Comment Period Opens for Proposed 17th Edition of Standards for Relationship Testing Laboratories
March 07, 2025
The
proposed draft Standards for Relationship Testing Laboratories, 17th edition, is now available for
public comment until May 6. A
summary memo that accompanies the proposed RT Standards provides a comprehensive description of the additions and edits in the draft.
Some of the significant changes include:
- New Standards 1.9 and 1.9.1 require that accredited organizations contact AABB in the case that they are under organization by their competent authority.
- New Standard 3.8 requires that laboratories monitor their critical technology infrastructure and that they function as expected. This standard requires that there are defined checks to monitor that technology is working as intended and expected.
- New Standard 5.2.1.1 requires that laboratories inform tested persons in instances where their sample can be used for something other than determination of relationship, such as research or other studies.
- New Standard 5.2.1.2 ensures that accredited organizations that collect samples that could be used for law enforcement purposes have a separate consent form for potentially tested parties to ensure that they are aware of that, and how this affects their personal data privacy.
The Relationship Testing Standards Committee encourages all interested individuals to
submit comments in the next 60 days. The standards in the 17th edition are in the proposal phase and will be finalized after the comment period concludes. The committee will review all comments submitted and provide a summary document that describes the committee’s rationale for its final decisions.
