IEEE-SA Standards Board Approved 21 September 2004
The purpose of this guide is to assist you in the submittal of a document to the IEEE-SA Standards Board Review Committee (RevCom) for consideration as an IEEE standard and approval by the IEEE-SA Standards Board. Submitters should also refer to the latest edition of the IEEE-SA Standards Board Operations Manual for further information.
4. IEEE Standards Department Processing of the Submittal
1. SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTATION
Beginning with submittals for the March 2003 RevCom meeting, most submittal components are to be submitted in electronic format only. Please see detailed instructions in each subsection below.
The following documentation shall be included in the submittal package:
1.1 Form for submittal of proposed standards
1.3 Unresolved negative comments and Sponsor rebuttal
*1.4 PAR (Project Authorization Request) and PAR approval letter
*1.5 Coordination responses from required committees and staff
*1.6 Electronic source file and PDF of the last balloted draft
1.7 Permission releases, if applicable
1.8 Patent letter(s) of assurance [This item is no longer part of the submittal to RevCom]
*1.9 Statement regarding use as an international standard, if applicable
*1.10 Working group roster (unless incorporated into the draft)
* Not required for reaffirmation or withdrawal.
1.1 Form for Submittal of Proposed Standards
This form should be completed by the person designated by the Sponsor to act on behalf of the committee. Please provide all of the information requested, as this is the primary document utilized by RevCom in determining compliance with the required procedures.
Beginning with submittals for the March 2003 RevCom meeting, the online version of the Form for Submittal of Proposed Standards will be the only accepted version.
1.2 Ballot Summary
The IEEE Standards Balloting Center has the capability to produce .pdf files of all ballot summary results, regardless of whether the ballot was conducted electronically or in paper. Thus, for all ballots conducted by the IEEE Standards Balloting Center, the Sponsor shall submit the ballot summary results to RevCom as .pdf files.
{Note: As of 1 June 2003, all IEEE Standards Association Sponsor ballots shall be conducted by the IEEE Standards Balloting Center.}
{Note: As of 1 January 2005, all IEEE Standards Association Sponsor ballots shall be conducted by electronic means.}
The ballot summary will include:
- A. Project number
- B. Closing date of ballot
- C. Member name
- D. Member affiliation (e.g., company, agency, institution) or status (e.g., consultant, retired)
- E. Member classification or relationship to the area addressed by the standard (user, producer, general interest, or others as appropriate, such as academia or government; this is the member's relationship to the activity, not his or her employer's relationship.) The IEEE-SA Standards Board Operations Manual stipulates that "No group (classification) is permitted to constitute 50% or more of the balloting group membership. Care shall be taken to ensure that all classes of interest are represented to the extent possible "
- F. Confirmation of Standards Association membership (IEEE or Affiliate number)
- G. Ballot information
The IEEE-SA Standards Board Operations Manual stipulates that 75% of the ballots mailed shall have been returned (only 50% required for withdrawal of a standard). A minimum of 75% of those voting shall approve the draft in order to submit the ballot results to the IEEE-SA Standards Board.
The following is an example of how to properly calculate returned ballots
from eligible voters:
Draft: 5.3 Date Closed: 2 February 2003
Ballots Sent 100
Ballots Returned:
Affirmatives 60
Negatives with comment 10
Negatives without comment 3
Abstentions 15
Total 88
No Response 12
Total Ballots 100
Percent Returned (60 + 10 + 3 + 15) / 100 = 88%
Percent Affirmative 60 / (60 + 10) = 86%
Percent Abstentions 15 / 88 = 17%
Comments from eligible balloting group members, non-eligible reviewers, and those from external coordinating bodies shall receive the same evaluation by the Sponsor. The Sponsor's action in attempting to reconcile negative ballot comments shall be detailed and accompany the submittal. If RevCom requests a more detailed explanation, the Sponsor may be asked to attend the RevCom meeting. Negative comments with working group rebuttals shall be circulated among the balloting group members, providing each member an opportunity to change his or her vote.
Provide reasons for abstentions. If 30% or more of the returns from the eligible balloters are abstentions, the ballot shall be considered invalid.
1.3 Unresolved Negative Comments and Sponsor Rebuttal
Include a copy of each unresolved negative comment, the reason(s) given by the negative voter, and the Sponsor rebuttal. (This is also part of the recirculation package.)
