IAB and IESG Selection, Confirmation, and Recall Process: Operation of the Nominating and Recall Committees
draft-ietf-poisson-nomcom-v2-01

Network Working Group                                           J. Galvin
   INTERNET DRAFT                                          eList eXpress LLC
   draft-ietf-poisson-nomcom-v2-01.txt                           August 1999

         IAB and IESG Selection, Confirmation, and Recall Process:
             Operation of the Nominating and Recall Committees

   Status of this Memo

   This document is an Internet-Draft and is in full conformance with
   all provisions of Section 10 of RFC2026.

   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
   Task Force (IETF), its areas, and its working groups.  Note that
   other groups may also distribute working documents as Internet-
   Drafts.

   Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
   and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any
   time.  It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
   material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."

   The list of current Internet-Drafts can be accessed at
   <http://www.ietf.org/ietf/1id-abstracts.txt>.

   The list of Internet-Draft Shadow Directories can be accessed at
   <http://www.ietf.org/shadow.html>.

   Comments regarding this draft may be sent to the editor as identified
   on the last page or to the POISSON Working Group of the IETF:
   <poised@lists.tislabs.com>.

   Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (date).  All Rights Reserved.

   Abstract

   The process by which the members of the IAB and IESG are selected,
   confirmed, and recalled is specified.  This document is a self-
   consistent, organized compilation of the process as it was known at
   the time of publication.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 1]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

   1.  Introduction

   This document is a revision of and supercedes RFC2282.  It is a
   complete specification of the process by which members of the IAB and
   IESG are selected, confirmed, and recalled as of the date of its
   approval.  However, these procedures are subject to change and such
   change takes effect immediately upon its approval, regardless of
   whether this document has yet been revised.

   The following two assumptions continue to be true of this
   specification.

    (1)   The Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) and Internet Research
          Steering Group (IRSG) are not a part of the process described
          here.

    (2)   The organization (and re-organization) of the IESG is not a
          part of the process described here.

   The time frames specified here use IETF meetings as a frame of
   reference.  The time frames assume that the IETF meets at least once
   per calendar year.  This document specifies time frames relative to
   the first IETF of the calendar year, or simply "First IETF."

   The remainder of this document is divided into four major topics as
   follows.

   General
        This a set of rules and constraints that apply to the selection
        and confirmation process as a whole.

   Nominating Committee Selection
        This is the process by which volunteers from the IETF community
        are recognized to serve on the committee that nominates
        candidates to serve on the IESG and IAB.

   Nominating Committee Operation
        This is the set of principles, rules, and constraints that guide
        the activities of the nominating committee, including the
        confirmation process.

   Member Recall
        This is the process by which the behavior of a sitting member of
        the IESG or IAB may be questioned, perhaps resulting in the
        removal of the sitting member.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 2]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

   A final section describes how this document differs from its
   predecessor: RFC2282.

   2.  General

   The following set of rules apply to the selection and confirmation
   process as a whole.  If necessary, a paragraph discussing the
   interpretation of each rule is included.

    (1)   The principal functions of the nominating committee are to
          review the open IESG and IAB positions and to either nominate
          its incumbent or recruit a superior candidate.

        The nominating committee does not select the open positions to
        be reviewed; it is instructed as to which positions to review.

        At a minimum, the nominating committee will be given the title
        of the position to be reviewed.  The nominating committee may be
        given a desirable set of qualifications for the candidate
        nominated to fill each position.

        Incumbents must notify the nominating committee if they do not
        wish to be nominated.

        The nominating committee does not confirm its candidates; it
        presents its candidates to the appropriate confirming body as
        indicated below.

    (2)   The annual selection and confirmation process is expected to
          be completed within 3 months.

        The annual selection and confirmation process is expected to be
        completed one month prior to the friday of the week before the
        First IETF.  It is expected to begin 4 months prior to the
        friday of the week before the First IETF.

    (3)   One-half of each of the then current IESG and IAB positions is
          selected to be reviewed each year.

        The intent of this rule to ensure the review of approximately
        one-half of each of the sitting IESG and IAB members each year.
        It is recognized that circumstances may exist that will require
        the nominating committee to review more or less than one-half of
        the current positions, e.g., if the IESG or IAB have re-
        organized prior to this process and created new positions, or if

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 3]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        there are an odd number of current positions.

    (4)   Confirmed candidates are expected to serve at least a 2 year
          term.

        The intent of this rule is to ensure that members of the IESG
        and IAB serve the number of years that best facilitates the
        review of one-half of the members each year.

