Updating the Term Dates of IETF Administrative Oversight Committee (IAOC) Members
RFC 7691

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Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)                   S. Bradner, Ed.
Request for Comments: 7691                            Harvard University
BCP: 101                                                   November 2015
Updates: 4071
Category: Best Current Practice
ISSN: 2070-1721

                       Updating the Term Dates of
         IETF Administrative Oversight Committee (IAOC) Members

Abstract

   BCP 101 defines the start and end dates for the terms of IETF
   Administrative Oversight Committee (IAOC) members; these terms have
   proven to be impractical.  This memo updates BCP 101 to direct the
   IAOC to establish more practical start and end dates for terms of
   IAOC members.

Status of This Memo

   This memo documents an Internet Best Current Practice.

   This document is a product of the Internet Engineering Task Force
   (IETF).  It represents the consensus of the IETF community.  It has
   received public review and has been approved for publication by the
   Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG).  Further information on
   BCPs is available in Section 2 of RFC 5741.

   Information about the current status of this document, any errata,
   and how to provide feedback on it may be obtained at
   http://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7691.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2015 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
   document authors.  All rights reserved.

   This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
   Provisions Relating to IETF Documents
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   publication of this document.  Please review these documents
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   described in the Simplified BSD License.

Bradner                   Best Current Practice                 [Page 1]
RFC 7691               Term Dates for IAOC Members         November 2015

Table of Contents

   1. Background ..................................................... 2
   2. Updates to BCP 101 ............................................. 3
   3. Security Considerations ........................................ 3
   4. Normative References ........................................... 3
   Editor's Address .................................................. 4

1.  Background

   Section 4 of RFC 4071 [BCP101] says "IAOC terms normally end at the
   end of the first IETF meeting of a year."  Having the terms of the
   IAOC members expire at the end of the first IETF meeting of the year
   has proved impractical for the IAOC to carry out its business and to
   elect its Chair during the meeting week.  For a number of years, the
   IAOC has improvised by defaulting to an informal process of having
   the transition occur during the administrative plenary (as the IESG
   does).  This informal arrangement violates the letter of BCP 101.
   But even this arrangement is problematic if the transfer happens
   after the IAOC's face-to-face meeting takes place that week.  Under
   the informal arrangement, the IAOC typically meets on the morning of
   the administrative plenary, which means that the incoming IAOC
   members, while present, are not seated.

   Having the new IAOC members take office after the face-to-face
   meeting has caused difficulties in the chair selection and voting
   processes during the IAOC's face-to-face meeting held during the same
   week.  There has been confusion over who should vote in the chair
   election and on any business actions that require a vote of the
   Trustees.  If the incoming members are not seated, then they should
   not vote; however, to select a chair for the next year, for example,
   they, more than the outgoing members, should have a say in the chair
   selection.  There is also confusion over who is eligible to be
   elected as chair -- if the term of an IAOC member has not yet
   started, could that IAOC member be elected chair (as the chair is
   selected from among the members).  Having the terms expire at the end
   of the week also risks the IAOC not being able to raise a quorum if
   outgoing members decide to not come to the meeting.  Because the IAOC
   members are the Trustees of the IETF Trust, the same issues arise
   with the IETF Trust and its ability to carry out its business and
   elect a Chair during the meeting week.

   An additional issue with BCP 101 is the current definition of the
   term length of the IAOC Chair.  RFC 4071 [BCP101] says "The term of
   the IAOC chair shall be one year from the time of selection or the
   remaining time of his or her tenure on the IAOC, whichever is less."
   Because the dates for the first IETF meeting of the year vary from
   year to year, the current BCP 101 text could result in there being no