiatives 

and IT security requirements. 

USGS: Since its issuance, Circular A-119 has worked in a straightforward manner to encourage 

the use of voluntary consensus standards. Some people, however, believe that there is an order of 

preference for voluntary consensus standards (for example, international VCS are to be preferred 

to domestic VCS). The USGS encourages NIST and OMB to adjudicate issues concerning 

interpretation of OMB Circular A-119. 
86

Circular A-119 allows exemptions where existing voluntary consensus standards are inconsistent 

with law or otherwise impractical and if each exemption is reported to OMB. The USGS has not 

requested any exemptions, nor is the FGDC contemplating making such a request. We have no 

recommendations for changes to the Circular.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

As a direct result of OMB Circular A-119, DOI’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, 

Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE, continues to increase our presence in voluntary 

standards groups (both domestic and international). We believe that A-119 continues to work in 

a straightforward manner to encourage the use of voluntary consensus standards. 

BOEMRE has not requested any exemptions, nor are we contemplating making such a request. 

We have no recommendations for changes to the Circular. 

Bureau of Indian Affairs strives to use VCS, whether as promulgated directly from a consensus 

standards body or as promulgated by regulatory body, are its first choice for guidance. This 

approach has helped us garner and retain options and flexibility in handling construction and new 

systems development. In that regard, A-119 has been of great use. 

FWS: The NIST and/or OMB should identify high priority VCS and Non-consensus standards 

for implementation by Federal agencies, especially standards that pertain to E-Gov initiatives 

and IT security requirements. 

USGS: Since its issuance, Circular A-119 has worked in a straightforward manner to encourage 

the use of voluntary consensus standards. Some people, however, believe that there is an order of 

preference for voluntary consensus standards (for example, international VCS are to be preferred 

to domestic VCS). The USGS encourages NIST and OMB to adjudicate issues concerning 

interpretation of OMB Circular A-119. 

Circular A-119 allows exemptions where existing voluntary consensus standards are inconsistent 

with law or otherwise impractical and if each exemption is reported to OMB. The USGS has not 

requested any exemptions, nor is the FGDC contemplating making such a request. We have no 

recommendations for changes to the Circular.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes
87

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: Department of the Interior (DOI) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Justice (DOJ) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The Department, in its primary mission roles, does not specify products requiring voluntary 

consensus statndards. Because of the nature of the Department's missions, DOJ participates in 

the development of government standards for law enforcement information representation. The 

Department developed the National Information Exchange (HEIM) as a critical standard to 

facilitate Law Enforcment Information Sharing Program. NEIM serves as the government 

standard for informaiton tha tlacks voluntary consensus standards.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 0

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 1

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 
88

N/A

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

The Department of Justice offers no recommended changes to Circular A-119.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No additional comments

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

No additional comments

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; C

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; E

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Department of Justice (DOJ) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Labor (DOL) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The United States Department of Labor (DOL) promulgates safety and health standards which 

provide minimum requirements for the protection of employees from workplace hazards. DOL 

consults and routinely relies on Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) whenever a Federal 

standard is written or updated. Since the VCS are on a shorter update cycle than Federal 

standards, the VCS provide a more current view of industry standards and practices than the 
89

Agency can efficiently or economically achieve. 

Furthermore, safety compliance officers use VCS during inspections and investigations when 

there are no Federal standards that apply in specific circumstances.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 10

1. Government Unique Standard: 29 CFR 1910 Subpart S - Electrical Standard 

(Incorporated: 2007) (Incorporated: 2007) 

Voluntary Standard

NFPA 70 - National Electric Code 

NFPA 70E - Electrical Safety Requirement for Employee Workplaces. 

ANSI/IEEE C2 - National Electrical Safety Code 

ANSI/ASME B30.4 - Portal, Tower, and Pedestal Cranes 

NFPA 33 - Spray Application Using Flammable or Combustible Materials 

ANSI Z133.1 Arboricultural Operations for Pruning, Repairing, Maintaining, and 

Removing Trees, and Cutting Brush

Rationale

Several voluntary consensus standards were relied upon for the various provisions in the 

final rule, however, no single VCS is available to cover all the workplace applications 

that are addressed by OSHA. The Agency believes that it would be less burdensome for 

the regulated community to use one OSHA standard rather than purchase and use the 6 

individual consensus standards it used to write the rule. 

2. Government Unique Standard: 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC Cranes and Derricks in 

Construction (Incorporated: 2010) (Incorporated: 2010) 

Voluntary Standard

ASME B30.2-2005; ASME B30.5-2004; ASME B30.7-2001; ASME B30.14-2004; AWS 

D1.1/D1.1M:2002 ANSI/AWS D14.3-94; BS EN 13000:2004; BS EN 14439:2006; ISO 

11660-1:2008(E); ISO 11660-2:1994(E); ISO 11660-3:2008(E); PCSA Std. No.2; SAE 

J185; SAE J987; SAE J1063; ANSI B30.5-1968

Rationale

Sixteen voluntary consensus standards (VCS) were relied upon for the various provisions 

in the final rule, however, no single VCS is available to cover all varieties of cranes and 

derricks and their applications.

3. Government Unique Standard: 29 CFR 1926.1002 Roll-Over Protective Structures 

(Incorporated: 2006) (Incorporated: 2006) 
90

Voluntary Standard

SAE J1194-1999

Rationale

Many consensus standards were relied upon for various provisions in the final rule. The 

primary VCS that applies directly to ROPS is SAE J1194-1999 which incorporates by 

reference several other VCSs. If SAE J1194-1999 was adopted into the OSHA 

provisions, the regulated community would have to consult not only the primary VCS but 

all of the VCSs that are incorporated into it as well. OSHA believes it is less burdensome 

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

and use of several VCSs. 

4. Government Unique Standard: 30 CFR Part 75 - Sealing of Abandoned Areas -

Emergency Temporary Standard. (Incorporated: 2007) 

Voluntary Standard

ACI 318-05 - Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete and 

Commentary 

ACI 440.2R-02 - Design and Construction of Externally Bonded FRP 

Systems for Strengthening Concrete Structures 

ASTM E119-07 - Standard Test Methods for Fire Tests of Building 

Construction and Materials 

ASTM E162-06 - Standard Test Method for Surface Flammability of Materials Using a 

Radiant Heat Energy Source

Rationale

Four consensus standards were relied upon for various provisions in the emergency 

temporary standard, but no one consensus standard is available that covered all of the 

topics covered by MSHA's Emergency Temporary Standard. 

5. Government Unique Standard: Electric Motor-Drive Equipment Rule (Incorporated: 

2001) 

Voluntary Standard

IEEE Standard 242-1986 Recommended Practice for Protection and Coordination of 

Industrial and Commercial Power Systems (IEEE Buff Book) and NFPA 70 - national 

Electric Code

Rationale

The MSHA rule is a design-specific standards. The NFPA and IEEE standards were used 

as a source for the rule; however, the exact requirements of the rule were tailored to apply 

specifically to electric circuits and equipment used in the coal mining industry.
91

6. Government Unique Standard: Exit Routes, Emergency Action Plans, and Fire 

Prevention Plans, 29 CFR 1910, Subpart E (Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

Life Safety Code, NFPA 101-2000

Rationale

The OSHA standard addresses only workplace conditions whereas the NFPA Life Safety 

Code goes beyond workplaces. However, in the final rule OSHA stated that it had 

evaluated the NFPA Standard 101, Life Safety Code, (NFPA 101-2000) and concluded 

that it provided comparable safety to the Exit Route Standards. Therefore, the Agency

stated that any employer who complied with the NFPA 101-2000 instead of the OSHA 

Standard for Exit Routes would be in compliance.

7. Government Unique Standard: Fire Protection for Shipyards, 29 CFR Part 1915, 

Subpart P (Incorporated: 2004) 

Voluntary Standard

NFPA 312-2000 Standard for Protection of Vessels During Construction, Repair, and 

Lay-Up 

NFPA 33-2003 Standard for Spray Application Using Flammable or Combustible 

Materials

Rationale

Many consensus standards were relied on for various provisions in OSHA's final rule, 

including 15 consensus standards that are incorporated by reference. However, OSHA 

and its negotiated rulemaking committee determined that there was no, one consensus 

standard available that covered all the topics in the rule. 

8. Government Unique Standard: Longshoring and Marine Terminals; Vertical Tandem 

Lifts (Incorporated: 2009) 

Voluntary Standard

ISO 668:1995 - Series 1 freight containers--Classification, dimensions and ratings. 

ISO 1161:1984 - Series 1 freight containers--Corner fittings--Specification. 

ISO 1161:1984/Cor. 1:1990 - Technical corrigendum 1:1990 to ISO 1161:1984. 

ISO 1496-1:1990 - Series 1 freight containers--Specifications and testing--Part 1: General 

cargo containers for general purposes. 

ISO 1496-1:1990/Amd. 1:1993 -

Rationale
92

Several voluntary consensus standards were relied upon for the various provisions in the 

final rule, however, no single VCS is available to cover all the workplace applications 

that are addressed by OSHA. The Agency believes that it would be less burdensome for 

the regulated community to use one OSHA standard rather than purchase and use the nine 

individual consensus standards used in this rule.

9. Government Unique Standard: Sanitary Toilets in Coal Mines, 30 CFR 71, Subpart E 

(Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

Non-Sewered Waste Disposal Systems--Minimum Requirements, ANSI Z4.3-1987

Rationale

The ANSI standard was not incorporated by reference because certain design criteria 

allowed in the ANSI standard, if implemented in an underground coal mine, could 

present health or safety hazards. For instance, combustion or incinerating toilets could 

introduce an ignition source which would create a fire hazard. For certain other design 

criteria found in the ANSI standard, sewage could seep into the groundwater, or overflow 

caused by rain or run-off could contaminate portions of the mine. 

10. Government Unique Standard: Steel Erection Standards (Incorporated: 2002) 

Voluntary Standard

ANSI A10.13 - Steel Erection; ASME/ANSI B30 Series Cranes Standards

Rationale

Many consensus standards were relied upon for various provisions in the final rule, but 

there was no one consensus standard available that covered all of the topics covered by 

OSHA's final rule.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 12

Other Technical Standards: 0
93

Rationale: Specific sections of 12 VCS were newly incorporated by reference in 29 CFR 1926 

Subpart CC, Cranes and Derricks.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 21

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

American Lift Institute ALI

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Society of Safety Engineers ASSE

American Welding Society AWS

American Wind Energy Association AWEA

Association for Machine Technology AMT

ASTM International ASTM

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

International Electrotechnical Commission IEC

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical 

Commission ISO/IEC

International Society of Automation ISA

International Window Cleaning Association IWCA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Floor Safety Institute NFSI

National Safety Council NSC

Robotics Industries Association RIA

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Underwriters Laboratories UL

Wood Machinery Manufacturers of America WMMA

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 59

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

No comment at this time

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:
94

No comment at this time.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No comment at this time.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; D

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Department of Labor (DOL) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of State (DOS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The Department of State, Economics & Energy Bureau, International Communications & 

Information Policy, Multilateral Affairs (EEB/CIP/MA) represents the nation at meetings of the 

United Nation's International Telecommunication Union (Telecommunication Development 

(ITU-D), Telecommunication Standardization (ITU-T), and Radiocommunication (ITU-R)). 

Especially in the case of the ITU-T, these sectors develop standards which govern the some of 

the technical and intergovernmental policy aspects of international telecommunications. The 

Department of State coordinates development of the Government's technical, policy, and 

regulatory positions based on advice provided by government agencies (such as the Federal 

Communications Commission and the Department of Commerce/National Telecommunications 

and Information Administration) and the U.S. telecommunications industry. The Department 

also leads delegations to these international meetings selected from the public and private 
95

sectors. In general the government does not participate in strictly technical discussions, and the 

technical standards (Recommendations) are written almost exclusively by the international 

telecommunications industry. The resulting standards form the basis for much of the technical 

and policy aspects of international telecommunications and provide important input to the 

development of national regulatory policy. In particular, ITU-T standards are used to support 

standard quality of service and telecommunication transport mechanisms, among others.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: N/A

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 1

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

International Telecommunication Union ITU

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 9

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

none

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

none
96

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

none

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; A

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Department of State (DOS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Transportation (DOT) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and its operating administrations rely upon a 

consensus rulemaking program to support the Department's strategic goals: safety, state of good 

repair, economic competitiveness, livable communities, and environmental sustainability. In 

addition, DOT relies upon standards development processes with various domestic and 

international standards developing organizations (SDOs) and stakeholders to advance innovative 

transportation technologies; and to improve the state of practice in all modes of transportation. 

DOT Uses of Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) 

DOT uses VCS not only to address the Department's number one priority -- safety -- but also to 

advance new technologies, to harmonize practices internationally in support of U.S. exports, and 

to support other national priorities. Some recent examples: 
97

Standards to Advance National Priorities 

Improved Fuel Efficiency and Reduced Greenhouse Gas Emissions – On May 21, 2010, 

President Obama issued a Presidential Memorandum requesting that the Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), on 

behalf of the Department of Transportation develop, through notice and comment rulemaking, a 

coordinated National Program under the Clean Air Act (CAA) and the Energy Policy and 

Conservation Act (EPCA), as amended by the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) to 

improve fuel efficiency and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions of light-duty vehicles for model 

years 2017–2025. (75 FR 62739) 

High Speed Rail Designs – the Next Generation Corridor Equipment Pool Committee established 

under Section 305 of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act (PRIIA) of 2008 

approved performance and technical design specifications for next generation bi-level passenger 

rail cars. This is a major achievement that supports Amtrak’s plans to advance and support the 

growth of new or existing state-supported corridor service, renew and replace its national fleet 

and foster the development of a domestic rail manufacturing industry. 

Standards Required by Congress 

Congress directed NHTSA to “study and establish a motor vehicle safety standard that provides 

for a means of alerting blind and other pedestrians of motor vehicle operation.” NHTSA is to 

“consult technical standardization organizations responsible for measurement methods such as 

the Society of Automotive Engineers, the International Organization for Standardization, and the 

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle 

Regulations.” (P.L. 111-373; January 4, 2011). 

International Harmonization for Safety and Economic Competitiveness 

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) amended the Hazardous 

Materials Regulations to maintain alignment with international standards by incorporating 

various amendments, including changes to proper shipping names, hazard classes, packing 

groups, special provisions, packaging authorizations, air transport limited quantities, and vessel 

stowage requirements. These revisions are necessary to harmonize the Hazardous Materials 

Regulations with recent changes made to the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code, the 

International Civil Aviation Organization’s Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of 

Dangerous Goods by Air, and the United Nations Recommendations on the Transport of 

Dangerous Goods—Model Regulations. (76 FR 3308) 

Standards to Assist Policymaking 

PHMSA is considering whether changes are needed to the regulations covering hazardous liquid 

onshore pipelines. In particular, PHMSA is seeking comment on whether it should extend 

regulation to certain pipelines currently exempt from regulation; whether other areas along a 

pipeline should either be identified for extra protection or be included as additional high 

consequence areas (HCAs) for Integrity management (IM) protection; whether to establish 
98

and/or adopt standards and procedures for minimum leak detection requirements for all 

pipelines; whether to require the installation of emergency flow restricting devices (EFRDs) in 

certain areas; and whether revised valve spacing requirements are needed on new construction or 

existing pipelines. (75 FR 63774) 

Direct Use of Consensus Standards for Safety Compliance 

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) accepts the ASTM International’s F2696–08 Standard 

Practice for Inspection of Airplane Electrical Wiring Systems (Standard Practice) as an 

acceptable means of compliance to 14 CFR part 23 sections concerning electrical wiring 

systems. FAA finds the standards to be acceptable methods and procedures for inspection of 

electrical wiring systems for normal, utility, acrobatic, and commuter category airplanes. (75 FR 

65051) 

PHMSA is considering amending the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) to incorporate 

the most recent edition of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ Boiler and Pressure 

Vessel Code, Section XII for the design, construction, and certification of cargo tank motor 

vehicles, cryogenic portable tanks and multi-unit-tank car tanks (ton tanks). PHMSA is also 

considering incorporating by reference the National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel 

Inspectors’ National Board Inspection Code as it applies to the continuing qualification and 

maintenance of ASME stamped cargo tank motor vehicles, portable tanks, and multi-unit-tank 

car tanks (ton tanks) constructed to standards in ASME Section VIII or ASME Section XII. (75 

FR 80765) 

Routine Review and Update of VCS Cited for Safety 

PHMSA amended Federal pipeline safety regulations to incorporate by reference all or parts of 

40 new editions of voluntary consensus technical standards. This action allows pipeline operators 

to use current technologies, improved materials, and updated industry and management practices. 

