Stakeholder Outreach Meeting: 

Forensic Laboratory Leaders

May 27, 2021
2

Welcome!
Introductions

Along with your name and title, please tell us about your 

organization:

• Number of labs 

• Number of employees

• Population served

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4

Forensic Laboratory Leaders

• # of labs

• # of employees

• population served
5

Forensic Laboratory Leaders

• # of labs

• # of employees

• population served
6

OSAC FSSB/Outreach & Communications Task Group Members
OSAC Update
What is OSAC?

OSAC works to strengthen the nation’s use of forensic science by 

facilitating the development and implementation 

of technically sound standards.

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What OSAC...

DOES DOESN’T

Publish standards

Have the authority to 

enforce standards 

Facilitates development 

of science-based 

standards through the 

formal SDO processes 

Evaluates OSAC proposed 

and SDO published 

standards for placement 

on the OSAC Registry

Endorses OSAC 

proposed and SDO 

published standards 

on the Registry & 

promotes their 

implementation 

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10

OSAC Membership Snapshot

478 members

324 active affiliates

3,300+ applications received

• Federal: 20%

• State: 21%

• Local: 19%

• Practitioner: 51%

• Researcher: 18%

• Educator: 10%

• Lab Mgr/Director: 8%

• Other: 4%

• Academic: 21%

• Private: 17%

• FFRDC: 1%

Employer Classification Job Classification

• Quality: 3%

• Lawyer: 3%

• Judge: 2%

• R&D Tech: 1%

Expertise in:

• 22 specific forensic 

science disciplines

• Scientific research, 

measurement science, 

statistics, law, and 

policy
OSAC Standards Activities

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Tier

1

Tier

2

Tier

3

Tier

4

• Documents on the 

OSAC Registry

• Approved by OSAC –

highest level of vetting

• OSAC supported 

standards published

by an SDO

• Completed SDO 

consensus process

• OSAC drafted 

standards sent to an 

SDO

• Drafted with input 

from RC and approved 

by SAC

• Under development

• Working draft 

document inside 

OSAC development 

process and not yet 

publicly available

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documents

121

documents

135 

documents

171

documents
OSAC Registry

• Repository of high-quality, technically sound 

published and proposed standards for forensic 

science.

• All standards on the OSAC Registry have passed a 

rigorous technical and quality review by OSAC 

members, including forensic science practitioners, 

research scientists, statisticians and legal experts.

• OSAC encourages the forensic science community to 

implement published and proposed standards.

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OSAC Registry Standards

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53

standards

• 5 Biology/DNA 

• 1 Bloodstain Pattern Analysis

• 3 Digital Evidence

• 1 Dogs & Sensors

• 3 Facial Identification

• 2 Fire & Explosion Investigation

• 6 Fire Debris Analysis

• 1 Firearms & Toolmarks

• 1 Footwear & Tire

• 2 Medicolegal Death Investigation

• 2 Odontology

• 2 Seized Drugs

• 4 Toxicology

• 9 Trace Materials 

• 5 Wildlife Forensics

• 6 Interdisciplinary

https://www.nist.gov/osac/osac-registry
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0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019 FY 2020

OSAC Registry Growth FY16 – FY20

12 disciplines

7 disciplines

3 disciplines

3 disciplines

2 disciplines

37

19

12

8

3

https://www.nist.gov/topics/organization-scientific-area-committees-forensic-science/osac-registry

OSAC Registry Growth
OSAC Registry Implementation Resources

• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

• Detailed “How To” Guidelines with step-by-step instructions for labs on how 

they can begin implementing the Registry standards.

• OSAC Registry Standards Implementation Declaration Form – provides a 

way to let us know if your lab is using Registry standards

• Standards Activities Tracker – provides a list of standards on the Registry, 

being drafted at OSAC, and under development at SDOs

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https://www.nist.gov/osac/osac-registry-implementation
Impact: 94% increase in Registry Standards

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• 7 forensic science professional organizations 

have written formal support statements for 

forensic science standards development and 

Registry implementation 

• 24 labs have officially “declared” partial or full implementation of OSAC Registry 

standards

• 11 more initiating implementation 

OSAC Registry Implementers

375+ labs... 
November 2019: The Texas Forensic 

Science Commission (TFSC) 

recommended that all crime 

laboratories accredited to perform 

forensic analysis in the State of Texas 

voluntarily adopt the standards listed 

on the OSAC Registry.