        It is consistent with this rule for the nominating committee to
        choose one or more of the currently open positions to which it
        may assign a term greater than 2 years in order to ensure the
        ideal application of this rule in the future.

        It is consistent with this rule for the nominating committee to
        choose one or more of the currently open positions that share
        responsibilities with other positions (both those being reviewed
        and those sitting) to which it may assign a term greater than 2
        years to ensure that all such members will not be reviewed at
        the same time.

        All sitting member terms end during the First IETF meeting
        corresponding to the end of the term for which they were
        confirmed.  All confirmed candidate terms begin during the First
        IETF meeting corresponding to the beginning of the term for
        which they were confirmed.  Normally, the confirmed candidate's
        term begins when the currently sitting member's term ends on the
        last day of the meeting.  A term may begin or end no sooner than
        the first day of the meeting and no later than the last day of
        the meeting as determined by the mutual agreement of the
        currently sitting member and the confirmed candidate.  The
        confirmed candidate's term may overlap the sitting member's term
        during the meeting as determined by their mutual agreement.

    (5)   Mid-term vacancies are filled by the same rules as documented
          here with four qualifications.  First, the most recently
          constituted nominating committee is reconvened to nominate a
          candidate to fill the vacancy.  Second, the selection and
          confirmation process is expected to be completed within 1
          month, with all other time periods otherwise unspecified
          prorated accordingly.  Third, the confirming body has two
          weeks from the day it is notified of a candidate to reject the
          candidate, otherwise the candidate is assumed to have been
          confirmed.  Fourth, the term of the confirmed candidate will
          be either:

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 4]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

   a.   the remainder of the term of the open position if that remainder
        is not less than one year.

   b.   the remainder of the term of the open position plus the next 2
        year term if that remainder is less than one year.

    (6)   All deliberations and supporting information that relates to
          specific nominees, candidates, and confirmed candidates are
          confidential.

        The nominating committee and confirming body members will be
        exposed to confidential information as a result of their
        deliberations, their interactions with those they consult, and
        from those who provide requested supporting information.  All
        members and all other participants are expected to handle this
        information in a manner consistent with its sensitivity.

        It is consistent with this rule for nominating committee members
        who have served on prior nominating committees to advise the
        current committee on the deliberations and results of the prior
        committee, as necessary and appropriate.

    (7)   Unless otherwise specified, the advise and consent model is
          used throughout the process.  This model is characterized as
          follows.

   a.   The IETF Executive Director advises the nominating committee of
        the IESG and IAB positions to be reviewed.

   b.   The nominating committee selects candidates and advises the
        confirming bodies of them.

   c.   The sitting IAB members review the IESG candidates, consenting
        to some, all, or none.

        If all of the candidates are confirmed, the job of the
        nominating committee with respect to reviewing the open IESG
        positions is considered complete.  If some or none of the
        candidates are confirmed, the nominating committee must
        reconvene to select alternate candidates for the rejected
        candidates.  Any additional time required by the nominating
        committee should not exceed its maximum time allotment.

   d.   The Internet Society Board of Trustees reviews the IAB
        candidates, consenting to some, all, or none.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 5]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        If all of the candidates are confirmed, the job of the
        nominating committee with respect to reviewing the open IAB
        positions is considered complete.  If some or none of the
        candidates are confirmed, the nominating committee must
        reconvene to select alternate candidates for the rejected
        candidates.  Any additional time required by the nominating
        committee should not exceed its maximum time allotment.

   e.   The confirming bodies decide their consent according to a
        mechanism of their own choosing, which must ensure that at least
        one-half of the sitting members agree with the decision.

        At least one-half of the sitting members of the confirming
        bodies must agree to either confirm or reject each individual
        nominee.  The agreement must be decided within a reasonable
        timeframe.  The agreement may be decided by conducting a formal
        vote, by asserting consensus based on informal exchanges
        (email), or by whatever mechanism is used to conduct the normal
        business of the confirming body.

   3.  Nominating Committee Selection

   The following set of rules apply to the creation of the nominating
   committee and the selection of its members.

    (1)   The committee comprises at least a non-voting Chair, 10 voting
          volunteers, and 3 non-voting liaisons.

        Any committee member may propose the addition of a non-voting
        advisor to participate in some or all of the deliberations of
        the committee.  The addition must be approved by both the voting
        and non-voting members of the committee according to its
        established voting mechanism.  Advisors participate as
        individuals.

        Any committee member may propose the addition of a non-voting
        liaison from other unrepresented organizations to participate in
        some or all of the deliberations of the committee.  The addition
        must be approved by both the voting and non-voting members of
        the committee according to its established voting mechanism.
        Liaisons participate as representatives of their respective
        organizations.