(75 FR 48593) 

Standards to Provide Clarity in Multi-Agency Safety Compliance 

The Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) employee injury and illness recordkeeping and 

reporting requirements employ equivalent standards to those promulgated by OSHA, so OSHA 

does not require railroad carriers to maintain OSHA records in addition to FRA records. Rather, 

railroad carriers are only required to report employee injuries and illnesses to FRA in accordance 

with FRA’s regulations. FRA makes all railroad employee injury and illness data available to 

OSHA for use in its complementary program of regulation, and provides this data to the Bureau 

of Labor Statistics (BLS) each year for inclusion in the Department of Labor’s national 

occupational injury and illness database. (75 FR 68862) 

Standards to Implement Safety Improvements, New Safety Practices and Technologies 

FRA amended the Federal Track Safety Standards to promote the safety of railroad operations 

over track constructed with concrete crossties. In particular, FRA used VCS to set specific 
99

requirements for effective concrete crossties, for rail fastening systems connected to concrete 

crossties, and for automated inspections of track constructed with concrete crossties. (75 FR 

52490) 

FRA proposes to revise the existing regulations containing Railroad Locomotive Safety 

Standards. The revisions update, consolidate, and clarify the existing regulations. The proposal 

incorporates existing industry and engineering best practices related to locomotives and 

locomotive electronics. This includes the development of a safety analysis for new locomotive

electronic systems. FRA believes this revision will modernize and improve its safety regulatory 

program related to locomotives. (76 FR 2200) 

Standards for Technical Guidance 

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is not a regulatory agency; however, FHWA 

provides technical guidance on best practices and expected standards in highway construction, 

operations and maintenance. The Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) is 

incorporated by reference within Federal regulations at 23 CFR Part 655, approved by FHWA, 

and recognized as the national standard for traffic control devices used on all public roads. When 

new provisions are adopted in a new edition or revision of the MUTCD, any new or 

reconstructed traffic control devices being installed after adoption are generally required to be in 

compliance with the new provisions. Existing devices in the field that do not meet the new 

MUTCD provisions are expected to be upgraded by highway agencies over time to meet the new 

provisions via a systematic upgrading process, but there are no specific dates for required 

completion of the upgrades. (75 FR 74128) 

PHMSA issued an Advisory Bulletin to remind operators of gas and hazardous liquid pipeline 

facilities of their responsibilities, under Federal integrity management (IM) regulations, to 

perform detailed threat and risk analyses that integrate accurate data and information from their 

entire pipeline system, especially when calculating Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure 

(MAOP) or Maximum Operating Pressure (MOP), and to utilize these VCS-developed risk 

analyses in the identification of appropriate assessment methods, and preventive and mitigative 

measures. (76 FR 1504) 

Standards for Technology Development 

The Research and Innovative Technology Administration’s (RITA) Intelligent Transportation 

Systems (ITS) Standards and Architecture Program seeks to advance the deployment of ITS 

technologies and applications internationally. The ITS Program is working with various SDOs to 

develop over 100 VCS to enable integration of ITS devices and center-based systems, resulting 

in the greatest efficiencies and improvements to mobility and safety. The ability of different ITS 

devices and components to exchange and interpret data directly through a common 

communications interface, and to use the exchanged data to operate together effectively, is 

interoperability; the key to achieving the full potential of ITS. A standards-based approach to 

integration helps to facilitate the exchange of transportation data as well as more easily 

accommodate future equipment replacements, systems upgrades, and system expansions. 
100

Over the past year, RITA signed Memoranda of Cooperation with Transport Canada, the 

European Union, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of Japan, and the European 

Telecommunications Standards Institute, directed specifically at international development and 

harmonization of ITS standards. Coherent standards are expected to advance ITS deployment 

more swiftly, and to aid in economic competitiveness.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 4

1. Government Unique Standard: 63 FR 17976; April 13, 1998 - Product Safety Signs 

and Labels (Incorporated: 1998) 

Voluntary Standard

ANSI Z535.4 - ANSI Requirements for Color Coded Header Messages for the Different 

Levels of Hazard

Rationale

NHTSA explained in the NPRM that the American National Standard Institute (ANSI) 

has a standard4 for product safety signs and labels (ANSI Z535.4) that identifies a 

hierarchy of hazard levels ranging from extremely serious to moderately serious and 

specifies corresponding hierarchies of signal words, i.e., “danger,” “warning,” and 

“caution,” and of colors. For the header, the ANSI standard specifies a red background 

with white text for “danger,” an orange background with black text for “warning,” and a 

yellow background with black text for caution.” 

The ANSI standard specifies that pictograms should be black on white, with occasional 

uses of color for emphasis, and that message text should be black on white. The agency 

noted in the NPRM that when it earlier updated the requirements for air bag warning 

labels to require the addition of color and pictograms, it had chosen not to adopt the 

colors specified in the ANSI standard. NHTSA chose to use yellow instead of orange in 

the background of the heading for the air bag warning label, even though the word 

“warning” was used, because of overwhelming focus group preference for yellow. Only 

two of the 53 participants preferred orange. Participants generally stated that yellow was 

more eye-catching than orange. Participants also noted that red (stop) and yellow 

(caution) had meaning to them, but not orange. 

NHTSA asked for comment on three color options for the revised utility vehicle rollover 

warning label. Proposed label 1 used the ANSI color format with the heading background 

in orange with the words in black. The remainder of the label had a white background 

with black text and drawings. Proposed label 2 used a color scheme like the air bag 

warning labels, which is the same as the ANSI color format except that the background 

color for the heading in the label is yellow. Proposed label 3 employed the color scheme 

used in the focus groups - the heading area had a red background with white text. The 

graphic areas had a yellow background with black and white drawings. The text area had 

a black background with yellow text. 
101

Despite focus group preference for the signal word “danger,” the agency proposed the use 

of the word “warning” as more appropriate to the level of risk. The agency also noted that 

the word “warning” is used in the air bag warning label. 

Recognizing that it might encounter additional conflicts between focus group preferences 

and the ANSI standard in future rulemakings, NHTSA requested comments in the NPRM 

on the extent to which any final choice regarding colors and signal words should be 

guided by the focus group preferences instead of the ANSI standard. NHTSA also 

requested comments on the broader issue of the circumstances in which it would be 

appropriate for agency rulemaking decisions to be guided by focus group results or other 

information when such information is contrary to a voluntary consensus standard such as 

the ANSI standard. 

At this time (February 22, 1999), a final decision is still pending regarding its proposal to 

upgrade the rollover warning label. As to the general questions it posed in the NPRM, 

NHTSA recognizes that ANSI’s mission differs somewhat from that of the agency’s 

focus groups with respect to the labeling of hazardous situations. ANSI’s mission is to 

develop and maintain a standard for communicating information about a comprehensive 

hierarchy of hazards, while the focus groups’ mission is to design an effective label for a 

specific hazard. The agency recognizes further that, given the difference in their 

missions, their conclusions about the appropriate manner of communication might differ 

on occasion. 

Since agency labeling decisions are highly dependent on the facts regarding the specific 

hazard being addressed, NHTSA anticipates making case-by-case determinations of the 

extent to which it should follow voluntary standards versus information from focus 

groups and other sources. NHTSA will rely on its own expertise and judgement in 

making determinations under the NTTAA and the statutory provisions regarding vehicle 

safety standards.

2. Government Unique Standard: Air Bag Warning Label (1997) (Incorporated: 1997) 

Voluntary Standard

ANSI ISO

Rationale

The Air Bag Warning Label uses yellow as the background color, instead of orange, in 

accordance with an ANSI standard and uses a graphic developed by Chrysler Corporation 

to depict the hazards of being too close to an air bag, instead of the graphic recommended 

by the ISO. These decisions were based on focus group testing sponsored by the agency 

which strongly indicated that these unique requirements would be far more effective with 

respect to safety than the industry standards.
102

3. Government Unique Standard: Brake Performance, 49 CFR 393.52 - FMCSA's 

Performance-Based Brake Testers (PBBTs) Requirement (Incorporated: 2002) 

Voluntary Standard

SAE J667 - Brake Test Code Inertia Dynamometer (cancelled February 2002) 

SAE J1854 - Brake Force Distribution Performance Guide - Trucks and Buses

Rationale

FMCSA used government-unique standards in lieu of voluntary consensus standards 

when it implemented its final rule to allow inspectors to use performance-based brake 

testers (PBBTs) to check the brakes on large trucks and buses for compliance with federal 

safety standards and to issue citations when these vehicles fail (67 FR 51770, August 9, 

2002). The FMCSA evaluated several PBBTs during a round robin test series to assess 

their functional performance and potential use in law enforcement. The standard, a 

specific configuration of brake forces and wheel loads on a heavy-duty vehicle, was used 

to evaluate the candidate PBBTs and their operating protocols. The agency’s rationale for 

use of the government-unique standards was to verify that these measurements and new 

technology could be used by law enforcement as an alternative to stopping distance tests 

or on-road deceleration tests. PBBTs are expected to save time and their use could 

increase the number of commercial motor vehicles that can be inspected in a given time. 

Only PBBTs that meet specifications developed by the FMCSA can be used to determine 

compliance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. The final rule represents a 

culmination of agency research that began in the early 1990s.

4. Government Unique Standard: Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 

226, ‘‘Ejection Mitigation" (49 CFR 571.226; 49 CFR 585, Subpart K) (2011). 

(Incorporated: 2010) 

Voluntary Standard

SAE J2568—Intrusion Resistance of Safety Glazing Systems for Road Vehicles; BSI AU 

209—Vehicle Security

Rationale

NHTSA studied the potential of applying these standards, but decided against adopting 

them for several reasons. These standards provide glazing intrusion resistance 

requirements from external impact (outside-in) as opposed to ejection mitigation (insideout). Additionally, the requirements are not appropriate for vehicles with only side 

curtain air bags, given that there is a time dependence associated with a curtain’s ejection 

mitigation performance. Once deployed, the pressure in the air bag continuously 

decreases. The 16 km/h test is done at 6 seconds to assure that the pressure does not 

decrease too quickly. It does not seem that the 40 mm gap test could be done after the 6-

second impact, in any timeframe which is related to rollover and side impact ejections. 

Further, there was no shown safety need for applying the suggested standards. We cannot 
103

show that ejections that would not be prevented by the primary 100-mm displacement 

requirement would be prevented by a secondary 40-mm requirement. Also, it seemed that 

the 40-mm requirement would indirectly require installation of advanced glazing. The 

costs associated with advanced glazing installations at the side windows covered by the 

NHTSA standard are substantial in comparison to a system only utilizing rollover 

curtains. For these reasons, the agency did not accept the standards.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 8

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 50

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Aerospace Industries Association of America AIA

American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators AAMVA

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials AASHTO

American Gas Association AGA

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics AIAA

American Petroleum Institute API

American Public Transportation Association APTA

American Railway Engineering & Maintenance-of-Way Association AREMA

American Society for Nondestructive Testing ASNT

American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

Association of American Railroads AAR

ASTM International ASTM

Canadian General Standards Board CGSB

Chlorine Institute CI

Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Alliance CMVSA
104

Compressed Gas Association CGA

Electronic Components Assemblies & Materials Association ECAMA

European Telecommunications Standards Institute ETSI

Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, Inc. HFES

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America IESNA

Industrial Truck Association ITA

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Institute of Transportation Engineers ITE

Intelligent Transportation Society of America ITSA

International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA

International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO

International Maritime Organization IMO

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Society of Automation ISA

Manufacturers Standardization Society of the Valve and Fittings Industry MSSVFI

National Association of Corrosion Engineers International NACE

National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices NCUTCD

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Petroleum Management Association NPMA

National Safety Council NSC

North American Transport of Dangerous Goods Standards NATDGS

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development OECD

Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics RTCA

Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services RTCM

Recreation Vehicle Industry Association RVIA

Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North 

America RESNA

Society for Protective Coatings SPC

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers SNAME

Transportation Research Board TRB

Truck Trailer Manufacturers Association TTMA

United Nations Committee on the Transport of Dangerous Goods UNTDG

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNECE

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 141
105

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

Federal Railroad Administration (FRA): Under 15 CFR Part 286, FRA’s conformity assessment 

activities are visible internationally through expanded efforts in the area of safe, uniform 

international transport of hazardous materials by participation in the Canadian General Standards 

Board Tank Car Committee and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Transportation 

Pressure Vessel Committee, as well as continuing to participate in the North American Transport 

of Dangerous Goods Standard Working Group and the Association of American Railroads Tank 

Car Committee. Participation in the voluntary consensus standards bodies listed above as well as 

in numerous committees and sub-committees of those bodies gives FRA access to the 

developmental stages of private sector conformity assessment standards to ensure that the agency 

viewpoint is considered in the development of these standards. 

Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA)/Intelligent Transportation Systems 

(ITS) Program: The National Transportation Communications for ITS Protocol (NTCIP) Testing 

and Conformity Assessment Working Group issued NCTIP 8007 - Testing and Conformity 

Assessment Documentation within NTCIP Standards. NTCIP 8007 defines the rules and 

guidelines to be used by the other NTCIP working groups when they produce NTCIP test 

documentation.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

DOT believes that Circular A-119 is working effectively. The use of voluntary standards 

provides efficiencies for regulatory agencies, and for regulated entities and industries. There 

continues to be a low volume of government-unique standards being used in lieu of voluntary 

consensus standards within DOT. 

DOT recommends 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 are using VCS for regulatory work as much as 

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

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

per sections 6g and 9a of the Circular.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

DOT offers no additional comments.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

Standards referenced in the Code of Federal Regulations are periodically reviewed as part of the 

Section 610 reviews, and as a part of the continuing rulemaking process, including petitions for 

rulemaking. Some operating administrations also have an internal regulatory effectiveness 
106

review function, which provides a further opportunity to review both voluntary consensus and 

agency-unique standards. These avenues allow for both ad-hoc and periodic reviews. 

Standards incorporated into regulations for purposes of international harmonization are generally 

reviewed and updated every two years.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 5

Title: Department of Transportation (DOT) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of the Treasury (TRES) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

U.S. Department of Treasury's mission is to maintain a strong economy and create economic and 

job opportunities by promoting the conditions that enable economic growth and stability at home 

and abroad, strengthen national security by combating threats and protecting the integrity of the 

financial system, and manage the U.S. Government's finances and resources effectively. U.S. 

Department of Treasury's technical standards program provides direction by defining the 

technical infrastructure of hardware, software, connectivity, and standards necessary to 

implement the application projects defined by the Enterprise Architecture. The standards provide 

an open systems environment with the functionality necessary to meet Treasury's mission 

requirements. This process supports IT planning; introducing an orderly, repeatable, architecturebased planning process that better manages IT investments and supports crosscutting business 

needs.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0
107

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 2

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: The Department of Treasury maintains a list of IT Standards that are classified as 

Voluntary Consensus Standards. There were no Voluntary Consensus Standards beyond those 

prescribed by the Department.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 0

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 0

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

1. Government Accountability Office (GAO) audits 

2. Certification and Accreditations

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

The Department of the Treasury finds Circular A-119 to be effective in the identification of 

standards for use in the development and acquisition of information technology systems and 

equipment.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No comments to offer at this time.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]
108

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: Department of the Treasury (TRES) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

None submitted.
109

Appendix E – Individual, Unabridged Commission and other 

Agency Reports

Access Board (ACCESS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The Access Board is authorized to promulgate both guidelines and standards. The Board uses 

referenced standards to maintain harmonization with model codes and standards commonly used 

by entities covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Architectural Barriers 

Act of 1968, Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and Section 508 of the 

Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended. The Access Board maintains one Standard 36 CFR Part 

1194 Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards which currently is under 

revision. The Board's guidelines are adopted as enforceable standards by other Federal agencies, 

these include: 

36 CFR Part 1191 

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities; 

Architectural Barriers Act (ABA) Accessibility Guidelines 

http://www.access-board.gov/ada-aba/final.cfm 

36 CFR Part 1192 

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Guidelines for Transportation Vehicles 

http://www.access-board.gov/transit/html/vguide.htm 

36 CFR Part 1193 

Telecommunications Act Accessibility Guidelines

http://www.access-board.gov/telecomm/rule.htm

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 1

1. Government Unique Standard: 36 CFR Part 1194 Electronic and Information 

Technology Accessibility Standards (December, 2000) (Incorporated: 2006) 

Voluntary Standard

ANSI/IEEE Standard for Hearing Aid Compatibility with Wireless Devices

Rationale

A provision in the Section 508 Standards requires that interference to hearing 

technologies be reduced to the lowest possible level that allows a user of hearing 
110

technologies to utilize a telecommunications product. Individuals who are hard of hearing 

use hearing aids and other assistive listening devices, but they cannot be used if products 

introduce noise into the listening aids because of electromagnetic interference. The 

ANSI/IEEE Standard for Hearing Aid Compatibility with Wireless Devices was not 

completed in time for reference by the agency in its final rule published in FY 2000. 

However, the agency will consider using the Standard in FY 20007. In the meantime, 

because the requirement in the agency rule is a performance standard, the agency 

considers compliance with the VCS to meet the agency Standard. 

