ICANN Reserve Fund: Proposed Replenishment Strategy

Purpose: ICANN organization seeks public comment on the Reserve Fund replenishment strategy.

Current Status: A first public comment process held in October/November 2017 sought input on the rationale and target level of the Reserve Fund. It led the ICANN Board to develop further the previous rationale of the Reserve Fund and confirmed its target level to a minimum of 12 months of Operating Expenses. Now that the target level is confirmed, a replenishment strategy is needed to bring the Reserve Fund from its current level (approximately six months of Operating Expenses) to its minimum target level of 12 months.

Next Steps: The input collected during this public comment process will be considered by the ICANN Board to inform its decision on finalizing the replenishment strategy. A third public comment process will be organized subsequently to offer control mechanisms to govern the Reserve Fund (process to use the Reserve Fund, authority for approval, etc.).

After a first public comment process on the rationale and target level of the Reserve Fund, the ICANN Board determined that the Reserve Fund required further review and created a working group. As the target level has been confirmed, the difference between the current and the target levels shows a shortfall, and the Reserve Fund needs to be replenished. The purpose of this second public comment process is to offer a suggested replenishment strategy for input.

The Reserve Fund was created in 2007 with a target level set at a minimum of 12 months of Operating Expenses. It has been funded through operational excesses. Over the past years, ICANN‘s operations have grown, its risk profile has evolved, and withdrawals have been made to fund the IANA stewardship transition expenses.

As a result of these changes, the ICANN Board determined that the Reserve Fund required review and created a working group to evaluate it. This work led to the first public comment process on the rationale and the target level which was completed in November 2017. The ICANN Board confirmed the target level of a minimum of 12 months of Operating Expenses during its meeting on 5 February 2018.

ICANN Reserve Fund: Proposed Replenishment Strategy [PDF, 98 KB]