The National Laboratory Chief Communications Officers working group (NLCCO) advises the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Laboratory Directors Council (NLDC) and interacts with DOE communications and public affairs offices on relevant matters across the National Laboratory System (NLS). NLCCO functions include information exchange; consensus building; promotion of best practices and policies; coordination; counsel; and execution of communications-related activities identified by the NLDC, DOE, or NLCCO members.
Membership
The NLCCO comprises the senior communications executives from DOE’s 17 national laboratories.
NLCCO members will select a chair plus four to six other Executive Committee members for two-year terms. The five- to seven-member committee will include representatives of labs stewarded by the Office of Science, National Nuclear Security Administration, and at least one other DOE office (Nuclear Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Fossil Energy, or Environmental Management). The committee also will include representatives of both large and small or single-purpose labs.
Nominations and selections occur at the final meeting of a calendar year and take effect immediately.
The Executive Committee will set the date, location, and agenda for all regular meetings, will schedule teleconferences, and will form working groups or subcommittees as needed.
If the chair cannot complete a term, the Executive Committee will nominate a replacement to be voted upon by the full NLCCO. In the event that an Executive Committee member cannot complete a term and a replacement is required in order to maintain at least five total members and representation from SC, NNSA, and one other DOE office, a replacement will be nominated and selected by the full NLCCO.
Activities
The NLCCO will work at the direction of the NLDC, and the NLCCO’s activities with DOE will be coordinated with DOE’s Director of Public Affairs. The NLCCO also pursues initiatives identified by its members as beneficial for promoting the scientific missions and value of the National Laboratory System. The Executive Committee may assign working groups and individual members to specific matters of importance. Reporting and approval requirements for individual and working group efforts will be established upon assignment of each task.
Meetings of the NLCCO will be scheduled by the Executive Committee. Substitutes are permitted unless otherwise stated. The NLCCO will meet at least twice per year. The Executive Committee will meet more frequently and the chair or designee will communicate critical updates to the full NLCCO via email or a file-sharing website. Meetings may be via teleconference or in person.
Decisions are normally by simply majority and require a quorum of two-thirds of the membership (12 of 17), in person or by proxy.
This Charter may be amended by a two-thirds vote of all NLCCO members.