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: The Access Board did not complete a rulemaking in FY 2010.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 6

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Acoustical Society of America ASA

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

ASTM International ASTM

International Code Council ICC

National Spa and Pool Institute NSPI

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 9

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

N/A
111

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

N/A

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

N/A

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; A

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Access Board (ACCESS) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency 

Report

No report submitted

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency 

Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.
112

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is responsible for protecting the 

American public from unreasonable risks of injury and death associated with thousands of types 

of consumer products. Since its inception in 1973, the Commission has promoted the 

development of voluntary product safety standards to help it accomplish this mission. From 1990 

- 2010, the Commission staff supported the development of over 485 new, revised, or reaffirmed 

voluntary standards. Information on the Commission staff's involvement in voluntary standards 

activities can be found on CPSC's website at www.cpsc.gov

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 2

1. Government Unique Standard: 16 CFR 1500.17(a)(13), Metal-Cored Candlewicks 

Containing Lead and Candles With Such Wicks (Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

Voices of Safety International (VOSI) standard on lead in candle wicks

Rationale

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission found that the VOSI standard is 

technically unsound, and thus would not result in the elimination or adequate reduction of 

the risk, and that substantial compliance with it is unlikely. See 68 Fed. Reg. 19145-6, 

paragraph H2, Voluntary Standards for further information on this finding.

2. Government Unique Standard: CPSC 16 CFR Parts 1213, 1500, and 1513 for Bunk 

Beds (Incorporated: 2000) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM F1427-96 Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Bunk Beds

Rationale

The CPSC rules go beyond the provisions of the ASTM voluntary standard to provide 

increased protection to children from the risk of death and serious injury from 

entrapment.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.
113

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 2

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: Not Applicable

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 9

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

Association of Pool and Spa Professionals APSP

ASTM International ASTM

International Organization for Standardization ISO

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

Underwriters Laboratories UL

Window Covering Manufacturers Association WCMA

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 30

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

On August 14, 2008, the President signed into law the Consumer Product Safety Improvement 

Act of 2008, hereinafter referred to as the Act. Among other things, this Act sets forth 

requirements for general conformity certification and third party testing for children's products 

subject to consumer product safety rules under the Act or similar rules, bans, standards, or 

regulations under any other Act enforced by the Commission. A copy of the Act and related 

information on CPSC conformity assessment activities are shown on CPSC's website at 

www.cpsc.gov under "Information on the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act".

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

During 2010, Commission staff efforts to enhance voluntary safety standards development were 

complemented by the overall Federal policy set forth in the Circular. There are no 

recommendations for changes in the Circular at this time.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.
114

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA), as amended, requires the Commission to defer 

to issued voluntary standards, rather than promulgate mandatory standards, when the voluntary 

standards will eliminate or adequately reduce the risk of injury addressed and it is likely that 

there will be substantial compliance with the voluntary standards. Additionally, the Commission 

is encouraged to provide technical and administrative assistance to groups developing product 

safety standards and test methods, taking into account Commission resources and priorities. 

Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) in August 

2008 that mandates several voluntary standards as mandatory standards and requires the 

Commission to adopt many durable infant product voluntary standards as mandatory standards, 

along with a mechanism to update them as the voluntary standards are updated. 

Since its inception in 1973, the Commission has promoted the development of voluntary product 

safety standards. Policy statements in support of voluntary standards were published by the 

CPSC in 1975 and 1978. These policy statements were updated in 1988 and 2006 (16CFR 1031). 

Staff directives on implementation of portions of these policy statements were promulgated in 

1989 and updated in October 2001 and July 2006. Since the principles set forth in the OMB 

Circular A-119 were published, the Commission has consistently supported them.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

The CPSC reports on its voluntary consensus standards activities in its Voluntary Standards 

Activities reports which are published and posted twice a year on the CPSC website at 

www.cpsc.gov

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; C

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; A

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report
115

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

No change from 2010

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 23

1. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 1 – Traverse Points, Stationary Sources 

(Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D3154-00, Standard Method for Average Velocity in a Duct (Pitot Tube Method)

Rationale

1. The standard appears to lack in quality control and quality assurance requirements. It 

does not include the following: (1) Proof that openings of standard pitot tube have not 

plugged during the test; (2) if differential pressure gauges other than inclined manometers 

(e.g., magnehelic gauges) are used, their calibration must be checked after each test 

series; and (3) the frequency and validity range for calibration of the temperature sensors. 

2. They are too general, too broad, or not sufficiently detailed to assure compliance with 

EPA regulatory requirements.

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D3154-91 (1995), Standard Method for Average Velocity in a Duct (Pitot Tube 

Method)

Rationale

Is too general, too broad, or not sufficiently detailed to assure compliance with EPA 

regulatory requirements.

2. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 101 - Mercury Emissions, Chlor-Alkali 

Plants (Air) (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D6216-98 - Standard Practice for Opacity Monitor Manufacturers to Certify 

Conformance with Design and Performance Specifications.

Rationale
116

The EPA is incorporating ASTM D6216 (manufacturers certification) by reference into 

EPA Performance Specification 1, Sect. 5 & 6 in another rulemaking. ASTM D6216 does 

not address all the requirements specified in PS-1.

3. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 101a - Mercury Emissions Sewer/Sludge 

Incinerator (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D6216-98 - Standard Practice for Opacity Monitor Manufacturers to Certify 

Conformance with Design and Performance Specifications.

Rationale

The EPA is incorporating ASTM D6216 (manufacturers certification) by reference into 

EPA Performance Specification 1, Sect. 5 & 6 in another rulemaking. ASTM D6216 does 

not address all the requirements specified in PS-1.

4. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 10A – Carbon Monoxide for Certifying 

CEMS (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

CAN/CSA Z223.21-M1978, Method for the Measurement of Carbon Monoxide: 3—

Method of Analysis by Non-Dispersive Infrared Spectrometry.

Rationale

1. It is lacking in the following areas: (1) Sampling procedures; (2) procedures to correct 

for the carbon dioxide concentration; (3) instructions to correct the gas volume if CO2 

traps are used; (4) specifications to certify the calibration gases are within 2 percent of 

the target concentration; (5) mandatory instrument performance characteristics (e.g., rise 

time, fall time, zero drift, span drift, precision); (6) quantitative specification of the span 

value maximum as compared to the measured value: The standard specifies that the 

instruments should be compatible with the concentration of gases to be measured, 

whereas EPA Method 10 specifies that the instrument span value should be no more than 

1.5 times the source performance standard. 2. Is too general, too broad, or not sufficiently 

detailed to assure compliance with EPA regulatory requirements.

5. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 12 – Inorganic Lead, Stationary Sources 

(Incorporated: 2000) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D4358-94 (1999), Standard Test Method for Lead and Chromium in Air 

Particulate Filter Samples of Lead Chromate Type Pigment Dusts by Atomic Absorption 

Spectroscopy
117

Rationale

These ASTM standards do not require the use of glass fiber filters as in EPA Method 12 

and require the use of significantly different digestion procedures that appear to be milder 

than the EPA Method 12 digestion procedure. For these reasons, these ASTM standards 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 12. Also, the subject ASTM standards 

do not require the use of hydrogen fluoride (HF) as in EPA Method 29 and, therefore, 

they cannot be used for the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. 

Additionally, Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas these three 

ASTM standards require cellulose filters and other probable nonglass fiber media, which 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 29.

Voluntary Standard

ASTM E1741-95 (1995), Standard Practice for Preparation of Airborne Particulate Lead 

Samples Collected During Abatement and Construction Activities for Subsequent 

Analysis by Atomic Spectrometry

Rationale

These ASTM standards do not require the use of glass fiber filters as in EPA Method 12 

and require the use of significantly different digestion procedures that appear to be milder 

than the EPA Method 12 digestion procedure. For these reasons, these ASTM standards 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 12. Also, the subject ASTM standards 

do not require the use of hydrogen fluoride (HF) as in EPA Method 29 and, therefore, 

they cannot be used for the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. 

Additionally, Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas these three 

ASTM standards require cellulose filters and other probable nonglass fiber media, which 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 29.

Voluntary Standard

ASTM E1979-98 (1998), Standard Practice for Ultrasonic Extraction of Paint, Dust, Soil, 

and Air Samples for Subsequent Determination of Lead

Rationale

These ASTM standards do not require the use of glass fiber filters as in EPA Method 12 

and require the use of significantly different digestion procedures that appear to be milder 

than the EPA Method 12 digestion procedure. For these reasons, these ASTM standards 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 12. Also, the subject ASTM standards 

do not require the use of hydrogen fluoride (HF) as in EPA Method 29 and, therefore, 

they cannot be used for the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. 

Additionally, Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas these three 

ASTM standards require cellulose filters and other probable nonglass fiber media, which 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 29.
118

6. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 17 - Particle Matter (PM) In Stack 

Filtration (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ASME C00049

Rationale

EPA looked at this standard for both Pulp and Paper Hazardous Air Pollutant rules and 

for the Small Municipal Waste Combustion rule. Contains sampling options beyond 

which would be considered acceptable for Method 5.

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D3685/3685M-95 - Standard Test method for Sampling and Determination of 

Particle Matter in Stack Gases 

Rationale

EPA looked at this standard for both Pulp and Paper Hazardous Air Pollutant rules and 

for the Small Municipal Waste Combustion rule. Contains sampling options beyond 

which would be considered acceptable for Method 5.

7. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 2 – Velocity and S-type Pitot 

(Incorporated: 1999) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D3464-96 (2001), Standard Test Method Average Velocity in a Duct Using a 

Thermal Anemometer

Rationale

Applicability specifications are not clearly defined, e.g., range of gas composition, 

temperature limits. Also, the lack of supporting quality assurance data for the calibration 

procedures and specifications, and certain variability issues that are not adequately 

addressed by the standard limit EPA's ability to make a definitive comparison of the 

method in these areas.

Voluntary Standard

ISO 10780:1994, Stationary Source Emissions-- Measurement of Velocity and Volume 

Flowrate of Gas Streams in Ducts

Rationale
119

The standard recommends the use of an L-shaped pitot, which historically has not been 

recommended by EPA. The EPA specifies the S-type design, which has large openings 

that are less likely to plug up with dust.

8. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 21 - Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) 

Leaks (Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM E1211-97 - Standard Practice for Leak Detection and Location Using SurfaceMounted Acoustic Emission Sensors

Rationale

This standard will detect leaks but not classify the leak as VOC, as in EPA Method 21. In 

addition, in order to detect the VOC concentration of a known VOC leak, the acoustic 

signal would need to be calibrated against a primary instrument. Background noise 

interference in some source situations could also make this standard difficult to use 

effectively.

9. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 25 – Gaseous Nonmethane Organic 

Emissions (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

EN 12619:1999 Stationary Source Emissions--Determination of the Mass Concentration 

of Total Gaseous Organic Carbon at Low Concentrations in Flue Gases--Continuous 

Flame Ionization Detector Method

Rationale

The standards do not apply to solvent process vapors in concentrations greater than 40 

ppm (EN 12619) and 10 ppm carbon (ISO 14965). Methods whose upper limits are this 

low are too limited to be useful in measuring source emissions, which are expected to be 

much higher.

Voluntary Standard

ISO 14965:2000(E) Air Quality--Determination of Total Nonmethane Organic 

Compounds--Cryogenic Preconcentration and Direct Flame Ionization Method

Rationale

The standards do not apply to solvent process vapors in concentrations greater than 40 

ppm (EN 12619) and 10 ppm carbon (ISO 14965). Methods whose upper limits are this 

low are too limited to be useful in measuring source emissions, which are expected to be 

much higher.
120

10. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 25A – Gaseous Organic Concentration, 

Flame Ionization (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

EN 12619:1999 Stationary Source Emissions--Determination of the Mass Concentration 

of Total Gaseous Organic Carbon at Low Concentrations in Flue Gases--Continuous 

Flame Ionization Detector Method

Rationale

The standards do not apply to solvent process vapors in concentrations greater than 40 

ppm (EN 12619) and 10 ppm carbon (ISO 14965). Methods whose upper limits are this 

low are too limited to be useful in measuring source emissions, which are expected to be 

much higher.

Voluntary Standard

ISO 14965:2000(E) Air Quality--Determination of Total Nonmethane Organic 

Compounds--Cryogenic Preconcentration and Direct Flame Ionization Method

Rationale

The standards do not apply to solvent process vapors in concentrations greater than 40 

ppm (EN 12619) and 10 ppm carbon (ISO 14965). Methods whose upper limits are this 

low are too limited to be useful in measuring source emissions, which are expected to be 

much higher.

11. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 28 (Section 10.1) – Wood Heaters, 

Certificate and Auditing (Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

ASME Power Test Codes, Supplement on Instruments and Apparatus, part 5, 

Measurement of Quantity of Materials, Chapter 1, Weighing Scales

Rationale

It does not specify the number of initial calibration weights to be used nor a specific 

pretest weight procedure.

Voluntary Standard

ASTM E319-85 (Reapproved 1997), Standard Practice for the Evaluation of Single-Pan 

Mechanical Balances

Rationale
121

This standard is not a complete weighing procedure because it does not include a pretest 

procedure.

12. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 29 – Metals Emissions from Stationary 

Sources (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D4358-94 (1999), Standard Test Method for Lead and Chromium in Air 

Particulate Filter Samples of Lead Chromate Type Pigment Dusts by Atomic Absorption 

Spectroscopy

Rationale

These ASTM standards do not require the use of glass fiber filters as in EPA Method 12 

and require the use of significantly different digestion procedures that appear to be milder 

than the EPA Method 12 digestion procedure. For these reasons, these ASTM standards 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 12. Also, the subject ASTM standards 

do not require the use of hydrogen fluoride (HF) as in EPA Method 29 and, therefore, 

they cannot be used for the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. 

Additionally, Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas these three 

ASTM standards require cellulose filters and other probable nonglass fiber media, which 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 29.

Voluntary Standard

ASTM E1741-95 (1995), Standard Practice for Preparation of Airborne Particulate Lead 

Samples Collected During Abatement and Construction Activities for Subsequent 

Analysis by Atomic Spectrometry

Rationale

These ASTM standards do not require the use of glass fiber filters as in EPA Method 12 

and require the use of significantly different digestion procedures that appear to be milder 

than the EPA Method 12 digestion procedure. For these reasons, these ASTM standards 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 12. Also, the subject ASTM standards 

do not require the use of hydrogen fluoride (HF) as in EPA Method 29 and, therefore, 

they cannot be used for the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. 

Additionally, Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas these three 

ASTM standards require cellulose filters and other probable nonglass fiber media, which 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 29.

Voluntary Standard

ASTM E1979-98 (1998), Standard Practice for Ultrasonic Extraction of Paint, Dust, Soil, 

and Air Samples for Subsequent Determination of Lead

Rationale
122

These ASTM standards do not require the use of glass fiber filters as in EPA Method 12 

and require the use of significantly different digestion procedures that appear to be milder 

than the EPA Method 12 digestion procedure. For these reasons, these ASTM standards 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 12. Also, the subject ASTM standards 

do not require the use of hydrogen fluoride (HF) as in EPA Method 29 and, therefore, 

they cannot be used for the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. 

Additionally, Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas these three 

ASTM standards require cellulose filters and other probable nonglass fiber media, which 

cannot be considered equivalent to EPA Method 29.

Voluntary Standard

CAN/CSA Z223.26-M1987, Measurement of Total Mercury in Air Cold Vapour Atomic 

Absorption Spectrophotometeric Method

Rationale

It lacks sufficient quality assurance and quality control requirements necessary for EPA 

compliance assurance requirements.

13. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 306 - Chromium Emissions, 

Electroplating and Anodizing (Incorporated: 2002) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D4358-94 (1999) - Standard Test Method for Lead and Chromium in Air 

Particulate Filter Samples of Lead Chromate Type Pigment Dusts by Atomic Absorption 

Spectroscopy

Rationale

This MACT standard (Petroleum Refineries) only cites Method 29. Therefore, the 

following EPA comment is only applicable for Method 29 not Method 12 and 306: 

Method 29 requires the use of hydrofluoric acid (HF) in its process of digestion of the 

sample. ASTM D4358-94 (1999) does not require the use of HF; therefore, it cannot be 

used in the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. Additionally, 

Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas the subject ASTM standard 

requires cellulose filters and other probable non-glass fiber media, and this further 

negates their use as Method 29 equivalent methods. (Same comment as provided for 

ASTM E1741 and ASTM E1979).

14. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 306a - Chromium Emissions, 

Electroplating -- Mason Jar (Incorporated: 2002) 

Voluntary Standard
123

ASTM D4358-94 (1999) - Standard Test Method for Lead and Chromium in Air 

Particulate Filter Samples of Lead Chromate Type Pigment Dusts by Atomic Absorption 

Spectroscopy

Rationale

This MACT standard (Petroleum Refineries) only cites Method 29. Therefore, the

following EPA comment is only applicable for Method 29 not Method 12 and 306: 

Method 29 requires the use of hydrofluoric acid (HF) in its process of digestion of the 

sample. ASTM D4358-94 (1999) does not require the use of HF; therefore, it cannot be 

used in the preparation, digestion, and analysis of Method 29 samples. Additionally, 

Method 29 requires the use of a glass fiber filter, whereas the subject ASTM standard 

requires cellulose filters and other probable non-glass fiber media, and this further 

negates their use as Method 29 equivalent methods. (Same comment as provided for 

ASTM E1741 and ASTM E1979).

15. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 3A – Carbon Dioxide and Oxygen 

Concentrations, IAP (Incorporated: 1999) 

Voluntary Standard

ISO 12039:2001, Stationary Source Emissions-- Determination of Carbon Monoxide, 

Carbon Dioxide, and Oxygen--Automated Methods

Rationale

This ISO standard is similar to EPA Method 3A, but is missing some key features. In 

terms of sampling, the hardware required by ISO 12039:2001 does not include a 3-way 

calibration valve assembly or equivalent to block the sample gas flow while calibration 

gases are introduced. In its calibration procedures, ISO 12039:2001 only specifies a twopoint calibration while EPA Method 3A specifies a three-point calibration. Also, ISO 

12039:2001 does not specify performance criteria for calibration error, calibration drift, 

or sampling system bias tests as in the EPA method, although checks of these quality 

control features are required by the ISO standard.

16. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 515.4 – Chlorinated Acids in DW by LL 

Fast CG/ECD (Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D5317-98 -- Standard Test Method For Determination of Chlorinated Organic 

Acid Compounds in Water by Gas Chromatography With an Electron Capture Detector

Rationale

ASTM D5317-98 specifies acceptance windows for the initial demonstration of 

proficiency for laboratory fortified blank samples that are as small as 0 percent to as large 

as 223 percent recovery for picloram, with tighter criteria for other regulated 
124

contaminants. Therefore, this method permits unacceptably large control limits, which 

include 0 percent recovery.

Voluntary Standard

Standard Method 6640 B for the chlorinated acids

Rationale

The use of this voluntary consensus standard would have been impractical due to 

significant shortcomings in the sample preparation and quality control sections of the 

method instructions. Section 1b of Method SM 6640 B states that the alkaline wash 

detailed in section 4b2 is optional. The hydrolysis that occurs during this step is essential 

to the analysis of the esters of many of the analytes. Therefore, this step is necessary and 

cannot be optional. In addition, the method specifies that the quality control limits for 

laboratory-fortified blanks are to be based upon plus or minus three times the standard 

deviation of the mean recovery of the analytes, as determined in each laboratory. 

Therefore, this method permits unacceptably large control limits, which may include 0 

percent recovery.

17. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 531.2 – N-Methylcarbamoylozimes/ates, 

Aqueous In/HPLC (Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

Standard Method 6610, 20th Edition

Rationale

Standard Method 6610, 20th Edition has recently been approved for compliance 

monitoring. Standard Method 6610, 20th Supplemental Edition permits the use of a 

strong acid, hydrochloric acid (HCL), as a preservative. The preservatives in all of the 

other approved EPA and Standard Methods procedures for these analytes are weak acids 

that adjust the pH to a specific value based upon the pKa of the preservative. The use of 

HCL would require accurate determinations of the pH of the sample in the field and 

could be subject to considerable error and possible changes in pH upon storage. Although 

not specifically observed for oxamyl or carbofuran during the development of similar 

methods, structurally similar pesticides have been shown to degrade over time when kept 

at pH 3. Therefore, approval of this method is impractical because it specifies the use of a 

strong acid (HCL) when positive control of the pH is critical.

Voluntary Standard

Standard Method 6610, 20th Supplemental Edition

Rationale
125

Standard Method 6610, 20th Edition has recently been approved for compliance 

monitoring. Standard Method 6610, 20th Supplemental Edition permits the use of a 

strong acid, hydrochloric acid (HCL), as a preservative. The preservatives in all of the 

other approved EPA and Standard Methods procedures for these analytes are weak acids 

that adjust the pH to a specific value based upon the pKa of the preservative. The use of 

HCL would require accurate determinations of the pH of the sample in the field and 

could be subject to considerable error and possible changes in pH upon storage. Although 

not specifically observed for oxamyl or carbofuran during the development of similar 

methods, structurally similar pesticides have been shown to degrade over time when kept 

at pH 3. Therefore, approval of this method is impractical because it specifies the use of a 

strong acid (HCL) when positive control of the pH is critical.

18. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method 5i - Low Level Particulate Matter, 

Stationary Sources (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D6331-98

Rationale

This standard does not have paired trains as specified in method 5 and does not include 

some quality control procedures specified in the EPA method and which are appropriate 

to use in this rule.

19. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method ALT 004 (Incorporated: 2002) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D5835-95 - Standard Practice for Sampling Stationary Source Emissions for 

Automated Determination of Gas Concentration

Rationale

Similar to Methods 3a, 6c, 7e, 10, ALT 004, CTM 022. Lacks in detail and quality 

assurance and quality control requirements. Very similar to ISO 10396.

Voluntary Standard

ISO 10396:1993 - Stationary Source Emissions: Sampling for the Automated 

Determination of Gas Concentrations 

Rationale

Duplicates Method 3a, 6c, 7e, 10, ALT 004, CTM 022. Lacks in detail and quality 

assurance plus quality control requirements. Similar to ASTM D5835. 

20. Government Unique Standard: EPA Method CTM 022 (Incorporated: 2002) 
126

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D5835-95 - Standard Practice for Sampling Stationary Source Emissions for 

Automated Determination of Gas Concentration

Rationale

Similar to Methods 3a, 6c, 7e, 10, ALT 004, CTM 022. Lacks in detail and quality 

assurance and quality control requirements. Very similar to ISO 10396.

Voluntary Standard

ISO 10396:1993 - Stationary Source Emissions: Sampling for the Automated 

Determination of Gas Concentrations 

Rationale

Duplicates Method 3a, 6c, 7e, 10, ALT 004, CTM 022. Lacks in detail and quality 

assurance plus quality control requirements. Similar to ASTM D5835. 

21. Government Unique Standard: EPA Performance Specification 2 (nitrogen oxide 

portion only) (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ISO 10849:1996, Determination of the Mass Concentration of Nitrogen Oxides--

Performance

Rationale

Is too general, too broad, or not sufficiently detailed to assure compliance with EPA 

regulatory requirements.

22. Government Unique Standard: EPA Performance Specification 2 (sulfur dioxide 

portion only) (Incorporated: 2001) 

Voluntary Standard

ISO 7935:1992, Stationary Source Emissions--Determination of the Mass Concentration 

of Sulfur Dioxide--Performance Characteristics of Automated Measuring Methods"

Rationale

Is too general, too broad, or not sufficiently detailed to assure compliance with EPA 

regulatory requirements.

23. Government Unique Standard: SW846-6010b (Incorporated: 2002) 

Voluntary Standard
127

ASTM C1111-98 (1998) - Standard Test Method for Determining Elements in Waste 

Streams by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectrometers 

Rationale

This standard lacks details for instrument operation QA/QC, such as optimizing plasma 

operating conditions; upper limit of linear dynamic range; spectral interference 

correction; and calibration procedures, which include initial and continuous calibration 

verifications. Also lacks internal standard and method of standard addition options for 

samples with interferences. 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM D6349-99 (1999) - Standard Test Method for Determining Major and Minor 

Elements in Coal, Coke, and Solid Residues from Combustion of Coal and Coke by 

Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectrometers

Rationale

This standard lacks details for instrument operation QA/QC, such as optimizing plasma 

operating conditions, upper limit of linear dynamic range, spectral interference 

correction, and calibration procedures, that include initial and continuous calibration 

verifications. Also lacks details for standard preparation, and internal standard and 

method of standard addition options for samples with interferences.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: No way to determine this year.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 10

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

American National Standards Institute ANSI

ASTM International ASTM
128

Building Officials and Code Administrators International BOCA

Green Seal Standards for Adhesives GSSA

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

International Electrotechnical Commission IEC

International Organization for Standardization ISO

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

NSF International NSFI

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 0

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

No data

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

No change from previous responses

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

Regarding question 6: EPA does not have a mechanism for determining who is involved in 

standards. 

Regarding the entire 2010 report: due to duties as asigned, it was not possible to determine 

numbers for standards, GSU's or peopel invovled. This system requires number answers in order 

to allow one to 'complete' electronically so nubmers in answers 1-8 are at best a guess. EPA does 

not have either a formal or informal way to congregate information that is needed for this report.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes
129

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The FCC references many standards in support of the Commission’s regulatory responsibilities. 

These standards, referenced in the FCC rules, range from referencing measurement methods and 

conformity assessment procedures to radio carriage requirements for oceangoing vessels to 

promote safety of life. In addition, standards are used to promote compatibility between radios 

and to achieve coordination among Commission licensees. 

For example: In the Hearing Aid Compatibility Report and Order (WT Docket No. 07-250) the 

Commission has set a date of March 31, 2011 for the standards development organization, 

Accredited Standards CommitteeC63® - Electromagnetic Compatibility, to update the standard 

used to determine if a digital wireless phone is capable of operating effectively with hearing aids 

based on certain performance measurement standards contained in the 2007 version of ANSI 

C63.19, “American National Standard for Methods of Measurement of Compatibility between 

Wireless Communication Devices and Hearing Aids” (ANSI C63.19-2007). The applicability of 

this edition of the standard is limited to those air interfaces and frequency bands (800-950 MHz 

and 1.6-2.5 GHz) for which technical standards are stated in the standard governing wireless 

hearing aid compatibility. 

Another example is the successful use of the Telecommunications Industry Association 

Telecommunications System Bulletin 10-F, "Interference Criteria for Microwave Systems." This 

standard, referenced within several Commission rule parts has become the cornerstone for 

applicants and licnesees to successfully coordinate the use of microwave communications 

systems.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0
130

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 157

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: N/A

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 14

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Accredited Standards CommitteeC63® - Electromagnetic Compatibility C63®

Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions ATIS

American National Standards Institute ANSI

Federal Geographic Data Committee FGDC

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Intelligent Transportation Society of America ITSA

International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO

International Electrotechnical Commission IEC

International Maritime Organization IMO

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Telecommunication Union ITU

Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics RTCA

Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services RTCM

Telecommunications Industry Association TIA

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 28

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 
131

Accredited Laboratory Recognition Program 

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has a conformity assessment program that 

allows manufacturers and suppliers of personal computers, computer peripherals and other Radio 

Frequency (RF) devices to demonstrate compliance by use of a “Declaration of Conformity” 

procedure. Such products must be tested by a recognized accredited Electromagnetic 

Compatibility (EMC) testing laboratory. The FCC has recognized the following accreditation

bodies: National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP); ANSI-ASQ National 

Accreditation Board/ACLASS (ACLASS); and the American Association for Laboratory 

Accreditation (A2LA) 

The FCC also recognizes accredited testing laboratories that have been accredited by A2LA, 

ACLASS or NVLAP to perform testing on products subject to the Commission’s equipment 

authorization program on products subject to certification under Part 15. 

The accreditation of a laboratory located outside of the United States, or its possessions, is 

acceptable to the Commission if the accredited laboratory has been designated by a foreign 

designating authority and recognized by the Commission under the terms of a government-togovernment Mutual Recognition Agreement/Arrangement (MRA); or if the testing laboratory 

has been recognized by the Commission as being accredited by an organization that has entered 

into an arrangement between accrediting organizations and the arrangement has been recognized 

by the Commission. 

The FCC has recognized a total of 283 accredited laboratories. 104 are located in the United 

States and 179 are located outside of the United States. 

Telecommunications Certification Bodies (TCB) Program 

On December 17, 1998, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted rules for the 

establishment of Telecommunication Certification Bodies (TCB). A TCB is a private 

organization, which is authorized to issue grants, within its scope of designation, for equipment 

subject to the FCC’s certification procedure. Under these rules, a TCB has the authority to 

review and grant an application for certification to the FCC rules. This order also established 

procedures for foreign TCBs under the terms of a government-to-government Mutual 

Recognition Agreement/Arrangement (MRA). Foreign TCBs, where recognized, certify 

equipment to U.S. requirements using test procedures and technical requirements under the FCC 

rules for purposes of U.S.-valid equipment authorization. There are two “phases” of mutual 

recognition. Phase I permits tests performed outside the U.S. to be used in support of equipment 

authorization of products subject to the FCC’s Declaration of Conformity (DoC) requirements; 

Phase II permits the certification of products subject to the FCC’s certification requirements by a 

TCB located outside of the U.S. 

In May 2000, NIST initially evaluated American National Standards Institute’s (ANSI) 

Conformity Assessment Program for compliance with ISO/IEC Guide 61 and the Federal 

Communications Commission (FCC) requirements for its TCB program. Every two years 

ANSI’s accreditation program is subject to re-evaluation by NIST. 
132

ANSI evaluates prospective TCBs for compliance with ISO/IEC Guide 65 and FCC 

requirements for the TCB program. FCC requires that a TCB must have core testing capability 

and that the testing laboratory must be accredited to ISO/IEC Standard 17025. NIST 

recommends accredited organizations to FCC for designation as TCBs. 

The FCC has recognized a total of 35 certification bodies under the TCB program. 19 are located 

in the United States and 16 are located outside of the United States.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

N/A

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

N/A

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency 

Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 
133

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Standards are utilized to achieve the mission of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 

(FERC or the Commission) as follows: 

I. The Commission reviews reliability standards developed by the North American Electric 

Reliability Corporation (NERC) under the Federal Power Act, Section 215. NERC reliability 

standards define the reliability requirements for planning and operating the North American bulk 

power system. NERC develops the reliability standards using an industry-driven American 

National Standards Institute (ANSI) accredited process that ensures the process is: (1) open to all 

persons who are directly and materially affected by the reliability of the North American bulk 

power system; (2) transparent to the public; (3) demonstrates the consensus for each standard; (4) 

fairly balances the interests of all stakeholders; (5) provides for reasonable notice and 

opportunity for comment; and (6) enables the development of standards in a timely manner. 

Upon review, the Commission can either approve the proposed standards or remand them back 

to the electric reliability organization for further consideration. The reliability standards become 

mandatory and enforceable in the United States only after they are approved by the Commission. 

Standards can be found at the NERC website at http://www.nerc.com/page.php?cid=2|20. 

II. The Commission’s statutory authority centers on major aspects of the nation’s wholesale 

electric, natural gas, hydroelectric and oil pipeline industries. The Commission relies extensively 

on competitive market forces to accomplish its statutory goals of non-discriminatory, just and 

reasonable, rates, terms, and conditions of jurisidictional service. In that context, reducing or 

eliminating barriers to trade among willing buyers and sellers is an important element of the 

Commission’s policies. The Commission has relied on business practice standards developed and 

promoted by the North American Energy Standards Board (NAESB) to facilitate wellfunctioning wholesale gas and electric markets. NAESB, an ANSI accredited consensus 

standards development organization, develops and adopts voluntary standards and model 

business practices designed to promote more competitive and efficient natural gas and electric 

service. Such standards apply to electronic data interchange, record formats, communications 

protocols, and related business practices that streamline the transactional processes of the natural 

gas and electric industries. NAESB standards have been used by the Commission to establish 

basic foundational and definitional elements of the natural gas and electric industries’ 

commercial business practices, such as the “gas day”, the “electric day,” as well as other 

definitions and commonly used industry terms. Recent NAESB efforts have encompassed a 

number of wholesale gas and electric issues including, for example, the creation of standards 

needed to support Electronic Bulletin Board posting requirements regarding waste heat 

feasibility and standards for the measurement and verification of participating entities in certain 

types of demand response programs. The Commission’s use of NAESB developed wholesale gas 

and electric standards ensure that the incorporated business practices and technical guidelines 

have broad industry development, involvement, and endorsement. 

