Overview of U.S. Participation in ISO and IEC

Summary of U.S. Participation in ISO and IEC Participation in 620 TCs and SCs (roughly 79% of total) P Memberships: 570 O Memberships: 50 U.S. – held International Secretariats: 18% of total IEC Participation in 153 TCs and SCs (roughly 89% of total) P Memberships: 153 O Memberships: 0 U.S. – held International Secretariats: 14% of total

ANSI: Coordinator for U.S. Participation U.S. Reps. to ISO Council / IEC CB ANSI staff on ISO Council -- 1 USNC President on IEC Council Board -- 1 U.S. Reps. to TMB/SMB ANSI Staff – 1 on TMB and 1 on SMB Volunteers – 1 (on SMB) ISO and IEC International Secretariats Most U.S. – held Secretariats are administered by volunteers ANSI staff administer U.S. – held Secretariats only at the request of ANSI constituents. 13 U.S. – held Secretariats are administered by ANSI staff. Leadership of U.S. mirror committees (TAGs) Leadership positions on U.S. TAGs are held by ANSI member volunteers. U.S. Technical Expert Participation U.S. technical contributions to ISO and IEC are provided by ANSI member volunteers. U.S. Contributions to ISO and IEC ANSI Staff ANSI delegates most ISO and IEC work to volunteers within the U.S. system (e.g. companies, trade associations, SDOs, etc)

U.S. Technical Participation in ISO and IEC Companies and other private-sector stakeholders participate in U.S. Mirror Committees - i.e. Technical Advisory Groups (TAGs) on a voluntary basis: all stakeholders are allowed and encouraged to participate; no one is required to participate; participation costs (e.g. travel, staff time) are borne by TAG members. U.S. TAGs develop technical positions for ISO and IEC. ANSI staff neither drives nor participates in the technical activities of the TAG. Procedures for U.S. TAG operations include guidelines and criteria for: ensuring that all materially affected U.S. stakeholders are given an equal opportunity to participate; determining a U.S. voting position; approval of U.S. positions on ISO and IEC activities.

U.S. Policy Development for ISO

ANSI ISO Council (AIC) THE AIC IS RESPONSIBLE FOR: developing ANSI positions on the work of and preparing ANSI representatives to the ISO General Assembly, the ISO Council and its standing and policy development committees (STRAT, FIN, CASCO, COPOLCO, DEVCO); developing ANSI positions on and preparing the ANSI representative to the ISO/TMB on specific issues of strategic significance. EXAMPLES OF ISSUES WITHIN THE AIC’S JURISDICTION: ISO strategic planning, external relations, intellectual property and financial matters; ISO’s global relevance policy; ANSI positions on proposals for new fields of ISO technical work; ANSI assumption and delegation of ISO committee secretariats. AIC’S MEMBERSHIP: 25 voting members (representing industry, organizations, government and consumer interests) and 13 observer members.

ANSI International Forum (AIF) THE AIF IS RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING: input to the ANSI representative to the ISO/TMB on ISO technical coordination and procedural issues; an opportunity for ANSI to inform and educate U.S. leaders of ISO committees and US/TAG leaders on relevant matters; an opportunity for the AIF members to network on issues of common concern and share best practices. EXAMPLES OF ISSUES WITHIN THE AIF’S JURISDICTION: ISO and US/TAG procedural, operational and technical coordination matters. IT tools supporting the work of ISO TCs/SCs/WGs; networking on best practices for operations of ISO committees and US/TAGs. AIF MEMBERSHIP: 23 voting members and approximately 350 observer members representing all U.S. persons who serve as ISO committee chairs and secretaries as well as the chairs and administrators of US/TAGs.

U.S. Policy Development for IEC The U.S. National Committee (USNC), a part of ANSI, serves as the official member to the IEC (as well as other regional and international bodies). The USNC mission is to provide strategy to effectively participate in the development of IEC standards to facilitate international trade for the benefit of the U.S. industry in the fields of all electrotechnologies, and to provide a framework to the U.S. industry which serves as the focal point, conduit and advocate for U.S. interests in international and regional electrotechnical standards, conformity assessment, and other related matters.

