node/GOVERNANCE.md

Node.js Project Governance

Technical Committee

The Node.js project is jointly governed by a Technical Steering Committee (TSC) which is responsible for high-level guidance of the project.

The TSC has final authority over this project including:

• Technical direction
• Project governance and process (including this policy)
• Contribution policy
• GitHub repository hosting
• Conduct guidelines
• Maintaining the list of additional Collaborators

Initial membership invitations to the TSC were given to individuals who had been active contributors to Node.js, and who have significant experience with the management of the Node.js project. Membership is expected to evolve over time according to the needs of the project.

For the current list of TSC members, see the project README.md.

Collaborators

The nodejs/node GitHub repository is maintained by the TC and additional Collaborators who are added by the TC on an ongoing basis.

Individuals making significant and valuable contributions are made Collaborators and given commit-access to the project. These individuals are identified by the TC and their addition as Collaborators is discussed during the weekly TC meeting.

Note: If you make a significant contribution and are not considered for commit-access, log an issue or contact a TC member directly and it will be brought up in the next TC meeting.

Modifications of the contents of the nodejs/node repository are made on a collaborative basis. Anybody with a GitHub account may propose a modification via pull request and it will be considered by the project Collaborators. All pull requests must be reviewed and accepted by a Collaborator with sufficient expertise who is able to take full responsibility for the change. In the case of pull requests proposed by an existing Collaborator, an additional Collaborator is required for sign-off. Consensus should be sought if additional Collaborators participate and there is disagreement around a particular modification. See Consensus Seeking Process below for further detail on the consensus model used for governance.

Collaborators may opt to elevate significant or controversial modifications, or modifications that have not found consensus to the TC for discussion by assigning the tc-agenda tag to a pull request or issue. The TC should serve as the final arbiter where required.

For the current list of Collaborators, see the project README.md.

A guide for Collaborators is maintained in COLLABORATOR_GUIDE.md.

TC Membership

TC seats are not time-limited. There is no fixed size of the TC. However, the expected target is between 6 and 12, to ensure adequate coverage of important areas of expertise, balanced with the ability to make decisions efficiently.

There is no specific set of requirements or qualifications for TC membership beyond these rules.

The TC may add additional members to the TC by a standard TC motion.

A TC member may be removed from the TC by voluntary resignation, or by a standard TC motion.

Changes to TC membership should be posted in the agenda, and may be suggested as any other agenda item (see "TC Meetings" below).

No more than 1/3 of the TC members may be affiliated with the same employer. If removal or resignation of a TC member, or a change of employment by a TC member, creates a situation where more than 1/3 of the TC membership shares an employer, then the situation must be immediately remedied by the resignation or removal of one or more TC members affiliated with the over-represented employer(s).

TC Meetings

The TC meets weekly on a Google Hangout On Air. The meeting is run by a designated moderator approved by the TC. Each meeting should be published to YouTube.

Items are added to the TC agenda which are considered contentious or are modifications of governance, contribution policy, TC membership, or release process.

The intention of the agenda is not to approve or review all patches. That should happen continuously on GitHub and be handled by the larger group of Collaborators.

Any community member or contributor can ask that something be added to the next meeting's agenda by logging a GitHub Issue. Any Collaborator, TC member or the moderator can add the item to the agenda by adding the tc-agenda tag to the issue.

Prior to each TC meeting, the moderator will share the Agenda with members of the TC. TC members can add any items they like to the agenda at the beginning of each meeting. The moderator and the TC cannot veto or remove items.

The TC may invite persons or representatives from certain projects to participate in a non-voting capacity. These invitees currently are:

• A representative from build chosen by that project.

The moderator is responsible for summarizing the discussion of each agenda item and sending it as a pull request after the meeting.

Consensus Seeking Process

The TC follows a Consensus Seeking decision making model.

When an agenda item has appeared to reach a consensus, the moderator will ask "Does anyone object?" as a final call for dissent from the consensus.

If an agenda item cannot reach a consensus, a TC member can call for either a closing vote or a vote to table the issue to the next meeting. The call for a vote must be approved by a majority of the TC or else the discussion will continue. Simple majority wins.