NAESB’s website may be found at http://www.naesb.org/. From time to time, as the 

Commission considers appropriate, select NAESB standards applicable to wholesale natural gas 

and wholesale electric business practices are incorporated by reference into the Commission’s 
134

regulations. See, e.g., 18 C.F.R. Part 38 titled Business Practice Standards and Communication 

Protocols for Public Utilities, and 18 C.F.R. Part 284.12 titled Standards for Pipeline Business 

Operations and Communications.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 19

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: Explanation of the 19 standards utilized is as follows - The Commission has adopted 

the voluntary consensus standards developed by NAESB for application in wholesale natural gas 

and electric markets. In Order No. 676-E, issued November 24, 2009, the Commission 

incorporated by reference NAESB Version 002.1 of wholesale electric standards (with some 

exceptions). In Order No. 676-F, issued April 15, 2010, the Commission amended its regulations 

to incorporate by reference NAESB wholesale electric standards related to Measurement and 

Verification of Wholesale Electricity Demand Response. Codified in 18 C.F.R. Part 38. In FY10, 

the Commission adopted 11 Wholesale Electric Quadrant (WEQ) business practice standards 

covering a variety of protocols. The 11 WEQ business practices standards adopted in FY10 

include: WEQ-001 Open Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS) Standards; WEQ002 Open Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS) Standards and Communications 

Protocols; WEQ-003 Open Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS) Data Dictionary; 

WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange Standards; WEQ-005 Area Control Error (ACE) Equation 

Special Cases Standards; WEQ-007 Inadvertent Interchange Payback Standards; WEQ-008 

Transmission Loading Relief (Eastern Interconnection Standards); WEQ-011 Gas / Electric 

Coordination Standards; WEQ-012 Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Standards; WEQ-013 

OASIS Implementation Guide; and WEQ-015 Measurement and Verification of Wholesale 

Electricity Demand Response. In FY10, the Commission adopted eight categories of Wholesale 

Gas Quadrant (WGQ) business practice standards covering a variety of protocols. This was 

promulgated through Order No. 587-U, issued March 24, 2010, in which the Commission 

incorporated by reference NAESB Version 1.9 of wholesale gas standards (with some 

exceptions). Codified in 18 CFR Part 284. The eight categories of WGQ business practices 

standards adopted in FY10 include: 1- General; 2- Nominations; 3- Flowing Gas; 4- Invoicing; 

5- Quadrant Electronic Delivery Mechanisms; 6- Internet Electronic Transport; 7- Capacity 

Release; and 8- Interpretations.
135

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 0

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 0

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

Not applicable

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

No recommendations at this time are proposed by FERC.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No other comments are provided by FERC at this time.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

FERC reviews its standards for purposes of updating such use on an as needed basis.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; C

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; E

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report
136

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States Government 

charged with enforcing competition and consumer protection laws. The Commission's only 

contact with voluntary consensus standards and the organizations that produce them is in 

connection with the enforcement of the Federal Trade Commission Act, which prohibits unfair 

methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts and practices affecting commerce. The 

Commission does not promulgate its own standards or engage in other standards activities 

pertinent to OMB Circular A-119.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: See response to Question 1.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 0

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 0

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

See response to Question 1.
137

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

See response to Question 1.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

N/A

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; C

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; E

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

General Services Administration (GSA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Standards play a significant role in the Federal Supply program. They are used to establish 

baselines for product quality, performance and features; allow competitive procurement of 

functionally equivalent products and; when necessary ensure interchangeability of products 

produced under different contracts and across different contract periods. The most signification 

aspect of our use of standards is to ensure the safety and durability of the products purchased for 

government use. 

GSA maintains a standards website, http://www.gsa.gov Home>About GSA>Reference>Supply 

Standards
138

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 3

1. Government Unique Standard: Federal Specification KKK-A-1822E - Federal 

Specification for Ambulances (Incorporated: 2003) 

Voluntary Standard

ASTM F2020 - Standard Practice for Design, Construction, and Procurement of 

Emergency Medical Services Ambulances

Rationale

The ASTM Standard Practice for Design, Construction, and Procurement of Emergency 

Medical Services (EMSS) Ambulances (ASTM F2020) is not practical for use, and 

therefore GSA uses the Federal Specification for Ambulances (KKK-A-1822E). GSA has 

determined the ASTM document is not practical for use for the following reasons: 

1) GSA has determined that ASTM F2020 contains specific practices that are technically 

and economically impractical to use for the acquisition of commercial based vehicles 

because the document is financially burdensome and technically ineffective. Specifically 

at issue is the ASTM Standard Specification for Medical Oxygen Delivery Systems for 

EMS Ground Vehicles, F1949-99 which is inclusive to ASTM F2020. 

2) GSA has determined that ASTM F2020 is impractical because it is defined as a 

standard practice which is ambiguous and an ineffective substitution for specifications or 

requirements for use in GSA contract documents. ASTM F1949-99, a Standard 

Specification for Medical Oxygen Delivery Systems for EMS Ground Vehicles is 

included in ASTM F2020. ASTM F1949-99 is defined as a “standard specification”. 

3) GSA has determined that ASTM F2020 is impractical because ASTM International 

does not provide interpretations and written guidance to their publications which is 

inadequate and less useful. ASTM members may only offer personal opinions. ASTM 

offers no mechanism to support timely resolution of conflicts between contractor and 

procurement organizations on technical subject matter. GSA provides interpretations, 

clarifications and engineering determinations when required. This is one of the most 

important concerns presented by the Ambulance Manufacturers Division (AMD). 

4) The AMD has determined through consensus that it is impractical to replace the 

Federal Specification for Ambulances, KKK-A-1822E with the ASTM Standard Practice, 

F2020. GSA initiated a survey to collect public responses from a wide range of 

constituent users of the Federal Ambulance Specification. The National Association of 

Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT), the International Association of Fire Chiefs 

(IAFC), the National Association of State EMS Directors (NASEMSD) and the National 

Association of EMS Physicians universally accept and support the continued use of the 

Federal Specification. The AMD and constituent users have determined that it is 

impractical to replace the Federal Specification for Ambulances, KKK-A-1822E with the 
139

ASTM Standard Practice, F2020 because rule promulgation is burdensome and costly. 

Staff and administration resources would need to be diverted in each state EMS office to 

implement the change in statutes, public health codes, rules and regulations. 

5) GSA has determined that ASTM F2020 is impractical because it is burdensome to 

GSA procurement efforts. While the current ASTM document recites many of the 

requirements from the Federal Specification, a future ASTM document would likely have 

diverging requirements unacceptable to the Government. This was verified by a member 

of the ASTM F2020 subcommittee at the September 4, 2003 meeting of the Federal 

Interagency Committee on Emergency Medical Services.

2. Government Unique Standard: FF-L-2937 (Incorporated: 2006) 

Voluntary Standard

UL 768

Rationale

Federal Specification FF-L-2937 – Combination Lock, Mechanical used in lieu of UL 

768 Combination Locks. The lock covered by the GUS is used for the protection of 

classified information and weapons. The UL specification did not meet identified 

government needs for dialing tolerance and bolt end pressure.

3. Government Unique Standard: MIL-G-9954 - Glass Beads for Cleaning and Peening 

(Incorporated: 2000) 

Voluntary Standard

SAE/AMS 2431 - Peening Media, General Requirements

Rationale

This government-unique standard contains specific size & performance required for Air 

Force critical applications that are not present in the voluntary standards.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0
140

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 21

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Ambulance Manufacturers Division AMD

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

ASTM International ASTM

Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association BHMA

Institute of Packaging Professionals IOPP

International Safe Transit Association ISTA

Material Handling Equipment Industry Association MHIA

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

National Institute of Packaging, Handling Engineers NIPHLE

National Truck Equipment Assocation NTEA

Network Address Space Working Group IPv6

Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards OASIS

Performance Review Institute PRI

Qualified Products Management Council QPMC

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Technical Association for the WorldwIde, Pulp Paper and Converting 

Industry TAPPI

The Maintenance Council of American Trucking Associations TMC/ATA

The Society for Protective Coatings SSPC

Underwriters Laboratories UL

United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business UN/CEFACT

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 18

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:
141

No comment.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

No comment.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

General Services Administration (GSA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: General Services Administration (GSA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

Government Printing Office (GPO) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

The use of standards is very important in our procurement / acquisition process and defining our 

needs. When dealing with vendors, standards provide a level playing field for them when bidding 

on our Agency requirements. We use standards to inform potential bidders and offerors of our 

minimum requirements. The use of standards has ensured consistency in our manufacturing 

process and the ability to maintain the highest quality in the production of our documents. 

http://www.gpo.gov/customers/vol11.htm 

We also use standards to ensure consistency, and accuracy in the services that we provide to our 
142

customers. 

http://www.main.gpo.gov/Publications/Current/Online/P805.33.pdf 

https://www.gsaadvantage.gov/advgsa/advantage/main/start_page.do 

Compliance standards that govern air quality, waste management, waste water discharges, 

pollution prevention, and health and safety to formulate policies, and establish procedures. 

Developing policy and procedure to comply with the federal and District regulations for solid 

waste management and wastewater discharge resulted in successful inspections as conducted by 

local regulators. GPO waste recycling efforts have been recognized by the DC Chapter of the 

Sierra Club with “Best Public Office Building Recycling Program” award. 

Standards-based cataloging rules and procedures ensure consistent record creation, search, 

retrieval, and transfer of records in catalogs across libraries internationally. 

http://www.niso.org/publications/white_papers/wp-gatenby/ 

http://www.niso.org/publications/white_papers/StreamlineBookMetadataWorkflowWhitePaper.p

df

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 2

Other Technical Standards: 1

Rationale: To compete as a GSA approved supplier with graphical certification.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 4

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Federal Agencies Digitization Guidelines Initiative FADGI

International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO

National Information Standards Organization NISO

Program for Cooperative Cataloging PCC
143

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 7

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

Guidance review, internal inspections and audits, external inspections, and periodic walk-troughs 

are conducted for compliance. 

Two conformity assessments were conducted against ISO 9001. 

One conformity assessment was conducted against FISP 201 

Audits for the procurement activities of the Washington, DC, APS Teams and the nationwide 

Regional Offices conducted under Print Procurement’s Internal Audit Program (IAP), headed by 

the Director, APSP4, and staffed on an ad hoc basis by management and supervisory Contracting 

Officers 

GPO conducted multiple 

a. Evaluations of the Contractor’s performance 

b. Evaluations how well a contractor meets requirements 

c. Evaluations of the timeliness and accuracy of required deliverables.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

NA

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

none

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

*However, review of standards use at GPO varies by standard and by Business Unit.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes
144

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 1

Title: Government Printing Office (GPO) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Fiscal Year 2010 

Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

Standards are critical to NASA’s science and technology-based mission. They provide the basis 

for defining engineering, safety, and mission assurance requirements that are levied on both our 

contracted activities as well as on our in-house developments. Standards are also used by 

programs for evaluating proposed approaches and assessing performance throughout system life 

cycles. NASA Technical Standards support achievement of NASA’s Mission and serve all 

NASA Programs, Projects, and Facilities. The Technical Standards Program's Website accessible 

at http://standards.nasa.gov provides direct access to NASA-developed standards, other 

government-developed standards, and to non-government Standards Development Organizations' 

(SDO) Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCSs).

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010:

This agency reports voluntary consensus standards usage on a category basis

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 0

Other Technical Standards: 0
145

Rationale: Rationale: NASA reports on a categorical basis.

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 12

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

Aerospace Industries Association of America AIA

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics AIAA

American Society for Nondestructive Testing ASNT

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Welding Society AWS

ASTM International ASTM

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

International Organization for Standardization ISO

IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries IPC

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE

Underwriters Laboratories UL

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 71

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) 

Star assessments 

ISO 9001 - Quality Management System assessments and audits 

ISO 14001 - Environmental Management System assessments and audits 

AS 9100 - Aerospace Quality Management System registration (ongoing, Stage 2)

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

OMB Circular A-119 and the preference for VCS are directly cited in policy (NASA Policy 

Directive (NPD) 7120.4) which requires consideration of VCS alternatives before a NASA 

Technical Standard is developed or revalidated. The Circular also provides a basis for increasing 

attention to VCS and has helped to maintain an effective level of participation of NASA 

personnel in VCS activities in the face of budget pressures.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

None
146

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; C

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 5

Title: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Fiscal Year 2010 

Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

NARA uses standards to strengthen its records management and archival programs. We cite 

standards, which are incorporated by reference, in our regulations (Code of Federal Regulations). 

These provide direction to agencies about the records management and archival standards 

applicable to storage facilities, as well as for record media. Information about incorporation by 

reference is among our Federal Register web pages at http://www.archives.gov/federalregister/cfr/ibr-locations.html. 

For example, NARA uses ISO 15489 as a framework for Federal records management training. 

ISO 15489 provides a systematic strategy for capturing and maintaining records, regardless of 

media or format. The standard also defines characteristics needed to support a trustworthy 

recordkeeping system.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 1

1. Government Unique Standard: NARA data standard (Incorporated: 2000) 
147

Voluntary Standard

Archives, Personal Papers, and Manuscripts (APPM); 

General International Standard Archival Description (ISAD(G)); 

International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons, and 

Families (ISAAR(CPF)); 

Encoded Archival Description (EAD); 

Machine Readable Cataloging (MARC)

Rationale

These voluntary standards do not meet the precise needs of the agency.

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 18

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 13

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

American National Standards Institute ANSI

ARMA International ARMAI

Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting 

Technologies NPES

ASTM International ASTM

Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems CCSDS

Enterprise Content Management Association AIIM

Federal Geographic Data Committee FGDC

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

International Council on Archives ICA

International Organization for Standardization ISO

National Information Standards Organization NISO
148

Nuclear Information and Records Management Association, Inc. NIRMAI

Product Data Exchange Standard, Inc. PDES

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 17

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 

NARA did not participate in any conformity assessment activities in FY 2010.

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

We believe that the Circular is working effectively and have no recommendations for changes.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

Rationale for the use of GUS (question 2). 

Some of the voluntary standards: 

-Are library standards not suitable for NARA's use instead of archival standards; 

-Dictate a physical design solution that NARA does not find technically sound; and, 

-Focus on personal papers collections, not government records. 

NARA's archival description standard is one that NARA uses to describe its own holdings and is 

not a standard imposed externally.

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; No

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; A

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; Yes
149

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 5

Title: National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

National Science Foundation (NSF) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

None submitted

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report

1. Please describe the importance of standards in the achievement of your agency's mission, how 

your agency uses standards to deliver its primary services in support of its mission, and provide 

any examples or case studies of standards success. Please include relevant Internet links and 

links to your agency's standards website.

It is the policy of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to increase the involvement 

of stakeholders in our regulatory development process and, consistent with the provisions of the 

National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-113), to 

encourage NRC staff participation in the development of consensus standards in support of its 

mission. NRC involvement also encourages standards developing organizations (SDOs) to 

develop codes, standards, and guides that can be endorsed by the NRC and carried out by the 

industry, and increases the likelihood that the standards that SDOs develop will meet both public 

and private sector needs. 

The NRC uses voluntary consensus standards (VCSs) as a key part of our regulatory framework. 

Some standards are incorporated by reference into NRC regulations. NRC’s regulations may be 

found at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/cfr/. The NRC staff also issues 

documents providing guidance on acceptable methods for complying with NRC regulations, such 

as regulatory guides. These guidance documents frequently reference consensus standards as 

acceptable methods for compliance with NRC regulations. Regulatory Guides are cataloged here: 

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/management-directives/ 

The NRC’s reasons for using standards include providing the level of regulatory certainty and 

predictability desired by stakeholders, recognizing and considering the broad range of technical 

expertise and experience of the individuals who are represented on many consensus standards 

organizations, and minimizing the expenditure of NRC resources that would otherwise be 

necessary to develop regulations and guidance which provide the level of detail comparable to 

that provided by consensus standards. 

Work is underway with several standards developing organizations to update voluntary 

consensus standards that may be applied to license renewal or new nuclear plant construction, 

including advanced reactor technologies. For example, NRC is partnering with ASME Standards 

Technology, LLC, to develop a roadmap for ASME standards changes that will support 

advanced reactor design, construction, operation, and maintenance. In addition, the NRC 

cooperated with the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Institute of Standards and 
150

Technology (NIST), and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) to establish the 

Nuclear Energy Standards Coordination Cooperative (NESCC). Formed in 2009, and continuing 

to meet two to three times per year, NESCC works to facilitate and coordinate the timely 

identification, development, and revision of standards for the design, operation, development, 

licensing, and deployment of nuclear power plants. Standards for other nuclear technologies, 

including advanced reactor concepts, will also be addressed. The intent has been to create a 

highly inclusive, collaborative forum with participation from a range of perspectives. 

Benefits of NRC staff participation in voluntary consensus standards development include cost 

savings, improved efficiency and transparency, and high technical quality of regulatory 

requirements. For more information, the NRC website on standards development is at: 

http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/standards-dev.html.

2. Please list the government-unique standards your agency used in lieu of voluntary consensus 

standards during FY 2010: 0

3. Please list the Voluntary Consensus Standards (VCS) your agency substituted for Government 

Unique Standards (GUS) in FY 2010 as a result of review under Section 15(b)(7) of OMB 

Circular A-119: 0

4. Please provide the total number of Voluntary Consensus Standards your agency BEGAN to 

use during FY 2010: Optional: If possible, also please provide the total number of Nonconsensus Standards that are developed in the private sector your agency began to use during FY 

2010. In addition, please provide your agency's rationale for using the Non-consensus Standards 

that are developed in the private sector counted in this question.

Voluntary Consensus Standards: 6

Other Technical Standards: 0

Rationale: 

VCSs Used in Regulatory Guidance: 

ANSI Standard N271 1976, “Containment Isolation Provisions for Fluid Systems,” is endorsed 

in Revision 1 of RG 1.11, “Instrument Lines Penetrating the Primary Reactor Containment,” 

March 2010. 

ANSI/ANS-15.8-1995, “Quality Assurance Program Requirements for Research Reactors,” was 

endorsed in Revision 1 of RG 2.5, “Quality Assurance Program Requirements for Research and 

Test Reactors,” June 2010. 

