41 C.F.R. Subpart B—Registration
Title 41 - Public Contracts and Property Management
Registration in the dot-gov domain is available to official governmental organizations in the United States including Federal, State, and local governments, and Native Sovereign Nations. Domain names must be authorized by the Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the requesting or sponsoring governmental organization. For Federal departments and agencies, the General Services Administration (GSA) will accept authorization from the CIO of the department or agency. For independent Federal government agencies, boards, and commissions, GSA will accept authorization from the highest-ranking Information Technology Official. For State and local governments, GSA will accept authorization from appropriate State or local officials, see §102–173.40. For Native Sovereign Nations, GSA will only accept authorization from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior. In most cases, GSA will not make determinations on the appropriateness of the selected domain names, but reserves the right to not assign domain names on a case-by-case basis. Non-Federal government domain names must follow the naming conventions described in §§102–173.50 through 102–173.65. For other government entities, CIO's may delegate this authority by notification to GSA. Your Chief Information Officer (CIO) may vary according to the branch of government. For the Federal Government, the General Services Administration (GSA) recognizes the cabinet level CIOs listed at http://www.cio.gov. For States, GSA will accept authorization from the Office of the Governor or highest-ranking Information Technology (IT) official. Other officials include the Mayor (for city or town), County Commissioner (for counties) or highest ranking IT official. Native Sovereign Nations (NSN) must receive authorization from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. CIOs may delegate this authority by notification to GSA. The General Services Administration (GSA) reserves the right to charge for domain names in order to recover cost of operations. For current registration charges, please visit the GSA Web site at http://www.nic.gov. GSA does not currently charge a fee. GSA has the authority to employ a system of collection that includes a one-time setup fee for new registrations, which will not exceed $1000, depending on the level of assistance that may be provided by GSA, and a recurring annual charge that will not exceed $500 for all dot-gov domains. The fees are based on anticipated costs for operating the registration service. (a) To register any second-level domain within dot-gov, State government entities must register the full State name or clearly indicate the State postal code within the name. Examples of acceptable names include virginia.gov, tennesseeanytime.gov, wa.gov, nmparks.gov, mysc.gov, emaryland.gov, and ne-taxes.gov. However— (1) Use of the State postal code should not be embedded within a single word in a way that obscures the postal code. For example, Indiana (IN) should not register for win.gov, or independence.gov; and (2) Where potential conflicts arise between postal codes and existing domain names, States are encouraged to register URL's that contain the full State name. (b) There is no limit to the number of domain names for which a State may register. (c) States are encouraged to make second-level domains available for third-level registration by local governments and State Government departments and programs. For example, the State of North Carolina could register NC.GOV as a second-level domain and develop a system of registration for their local governments. The State would be free to develop policy on how the local government should be registered under NC.GOV. One possibility might be to spell out the city, thus Raleigh.NC.gov could be a resulting domain name. (a) To register any second-level domain within dot-gov, City (town) governments must register the domain name with the city (town) name or abbreviation, and clear reference to the State in which the city (town) is located. However— (1) Use of the State postal code should not be embedded within a single word in a way that obscures the postal code; and (2) Inclusion of the word city or town within the domain name is optional and may be used at the discretion of the local government. (b)(1) The preferred format for city governments is to denote the State postal code after the city name, optionally separated by a dash. Examples of preferred domain names include— (i) Chicago-il.gov; (ii) Cityofcharleston-sc.gov; (iii) Charleston-wv.gov; (iv) Townofdumfries-va.gov; and (v) Detroitmi.gov. (2) GSA reserves the right to make exceptions to the naming conventions described in this subpart on a case-by-case basis in unique and compelling cases. (c) If third-level domain naming is used, GSA reserves the right to offer exceptions to the third-level domain naming conventions described in this section on a case-by-case basis in unique and compelling cases. (a) To register any second-level domain within dot-gov, County or Parish governments must register the County's or Parish's name or abbreviation, the word “county” or “parish” (because many counties have the same name as cities within the same State), and a reference to the State in which the county or parish is located. However, the use of the State postal code should not be embedded within a single word in a way that obscures the postal code. (b) The preferred format for county or parish governments is to denote the State postal code after the county or parish, optionally separated by a dash. Examples of preferred domain names include— (1) Richmondcounty-ga.gov; (2) Pwc-county-va.gov; and (3) Countyofdorchestor-sc.gov. (c) If third-level domain naming is available from the State government, counties or parishes are encouraged to register for a domain name under a State's registered second-level (e.g., richmondcounty.ga.gov). To register any second-level domain in dot-gov, Native Sovereign Nations (NSN) may register any second-level domain name provided that it contains the registering NSN name followed by a suffix of “-NSN.gov” (case insensitive). Registration is an online process at the General Services Administration's Web site at http://www.nic.gov. At the Network Information Site, you will find the instructions and online registration forms for registering your domain name. To register your domain name you will need to provide information such as your desired domain name, sponsoring organization, points of contact, and at least two name server addresses. The process can be completed within 48 hours if all information received is complete and accurate. Most requests take up to thirty (30) days because the registrar is waiting for Chief Information Officer (CIO) approval. A registration confirmation notice is sent within one business day after you register your domain name, informing you that your registration information was received. If all of your information is accurate and complete, a second notice will be sent to you within one business day, informing you that all of your information is in order. If you are ineligible, or if the information provided is incorrect or incomplete, your registration will be rejected and a notice will be sent to you stating the reason for rejection. Registration requests will be activated within two business days after receiving valid authorization from the appropriate Chief Information Officer (CIO). Once your domain name has been activated, a notice will be sent to you. Registrations will be held in reserve status for sixty (60) days pending Chief Information Officer (CIO) authorization from your sponsoring organization. Yes, canonical names registration request must provide access coverage for the areas conveyed by the name. So the URL recreation.gov would not be approved for the state of Maryland, but the URL recreationMD.gov would be approved if it provides statewide coverage. The logic of the names adds value to the dot gov domain. GSA reserves the right deny use of canonical names that do not provide appropriate coverage and to arbitrate these issues. The General Services Administration approves domain names for a specific term of time, generally two years unless otherwise stated, and under conditions of use. General conditions of registration and are posted at the registration Web site at http://www.nic.gov and may be modified over time. Organizations that operate web sites that are not in compliance with the conditions of use may have their domain name terminated.
Title 41: Public Contracts and Property Management
PART 102–173—INTERNET GOV DOMAIN
Subpart B—Registration
§ 102-173.30 Who may register in the dot-gov domain?
§ 102-173.35 Who authorizes domain names?
§ 102-173.40 Who is my Chief Information Officer (CIO)?
§ 102-173.45 Is there a registration charge for domain names?
§ 102-173.50 What is the naming convention for States?
§ 102-173.55 What is the naming convention for Cities and Townships?
§ 102-173.60 What is the naming convention for Counties or Parishes?
§ 102-173.65 What is the naming convention for Native Sovereign Nations?
§ 102-173.70 Where do I register my dot-gov domain name?
§ 102-173.75 How long does the process take?
§ 102-173.80 How will I know if my request is approved?
§ 102-173.85 How long will my application be held, pending approval by the Chief Information Officer (CIO)?
§ 102-173.90 Are there any special restrictions on the use and registration of canonical, or category names like recreation.gov?
§ 102-173.95 Are there any restrictions on the use of the dot-gov domain name?
