closed Proposed GNSO Process for ICANN Board to Reverse Adoption of GNSO Policy Recs

Outcome

This Public Comment proceeding is a requirement for material edits to the GNSO Operating Procedures. The comments received mentioned opportunities for refinement, provided additional clarity, and highlighted general alignment of the community’s expectations for this process.

The GNSO Support Staff note that the anticipated changes outlined in this summary report must be agreed upon by the GNSO Council before they are incorporated in the GNSO Operating Procedures. Anticipated changes include but are not limited to the slight broadening of reasons and circumstances where the ICANN Board may consider reverse adoption of GNSO Policy Recommendations, and changing (emphasis added) “the Board may adhere to the process below” to “the Board should adhere to the process below”. Upon further review of the public comments received, the GNSO Council may consider additional changes to the Proposed GNSO Process for ICANN Board to Reverse Adoption of GNSO Policy Recommendations.

Additionally, the anticipated amendments to the GNSO Operating Procedures align with Strategic Objective 1.2 of the ICANN Strategic Plan for FY26-30. The GNSO Council and GNSO Support Staff appreciate the community’s valuable input on the Proposed GNSO Process for ICANN Board to Reverse Adoption of GNSO Policy Recommendations. 

What We Received Input On

The GNSO Council is proposing a process for the ICANN community’s consideration to enable the ICANN Board to reconsider a previously adopted policy recommendation from the GNSO.  This proposal is based on the identification of a procedural gap, specifically the lack of a defined process for the Board to reconsider an adopted GNSO policy recommendation. The process is proposed to be contained in updates to the GNSO Operating Procedures, specifically updates to the Policy Development Process (PDP) Manual and the GNSO Guidance Process (GGP) Manual. The updated text seeks to balance the need to set expectations for both the GNSO Council and Board while also ensuring the updates do not limit the Board’s actions in accordance with its fiduciary duties. The GNSO is now seeking community input on the proposed updates to ensure the updates strike the right balance of necessary flexibility and appropriate guardrails.

Background

There is no specific mechanism identified for the ICANN Board to reconsider or reverse its adoption of a GNSO Policy recommendation. Recently, the Board was confronted with a situation where it needed to reconsider an approved policy recommendation, and the lack of a reversal mechanism was noted as a potential procedural gap. 

Specifically, in the context of the New gTLD Subsequent Procedures PDP, and in particular Recommendation 20.6 on joint ventures, the ICANN Board was confronted with changing circumstances and new information that led it to conclude that the recommendation it had previously adopted was no longer in the best interest of ICANN and the ICANN community. Although there was no specific mechanism to allow the ICANN Board to reverse its adoption of a GNSO recommendation, the Board communicated its intention to do so and the Council responded and informed the Board that it would not seek to intervene in the reversal of the adoption of the recommendation. In the Council’s letter, the Council indicated the need to develop and document a mechanism by which the Board can reverse its adoption of a GNSO PDP recommendation, in consultation with the GNSO Council and the community, including the adoption of guardrails where necessary. The GNSO Council is now proposing a process for the Board to reverse its adoption of a recommendation and is seeking community input.