ANSI/ISA-67.02.01-1999, “Nuclear Safety-Related Instrument-Sensing Line Piping and Tubing 

Standard for Use in Nuclear Power Plants,” is endorsed in Revision 1 of RG 1.151, “Instrument 

Sensing Lines,” July 2010.

ASME NQA-1-2008, “Quality Assurance Requirements for Nuclear Facility Applications,” and 
151

ASME NQA-1a-2009 Addenda to ASME NQA-1-2008, “Quality Assurance Requirements for 

Nuclear Facility Applications,” were endorsed in Revision 4 of RG 1.28, “Quality Assurance 

Program Criteria (Design and Construction),” June 2010. 

IEEE Standard 334-2006, “IEEE Standard for Qualifying Continuous Duty Class 1E Motors for 

Nuclear Power Generating Stations,” was endorsed in Revision 1 of RG 1.40, “Qualification of 

Continuous Duty Safety-Related Motors for Nuclear Power Plants,” February 2010. 

Underwriters Laboratory (UL) 752, “The Standard of Safety for Bullet-Resisting Equipment,” is 

endorsed in RG 5.78, “Physical Protection of Mixed-Oxide Fuels in Nuclear Power Plants” –

Safeguards Information (limited distribution) 

5. Please enter the Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies (VCSB) in which your agency 

participated in during FY 2010: 15

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

American Concrete Institute ACI

American Institute of Steel Construction AISC

American National Standards Institute ANSI

American Nuclear Society ANS

American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME

American Welding Society AWS

ASTM International ASTM

Health Physics Society HPS

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE

Institute of Nuclear Materials Management INMM

International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical 

Commission ISO/IEC

International Society of Automation ISA

National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements NCRP

National Fire Protection Association NFPA

6. Please provide the total number of your agency's representatives who participated in voluntary 

consensus standards activities during FY 2010 and the total number of activities these agency 

representatives participated in: 184

7. Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as described in “Guidance on Federal 

Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal Register, Volume 65, Number 155, 

dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved in FY 2010. 
152

None

8. Please provide an evaluation of the effectiveness of Circular A-119 policy and 

recommendations for any changes:

The NRC believes that the Circular provides appropriate direction and encouragement for federal 

agencies to develop internal agency-wide guidelines. The circular also provides sufficient and 

reasonable flexibility for each agency to make an independent determination relative to 

participation on voluntary consensus bodies and use of developed standards.

9. Please provide any other comments you would like to share on behalf of your agency.

None

10. Please use this box to provide any additional comments on how your agency currently reports 

its use of voluntary consensus standards:

10.7: Standards and referencing documents are continuously reviewed.

10-1. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-2. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-3. Removed [This question was deprecated in 2005]

10-4. Does your agency report standards that it uses for guidance purposes (as opposed to 

compliance purposes)? (a) Yes; (b) No; (c) Not applicable; Yes

10-5. Does your agency report use of standards from non-ANSI accredited standards developers, 

industry consortia groups, or both? (a) non-ANSI Accredited; (b) Consortia; (c) Both; (d) 

Neither; or (e) Not applicable; D

10-6. Does your agency have a schedule for periodically reviewing its use of standards for 

purposes of updating such use? (a) Yes; (b) No; No

10-7. How often does your agency review its standards for purposes of updating such use? [enter 

the number of years]: 0

Title: Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Fiscal Year 2010 Agency Report
153

Appendix F – Federal Agency Activities Related to Conformity 

Assessment

FY 2010 Responses to Question 7: Please provide any conformity assessment activities (as 

described in “Guidance on Federal Conformity Assessment Activities” found in the Federal 

Register, Volume 65, Number 155, dated August 10, 2000) in which your agency was involved 

in FY 2010.

Agency Response

ACCESS N/A

CPSC On August 14, 2008, the President signed into law the Consumer Product Safety 

Improvement Act of 2008, hereinafter referred to as the Act. Among other things, this 

Act sets forth requirements for general conformity certification and third party testing 

for children's products subject to consumer product safety rules under the Act or 

similar rules, bans, standards, or regulations under any other Act enforced by the 

Commission. A copy of the Act and related information on CPSC conformity 

assessment activities are shown on CPSC's website at www.cpsc.gov under 

"Information on the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act".

DHS The Graduated Rad/Nuc Detector Evaluation and Reporting Program (GRaDER) is a 

conformity assessment system that will test detectors for rad/nuc materials of interest 

to homeland security. It is a voluntary, fee-for-service program: manufacturers or 

vendors decide whether to have their products tested and, if so, will pay for the test 

and evaluation. Since the grant program managers have a fiduciary responsibility to be 

sure that grant funds are spent on equipment that complies with standards (where 

standards are available), an important part of the GRaDER mission is to report 

information that will enable all stakeholders to verify that the rad/nuc detection or 

identification instrument being considered for purchase is in compliance with 

standards. The business incentive is that equipment that successfully completes the 

GRaDER program will be placed on the DHS GRaDER Evaluated Equipment List 

(GEEL), thereby enabling this verification. The result should lead to increasing sales 

to DHS components, other Federal departments and agencies, and state and local 

grantees seeking to invest in this equipment. The GEEL may be viewed as a qualified 

product list that is often an outcome of a conformity assessment system.

The SAFE Port Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-347) established the Domestic Nuclear 

Detection Office (DNDO). Responsibilities given to the DNDO include testing and 

evaluating rad/nuc detectors, as well as developing technical capability standards for 

these instruments in collaboration with the National Institute of Standards and 

Technology (NIST) and other departments and agencies of the Federal government. 
154

Since test and evaluation against standards is one of the critical components of a 

conformity assessment system, DNDO established the GRaDER program to carry out 

this responsibility. GRaDER is a standards-based conformity assessment system. A 

suite of national, voluntary consensus standards developed by ANSI, in conjunction 

with IEEE, has been adopted as DHS National Standards. The suite of standards 

known as the ANSI/IEEE N42 series formed the standards bedrock for GRaDER.

The ultimate goal of the GRaDER program is to give confidence that the rad/nuc 

detectors or identifiers used by DHS operating Components and other homeland 

security practitioners will function as they are intended in operational environments. It 

will accomplish this through a conformity assessment system based on the 

ANSI/IEEE N42 suite of voluntary consensus standards and, where needed, 

government-unique technical capability standards. Key parts of the conformity 

assessment system will include

• Voluntary participation by manufacturers and vendors in a fee-for-test program

• A requirement that test organizations be accredited to ISO 17025

• NVLAP will be the accrediting body

• Use of the IEEE N42 suite of standards

• Uniform formats for reporting test data

• Establishing and applying criteria to evaluate the test data and base compliance 

levels

• Issuing attestations for the compliance levels met by products

• Conducting a surveillance program

• Maintaining the GEEL (a qualified products list)

GRaDER is intended to be a program that will provide incentives to manufacturers to 

build and continually strive to improve their radiation detection and identification 

products that protect the nation from rad/nuc threats.

US-VISIT is actively involved in the National Science and Technology Council 

(NSTC) Subcommittee on Biometrics and Identity Management Standards and 

Conformity Assessment (SCA) Working Group, which, in support of biometric data 

exchange and interoperability across the U.S. Government, is charged with providing 

guidance and coordinating efforts for Federal agencies on the development of 

standards; the adoption and implementation of standards; and the establishment of 

associated conformity assessment and interoperability testing programs. The SCA 

working group is responsible for the development and maintenance of the Registry of 

U.S. Government Recommended Biometric Standards, Agency Actions in Support of 

the NSTC Policy for the Development, Adoption and Use of Biometric Standards, and 

the Catalogue of U.S. Government Biometric Product Testing Programs.
155

US-VISIT conducts compatibility testing of e-passports issued by Visa Waiver 

Program countries to assess basic conformance to standards of the International Civil 

Aviation Organization and to ensure interoperability with e-passport readers deployed 

by DHS at U.S. ports of entry.

The Coast Guard relies heavily on the use of independent laboratories (including 

classification societies) to carry out conformity assessment activities on its behalf, and 

maintains formal acceptance and recognition programs for such laboratories 

worldwide. The requirements for acceptance and recognition are specified in 

regulation, and compliance is assessed by means of documentation provided by the 

laboratory, or where appropriate, site visits by technical experts. A searchable listing 

of accepted laboratories can be found at 

http://cgmix.uscg.mil/EQLabs/EqLabsSearch.aspx. With few exceptions, such 

laboratories supervise approval and production tests and examinations as specified in 

regulation to ensure that equipment and materials approved by the Coast Guard and 

sold for use in regulated applications comply with the relevant regulatory 

requirements. In most cases, the sampling, testing, and quality system requirements 

are traceable to international requirements prescribed by the International Maritime 

Organization, and are mandatory for ships on international voyages under 

international treaty obligations. To allow for oversight by the Coast Guard, accepted 

laboratories carrying out conformity assessment activities on behalf of the Coast 

Guard are required by regulation to report at least annually on those activities.

During FY 2010, in addition to the conformity assessment activities conducted by 

qualified, independent third parties on the Coast Guard’s behalf, the Coast Guard also 

completed hundreds of conformity assessment activities, comprising evaluation of 

equipment and material for compliance with standards established in marine safety 

regulations.

DOC National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP)

Overview

The National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP) provides thirdparty accreditation to testing and calibration laboratories. NVLAP's accreditation 

programs are established in response to legislative or administrative actions by the 

Federal Government or to requests from government agencies and private-sector 

organizations. NVLAP operates its accreditation system in accordance with the 

international conformity assessment standard ISO/IEC 17011, Conformity assessment 

– General requirements for accreditation bodies accrediting conformity assessment 

bodies, which is published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 
156

and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). NVLAP accredits 

laboratories that are found competent to perform specific tests or calibrations through 

a rigorous assessment against the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025, General 

requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories. Information 

about accredited laboratories is published in NVLAP Directory of Accredited 

Laboratories, which is published online and updated monthly.

NVLAP is a signatory to the following Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRAs), 

which support international trade by promoting international confidence and 

acceptance of accredited laboratory data: International Laboratory Accreditation 

Cooperation (ILAC), the Asia-Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation 

(APLAC), and the InterAmerican Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC). By participating 

in these MRAs, NVLAP facilitates the mutual recognition of accredited test and 

measurement results of its signatory partners, thereby reducing the need for redundant 

testing and lowering costs to customers.

NVLAP Certificate of Accreditation

When NVLAP grants initial or continuing accreditation to a laboratory, it issues a 

Certificate of Accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025:2005, which includes the following 

statement to convey that an accredited laboratory management system meets the 

principles of ISO 9001:2000, Quality management system – requirements.

"This laboratory is accredited in accordance with the recognized International 

Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005. This accreditation demonstrates technical competence 

for a defined scope and the operation of a laboratory quality management system 

(refer joint ISO-ILAC-IAF Communique dated January 2009)"

NVLAP-accredited laboratories may use the above statement on their test reports and 

calibration certificates if they supply, or provide access to via a website, the Joint ISOILAC-IAF Communique as part of the package for their laboratory customers.

Accreditation Program Activities in 2010

Solid State Lighting

In FY 2010 NVLAP granted its first accreditations of solid-state lighting (SSL) test 

methods (LM-79 and LM-80) as part of its Energy Efficient Lighting Products 

laboratory accreditation program. Laboratories accredited by NVLAP for SSL test 

methods are also recognized by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) CALiPER 

program, which was established to provide accurate and comparable data on LEDs by 

arranging for reliable independent testing and data reporting of commercially 

available products. Program testing for the CALiPER program is conducted by 
157

qualified, verified, and contracted independent testing laboratories, and the program 

recognizes all laboratories that obtain NVLAP accreditation for LM-79 and LM-80. 

NVLAP accreditation involves a rigorous process demonstrating technical 

competence, quality control, proficiency testing, and laboratory impartiality and 

objectivity.

NVLAP Recognition for ENERGY STAR®

NVLAP has received recognition from the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency’s 

(EPA) ENERGY STAR Program as an accrediting body. NVLAP anticipates that a 

majority of its accredited Energy Efficient Lighting, some of its Electromagnetic 

Compatibility and Telecommunications, and some of its Thermal Insulation product 

testing laboratories will become recognized under the new EPA requirements. 

Accreditation is a necessary step for test data to be accepted under the enhanced 

Energy Star program.

EPA recently enhanced the ENERGY STAR conformity assessment program, and 

testing at an EPA-recognized laboratory is now required. The enhanced program will 

require not only accredited laboratory testing, but accredited certification of ENERGY 

STAR products. The ENERGY STAR program has grown to encompass more than 60 

product categories and is used by millions of Americans to identify products that 

reduce energy costs and protect the environment. To ensure that ENERGY STAR 

remains a trusted symbol for environmental protection and superior energy efficiency, 

all ENERGY STAR product partners will be required to follow a new set of ThirdParty Certification procedures effective January 1, 2011. Details of the program can 

be found on the following web page: 

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=partners.enhanced_test_verification.

Biometrics Testing

In September 2010 NVLAP staff attended the 2010 Biometric Consortium Conference 

& Technology Expo in Tampa, Florida. The Conference is supported by the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Security Agency 

(NSA), and is focused on Biometric Technologies for Defense, Homeland Security, 

Identity Management, Border Crossing and Electronic Commerce.

NVLAP is accepting applications for accreditation of laboratories that perform 

conformance testing, interoperability testing, technology testing, scenario testing and 

operational and usability testing for biometrics products. The Biometrics accreditation 

program was established in 2008 at the request of the U.S. Department of Homeland 

Security.
158

Termination of Commercial Products Testing Laboratory Accreditation Program

On September 30, 2010, the Commercial Products Testing Laboratory Accreditation 

Program (LAP) was terminated. The LAP included paints and related coatings, paper 

and related products, building seals and sealants, plastics, plumbing, roofing, and 

mattresses. The decision to terminate the program was based upon the low number of 

laboratories enrolled in these programs and the availability of accreditation through 

nongovernmental ILAC signatory accrediting bodies. NVLAP is no longer accepting 

applications for accreditation in the LAP. Those laboratories currently accredited will 

remain so until the expiration of the current accreditation at the discretion of the 

laboratory and provided all accreditation requirements continue to be implemented.

National Voluntary Conformity Assessment System Evaluation (NVCASE) Program

The National Voluntary Conformity Assessment System Evaluation (NVCASE) 

Program enables U.S. industry to satisfy mandated foreign technical requirements 

using the results of U.S.-based conformity assessment programs that perform technical 

evaluations comparable in their rigor to practices in the receiving country. Under this 

program, the Department of Commerce, acting through the National Institute of 

Standards and Technology, evaluates U.S.-based conformity assessment bodies in 

order to be able to give assurances to a foreign government that qualifying bodies 

meet that government's requirements and can provide results that are acceptable to 

that government. The program provides a technically-based U.S. approval process for 

U.S. industry to gain foreign market access; the acceptability of conformity

assessment results to the relevant foreign government will be a matter for agreement 

between the two governments. Currently, there are two NVCASE sub-programs that 

are operational: (1) EMC/Telecommunications; and (2) Organic Production and 

Processing. Additional information about the NVCASE Program can be found at 

http://gsi.nist.gov/global/index.cfm/L1-4/L2-38.

Conformity Assessment Activities under Mutual Recognition 

Agreements/Arrangements (MRAs)

The United States and the European Community Mutual Recognition Agreement (US 

- EU MRA) is a multi-sector bilateral government-to-government agreement between 

the United States and the 27 Member States of the European Union. Under this MRA, 

NIST is responsible for designating organizations in the US Conformity Assessment 

Bodies (CABs) for two sectors: 1) Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) and 2) 

Telecommunications. After a NIST review and designation process, CABs that meet 

certain criteria are formally recognized by the EU and may operate as a CAB as 

described in the U.S. - EU MRA and the specific technical regulations of the EU 

governing the appropriate product sectors. The U.S.-EU MRA is an important 
159

regulatory and trade agreement which provides greater market access in a timelier 

manner for U.S. manufacturers exporting to Europe and European manufacturers 

exporting to the United States.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Mutual Recognition Arrangement for 

Conformity Assessment of Telecommunications Equipment (APEC TEL MRA) is 

intended to streamline the Conformity Assessment Procedures for a wide range of 

telecommunications and telecommunications-related equipment and thereby to 

facilitate trade among the parties. It provides for the mutual recognition by the 

importing parties of CABs and mutual acceptance of the results of testing and 

equipment certification procedures undertaken by those bodies in assessing 

conformity of equipment to the importing parties’ own technical regulations.

Under Phase-I of the APEC TEL Mutual Recognition Arrangement, NIST-designated 

CABs are able to produce test data in their facilities that are accepted as evidence that 

the tested product satisfies an APEC economy's appropriate technical requirements. 

CABs operating under Phase-II of the MRA are able to certify products as being in

compliance with the technical and administrative requirements of the importing 

economy. NIST publishes general and specific requirements that must be met in order 

to be nominated as a CAB under the APEC TEL MRA.

