[NCUC-EC] Statement on Transparency and Off-list Communication

[Michael Karanicolas]

Hi,

The following is a statement which EC members developed over the past two
days. It is now submitted for EC approval as a statement in response to the
previous days' discussions:

Recently there’s been some discussion about EC deliberation and procedures.
We would like to clarify a few things.

First off, we can confirm that we sometimes use off-list methods to
communicate with one another, both individually and at times, as a group.
This is not a violation of our bylaws or operating procedures. Indeed, the
transparency section of our bylaws (section VII) specifically contemplates
instances where information may need to be withheld, such as where its
disclosure would negatively impact our engagement with a policy under
discussion. In other instances, we may use offlist communications for more
informal or social chatter, unrelated to the NCUC decision-making process.
Or we may use alternate measures to try and get the attention of a person
where on-list communications are going unanswered.

EC deliberations take place on-list. But, when juggling multiple
communication tracks, it is inevitable that there can be some overlap, or
instances where a communication that should be made on-list is made using
an external service. That was the case with regards to the latest IGF
proposal, where some of the reviewing feedback was given via Skype. In
part, this was due to the quick turnaround of the proposal, and the pending
deadline (for a full timeline of how the IGF proposal was developed, please
see the discussion on the NCUC-Discuss list here
<https://lists.ncuc.org/pipermail/ncuc-discuss/2018-June/044315.html>). It
is worth noting that, in this case, substantially identical feedback was
sent to the ExComm list at the same time, in order to ensure that it was
documented.

Nonetheless, we acknowledge that the use of off-list communication is a
problem. In order to remedy it, one suggestion would be for us to develop
and approve guidelines for off-list discussions, and rules around their
archiving and disclosure. If members feel that is a good idea – we would be
happy to develop a draft for discussion. We believe this would make us the
only Constituency or Stakeholder Group which has taken steps to address
this nearly universal issue - and would be glad to be at the forefront of
that debate.

Transparency and accountability are values that we hold dear and, in many
cases, are active advocates for across the ICANN communities. The challenge
of managing formal and informal avenues of communication is a common one
across the transparency sector, particularly with the expanding diversity
of communications tools and devices that we now have available. We are
committed to doing better, and to working harder to foster trust between
the EC and its constituents. As always, we welcome constructive feedback.

We look forward to the conversation.

The NCUC Executive Committee
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