Copies of the written confirmations from voters who indicate concurrence with the change of their votes from negative to affirmative shall be included in the submittal to RevCom.
If there are comments associated with a negative vote that have not been shown to the ballot group via a recirculation ballot, you must include an explanation on a comment-by-comment basis in the submittal to RevCom as to why these comments do not require recirculation. Please include this information in a cover letter or another appropriate submittal document.
Common valid reasons include the
following:
- Comment is not related to the project/standard
being balloted
- Comment is on material that is not open to comment
during a particular round of balloting
- Comment is a restatement of a previous comment
that has already been recirculated
All of this information should be submitted in an electronic format. If this information is not available in an electronic format, the Sponsor will be permitted to submit it in paper (for all ballots conducted prior to 1 January 2005). However, for submittals in paper, the Sponsor shall also provide an explanation for the paper submittal, corrective actions that will be initiated for future submittals, and when those actions will occur.
*1.4 PAR and PAR Approval Letter
Many PARs are available electronically. Please go to the NesCom website to determine if your PAR is one of them. If it is, then it must be submitted to RevCom electronically. Only PARs that are not available electronically from NesCom will be accepted in paper.
The current PAR, PAR approval letter, and any approved target extension requests, shall be included in the submittal.
Please advise if the project is also on the NesCom agenda and explain reasons for simultaneous submittal.
The title, scope, and purpose of the submitted draft must match those stated in the approved PAR. {Editorial changes may be allowed.}
*1.5 Coordination Responses from Required Committees and Staff
Include copies of responses received from each mandatory coordinating
entity in the submittal. Coordination is normally arranged through the
designated Liaison Representative to the IEEE-SA Standards Board and
established during the development of the document. In the event of no
reply, contact the Standards Department
for verification of the current Liaison Representative. The preferred method
of conducting coordination is to provide a copy of each draft, as soon as
available, to each coordinating organization.
All new and revised standards shall be coordinated with:
- SCC10, IEEE
Standards Coordinating Committee on Definitions
- SCC14, IEEE
Standards Coordinating Committee on Quantities, Units, and Letter
Symbols
- IEEE Standards Department editorial staff
- IEEE Registration Authority Committee (RAC), if necessary
Comments from these entities shall be given appropriate consideration and response. At the time of project submittal, the Sponsor shall provide (electronically) the most recent coordination comments and either indicate acceptance or provide an explanation as to why acceptance of these comments would impede the utility of the draft standard.
The Sponsor shall include any waivers granted from the IEEE Standards Department editorial staff for deviations from the IEEE Standards Style Manual.
*1.6 Electronic Source File and PDF of the Last Balloted Draft
An electronic source file of the complete last balloted draft shall be submitted. Please identify the application used to create the document (e.g. MS Word, FrameMaker, etc.). Figures may be submitted as separate files and labeled Fig1, Fig2, etc. The preferred formats are EPS and TIF, or editable graphics embedded in FrameMaker files. Other acceptable formats are GIF and JPEG. Contact the IEEE Standards Department for further information.
RevCom will review the draft in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). The Sponsor has the option to submit this file for RevCom's review or to allow IEEE staff to create this file from the electronic source file.
1.7 Permission Releases
The Sponsor shall have obtained all necessary permission releases needed to incorporate figures or text from copyrighted documents into the proposed standard. The written release(s) shall be included with the submittal (in electronic format, if possible). The IEEE Standards Style Manual contains letters for requesting permission to reprint material from a non-IEEE publication. Contact the Manager, Standards Licensing and Contracts for further information.
1.8 Patent Letter(s) of Assurance
Information regarding requesting patent letters of assurance can be found here. The Sponsor shall submit any patent letters of assurance (LoAs) that it has received to the PatCom Administrator [Fax: +1 732 875 0524].