The United States and Japan Mutual Recognition Agreement (US-Japan MRA) is a 

single sector bilateral agreement. The scope of the US-Japan MRA includes radio and 

telecommunications equipment, including telephone terminal equipment. The MRA 

provides for the mutual recognition of qualified Conformity Assessment Bodies 

(CABs) and mutual acceptance of the results of equipment certification undertaken by 

recognized CABs (similar to Phase II of the APEC TEL MRA as described above). 

The US-Japan MRA is intended to streamline the conformity assessment procedures 

for a wide range of telecommunications and telecommunications-related equipment 

and facilitate trade between the United States and Japan.

The Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL) Mutual Recognition 

Agreement is almost identical to the APEC Tel MRA in purpose and structure. The 

goal of the CITEL MRA is to facilitate trade among the 34 Member States of the 

Organization of American States. The conformity assessment activities under this 

Agreement have yet to become operational. When operational, NIST will serve as the 

Designating Authority of U.S. CABs. In the meantime, NIST continues to work 

towards implementation of the Agreement.

Additional information on the telecom MRAs can be found at 

http://gsi.nist.gov/global/index.cfm/L1-4/L2-16/L3-101
160

NIST Committee Participation in Conformity Assessment Standards Development 

and Activities

Under the NTTAA, NIST is responsible for coordinating conformity assessment 

activities with private sector technical standards activities and conformity assessment 

activities, with the goal of eliminating unnecessary duplication and complexity. FY10 

NIST activities in this area include:

Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) –NIST 

has consulted with and advised the ONC on the development of a temporary 

(transitional) and a permanent testing and certification program for health information 

technology. This consultation and collaboration between ONC and NIST will continue 

during the implementation and operational phases of the permanent certification 

program. Under the temporary certification program the ONC has authorized 6 testing 

and certification bodies and listed over 400 certified electronic health record products.

Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 – Under EISA, NIST has 

“primary responsibility to coordinate development of a framework that includes 

protocols and model standards for information management to achieve interoperability 

of smart grid devices and systems..." NIST, in consultation with industry, 

government, and other stakeholders, is working to develop a plan for a testing and 

certification framework for Smart Grid related devices, systems, and processes. This is 

essential to ensure interoperability and security under realistic operating conditions. 

NIST has initiated a program to develop a Smart Grid Conformity Testing Framework 

which will be further refined and maintained by the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel.

NIST’s intention is to leverage existing programs wherever practical. Additional 

information about NIST’s Smart Grid activities can be found at 

http://www.nist.gov/smartgrid.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Conformity Assessment Activities - NIST 

continues its work with the Department of Homeland Security Standards Executive to 

develop the DHS Science and Technology standards and conformity assessment 

infrastructure as well as requirements, standards, testing protocols, and conformity 

assessment methods. For example, NIST is assisting with the implementation of a 

conformity assessment program for radiation detectors for DHS’s Domestic Nuclear 

Detection Office including accreditation for testing laboratories whose testing will 

support the Graduated Rad/Nuc Detector Evaluation and Reporting (GRaDER) 

program. See http://www.dhs.gov/xres/programs/gc_1218637329931.shtm for 

additional information.

National Institute of Justice Body Armor Program - In cooperation with the 
161

Department of Justice’s National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and the National Law 

Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC), NIST developed and 

implemented a significant enhancement to the current body armor certification 

program including a revised NIJ performance standard for the safety of law 

enforcement officers. Under the NIJ Body Armor Compliance Testing Program, 119 

distinct body armor models have been listed on the NIJ Body Armor Compliant 

Products List.

Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act – NIST continues to provide technical 

assistance and support to the Consumer Product Safety Commission and to the private 

sector in the development of model certification programs to address toy safety issues. 

CPSC successfully implemented their program utilizing existing conformity 

assessment schemes and there are now over 329 laboratories listed from 34 countries, 

accredited by 43 different accreditation bodies.

Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Project on Greener Cleanups – NIST 

continues to provide assistance to EPA to develop a standards and certification 

program for Brownfield remediation (clean ups).

DoD The Department of Defense does not collect information on DOD-wide conformity 

assessment activities.

DOE The Department of Energy does not track conformity assessment activities.

DOI The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) 

of DOI is a member of the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) with 

representation on the Standards Working Group, the Coordinating Committee, the 

Steering Committee, the Marine Boundary Working Group, and ad hoc 

subcommittees developing standards for geospatial data.

Bureau of Reclamation: The ISO 14001 standard requires that organizations conduct 

third- party conformance audits to determine conformance with the ISO Standard. 

Reclamation has adopted this requirement in a revised form and will conduct audits to 

determine conformance with both the Standard framework and the executive order.

Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA): BIA participated in the Federal Geospatial One-Stop 

and the Enterprise Geographic Information Management Committee.

FWS: The FWS continues to implement key security standards and guidelines 

developed or approved by NIST to support the implementation of and compliance 

with the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) including:

• Standards for categorizing information and information systems by mission impact.

• Standards for minimum security requirements for information and information 
162

systems.

• Standards for encrypting government data.

• Standards for applying and enforcing secure configuration baselines.

• Standards for secure remote access.

• Guidance for mapping types of information and information systems to appropriate 

security categories.

• Guidance for planning and conducting technical information security testing.

• Guidance for assessing security controls in information systems and determining 

security control effectiveness.

• Guidance for certifying and accrediting information systems.

The FWS is currently using secure configuration benchmarks developed by the Center 

for Internet Security (CIS), a non-profit organization whose mission is to help 

organizations reduce the risk of business and e-commerce disruptions resulting from 

inadequate technical security controls. These benchmarks have been deemed as 

"NIST" approved.

DOJ N/A

DOL No comment at this time.

DOS None

DOT Federal Railroad Administration (FRA): Under 15 CFR Part 286, FRA’s conformity 

assessment activities are visible internationally through expanded efforts in the area of 

safe, uniform international transport of hazardous materials by participation in the 

Canadian General Standards Board Tank Car Committee and the American Society of 

Mechanical Engineers Transportation Pressure Vessel Committee, as well as 

continuing to participate in the North American Transport of Dangerous Goods 

Standard Working Group and the Association of American Railroads Tank Car 

Committee. Participation in the voluntary consensus standards bodies listed above as 

well as in numerous committees and sub-committees of those bodies gives FRA 

access to the developmental stages of private sector conformity assessment standards 

to ensure that the agency viewpoint is considered in the development of these 

standards.

Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA)/Intelligent 

Transportation Systems (ITS) Program: The National Transportation Communications 

for ITS Protocol (NTCIP) Testing and Conformity Assessment Working Group issued 

NCTIP 8007 - Testing and Conformity Assessment Documentation within NTCIP 

Standards. NTCIP 8007 defines the rules and guidelines to be used by the other 

NTCIP working groups when they produce NTCIP test documentation.

ED None

EPA No data
163

FCC Accredited Laboratory Recognition Program

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has a conformity assessment 

program that allows manufacturers and suppliers of personal computers, computer 

peripherals and other Radio Frequency (RF) devices to demonstrate compliance by 

use of a “Declaration of Conformity” procedure. Such products must be tested by a 

recognized accredited Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) testing laboratory. The 

FCC has recognized the following accreditation bodies: National Voluntary 

Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP); ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation 

Board/ACLASS (ACLASS); and the American Association for Laboratory 

Accreditation (A2LA)

The FCC also recognizes accredited testing laboratories that have been accredited by 

A2LA, ACLASS or NVLAP to perform testing on products subject to the 

Commission’s equipment authorization program on products subject to certification 

under Part 15.

The accreditation of a laboratory located outside of the United States, or its 

possessions, is acceptable to the Commission if the accredited laboratory has been 

designated by a foreign designating authority and recognized by the Commission 

under the terms of a government-to-government Mutual Recognition 

Agreement/Arrangement (MRA); or if the testing laboratory has been recognized by 

the Commission as being accredited by an organization that has entered into an 

arrangement between accrediting organizations and the arrangement has been 

recognized by the Commission.

The FCC has recognized a total of 283 accredited laboratories. 104 are located in the 

United States and 179 are located outside of the United States.

Telecommunications Certification Bodies (TCB) Program

On December 17, 1998, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted 

rules for the establishment of Telecommunication Certification Bodies (TCB). A TCB 

is a private organization, which is authorized to issue grants, within its scope of 

designation, for equipment subject to the FCC’s certification procedure. Under these 

rules, a TCB has the authority to review and grant an application for certification to 

the FCC rules. This order also established procedures for foreign TCBs under the 

terms of a government-to-government Mutual Recognition Agreement/Arrangement 

(MRA). Foreign TCBs, where recognized, certify equipment to U.S. requirements 

using test procedures and technical requirements under the FCC rules for purposes of 

U.S.-valid equipment authorization. There are two “phases” of mutual recognition. 

Phase I permits tests performed outside the U.S. to be used in support of equipment 
164

authorization of products subject to the FCC’s Declaration of Conformity (DoC) 

requirements; Phase II permits the certification of products subject to the FCC’s 

certification requirements by a TCB located outside of the U.S.

In May 2000, NIST initially evaluated American National Standards Institute’s 

(ANSI) Conformity Assessment Program for compliance with ISO/IEC Guide 61 and 

the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requirements for its TCB program. 

Every two years ANSI’s accreditation program is subject to re-evaluation by NIST.

ANSI evaluates prospective TCBs for compliance with ISO/IEC Guide 65 and FCC 

requirements for the TCB program. FCC requires that a TCB must have core testing 

capability and that the testing laboratory must be accredited to ISO/IEC Standard 

17025. NIST recommends accredited organizations to FCC for designation as TCBs.

The FCC has recognized a total of 35 certification bodies under the TCB program. 19 

are located in the United States and 16 are located outside of the United States.

FERC Not applicable

FTC See response to Question 1.

GPO Guidance review, internal inspections and audits, external inspections, and periodic 

walk-troughs are conducted for compliance.

Two conformity assessments were conducted against ISO 9001.

One conformity assessment was conducted against FISP 201

Audits for the procurement activities of the Washington, DC, APS Teams and the 

nationwide Regional Offices conducted under Print Procurement’s Internal Audit 

Program (IAP), headed by the Director, APSP4, and staffed on an ad hoc basis by 

management and supervisory Contracting Officers

GPO conducted multiple

a. Evaluations of the Contractor’s performance

b. Evaluations how well a contractor meets requirements

c. Evaluations of the timeliness and accuracy of required deliverables.

HHS Conformance activities are conducted under applicable regulations and guidance. 

Standards may become part of conformance activities as they may provide an 

acceptable approach to be in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

HUD N/A

NARA NARA did not participate in any conformity assessment activities in FY 2010.

NASA Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Voluntary Protection 

Program (VPP) Star assessments

ISO 9001 - Quality Management System assessments and audits
165

ISO 14001 - Environmental Management System assessments and audits

AS 9100 - Aerospace Quality Management System registration (ongoing, Stage 2)

NRC None

TRES 1. Government Accountability (GAO) Audits 

2. Certifications and Accreditations

USDA N/A
166

Appendix G – Federal Agency Activities Related to Use of Private 

Sector Standards

FY 2010 Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies in which Federal 

