Tracks: Federal Identity Forum, Track C - Technology Advancement and Strategies
In 2013, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced an interagency initiative to strengthen forensic science: establishment of a National Commission on Forensic Science (NCFS) and development of the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science (OSAC). NCFS held thirteen meetings in Washington, DC between February 2014 and April 2017 before its second term expired. A total of 43 work products were approved along with a summary and future needs document. OSAC seeks to improve forensic practices by facilitating the development and promulgation of technically sound consensus-based documentary standards that can be used by accrediting bodies in future audits of forensic laboratories. OSAC is a NIST-organized effort and it is intended to be ongoing. This presentation will also review recent requests of NIST from the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) to explore scientific foundations of forensic science disciplines. Other presentations in this session will explore technical and programmatic issues and activities within NIST and the Department of Defense.