        Advisors and liaisons must meet the usual requirements for
        membership in the nominating committee.  In the case of liaisons

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 6]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        the requirements apply to the organization not to the
        individual.

    (2)   The Internet Society President appoints the non-voting Chair,
          who must meet the usual requirements for membership in the
          nominating committee.

        The nominating committee Chair must agree to invest the time
        necessary to ensure that the nominating committee completes its
        assigned duties and to perform in the best interests of the IETF
        community in that role.

    (3)   The Chair obtains the list of IESG and IAB positions to be
          reviewed and publishes it along with a solicitation for names
          of volunteers from the IETF community willing to serve on the
          nominating committee.

        The list of open positions is published with the solicitation to
        facilitate community members choosing between volunteering for
        an open position and volunteering for the nominating committee.

        The list and solicitation must be publicized using at least the
        same mechanism used by the IETF secretariat for its
        announcements.

    (4)   Members of the IETF community must have attended at least 2 of
          the last 3 IETF meetings in order to volunteer.

    (5)   Internet Society Board of Trustees, sitting members of the
          IAB, and sitting members of the IESG may not volunteer.

    (6)   The Chair announces the pool of volunteers from which the 10
          voting volunteers will be randomly selected.

        The announcement must be made using at least the same mechanism
        used by the IETF secretariat for its announcements.

    (7)   The Chair randomly selects the 10 voting voluteers from the
          pool of names of volunteers using a method that can be
          independently verified to be unbiased and fair.

        A method is fair if each eligible volunteer is equally likely to
        be selected.  A method is unbiased if no one can influence its
        outcome.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 7]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        The method must include an announcement of an enumerated list of
        the pool of names together with the specific algorithm for how
        names will be chosen from the list.  The output of the selection
        algorithm must depend on random data whose value is not known at
        the time the list and algorithm are announced.

        One possible method is described in [1].

        All announcements must be made using at least the mechanism used
        by the IETF secretariat for its announcements.

    (8)   The sitting IAB and IESG members each appoint a non-voting
          liaison to the nominating committee from their current
          membership who are not sitting in an open position.

    (9)   The Chair of the prior year's nominating committee serves as a
          non-voting liaison.

        The prior year's Chair may select a designee from a pool
        composed of the voting members of the prior year's committee and
        all prior Chairs if the Chair is unavailable.  If the prior
        year's Chair is unavailable and is unable or unwilling to make
        such a designation in a timely fashion, the Chair of the current
        committee may do so.

        Selecting a prior year's committee member as the designee
        permits the experience of the prior year's deliberations to be
        readily available to the current committee.  Selecting an
        earlier prior year Chair as the designee permits the experience
        of being a Chair as well as that Chair's committee deliberations
        to be readily available to the current committee.

   4.  Nominating Committee Operation

   The following rules apply to the operation of the nominating
   committee.  If necessary, a paragraph discussing the interpretation
   of each rule is included.

   The rules are organized approximately in the order in which they
   would be invoked.

   The term nominee refers to an individual under consideration by the
   nominating committee.  The term candidate refers to a nominee that
   has been selected by the nominating committee to be considered for
   confirmation by a confirming body.  A confirmed candidate is a

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 8]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

   candidate that has been reviewed and approved by a confirming body.

    (1)   All rules and special circumstances not otherwise specified
          are at the discretion of the committee.

        Exceptional circumstances will occasionally arise during the
        normal operation of the nominating committee.  This rule is
        intended to foster the continued forward progress of the
        committee.

        Any member of the committee may propose a rule for adoption by
        the committee.  The rule must be approved by both the voting and
        non-voting members of the committee according to its established
        voting mechanism.

        All members of the committee should consider whether the
        exception is worthy of mention in the next revision of this
        document and followup accordingly.

    (2)   The Chair must establish and publicize milestones, which must
          include at least a call for nominations.

        There is a defined time period during which the selection and
        confirmation process must be completed.  The Chair must
        establish a set of milestones which, if met in a timely fashion,
        will result in the completion of the process on time.  The Chair
        should allow time for iterating the activities of the committee
        if one or more candidates is not confirmed.

        The milestones must be publicized using at least the same
        mechanism used by the IETF secretariat for its announcements.

    (3)   The Chair must establish a voting mechanism.

        The committee must be able to objectively determine when a
        decision has been made during its deliberations.  The criteria
        for determining closure must be established and known to all
        members of the nominating committee.

    (4)   At least a quorum of committee members must participate in a
          vote.  A quorum comprises at least 7 voting members.

