Revisions to Annex A of the Bylaws to Adopt the New GNSO Policy Development Process

As part of the GNSO Improvements Process, the GNSO Council has recommended the adoption of a revised GNSO Policy Development Process. This new Policy Development Process is described in the proposed Annex A to the ICANN Bylaws, and PDP Manual as outlined in the PDP Updated Final Report (see http://gnso.icann.org/improvements/updated-final-report-pdpwt-28sep11.pdf [PDF, 1.51 MB]).

The new GNSO Policy Development Process was developed by the Policy Development Process Work Team (PDP-WT), which was tasked with developing a new policy development process that incorporates a working group approach and makes it more effective and responsive to ICANN's policy development needs. The proposed recommendations seek to:

• Codify existing practices and procedures already utilized by the GNSO community in policy development processes (PDPs);
• Clarify existing rules, methods and procedures set forth in the ICANN Bylaws and GNSO Council's Operating Procedures;
• Suggest new approaches, methods and procedures to be used in the new policy development process.

The new GNSO Policy Development Process, if adopted by the ICANN Board, would replace the existing Annex A to the ICANN Bylaws in its entirety. Public comment on the proposed changes to Annex A of the ICANN Bylaws is necessary before Board consideration of these revisions. At its meeting in Dakar, Senegal, the Board approved the public comment posting of the proposed changes to Annex A. See: http://www.icann.org/en/minutes/resolutions-28oct11-en.htm#8

ICANN requests community input on the proposed Annex A to the ICANN Bylaws as recommended by the GNSO Council.

The GNSO Council-approved Policy Development Manual and the Updated Final Report of the PDP-WT are provided for background.

On 26 June 2008 the ICANN Board approved a set of recommendations designed to improve the effectiveness of the GNSO, including its policy activities, structure, operations, and communications. The GNSO Improvements Report, approved by the Board, identified the following key objectives:

• Maximize the ability for all interested stakeholders to participate in the GNSO's policy development processes;
• Ensure that recommendations can be developed on gTLD "consensus policies" for Board review and that the subject matter of "consensus policies" is clearly defined;
• Ensure that policy development processes are based on thoroughly-researched, well-scoped objectives, and are run in a predictable manner that yields results that can be implemented effectively;
• Align policy development more tightly with ICANN's strategic and operations plans; and
• Improve communications and administrative support for GNSO objectives.

The Board emphasized the need to improve inclusiveness and representativeness in the GNSO's work while increasing its effectiveness and efficiency.

In furtherance of this effort, the GNSO Council has recommended to the ICANN Board the adoption of a policy development process (PDP) as outlined in the Updated PDP Final Report [PDF, 1.51 MB]. The proposed Annex A to the ICANN Bylaws, and the PDP Manual proposed in the Updated PDP Final Report attempts to achieve the goals established by the ICANN Board when it approved the restructure of the GNSO Council. This revised PDP, after review and approval by ICANN Board, would replace the current PDP defined in Annex A of the ICANN Bylaws.

Documents posted for comment

Proposed New Annex A - GNSO Policy Development:
http://www.icann.org/en/general/proposed-bylaws-revision-annex-a-clean-04nov11-en.pdf [PDF, 80 KB]

For ease of comparison, a redline showing the changes from the Current Annex A is provided:
http://www.icann.org/en/general/proposed-bylaws-revision-annex-a-redline-04nov11-en.pdf [PDF, 130 KB]

Additional Resources

PDP Manual:
http://gnso.icann.org/improvements/gnso-pdp-manual-04nov11-en.pdf [PDF, 136 KB]

Updated PDP Final Report:
http://gnso.icann.org/improvements/updated-final-report-pdpwt-28sep11.pdf [PDF, 1.51 MB]