Policy Development Process Glossary

General Terminology

Phases

Creating the Proposal:

The proposer has e-mailed a new Policy Proposal Template to the WG Chair for review. If the WG Chair feels that it is a legitimate proposal, s/he will inform the RIPE NCC and the PDP process will begin. The RIPE NCC reviews the proposal internally before proceeding to the Discussion Phase. The RIPE NCC will help the proposer to edit the proposal text if it is unclear.

Discussion Phase:

The RIPE NCC publishes the proposal on the website. The initial proposal is open for discussion by the RIPE community. The default duration for the discussion period is four weeks, although the WG Chair can vary this.
When the discussion period ends, the proposer will work with the RIPE NCC to produce a draft document. This should be done within four weeks.

Review Phase:

The RIPE NCC publishes the draft document. It is open for review and comment from the RIPE community. The default duration for the review period is four weeks, although the WG Chair can reduce this. When the review ends the WG Chair decides whether to move to Last Call.

Concluding Phase:

If the WG Chair agrees to move the proposal to Last Call, then it will enter the Concluding Phase. The RIPE NCC will update the PDP Website to show this. The document is available for any last comments from the RIPE community. The Last Call duration is four weeks. When the Last Call period ends, the WG Chair will decide whether consensus has been reached. If consensus has been reached then the policy will be implemented in the RIPE Region.

Status

Open for Discussion:

There is a Policy Proposal Template or a Draft Document that is available for the RIPE community to review and comment upon.

The proposal will spend most time in the Open for Discussion status. Therefore, the PDP Website will also show extra detail about the stage that the process has reached:

Awaiting Decision (from Proposer or WG Chair):

The proposal or document is still Open for Discussion, but the RIPE NCC is waiting for a decision from the proposer or WG Chair.

Awaiting Documentation:

The RIPE NCC is waiting for draft text for the RIPE Document to support the proposal.

Extended:

The discussion or review period is being extended, either because the proposer has submitted updated text, or because no consensus has been reached.

Last Call:

The proposal is in the Concluding Phase and it is the last opportunity for the community to comment.

Withdrawn:

Either the proposer or WG Chair has withdrawn the proposal, or the RIPE community has rejected it.

Accepted:

Consensus has been reached, and the new proposal has been accepted by the RIPE community. The policy will now be implemented in the RIPE NCC service region.