*1.9 International Standards Activities
Submission to ISO or ISO/IEC JTC1 via their Fast-Track Processes
An IEEE document can become an ISO or ISO/IEC JTC1 International Standard via submission through an ISO Member Body or an appropriate Category A Liaison (to ISO/IEC JTC1 or some other Technical Committee or Subcommittee) for Fast-Track processing. For more information about such submissions and the possible Fast-Track processes, please see:
- ISO Fast-Track - ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1 (Procedures for the technical work) (2004, 5th ed.) for ISO Fast-Track
- ISO/IEC JTC1 Fast-Track - ISO/IEC Directives, Procedures for the technical work of ISO/IEC JTC 1 on Information Technology (5th Edition)
IEC/IEEE Dual Logo Document
An IEEE document can be adopted by the IEC as an IEC/IEEE Dual Logo document. The document is submitted to the IEC Central Office by the IEEE-SA staff. More information about the IEC/IEEE Dual Logo program can be found at http://standards.ieee.org/intl/iec-submittal-proc.pdf
Revision of a Previously Adopted Document
If the IEEE document is a revision to a document previously adopted by either ISO, IEC or ISO/IEC JTC1, this needs to be indicated accordingly.
Joint Development
An IEEE document can be jointly developed with another organization. If the document was jointly developed, the appropriate agreements for joint development shall have been executed between the Managing Director of the IEEE-SA and the external organization before the document is submitted for approval to the IEEE-SA Standards Board. For more information, please contact the Program Manager, International Standards Programs.
Inclusion of an IEEE document in another organization’s document
An IEEE document may possibly be used by another organization as a basis for another standard or sections of an IEEE document may possibly be used by another organization in their document. If this is known, please contact the Program Manager, International Standards Programs for guidance on this matter.
*1.10 Working Group Roster
The names of the members of the working group or subcommittee that developed the draft document being submitted for approval shall be included, as they will appear in the published standard. If the names are incorporated into the document, it is not necessary to send a separate list.
1.11 Unit of Measurement Used in Standard
The unit of measurement [International System of Units (SI), Inch/Pound, Both, Other or Not measurement sensitive] used within the standard must be indicated.
IEEE Standards must comply with the Standards Board Implementation Plan for the IEEE Metric Policy.
2. REAFFIRMATION
The document shall meet the requirements for reaffirmation as stated in the current IEEE-SA Standards Board Operations Manual. The Sponsor shall determine that the standard being reaffirmed continues to reflect the state of the art and contains no significant obsolete or erroneous information. Reaffirmation of the document shall be balloted and approved by 75% of the interested and affected parties.
The following statement is a quotation from a policy statement incorporated in IEEE Standards:
"When a document is more than five years old and has not been reaffirmed, it is reasonable to conclude that its contents, although still of some value, do not wholly reflect the present state of the art. Users are cautioned to check to determine that they have the latest edition of any IEEE standard."
Information regarding reaffirming a standard can be found here.
3. WITHDRAWAL
A recommendation for withdrawal shall be balloted with a 50% return and at least 75% approval.
4. IEEE STANDARDS DEPARTMENT PROCESSING OF THE SUBMITTAL
The proposed standard, Form for Submittal of Proposed Standards, and all supporting documentation shall be submitted to the IEEE Standards Department for distribution by the submittal deadline [i.e., no less than 40 calendar days prior to the IEEE-SA Standards Board meeting for the first three quarterly meetings of the year; no less than 50 calendar days prior to the IEEE-SA Standards Board meeting for the last quarterly meeting of the year.]
RevCom will consider reviewing a project if a recirculation ballot is in progress at the specified submittal deadline provided the text of the recirculated draft and all documentation except ballot results of the recirculation are submitted by the submittal deadline. The documentation must include resolution of negative ballots resulting from prior ballots. There shall be no negative votes on new issues, but additional negatives on prior issues are allowed provided the 75% affirmative required for approval is achieved.
The Sponsor shall review results of the recirculation ballot and, if the above conditions are met, may submit results of the recirculation ballot to the RevCom Administrator no later than 25 days before the IEEE-SA Standards Board meeting. The RevCom Administrator will transmit the results of the recirculation ballot to the members of RevCom no later than 15 days before the IEEE-SA Standards Board meeting.
RevCom will submit comments electronically to the Administrator. These comments will be forwarded to the submitter for consideration and reply. All documentation, including the replies to the comments, will be considered at the meeting. The recommendation of RevCom will be presented to the IEEE-SA Standards Board for final action. The submitter will be notified of the action taken.
Once approved by the IEEE-SA Standards Board, the Standards Department will make formal application to ANSI for recognition as an American National Standard.
RevCom will not consider a submittal if the recirculation commences after the submittal deadline. These submittals should be considered at a future RevCom meeting.