The USNC/IEC Council About the USNC/IEC Council: The USNC/IEC Council coordinates the U.S. involvement in the IEC and other electrotechnical bodies associated with the IEC. The main focus of the Council is to manage policy and strategic issues and to improve the overall effectiveness of the USNC’s interface with the IEC. Responsibilities of the Council: represent and coordinate U.S. involvement in the IEC and other electrotechnical bodies associated with the IEC on behalf of the Institute; recommend to the Finance Committee and Board of Directors an annual budget to cover IEC activities; manage programs and adjudicate disputes arising from authorized USNC activities; coordinate USNC activities with appropriate standards boards to promote consistency between those international and national activities that fall within the scope of the IEC; report annually to the Board of Directors on U.S. participation in IEC activities and coordinate with the International Committee on issues affecting U.S. interests in more than one international forum. USNC/IEC Council Membership: 26 individuals representing industry, trade associations, standards developing organizations, professional engineering societies, and government agencies. The USNC President is the chair of this committee.

USNC Technical Management Committee (TMC) About the TMC: The main focus of the USNC Technical Management Committee (TMC) is to manage the technical work of the USNC and to represent the interests of the U.S at the Standardization Management Board (SMB) level in IEC. Responsibilities of the TMC: develop U.S. positions in preparation for meetings of the IEC/SMB; appoint and oversee the designation of Technical Advisors, Deputy Technical Advisors, and TAG Administrators; approve the designation of U.S. Secretariats to IEC Committees; authorize invitations to host IEC Technical Committee (TC) and Subcommittee (SC) meetings in the U.S.; interface with regional/international bodies on technical issues. TMC Membership: 19 members representing companies, trade associations, government agencies and other organizations. The TMC is chaired by the USNC Vice President – Technical.

Use of ISO and IEC standards in the U.S. The U.S. is one of the world’s largest users of ISO and IEC standards. National adoption is not required for use of ISO or IEC standards in the U.S. marketplace. Decisions for “national adoption” are made by individual U.S. Mirror Committees - i.e. Technical Advisory Groups (TAGs), which consist of companies and other private-sector stakeholders. Companies and other standards users have complete flexibility to use ISO, IEC or other standards, based on their needs and objectives.

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Annex 1: Common Acronyms

Common Acronyms used in the U.S. AIC – ANSI ISO Council AIF – ANSI International Forum ANSI – American National Standards Institute IEC – International Electrotechnical Commission IPC – International Policy Committee ISO – International Standards Organization SC - Subcommittee SDO – Standards Developing Organization SMB – Standardization Management Board TAG – Technical Advisory Group TC – Technical Committee TMB – Technical Management Board TMC – Technical Management Committee USNC – U.S. National Committee WG – Working Group

Annex 2: Background Slides

ANSI International Forum (AIF) Process FOR GENERIC ISO/TMB MEETING AGENDA ACTION ITEMS: ANSI staff identifies these from the ISO/TMB meeting working documents. ANSI staff consults internally and develops a summary statement and recommended position on each action item for the AIF meeting agenda. AIF discusses the issue and improves the recommended position as necessary. These positions are carried by the ANSI representative to the upcoming ISO/TMB meeting. FOR GENERIC ISO/TMB MEETING AGENDA INFORMATION ITEMS: ANSI staff adds these to the AIF meeting agenda for discussion. Any key points resulting from these discussions are carried by the ANSI representative to the upcoming ISO/TMB meeting. FOR TC/SC SPECIFIC ISO/TMB ACTION ITEMS: ANSI staff consults with the appropriate US/TAGs for input on these action items.

ANSI ISO Council (AIC) Process ANSI receives an item for action from ISO. Notices are prepared and circulated to generate comments from a broad spectrum of interested parties. All comments are compiled, and a recommended ANSI position (with comments as necessary) is prepared. The recommended ANSI position and comments are presented to the AIC for endorsement. Attempts are made to resolve negative comments from AIC members. AIC members have an opportunity to review unresolved comments and change their endorsement if they agree with those comments. The final ANSI position and comments are submitted to ISO.