Agencies Participated

Voluntary Consensus Standards Body Acronym

3-A Sanitary Standards, Inc 3-A SSI 

3A/NSF International Meat and Poultry Equipment Standards 3A/NSF 

Accredited Standards Committee X12 X12 

Accredited Standards Committee C63© - Electromagnetic Compatibility C63©

Acoustical Society of America ASA 

Adeno Associated Virus Reference Standard Working Group AAVSWG 

Advisory Committee for Water Information ACWI 

Advisory Committee on Casualty Assessment Health Canada ACCA 

Aerospace & Defense Industries Association of Europe ASD 

Aerospace Industries Association of America AIA 

Air Movement and Control Association AMCA 

Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute ARI 

Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions ATIS 

Almond Board of California ABC 

Ambulance Manufacturers Division AMD 

American Academy of Pediatrics AAP 

American Architectural Manufacturers Association AAMA 

American Association for Clinical Chemistry AACC 

American Association for Laboratory Accreditation A2LA 

American Association of Blood Banks AABB 

American Association of Cereal Chemists AACC 

American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators AAMVA 

American Association of Physicists in Medicine AAPM 

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials AASHTO 

American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists AATCC 

American Association of Tissue Banks AATB 

American Backflow Prevention Association ABPA 

American Bearing Manufacturers Association ABMA 

American Boat and Yacht Council ABYC 

American Bureau of Shipping ABS 

American Chemical Society ACS 

American Chemistry Council ACC 

American College of Nuclear Physicians ACNP 
167

American College of Radiology ACR 

American College of Surgeons Cancer Programs COC 

American Concrete Institute ACI 

American Concrete Pipe Association ACPA 

American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists ACGIH 

American Dental Association ADA 

American Foundation for the Accreditation of Haematopoietic Cell 

Therapy FAHCT 

American Gas Association AGA 

American Gear Manufacturers Association AGMA 

American Hardboard Association AHA 

American Hardware Manufacturers Association AHMA 

American Industrial Hygiene Association AIHA 

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics AIAA 

American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE 

American Institute of Steel Construction AISC 

American Institute of Timber Construction AITC 

American Institute of Ultrasound Manufacturers AIUM 

American Iron and Steel Institute AISI 

American Leather Chemists Association ALCA 

American Lift Institute ALI 

American Medical Association AMA 

American National Metric Council ANMC 

American National Standards Institute ANSI 

American Nuclear Society ANS 

American Oil Chemists Society AOCS 

American Pacific Economic Conference APEC 

American Petroleum Institute API 

American Psychiatric Association APA 

American Public Health Association APHA 

American Public Transportation Association APTA 

American Railway Engineering & Maintenance-of-Way Association AREMA 

American Rock Mechanics Association ARMA 

American Society for Gene Therapy ASGT 

American Society for Healthcare Engineering ASHE 

American Society for Industrial Security ASIS 

American Society for Nondestructive Testing ASNT 

American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing ASPRS 

American Society for Quality ASQ 

American Society for Reproductive Medicine ASRM 

American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers ASABE 

American Society of Agricultural Engineers ASAE 

American Society of Cinematographers ASC 

American Society of Civil Engineers ASCE 

American Society of Dam Safety Officials ASDSO 
168

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning 

Engineers ASHRAE 

American Society of Mass Spectrometry ASMS 

American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASME 

American Society of Naval Engineers ASNE 

American Society of Sanitary Engineering ASSE 

American Trucking Association ATA 

American Type Culture Collection ATCC 

American Vacuum Society AVS 

American Veterinary Medical Association AVMA 

American Water Works Association AWWA 

American Welding Society AWS 

American Wind Energy Association AWEA 

American Wood Preservers Institute AWPI 

American Wood Protection Association AWPA 

Analytical Environmental Immunochemical Consortium AEIC 

ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board ANAB 

AOAC International AOAC

APA - The Engineered Wood Association APA 

Appraisal Standards Board ASB 

Architectural Woodwork Institute AWI 

ARMA International ARMAI 

ASC X9, Inc. ASC X9 

ASCE Building Security Council BSC 

Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association ARMA 

Associated Air Balance Council AABC 

Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care 

International AAALAC 

Association for Automatic Identification & Mobility AIM 

Association for Information and Image Management AIIM 

Association for Machine Technology AMT 

Association for Suppliers of Printing, Publishing and Converting 

Technologies NPES 

Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering AACEI 

Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation AAMI 

Association of American Railroads AAR 

Association of American Seed Control Officials AASCO 

Association of Diving Contractors International ADCI 

Association of Official Seed Analysts AOSA 

Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies AOSCA 

Association of Pool and Spa Professionals APSP 

ASTM International ASTM 

Baking Industry Sanitary Standards Committee BISSC 

Basic Linear Algebra Subprograms Technical Forum BLAS 

Biometrics Application Programming Interface Consortium BioAPI 
169

Brick Industry Association BIA 

Brighton Collaboration BC 

British Standards Institution BSI 

Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association BHMA 

Building Officials and Code Administrators International, Inc BOCA 

California Strawberry Commission CSC

Canadian General Standards Board CGSB 

Canadian Standards Association CSA 

Cantaloupe Board of California CBC 

Cast Iron Soil Pipe Institute CISPI 

Ceilings and Interior Systems Construction Association CISCA 

Center for Applied Special Technology CAST 

Center for Internet Security CIS 

Central Laboratory for Blood Transfusion CLBT 

Chlorine Institute CI 

Chocolate Manufacturers Association CMS 

Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute CLSI 

Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium CDISC 

Codex Alimentarius Commission CODEX 

College of American Pathologists CAP 

Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Alliance CMVSA 

Committee on Data for Science and Technology CODATA 

Committee on Marine Measurements COPM 

Committee on Operating Rules CORE 

Compressed Gas Association CGA 

Concrete Pipe Association CPA 

Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute CRSI 

Conference for Food Protection CFP 

Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity COP/CBD 

Construction Safety Association of Ontario CSAO 

Construction Specifications Institute CSI 

Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems CCSDS 

Consumer Electronics Association CEA 

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna 

and Flora CITES 

Cooling Technology Institute CTI 

Cordage Institute CI 

Corn Refiners Association CRA 

Cosmetic Ingredient Review CIR 

Cosmetic Toiletry and Fragrance Association CTFA 

Council for International Organizations of Medical Science CIOMS 

Council for Optical Radiation Measurements CORM 

Council on Ionizing Radiation Measurements and Standards CIRMS 

Council for Affordable Quality Healthcare CAQH 

Crane Manufacturing Association of America CMAA 
170

Cultural Resources Standards with State Historic Preservation Offices SHPO 

Data Interchange Standards Association, Inc. DISAI 

Data Management Association DAMA 

Deep Foundations Institute DFI 

Designated Standards Maintenance Organizations Board DSMO 

Deutsches Institut fur Nomung - German Institute for Standardization DIN 

Dimensional Metrology Standards Consortium DMSC 

Dublin Core Metadata Initiative DCMI 

Electronic Commerce Code Management Association ECCMA 

Electronic Components Assemblies & Materials Association ECAMA 

Electronic Industries Alliance EIA 

Electronic Products Codes Global EPCG 

Electrostatic Discharge Association ESDA 

Emergency Interoperability Consortium EIC 

Emergency Management Accreditation Program EMAP 

Engineered Wood Association EWA 

Engineering Sciences Data Unit International ESDU 

ESD Association ESD 

European Centre for Validation of Alternative Methods ECVAM 

European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization CENELEC 

European Committee for Standardization CEN 

European Directorate for Quality of Medicines EDQM 

European Food Safety Authority EFSA 

European Petroleum Survey Group EPSG 

European Telecommunications Standards Institute ETSI 

External RNA Controls Consortium ERCC 

Eye Bank Association of America EBAA 

Facility Guidelines Institute FGI 

Factory Mutual Research Corporation FMRC 

Federal Facilities Council FFC 

Federal Geographic Data Committee FGDC 

FM Global FMG 

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO 

Forest Stewardship Council FSC 

Foundation for Accreditation of Cellular Therapies FACT 

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association FFVA 

Fresh Produce Association of America FPAA 

Gelatin Manufacturers of America GMA 

Glass Association of North America GANA 

Global Harmonization Task Force GHTF 

Government Electronics & Information Technology Association GEITA 

Graphic Communications Association GCA 

Green Seal Standards for Adhesives GSSA 

Ground Water Protection Council GWPC 

GS1 GS1 
171

GS1 US GS1 US 

Gypsum Association GA 

Hardwood Plywood & Veneer Association HPVA 

Health Canada Advisory Committee on Causality Assessment HCAA 

Health Level Seven HL7 

Health Physics Society HPS 

Health Protection Branch Health Canada HPB 

Healthcare Information Technology Standards Panel HITSP 

Healthcare Interpretations Task Force HITF 

High Frequency Industry Association HFIA 

Honey Board HB 

Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, Inc. HFES 

Illuminating Engineering Society of North America IESNA 

Industrial Safety and Equipment Association ISEA 

Industrial Truck Association ITA 

Industry-wide Cooperative Meat Identification Standards Committee ICMISC 

Information Technology Industry Council ITI 

Information Technology Service Management Forum ITSMF 

Institute of Clean Air Companies ICAC 

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers IEEE 

Institute of Environmental Sciences & Technology IEST 

Institute of Makers of Explosives IME 

Institute of Nuclear Materials Management INMM 

Institute of Packaging Professionals IOPP 

Institute of Transportation Engineers ITE 

Insulated Cable Engineers Association ICEA 

Insulated Steel Door Systems Institute ISDSI 

Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise IHE 

Intelligent Transportation Society of America ITSA 

Interagency Trails Data Standards ITDS 

Inter-American Metrology System SIM 

International Air Transport Association IATA 

International Alliance for NanoEHS Harmonization IANH 

International Association for the Properties of Water and Steam IAPWS 

International Association of Cancer Registrars IACR 

International Association of Color Manufacturers IACM 

International Association of Drilling Contractors IADC 

International Association of Lighthouse Authorities IALA 

International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials IAPMO 

International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA 

International Blood Group Reference Laboratory IBRGL 

International Bottled Water Association IBWA 

International Bureau of Weights and Measures BIPM 

International Cartographic Association ICA 

International Cellular Therapy Coding and Labeling Advisory Group CTCLAG 
172

International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO 

International Code Council ICC 

International Commission of Non-ionizing Radiation Protection and 

Measurements ICNIRP 

International Commission on Illumination CIE 

International Commission on Radiation Protection ICRP 

International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements, Inc. ICRU 

International Committee for Cosmetic Harmonization and International 

Cooperation CHIC 

InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards INCITS 

International Committee for Weights and Measures CIPM 

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors ICMJE 

International Conference of Building Officials ICBO 

International Conference on the Harmonization of Technical Requirements 

for Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Human Use ICH 

International Cooperation on Harmonization of Technical Requirements 

for Registration of Veterinary Products VICH 

International Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative 

Methods ICCVAM 

International Council for Science ICSU 

International Council on Archives ICA 

International Crystal Foundation ICF 

International Dairy Federation IDF 

International Dairy Foods Association IDFA 

International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service IERS 

International Electrotechnical Commission IEC 

International Federation of Fruit Juice Producers IFFJP 

International Federation on Information Processing IFIP 

International for Electronic Healthcare Transactions AFEHCT 

International Fragrance Association IFRA 

International Fresh-cut Produce Association IFPA 

International Health Terminology Standard Development Organization IHTSDO 

International Hydrographic Organization IHO 

International Institute of Welding IIW 

International Life Sciences Institute ILSI 

International Maritime Organization IMO 

International Natural Sausage Casing Association INSCA 

International Nomenclature Committee INC 

International Organization for Standardization ISO 

International Organization of Legal Metrology OIML 

International Pharmaceutical Excipients Council IPEC 

International Plant Protection Convention/International Standards for 

Phytosanitary Measures IPPC/ISPM 

International Safe Transit Association ISTA 

International Security Council ISC 
173

International Seed Testing Association ISTA 

International Ship and Offshore Structures Congress ISOSC 

International Society for Analytical Cytology ISAC 

International Society for Cardiovascular Surgery ISCVS 

International Society for Cell Therapy ISCT 

International Society for Measurement and Control ISA

International Society of Oncology Pharmacy Practitioners ISOPP 

International Society on Thrombosis and Homeostasis ISTH 

International Sprout Growers Association ISGA 

International Telecommunication Union ITU 

International Towing Tank Conference ITTC 

International Union Against Cancer UICC 

International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants UPOV 

International Union of Laboratories and Experts in Materials, Systems and 

Structures RILEM 

International Union of Laboratories and Experts in Materials, Systems 

and Structures/International Council for Research and Innovation in 

Building and Construction RILEM/CIB 

International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry IUPAC 

International Union of Pure and Applied Physics IUPAP 

International Window Cleaning Association IWCA 

Internet Engineering Task Force IETF 

Internet Society IS 

Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference ISSC 

IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries IPC 

Java Grande Forum JGF 

JEDEC - Solid State Technology Association JEDEC 

Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations JCAHO 

Joint Cotton Industry Bale Packaging Committee JCIBPC 

Joint FAO/WHO Expert committee on Food Additives JEFCA 

Laser Institute of America LIA 

Logical Observation Identifier Names and Codes LOINC 

Machinery Information Management Open Systems MIMOSA 

Magnetic Materials Producers Association MMPA 

Manufacturers Standardization Society of the Valve and Fittings Industry MSSVFI 

Material Handling Equipment Industry Association MHIA 

Meat and Poultry Business-to-Business Data Standards Organization mpXML 

Metal Building Manufacturers Association MBMA 

Metal Lath/Steel Framing Association, A Division of NAAMM MLSFA 

Modular Systems Building Council MSBC 

National Academies of Science Institute of Medicine IOM 

National Aerospace Standards Committee NASC 

National Association of Architectural Metal Manufacturers NAAMM 

National Association of Chain Manufacturers NACM 

National Association of Corrosion Engineers International NACE 
174

National Association of Photographic Manufacturers NAPM 

National Association of Relay Manufacturers NARM 

National Automatic Merchandising Association NAMA 

National Cancer Registrar Association NCRA 

National Cargo Bureau, Inc NCB 

National CAS Standards NCS 

National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards NCCLS 

National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices NCUTCD 

National Concrete Masonry Association NCMA 

National Conference for Interstate Milk Shipments NCIMS 

National Conference on Weights and Measures NCWM 

National Cooperation for Laboratory Accreditation NACLA 

National Council for Prescription Drug Program NCPDP 

National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements NCRP 

National Digital Elevation Program NDEP 

National Egg Regulators Association NERO 

National eHealth Collaboration NeHC 

National Electric Reliability Corporation NERC 

National Electrical Manufacturers Association NEMA 

National Environmental Methods Index NEMI 

National Fire Protection Association NFPA 

National Floor Safety Institute NFSI 

National Fluid Power Association NFLPA 

National Food Processors Association NFPA 

National Forum on Education Statistics NCES Forum 

National Ground Water Association NGWA 

National Information Standards Organization NISO 

National Institute for Biological Sciences and Controls NIBSC 

National Institute of Packaging, Handling Engineers NIPHLE 

National Institute of Standards and Technology NIST 

National Marine Electronics Association NMEA 

National Marrow Donor Program NMDP 

National Oilseed Processors Association NOPA 

National Petroleum Management Association NPMA 

National Quality Forum NQF 

National Roofing Contractors Association NRCA 

National Safety Council NSC 

National Spa and Pool Institute NSPI 

National Toxicology Program NTP 

National Truck Equipment Association NTEA 

National Trust Banking Industry NTBI 

National Type Evaluation Program NTEP 

National Uniform Billing Committee NUBC 

National Uniform Claim Committee NUCC 

National Water-Quality Monitoring Council NWQMC 
175

National Wildland Fire Coordinating Group NWCG 

National Window and Door Association NWDA

NCSL International NCSLI 

Network Address Space Working Group IPv6 

North America Free Trade Association NAFTA 

North America Millers Association NAMA 

North American Association of Central Cancer Registries NAACCR 

North American Open Math Initiative NAOMI 

North American Plant Protection Organization/Regional Standards for 

Phytosanitary Measures NAPPO/RSPM 

North American Transport of Dangerous Goods Standards NATDGS 

North American Weeds Management Association NAWMA 

Northwest Environmental Data Network NED 

Northwest Horticultural Council NHC 

NSF International NSFI 

Nuclear Information and Records Management Association, Inc. NIRMAI 

Object Management Group OMG 

Open Applications Group OAGi 

Open DeviceNet Vendor Association ODVA 

Open Geospatial Consortium OGC 

Open Math Society OMS 

Optical Laboratories Association OLA 

Optical Storage Technology Association OSTA 

Optics and Electro-Optics Standards Council OEOSC 

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development OECD 

Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards OASIS 

Painting and Decorating Contractors of America PDCA 

Pan American Health Organization PAHO 

Pan American Network for Drug Regulatory Harmonization PANDRH 

Pan-American Standards Commission COPANT 

Parachute Industry Association PIA 

Parenteral Drug Association PDA 

Performance Review Institute PRI 

Personal Care Products Council PCPC 

Petrotechnical Open Standards Consortium, Inc. POSC 

Pipe Fabrication Institute PFI 

Plasma Protein Therapeutics Association PPTA 

Plastic Pipe Institute PPI 

Plumbing and Draining Institute PDI 

Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association PHCCA 

Portland Cement Association PCA 

Postsecondary Electronic Standards Organization PESC 

Post-Tensioning Institute PTI 

Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute PCI 

Produce Marketing Association PMA 
176

Product Data Exchange Standard, Inc. PDES 

Program for Cooperative Cataloging PCC 

Project Management Institute PMI 

Public Health Data Standards Consortium PHDSC 

Public Petroleum Data Management PPDM 

Qualified Products Management Council QPMC 

Quarter-Inch Cartridge Drive Standards, Inc. QCDS 

Rack Manufacturers Institute RMI 

Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics RTCA 

Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services RTCM 

Recreation Vehicle Industry Association RVIA 

Recreational Park Trailer Industry Association RPTIA 

Regulated Product Submission RPS 

Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North 

America RESNA 

Research Institute for Fragrance Materials RIFM 

Resilient Floor Covering Institute RFCI 

Resistance Welders Manufacturers Association RWMA 

Robotics Industries Association RIA 

Rubber Manufacturers Association RMA 

SAVE International SAVE 

Scaffolding, Shoring, and Forming Institute, Inc. SSFI 

Schools Interoperability Framework Association SIFA 

Scientific Apparatus Makers Association SAMA 

Screen Manufacturers Association SMA 

SDO Charter Organization SCO 

Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International SEMI 

Sheet Metal & Air Conditioning Contractors National Association SMACNA 

Simulation Interoperability Standards Organization SISO 

Single Ply Roofing Institute SPRI 

Society for Glassware and Ceramic Decorations SGCD 

Society for Protective Coatings SPC 

Society for Toxicology SOT 

Society of Allied Weight Engineers SAWE 

Society of Automotive Engineers SAE 

Society of Cosmetic Chemists SCC 

Society of Fire Protection Engineers SFPE 

Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers SMPTE 

Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers SNAME 

Society of Toxicologic Pathology STP 

Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers' Institute SAAMI 

Standards Engineering Society SES 

Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems (El/Sec) SLDS 

Steel Deck Institute SDI 

Steel Door Institute SDI 
177

Steel Founders Society of America SFSA 

Steel Joist Institute SJI 

Steel Window Institute SWI 

Tea Association of America TAA 

Technical Association for the Worldwide, Pulp Paper and Converting 

Industry TAPPI 

Technical Committee for Juice and Juice Products TCJJP 

Telecommunications Industry Association TIA 

The Aluminum Association, Inc. AA 

The Maintenance Council of American Trucking Associations TMC/ATA 

The National Digital Orthophoto Program NDOP 

The Open Group TOG 

The Soap and Detergent Association SDA 

The Society for Protective Coatings SSPC 

The Tire and Rim Association, Inc. TRAI 

Therapeutic Goods Administration TGA 

Transportation Research Board TRB 

Transportation Technology Center, Inc. TTCI 

Truck Trailer Manufacturers Association TTMA 

Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society UHMS 

Underwriters Laboratories UL 

United Egg Producers UEP 

United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association UFFVA 

United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business UN/CEFACT 

United Nations Committee on the Transport of Dangerous Goods UNTDG 

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNECE 

United States Adopted Names Council USANC 

United States Animal Health Association USAHA 

United States Committee on Large Dams USCOLD 

United States Egg and Poultry Association USEPA 

United States Pharmacopoeia USP 

Urban and Regional Information Systems Association URISA 

US Green Building Council - Leadership in Energy and Environmental 

Design 

USGBC -

LEEDS 

Versailles Project on Advanced Materials and Standards VAMAS 

Water Environment Federation WEF 

Web Application Security Consortium WASC 

Web3D Consortium Web3D 

Western Electricity Coordinating Council WECC 

Western Growers Association WGA 

Window Covering Manufacturers Association WCMA 

Wood Machinery Manufacturers of America WMMA 

World Health Organization WHO 

World Intellectual Property Organization WIPO 

World Meteorological Organization WMO 
178

World Organization for Animal Health OIE 

World Wide Web Consortium W3C 

There were 5121 total Voluntary Consensus Standards Bodies in which Federal Agencies Participated during fiscal 

year 2010.

 1 Excluding duplicates (in shaded text) results in 509 VCSBs which were reported in the main 

summary report.
179

Appendix H – The Interagency Committee on Standards Policy 

(ICSP)

The Interagency Committee on Standards Policy, also known as the ICSP, is the primary body 

responsible for coordinating standards use among agencies of the Federal government.

The ICSP seeks to promote effective and consistent standards policies plus foster cooperation 

between government, industry, and other private organizations involved in standards activities.

The Committee reports to the Secretary of the Department of Commerce (DOC) through the 

Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). 

To review the current charter of the ICSP, click here: 

http://standards.gov/icsp/query/index.cfm?do=Home.ICSPCharter

To see a list of the current ICSP membership, click here: 

http://standards.gov/icsp/query/index.cfm?do=Home.ICSPExecutives
180

Appendix I – Publications Related to the National Technology 

Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA) and Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-119 

To review publications and reference documents related to Federal agency implementation of the 

NTTAA as well as OMB Circular A-119, visit the NTTAA Library online at 

http://gsi.nist.gov/global/index.cfm/L1-5/L2-44/A-327

These documents can be obtained in hardcopy form by sending a written request to: 

Standards Services Group (SSG) 

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 

Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-2150 

301-975-2490

When making requests, please identify specific documents by title, author, and date wherever 

possible.