Historical Resolution Tracking Feature » FY20 Operating Plan and Budget and the Five-Year Operating Plan Update

Important note: The explanatory text provided through this database (including the summary, implementation actions, identification of related resolutions, and additional information) is an interpretation or an explanation that has no official authority and does not represent the purpose behind the Board actions, nor does any explanations or interpretations modify or override the Resolutions themselves. Resolutions can only be modified through further act of the ICANN Board.

FY20 Operating Plan and Budget and the Five-Year Operating Plan Update


Resolution of the ICANN Board
Meeting Date: 
Fri, 3 May 2019
Resolution Number: 
2019.05.03.24 – 2019.05.03.25
Resolution Text: 

Whereas, the draft FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and draft FY20 ICANN Five Year Operating Plan Update were posted for public comment in accordance with the Bylaws on 17 December 2018.

Whereas, comments received through the public comment process were discussed by Board members and ICANN organization during a public session at ICANN64 with representatives of the bodies that submitted those public comments to help ensure the comments were adequately understood and appropriate consideration was given to them.

Whereas, the public comments received were considered to determine required revisions to the draft FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and the draft FY20 ICANN Five‐Year Operating Plan Update.

Whereas, in addition to the public comment process, ICANN organization actively solicited community feedback and consultation with the ICANN community by other means, including public sessions at ICANN 64.

Whereas, at each of its recent regularly scheduled meetings, the Board Finance Committee (BFC) has discussed, and guided ICANN organization on the development of the final FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and final FY20 ICANN Five‐Year Operating Plan Update.

Whereas, the BFC evaluated and recommended approval of the Supporting Organization (SO) and Advisory Committee (AC) additional budget requests in a meeting on 24 April 2019.

Whereas, the BFC met on 24 April 2019, to review and discuss suggested changes resulting from public comment and consultations, as well as the final ICANN FY20 Operating Plan and Budget and final FY20 ICANN Five Year Operating Plan Update, and recommended that the Board adopt the FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and FY20 ICANN Five Year Operating Plan Update.

Whereas, per section 3.9 of the 2013 Registrar Accreditation Agreement, the Board is to establish the Registrar Variable Accreditation Fees, which must be established to develop the annual budget.

Whereas, the description of the Registrar fees, including the recommended Registrar Variable Accreditation Fees, for FY20 has been included in the FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget.

Resolved (2019.05.03.24), the Board adopts the FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget, including the FY20 ICANN Caretaker Budget that would be in effect in the event the FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget is not in effect at the beginning of FY20.

Resolved (2019.05.03.25), the Board adopts the FY20 ICANN Five Year Operating Plan Update.

Rationale for Resolution: 

In accordance with Section 22.4 of the ICANN Bylaws, the Board is to adopt an annual budget and publish it on the ICANN website. On 17 December 2018, drafts of the FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and the FY20 ICANN Five Year Operating Plan Update were posted for public comment. The Public Technical Identifiers (PTI) Board approved the PTI Budget on 20 December 2018, and the PTI Budget was received as input into the FY20 IANA Budget.

The published draft FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and the FY20 IANA Budget were based on numerous discussions with members of ICANN Organization and the ICANN Community, including extensive consultations with ICANN Supporting Organizations, Advisory Committees, and other stakeholder groups throughout the prior several months.

The comments received from the public comment process resulted in some revisions to the 17 December 2018 draft FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget. In addition, the following consultation activities were carried out:

01 August 2018 and 02 August 2018 – Community webinar on the FY20 Planning Schedule
13 March 2019, the comments received through the public comment process were discussed by Board members and ICANN organization members during a public session on public comments at ICANN64 with representatives of the ICANN bodies that submitted those comments, to help ensure that the comments were adequately understood and appropriate consideration was given.
In addition to the public comment process, ICANN org actively solicited community feedback and consultation with the ICANN community by other means, including public sessions at ICANN64.
All comments received in all manners were considered in developing the final FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and the FY20 ICANN Five Year Operating Plan Update. Where feasible and appropriate, these inputs have been incorporated into the final FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget and the FY20 ICANN Five Year Operating Plan Update proposed for adoption.

In addition to the day-to-day operational requirements, the FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget includes the FY20 new gTLD budget items and amounts allocated to various FY20 budget requests received from community leadership. The FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget also discloses financial information on the New gTLD Program, relative to expenses, funding and net remaining funds. Further, because the Registrar Variable Accreditation Fee is key to the development of the budget, the FY20 ICANN Operating Plan and Budget sets out and establishes those fees, which are consistent with recent years, and will be reviewed for approval by the Registrars.

The FY20 Operating Plan and Budget and the FY20 Five Year Operating Plan Update, all will have a positive impact on ICANN in that together they provide a proper framework by which ICANN will be managed and operated, which also provides the basis for the organization to be held accountable in a transparent manner. The ICANN community will have the opportunity to consider each of these documents through the Empowered Community processes, further reinforcing ICANN's accountability.

This decision is in the public interest and within ICANN's mission, as it is fully consistent with ICANN's strategic and operational plans, and the results of which in fact allow ICANN to satisfy its mission.

This decision will have a fiscal impact on ICANN and the Community as is intended. This should have a positive impact on the security, stability and resiliency of the domain name system (DNS) with respect to any funding that is dedicated to those aspects of the DNS.

This is an Organizational Administrative Function that has already been subject to public comment as noted above.