    (5)   The Chair may establish a process by which a member of the
          nominating committee may be recalled.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000               [Page 9]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        The process, if established, must be agreed to by a 3/4 majority
        of the members of the nominating committee, including the non-
        voting members since they would be subject to the same process.

    (6)   All members of the nominating committee may participate in all
          deliberations.

        The emphasis of this rule is that no member, whether voting or
        non-voting, can be explicitly excluded from any deliberation.
        However, a member may individually choose not to participate in
        a deliberation.

    (7)   The Chair announces the open positions to be reviewed and the
          call for nominees.

        The call for nominees must include a request for comments
        regarding the past performance of incumbents, which will be
        considered during the deliberations of the nominating committee.

        The announcements must be publicized using at least the same
        mechanism used by the IETF secretariat for its announcements.

    (8)   Any member of the IETF community may nominate any member of
          the IETF community for any open position.

        A self-nomination is permitted.

    (9)   Nominating committee members must not be nominees.

        To be a nominee is to enter the process of being selected as a
        candidate and confirmed.  Nominating committee members are not
        eligible to be considered for filling any open position.  They
        become ineligible as soon as their role is announced to the IETF
        community and they remain ineligible for the duration of this
        nominating committee's term.

    (10)  Members of the IETF community who were recalled from any IESG
          or IAB position during the previous two years must not be
          nominees.

    (11)  The nominating committee selects candidates based on its
          understanding of the IETF community's consensus of the
          qualifications required to fill the open positions.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000              [Page 10]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        The intent of this rule is to ensure that the nominating
        committee consults with a broad base of the IETF community for
        input to its deliberations.

        The consultations are permitted to include a slate of nominees,
        if all parties to the consultation agree to observe customary
        and reasonable rules of confidentiality.

        A broad base of the community should include the existing
        members of the IAB and IESG, especially sitting members who
        share responsibilities with open positions, e.g., co-Area
        Directors.

    (12)  Nominees should be advised that they are being considered and
          must consent to their nomination prior to being confirmed.

        The nominating committee should help nominees provide
        justification to their employers.

        A nominee's consent must be written (email is acceptable) and
        include a commitment to provide the resources necessary to fill
        the open position and an assurance that the nominee will perform
        the duties of the position for which they are being considered
        in the best interests of the IETF community.

    (13)  The nominating committee advises the confirming bodies of
          their candidates, specifying a single candidate for each open
          position and a testament as to how each candidate meets the
          qualifications of an open position.

        The testament may include a brief resume of the candidate and a
        summary of the deliberations of the nominating committee.

    (14)  With respect to any action to be taken in the context of
          notifying and announcing confirmed candidates, and notifying
          rejected nominees and candidates, the action must be valid
          according to all of the rules specified below prior to its
          execution.

   a.   Up until a candidate is confirmed, the identity of the candidate
        must be kept confidential.

   b.   The identity of all nominees must be kept confidential (except
        that the nominee may publicize their intentions).

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000              [Page 11]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

   c.   Rejected nominees may be notified as soon as they are rejected.

   d.   Rejected candidates may be notified as soon as they are
        rejected.

   e.   Rejected nominees and candidates must be notified prior to
        announcing confirmed candidates.

   f.   Confirmed candidates may be notified and announced as soon as
        they are confirmed.

        It is consistent with these rules for a nominee to never know if
        they were a candidate or not.

        It is consistent with these rules for some nominees to be
        rejected early in the process and for some nominees to be kept
        as alternates in case a candidate is rejected by a confirming
        body.  In the matter of whether a confirmed candidate was a
        first choice or an alternate, that information need not ever be
        disclosed and, in fact, probably never should be.

        It is consistent with these rules for confirmed candidates to be
        notified and announced as quickly as possible instead of
        requiring all confirmed candidates to wait until all open
        positions have been reviewed.

        When consulting with individual members of the IETF community,
        if all parties to the consultation agree to observe customary
        and reasonable rules of confidentiality the consultations are
        permitted to include a slate of nominees.

        The announcements must be publicized using at least the same
        mechanism used by the IETF secretariat for its announcements.

   5.  Member Recall

   The following rules apply to the recall process.  If necessary, a
   paragraph discussing the interpretation of each rule is included.

    (1)   Anyone may request the recall of any sitting IAB or IESG
          member, at any time, upon written (email is acceptable)
          request with justification to the Internet Society President.

    (2)   Internet Society President shall appoint a Recall Committee
          Chair.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000              [Page 12]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        The Internet Society President must not evaluate the recall
        request.  It is explicitly the responsibility of the IETF
        community to evaluate the behavior of its leaders.