March 2021: TFSC announced an 

initiative to develop and dedicate a 

section of the TXFSC website to 

implementation.

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Texas State Capitol

OSAC Registry Implementers: Impact Examples

October 2019: The Houston 

Forensic Science Center 

(HFSC) adopted guidelines 

recommended by OSAC in its 

continuous effort to improve 

forensic science results for Houston 

and impact the broader forensic 

science community.

Fall 2021: HFSC implemented an 

annual company-wide continuing 

education goal to align with 

approved OSAC standards.

June 2020: Bode Technology is the 

first private forensic DNA testing lab 

to declare implementation.
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OSAC Registry Implementation Survey

• First annual survey to assess the state of OSAC 

Registry implementation – June 2021.

• Targeting lab directors and quality assurance 

managers across the county – looking for one 

response per organization, please.

• Individual lab names and responses will remain 

confidential.

• Findings will be shared in OSAC’s Fall 

Newsletter/Annual Report – October 2021.
What Else is OSAC Doing to Support You?

• Bibliographies

• Interlaboratory comparisons

• OSAC Lexicon

• Process maps

• R&D needs

• Reference documents

• Standards development maps

• Technical guidance documents

• Webinars/presentations

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https://www.nist.gov/osac/osac-work-products
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Stay Informed!

• Provides monthly updates on 

forensic science standards 

moving through 

development process at 

SDOs and those moving 

through OSAC Registry 

process

• Available on OSAC’s website: 

https://www.nist.gov/osac/os

ac-standards-bulletin

• Quarterly communication that 

provides updates on OSAC’s program 

status, activities, accomplishments, 

and opportunities for public input 

with internal and external audiences.

• Available on OSAC’s website: 

https://www.nist.gov/osac/osacnewsletter

• Follow us! 

https://www.linkedin.c

om/showcase/organiza

tion-of-scientific-areacommittees-osac-forforensic-science/
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How Can You Get Involved?

Sign up for OSAC 

communications Become an OSAC member

Review and comment 

on standards Stay informed

https://www.nist.gov/osac/apply-join-osac

https://www.nist.gov/osac

https://service.govdelivery.com

/accounts/USNIST/subscriber/

new

https://www.nist.gov/osac/osacstandards-bulletin

Call for 

applicants

coming soon!
Questions?
Discussion 
Standards Needs

• Is OSAC focusing on and drafting standards to meet your 

needs?

• Of the standards that exist, are they too general or too 

prescriptive? Are we striking the right balance?

• Terminology

• Competency

• Evidence collection & handling

• Method validation

• Examination & analysis

• Reporting results & testimony

• Quality assurance

• What kinds of standards would help your organization in its role 

as a forensic science service provider? 
• What challenges and concerns do you have related to 

implementing standards on the OSAC Registry?

• Is your organization using any tools or resources to help with 

implementation (e.g., gap analysis, audit checklists, etc.)?

• Are tools/resources needed? Should OSAC develop them?

• Besides submitting a Standards Implementation Declaration 

Form, how else can organizations let OSAC know about their 

implementation efforts?

• How can OSAC better communicate implementation 

strategies?

Implementation
• Are your scientists being asked in court about OSAC or the 

standards listed on the Registry?

Putting Standards into Practice
• What else can OSAC do to support your organization?

• Did you find this meeting valuable? Should we have future 

meetings? If so, how often?

What else?
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Next Steps

• Participate in OSAC’s Registry Implementation Survey – provide one 

response per organization, please.

• Sign-up for OSAC communications and follow us on LinkedIn to stay 

informed about the latest forensic science standards information.

• OSAC will develop and share a report summarizing the key takeaways 

and action items from this meeting. We will also send participants a 

copy of these slides and make them available on our website. 
Thank you!