FINAL VERSION TO BE SUBMITTED IF RATIFIED
The final version to be submitted, if the draft is ratified, will be placed here by upon completion of the vote.
FINAL DRAFT VERSION TO BE VOTED UPON BY THE ALAC
The final draft version to be voted upon by the ALAC will be placed here before the vote is to begin.
FIRST DRAFT SUBMITTED
The first draft submitted will be placed here before the call for comments begins.
The ALAC appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Independent Review of the ICANN Root Server System Advisory Committee (RSSAC). The ALAC is responsible for representing the interests of Internet Users within ICANN, and there are few parts of the Internet as critical as the Root Server System in allowing Internet Users to enjoy and benefit from the Internet
Recommendation 1
Modify the RSSAC membership criteria to allow the RSSAC to recruit a variety of skills, perspectives, and interests that include but are not limited to those available from the root server operator organizations.
The ALAC supports the intent of this recommendation and adding new members may well be both possible and desirable. But the ALAC is sensitive to rules being imposed which may be difficult to implement. Rather than suggest that additional “members” are the answer, consideration should be given to altering Recommendation 1 to allow forms other than "membership" while achieving the same aim of ensuring that the RSSAC has all of the skills and perspectives to properly fulfill its function.
Recommendation 2
Resolve the apparent mismatch between the charter and operational procedures of the RSSAC and the requirements and expectations of the ICANN Board and Community for interaction with the root server system.
The following paragraph from the report is critical:
To the extent that ICANN either is or is widely held to be responsible for the reliable and secure operation of the root, it requires a relationship with the serving side of the root registry that extends beyond the “exchange of information” limits of the RSSAC charter. The nature of that relationship is primarily an RSO/Board issue, not an RSSAC issue, and therefore out of scope for the present review. But the apparent mismatch between what ICANN needs from an interface to the root server system and what the RSSAC is currently chartered to provide suggests that either the RSSAC scope should be expanded or the attention and expectations of the Board and Community should be explicitly redirected away from the RSSAC to some other group.
Although there is no clear way to address the issue, since ICANN has a part to play in ensuring that the DNS is a trusted and reliable resource, then it must have the ability to interact with all players who have a role in carrying that out and that must include the Root Server Operators. Simply lowering expectations does not address the issue. Whether this is done by widening the scope of the RSSAC or through some other mechanism is less important than noting that the current chasm must be breached.
Recommendation 5
Engage more actively with the rest of ICANN and its Community.
The ALAC supports and welcomes the recommendation regarding communication between RSSAC and other part of the ICANN community.
