[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 30 (Tuesday, February 14, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7740-7741]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-2049]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology


Announcing a National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program 
Workshop for Laboratories Interested in the NIST Personal Identity 
Verification Program (NPIVP)

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Department of 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public workshop.

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SUMMARY: The National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program 
(NVLAP) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 
Personal Identity Verification Program (NPIVP) will hold a public 
workshop on March 3, 2006, at NIST headquarters in Gaithersburg, MD. 
The purpose of the workshop is the exchange of information among NVLAP, 
laboratories interested in seeking accreditation for the testing of 
Personal Identity Verification (PIV) components, vendors interested in 
having their product NPIVP-certified and Federal agencies seeking NPIVP 
certified products. The workshop will also review the mandates of 
Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD) 12, as well as Federal 
Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 201, Standard for Personal 
Identity Verification of Federal Employees and Contractors, and the 
associated Special Publications (SP) in general and more specific in 
relation to NVLAP, interested laboratories, vendors and Federal 
agencies. The results of the workshop discussions will be used in the 
development of the NVLAP Personal Identity Verification (PIV) 
Laboratory Accreditation Program (PIV LAP).
    There is no charge for the workshop; however, because of security 
regulations, advance registration is mandatory. There will be no on-
site, same-day registration. The registration deadline is Monday, 
February 27, 2006. A registration form can be found at http://csrc.nist.gov/npivp/. Please e-mail the registration to [email protected] 
or fax the registration form with your name, address, telephone, fax 
and e-mail address to (301) 948-2067 (Attn: Hildegard Ferraiolo) no 
later than February 27, 2006.

DATES: The workshop will be held on Friday, March 3, 2006, from 9 a.m. 
to 4:30 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The workshop will be held in the Administrative Building 
(Building 101), Lecture Room A, National Institute of Standards and

[[Page 7741]]

Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hildy Ferraiolo, (301) 975-6972, e-
mail: [email protected] or Erika McCallister, (301) 975-
3390, e-mail: [email protected]. Their mailing address is: 
National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Mail 
Stop 8930, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-8930. Information regarding NVLAP and 
the accreditation process can also be viewed at http://www.nist.gov/nvlap.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In response to Homeland Security 
Presidential Directive (HSPD) 12, the NIST Computer Security Division 
initiated a new program for improving the identification and 
authentication of Federal employees and contractors for access to 
Federal facilities and information systems. Federal Information 
Processing Standard (FIPS) 201, entitled Personal Identity Verification 
(PIV) of Federal Employees and Contractors, was developed to satisfy 
the requirements of HSPD 12, approved by the Secretary of Commerce, and 
issued on February 25, 2005.
    To meet the interoperability requirements as specified in HSPD-12 
and implemented in FIPS 201 and associated Special Publications (SP), 
NIST has established the NIST Personal Identity Verification Program 
(NPIVP) to certify interoperable Personal Identity Verification (PIV) 
components and sub-systems.
    In furtherance of NPIVP, the National Voluntary Laboratory 
Accreditation Program (NVLAP) is establishing a program for 
laboratories that test PIV components and sub-systems for conformance 
to the interoperability requirements of FIPS 201 and associated special 
publications.
    NVLAP accreditation criteria are established in accordance with the 
Code of Federal Regulations (15 CFR part 285), NVLAP Procedures and 
General Requirements. Laboratories conducting this testing will be 
required to meet ISO/IEC International Standard 17025, general 
requirements for the competence of testing and calibration 
laboratories. For each new laboratory accreditation program (LAP), 
NVLAP works with the affected testing community to develop program-
specific technical requirements. These requirements tailor the general 
accreditation criteria referenced in Sections 4 and 5 of NIST Handbook 
150 to the test and services in the new LAP. Program-specific 
requirements include the details of the scope of accreditation, test 
and measurement equipment, personnel requirements, validation of test 
methods, and reporting of test results.

    Authority: This work effort is being initiated pursuant to 
NIST's responsibilities under the Federal Information Security 
Management Act of 2002.

    Dated: February 8, 2006.
William Jeffrey,
Director.
 [FR Doc. E6-2049 Filed 2-13-06; 8:45 am]
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