[arin-ppml] Advisory Council Meeting Results - May 2010

[Bill Darte]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: arin-ppml-bounces at arin.net 
> [mailto:arin-ppml-bounces at arin.net] On Behalf Of Smith, Bill
> Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2010 9:06 PM
> To: William Herrin
> Cc: arin-ppml at arin.net
> Subject: Re: [arin-ppml] Advisory Council Meeting Results - May 2010
> 
> 
> On May 29, 2010, at 5:12 AM, William Herrin wrote:
> 
> On Sat, May 29, 2010 at 3:31 AM, Owen DeLong 
> <owen at delong.com<mailto:owen at delong.com>> wrote:
> In this circumstance, given the number of different inputs to 
> the process and the ambiguity of much of the input received, 
> it is not always as easy as you might think for the AC to 
> determine consensus, but, yes, usually it is.
> 
> Owen,
> 
> If you're not sure whether you have consensus then you don't. 
> It only gets complicated when you really want there to be 
> consensus even though there isn't.
> 
> That's my point exactly.
> 
> 
> 
> The PDP is quite clear that the AC is charged with 
> determining consensus of the community. In my experience, it 
> is relatively easy to determine if consensus exists. 
> Achieving consensus may be monumentally difficult and time 
> consuming but the determination of its existence is straightforward.
> 
> As I understand the PDP, the AC is charged with the simpler task.
> 
> The AC is charged with determining several things, consensus 
> being but one of them.
> 
> The AC is also effectively charged with making an independent 
> recommendation to the board as to whether a policy proposal 
> would improve ARIN. For any given proposal, it get's three 
> chances to do this within the process, only the first of 
> which also functions to discourage public participation.
> 
> >From the PDP, section 2 Draft Policy: "The Advisory Council 
> evaluates policy proposals and develops them into technically 
> sound and useful draft policies that, if adopted, will make a 
> positive contribution to the Number Resource Policy Manual." 
> And from section 1The Policy Proposal "Only policy proposals 
> that are developed into draft policies by the Advisory 
> Council, or successfully petitioned, will be discussed for 
> adoption on the PPML and at the public policy meeting."
> 
> Here's the process as dictated by the two sentences above 
> from the PDP:
> 
> The AC evaluates a submitted policy proposal. It makes some 
> determination based on that evaluation. If it is determined 
> that a policy proposal should be discussed on PPML, it is 
> developed into a sound, useful, and beneficial *draft 
> policy*. ( I don't believe the PDP dictates how the AC 
> performs this development, it simply requires that it do so.) 
> Only then is that draft policy discussed on PPML and at F2F 
> meetings - unless the policy proposal was petitioned.
> 
> Once a draft policy is out for discussion, changes can be 
> suggested. Those suggestions should be evaluated for 
> soundness, utility, and positive impact and only those that 
> improve the draft policy should be accepted. The draft 
> proposal goes back to the AC and it again presumably looks at 
> soundness, utility, and benefit. It also determines consensus.
> 
> With a good definition of consensus, even other than the 
> default unanimity, it really is rare for a group to disagree 
> on whether consensus has been reached on an issue, at least 
> in my experience. There can be considerable disagreement on 
> utility, technical soundness, and positive impact - and if 
> those disagreements are significant, sustained, widespread, 
> or otherwise recognized as not indicative of consensus, than 
> consensus doesn't exist. (Of course those holding such 
> opinions should be allowed to state that they do not object 
> to consensus being declared.)
> 
> What is ARIN's definition of consensus? Is there a way 
> forward when consensus doesn't exist?

The AC is empowered to move a policy forward or abandon it regardless of
consensus.
In my personal estimation, this should be a very rare occurrence at
most. Obvious safeguards through petition exist for such a situation.

bd

> 
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