Mission The National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE) is an independent and nonprofit standards development body with the sole mission to enhance athletic safety through scientific research and the creation of performance standards for athletic equipment. Function Since its inception in 1969, NOCSAE has been a leading force in the effort to improve athletic equipment, and to reduce injuries through robust standards for athletic equipment. NOCSAE develops voluntary performance and test standards for athletic equipment that are available for adoption by any athletic regulatory body. Numerous national and international regulatory bodies for sports require NOCSAE standards, including the NFL, NCAA, National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), USA Football, US Lacrosse and the United States Department of Defense Education Activity. Standards NOCSAE standards are created, revised and approved by the NOCSAE Standards Committee, which serves as a consensus body in accordance with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) due process requirements for standards development bodies. The NOCSAE standard is an objective pass/fail standard, not a comparative standard. Interested parties are encouraged to submit comments, suggestions, objections or other responses to any standards under consideration or existing standards. NOCSAE standards are constantly being updated to reflect the latest science, technology and medicine. Research NOCSAE fosters and encourages the dissemination of information on research findings on athletic equipment, injury data, and other closely related areas of inquiry through the organizations represented on the NOCSAE Board of Directors, and other entities in the fields of athletic and sports medicine. Since 1995, NOCSAE has devoted more than $9.1 million toward concussion research by the foremost experts in sports medicine and science to develop and advance athlete safety.