Procedures

An IDEC White Paper is an authoritative report that helps inform an issue or solve a problem. White papers are used to educate members and help them and the IDEC Board make decisions about relevant issues. The IDEC Board can request white papers be developed to inform policy or decision-making with expert opinions or relevant research. The white paper is not developed as a position on a topic or issue, however, an IDEC resolution, which is a position, may be one of the outcomes of a white paper. A resolution is a policy and is accompanied by a position statement that provides intellectual support for the policy.

1. The request for an IDEC white paper can come from the Board, a work group (e.g., committee, task force, etc.), or individual members. Such a request must be submitted to the IDEC Board of Directors as a written request with the purpose, rationale, and potential outcomes fully discussed. The Board will consider the relevancy of the request and the resources involved and determine the potential outcome of such a white paper. If the Board agrees that an official IDEC White Paper be developed, a Call for White Paper Task Force members will be issued; the purpose, nature, and potential outcomes of the white paper will be stated in the call.
2. Once the white paper is completed by the task force, it will be reviewed by three reviewers for technical accuracy and scholarly value. At least one of these reviewers must be a sitting member of the IDEC Board of Directors at the time the white paper was proposed. One reviewer must include an IDEC member-at-large, and the third can be drawn from the IDEC membership or be another informed person. Two of the three reviewers must agree that it is ready for IDEC member review or needs minor or major revision by the Task Force. If minor or major revision is required, the Task Force will complete the revision and return it to the reviewers who will make the final judgment on its readiness for dissemination to the members.
3. Once the white paper is ready for dissemination, it will be placed on the IDEC Web site with appropriate announcements made to the members regarding its availability, the intended use of the white paper, and their role in review and comment.
4. It will be available for review and comment by members for 60 days. Members may respond in many different ways, e.g., email to IDEC Board, respond in the newsletter, blog, listserve, opposing paper, etc. If there are formal suggestions for revision, these will be referred to the Task Force and the three reviewers for consideration of potential inclusion. If significant revision occurs to the white paper, it may need to be made available for review and comment by members for an additional 60 day period.
5. After the comment period and revisions, the final white paper will be submitted to the IDEC Board of Directors for their acceptance.
6. If accepted, the white paper will be housed indefinitely on the IDEC Web site. If not accepted by the IDEC Board, the white paper can be returned to the Task Force for revision or redevelopment or deferred from any IDEC action. If not accepted, the Task Force will be thanked for their efforts and disbanded. There is nothing to stop Task Force members from continuing to develop a written work; however, it will not be an IDEC White Paper.
7. If appropriate, once a white paper is accepted, the IDEC Board can develop a resolution about the issue based on the white paper findings. The resolution is generally less than 100 words and is a statement of IDEC policy. A position statement must accompany the resolution and is an essay that supports the resolution or policy. It is generally less than 500 words and is written by the IDEC Board members. The position paper includes the purpose, rationale, and summary of documentation that supports the Board’s decision. The resolution and position statement must be approved by the Board.
8. Alternatively, a resolution and its position statement can be generated by individual members, work groups, or the Board. They do not need to only flow from a white paper. They will then follow the same procedure outlined in the next steps.
9. Once a resolution and its position statement are approved by the Board, they will be available for review and comment by members for 60 days and follow the above procedures as the white paper.
10. Once ready for vote, the resolution/statement will be disseminated to the membership for approval. Once approved by a majority of the membership, the resolution becomes IDEC policy.