OSAC Standards Bulletin - July 2025

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) sent this bulletin at 07/01/2025 10:00 AM EDT

The OSAC Registry Implementation Open Enrollment event is happening soon! Visit the OSAC website to learn more and participate.

July 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 approval process and development process at standards developing organizations (SDOs).

OSAC Registry Updates

New Standards

The following OSAC Proposed Standard has been added to the OSAC Registry (effective July 1, 2025):

OSAC 2023-N-0025, Standard for Required Topics to be Included in Forensic Odontology Education and Training Curriculum.

Other Registry Updates

ASTM E1967-19 Standard Test Method for the Automated Determination of Refractive Index of Glass Samples Using the Oil Immersion Method and a Phase Contrast Microscope. This was first added to the OSAC Registry on July 7, 2020 and has been extended for three years.
ASTM E2330-19, Standard Test Method for Determination of Concentrations of Elements in Glass Samples Using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) for Forensic Comparisons. This was added to the OSAC Registry on July 7, 2020 and will be moved to the OSAC Registry archive.

Visit the OSAC Registry webpage to view these and the 230+ forensic science standards on the Registry.

Standards Open for Comment

Open for Comment at OSAC

The following OSAC Proposed Standards are being considered for the OSAC Registry and is open for comment at OSAC until August 4, 2025:

Open for Comment at SDOs

The following SDOs are accepting public comments on documents:

The Academy Standards Board (ASB) has five documents open for public comment in the areas of forensic biology/DNA (comment deadline July 14), medicolegal death investigation (comment deadline July 21) and crime scene investigation & reconstruction (comment deadline July 21).
ASTM has three documents open for comment in the area of trace evidence (comment deadline July 21).

Visit OSAC's Standards Open for Comment webpage to access these documents, as well as the instructions and deadlines for comment submissions.

SDO Updates

New Published Standards

The following standards have recently been published by an SDO.

ASB:

ANSI/ASB Standard 102, Standard for Verification of Source Conclusions in Toolmark Examinations, 2025, 1st Ed.

ISO:

ISO 21043-1:2025, Forensic sciences - Part 1: Vocabulary
ISO 21043-3:2025, Forensic sciences - Part 3: Analysis
ISO 21043-4:2025, Forensic sciences - Part 4: Interpretation
ISO 21043-5:2025, Forensic sciences - Part 5: Reporting

Work Proposals for New or Revised Standards

A Project Initiation Notification System (PINS) was published in the June 20, 2025 ANSI Standards Action. This will begin ASB's work on the following:

ASB Best Practice Recommendation 231, Best Practice Recommendation for the Chemical Processing of Footwear and Tire Impression Evidence, 202x, 1st Ed. This document provides best practice recommendations on using chemical processing methods to develop additional detail or contrast in footwear and tire impression evidence for documentation, examination, or comparison. Chemical processing procedures that are commonly used in the forensic community are included. This document does not cover all chemical processing techniques or formulations that are available. Deviations from the methods described in this document may preclude the enhancement of impressions.
- Note: This is OSAC 2022-S-0032, Best Practice Recommendations for the Chemical Processing of Footwear and Tire Impression Evidence, currently on the OSAC Registry.
ASB Standard 233, Standard for the Processing, Collection, and Preservation of Friction Ridge Impressions, 202x, 1st Ed. This document provides requirements and recommendations for the processing, collection, and preservation of friction ridge impressions by scene investigators on scene and in controlled environments. This document does not include the collection and preservation of known impressions or friction ridge examinations.
- Note: This is OSAC 2023-N-0020, Standard for the On-Scene Collection and Preservation of Friction Ridge Impressions, currently on the OSAC Registry.

Other Forensic Science Standards-Related News & Events

WEBINAR: Turning Knowledge into Action: Mitigating Bias in Forensic Investigations | July 11, 2025 | 11:00 a.m. CT

Cognitive bias can affect forensic decision-making, but research-based solutions are available to help mitigate its effects. What practical steps truly work, and what preparations are necessary before implementation?

The Department of Forensic Sciences in Costa Rica, and OSAC Registry implementer, partnered with Adele Quigley-McBride, cognitive scientist and Vice Chair of OSAC’s Human Factors Task Group, to design and pilot a program in their Questioned Documents Unit to enhance the reliability of forensic evaluations and reduce subjectivity in forensic decision-making.

Join this CSAFE webinar on July 11, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. CT to hear about the Department of Forensic Sciences’ journey, from initial planning through implementation, as well as the impact of the strategies they adopted.

RaDAR Newsletter

NIST’s Rapid Drug Analysis and Research (RaDAR) lab provides near real-time insight into the nation’s illicit drug landscape. By analyzing drug samples sent from local, state, and federal partners, the lab identifies new compounds appearing in the illegal drug supply that may pose a health and safety threat to users, public health workers and law enforcement.

Check out the latest RaDAR newsletter to see the recent findings.

Implications of the Bullet Black Box Study

The Bullet Black Box Working Group (BulletBB-WG) was convened to review the results of the NIST-Noblis Bullet Black Box Study, and assess the implications of that study on casework. This report includes the recommendations of the BulletBB-WG on how to address those implications with the goal of improving the practice of the comparison of bullets by forensic firearms examiners. BulletBB-WG’s recommendations focus on standard operating procedures in casework, quality assurance, training, proficiency and competency testing, standardization, testimony, admissibility, and use/communication of the Bullet Black Box Study results.

Call for ASB Consensus Body Members

The ASB is currently accepting applications for the following consensus bodies (CBs): Anthropology, Bloodstain Pattern Analysis, CSI, DNA, Dogs and Sensors, Firearms and Toolmarks, Footwear and Tire, Forensic Document Examination, Forensic Nursing, Forensic Odontology, Friction Ridge, Mass Fatality Management and Disaster Victim Identification, Medicolegal Death Investigation, Toxicology, and Wildlife Forensics.

Each CB consists of seven to 25 members who create and approve by consensus - Forensic Standards, Best Practice Recommendations, Guidelines, and Technical Reports. The CBs also consider comments, views, and objections to ballots and resolve all comments received in connection with the development of documents. ASB CBs are open to all materially interested and affected individuals, companies, and organizations.

If interested, complete this 2025 Application for Membership to ASB Consensus Bodies by August 1, 2025.

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