March 2025
The Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for Forensic Science's Standards Bulletin provides a monthly update on forensic science standards moving through the OSAC Registry and standards development processes.
OSAC Registry Updates
New standards. The following standard has been added to the OSAC Registry (effective March 4, 2025):
- ANSI/ASB Standard 035, Standard for the Examination of Documents for Alterations, 2020, 1st Ed.
Visit the OSAC Registry webpage to view this and the 225+ forensic science standards on the Registry.
Standards Open for Comment
The following standard is being considered for the OSAC Registry and is open for comment at OSAC until March 31, 2025:
The following standards developing organization (SDO) is accepting public comments on documents:
- Academy Standards Board (ASB) has four documents open for public comment in the areas of firearms & toolmarks and forensic toxicology (comment deadlines March 10), footwear & tire (comment deadline March 24), and crime scene investigation & reconstruction (comment deadline April 17).
Visit OSAC's Standards Open for Comment webpage to access these OSAC Proposed and SDO documents, as well as the instructions and deadlines for comment submissions.
SDO Updates
Work Proposals for New or Revised Standards
A Project Initiation Notification System (PINS) was published in the February 7 2025 ANSI Standards Action. This will begin ASTM's work on the following:
- WK93504, Test Method for The Analysis of Seized Drugs using Gas-Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (new standard). This standard is a test method for the comprehensive GC/MS analysis of over 400 seized drug substances and chemicals.
- WK93533, Standard Practice for Intralaboratory Blind Quality Control Programs Specific to Seized-Drugs Analysis (new standard). This document covers minimum requirements to develop and implement an intralaboratory blind quality control (BQC) program for seized drugs; designed to provide continual assessment of the performance of forensic laboratories conducting the analysis and identification of seized drugs through the use of blind quality control samples.
A PINS was published in the February 14, 2025 ANSI Standards Action to reinstate the following ASTM document:
A PINS was published in the February 21, 2025 ANSI Standards Action and February 28, 2025 ANSI Standards Action. This will begin ASB’s work on the following:
- ASB Standard 222, Standard for the Articulation of Footwear and Tire Interpretations (new standard). This standard provides the requirements for articulating results and interpretations of the comparison of questioned impressions to known footwear and tires. This document also provides descriptions of comparative observations and interpretations of data, and establishes qualitative articulations for the range of results and interpretations that may be reached following footwear and tire evidence comparisons. This standard does not cover results and interpretations derived directly from or entirely dependent upon probability models or quantitative methods, or the determination of the relevant population for evaluation. NOTE: This is OSAC 2023-S-0017, Standard for the Articulation of Footwear and Tire Impressions, currently on the OSAC Registry.
- ASB Standard 219, Standard for Scene Collection and Preservation of Physical Evidence, 202x, 1st Ed. (new standard). This document sets requirements for collecting and preserving physical evidence during scene investigations to maintain its integrity. NOTE: This is OSAC 2021-N-0018, Standard for On-Scene Collection and Preservation of Physical Evidence, currently on the OSAC Registry.
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