    (3)   The recall committee is created according to the same rules as
          is the nominating committee with the qualifications that the
          person being investigated and the person requesting the recall
          must not be a member of the recall committee in any capacity.

    (4)   The recall committee operates according to the same rules as
          the nominating committee with the qualification that there is
          no confirmation process.

    (5)   The recall committee investigates the circumstances of the
          justification for the recall and votes on its findings.

        The investigation must include at least both an opportunity for
        the member being recalled to present a written statement and
        consultation with third parties.

    (6)   A 3/4 majority of the members who vote on the question is
          required for a recall.

    (7)   If a sitting member is recalled the open position is to be
          filled according to the mid-term vacancy rules.

   6.  Changes From RFC2282

        Editorial changes are not described here, only substantive
        changes.  They are listed here in the order in which they appear
        in the document.

    (1)   The frame of reference for timeframes was changed from the
          seasonal "Spring IETF" reference to the less geographic and
          more temporal "First IETF" reference.

    (2)   The terms of the sitting members and their respective
          confirmed candidates is explicitly permitted to overlap during
          the First IETF as determined by their mutual agreement.

    (3)   Nominating committee members who have served on prior
          committees are explicitly permitted to advise the current
          committee on the deliberations and results of the prior
          committtee.

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000              [Page 13]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

    (4)   The role and opportunity for additional advisors and liaisons
          to the nominating committee was clarified.

    (5)   A reference to a documented and accepted fair and unbiased
          mechanism for randomly selecting nominating committee members
          from the pool of volunteers was added.

    (6)   The option for the prior year's Chair to select a designee to
          serve as liaison to the current year's committee was clarified
          to ensure the Chair selected a non-voting liaison from a pool
          composed of the prior year's voting members and all prior
          committee Chairs.

    (7)   The responsibility and authority for the activities of the
          nominating committee rests with the committee as a whole, not
          with the Chair.  The operation of the committee was clarified
          to require changes in process and the handling of exceptions
          to be approved by the committee as a whole as opposed to being
          at the discretion of the Chair.

    (8)   The rule that prevented nominating committee members from
          being eligible to be considered for any open position was
          clarified to explicitly state that the rule applies from the
          point in time that the committee membership is announced
          through the entire term of the current committee.

   7.  Acknowledgements

   There have been a number of people involved with the development of
   this document over the years.  A great deal of credit goes to the
   first three Nominating Committee Chairs:

        1993 - Jeff Case

        1994 - Fred Baker

        1995 - John Curran

   who had the pleasure of operating without the benefit of a documented
   process.  It was their fine work and oral tradition that became the
   first version of this document.  Of course we can not overlook the
   bug discovery burden that each of the Chairs since the first
   publication have had to endure:

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000              [Page 14]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

        1996 - Guy Almes

        1997 - Geoff Houston

        1998 - Mike St. Johns

        1999 - Donald Eastlake

   Of course the bulk of the credit goes to the members of the POISSON
   Working Group, previously the POISED Working Group.  The prose here
   would not be what it is were it not for the attentive and insightful
   review of its members.  Specific acknowledgement must be extended to
   Scott Bradner and John Klensin, who have consistently contributed to
   the improvement of this document throughout its evolution.

   8.  Security Considerations

   Any selection, confirmation, or recall process necessarily involves
   investigation into the qualifications and activities of prospective
   candidates.  The investigation may reveal confidential or otherwise
   private information about candidates to those participating in the
   process.  Each person who participates in any aspect of the process
   has a responsibility to maintain the confidentiality of any and all
   information not explicitly identified as suitable for public
   dissemination.

   9.  References

   [1]  Eastlake, D., "Publicly Verifiable Nomcom Random Selection",
        Work in progress.

   10.  Editor's Address

       James M. Galvin
       eList eXpress LLC
       607 Trixsam Road
       Sykesville, MD 21784
       galvin@elistx.com

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000              [Page 15]

   INTERNET DRAFT       NOMCOM and Recall Operation            June 1999

   Table of Contents

    Status of this Memo ...........................................    1
    Copyright Notice ..............................................    1
    Abstract ......................................................    1
   1 Introduction .................................................    2
   2 General ......................................................    3
   3 Nominating Committee Selection ...............................    6
   4 Nominating Committee Operation ...............................    8
   5 Member Recall ................................................   12
   6 Changes From RFC2282 .........................................   13
   7 Acknowledgements .............................................   14
   8 Security Considerations ......................................   15
   9 References ...................................................   15
   10 Editor's Address ............................................   15

   Galvin                  Expires: February 2000              [Page 16]