What Conference-Approved Means

Key takeaway

Conference-approved describes written or audiovisual material the General Service Conference has approved for publication by the General Service Office. A.A. says the label keeps that material in line with A.A. principles. It does not ban books from other publishers. The Grapevine is recognized as the international journal by a 1986 Conference action because each issue cannot wait for that review.

Last updated: Mon Oct 05 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Someone at the literature table just split the books into allowed and forbidden. A.A.'s own pages describe a narrower gate. The FAQ says the term describes written or audiovisual material approved by the General Service Conference for publication by the General Service Office. The process, it says, assures that everything in that literature is in accord with A.A. principles. The material always deals with the recovery program of Alcoholics Anonymous or with information about the A.A. fellowship.

The same answer says the term has no relevance to material the General Service Office does not publish. It does not imply that the Conference disapproves of other material about A.A. A great deal of literature helpful to alcoholics is published by others, and A.A. does not try to tell members what they may read.

Service piece SMF-29 repeats that definition and adds how the review works. It says any Conference-approved booklet or pamphlet goes through a lengthy process in which A.A. members from across the United States and Canada read it and comment at every stage. It tells you how to check an item in your hand: look for the statement "This is A.A. General Service Conference-approved literature" on books, pamphlets, and audiovisual materials.

If someone is in immediate danger, call 911. For a mental health crisis, call or text 988. A pamphlet is not emergency care.

What still counts as A.A. reading without that sentence

SMF-29 says central offices and intergroups write pamphlets and booklets that are not Conference-approved. If a piece meets local needs, the service piece says it may legitimately be called A.A. literature. It says there is no conflict between A.A. World Services, the publisher of Conference-approved literature, and those local offices. The Conference does not disapprove of the local material.

The same piece says the General Service Office also produces items that do not have to be approved by the Conference: service material, guidelines, and bulletins. SMF-29 is itself marked as service material from the General Service Office. The label and the service piece are different kinds of paper. A group can display both.

SMF-29 says most local groups buy and display a sampling of Conference-approved pamphlets and usually carry hardcover books. It says Conference-approved literature may be at a central office or intergroup, or ordered from the General Service Office. It says groups normally offer pamphlets free of charge and the books at cost. That is the service piece's description of the usual table. It is not a dollar price, and it is not a promise that every group still does it that way. Catalog titles, including Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, are named on the books guide. Prices stay in the catalog.

The Grapevine does not fit the yearly review

The Grapevine FAQ says Grapevine and La Viña are the international journals of Alcoholics Anonymous. It says Conference approval is a long review and represents the widest possible consensus of A.A. experience. The process can take years, with several stages of committee evaluation, and the Conference as a whole must approve the final product before it can carry the Conference-approved statement.

The FAQ then says why the magazines do not go through that process. The Grapevine is published 12 times a year, and La Viña 6 times a year. The Conference meets once a year. A monthly journal would not reach press if each issue waited for the Conference. The FAQ quotes a 1986 Conference Advisory Action: "Since each issue of the Grapevine cannot go through the Conference-approval process, the Conference recognizes the Grapevine as the international journal of Alcoholics Anonymous."

SMF-29 records the same 1986 action, with the word "the" set off in parentheses in its printing of the sentence, and says La Viña is recognized in the same way by extension. It adds three older facts about the journal's place in the service structure. The Conference Charter guarantees the editor's right to accept or reject material. A Conference Committee on the Grapevine was formed in 1954. Matters important to the fellowship as a whole go to the Conference through that committee. SMF-29 also says the A.A. Preamble is copyrighted by AA Grapevine, Inc., not by A.A. World Services. The Preamble stays on the Grapevine's own pages.

A member study sits outside the label

The example people ask about is the Joe and Charlie series. The workshop history page describes a member-led Big Book study. It was not in the 2025 World Services catalog checked for the books list, and the Big Book page on aa.org does not describe it. Under the definition above, that means the series is not Conference-approved literature. SMF-29's next point still applies: the label does not tell a member what else they may read, and it does not disapprove of material GSO did not publish.

The opposite case is Living Sober, a booklet inside the World Services catalog. The catalog is the list. The sentence on the cover is the label.

Copyright is a separate limit. SMF-29 says Conference-approved literature is copyrighted, and that permission to reprint must be obtained in writing from A.A. World Services. It says A.A. newsletters, bulletins, and meeting lists have a blanket permission if they give proper credit. It says permission to reprint Grapevine content must come from AA Grapevine, Inc. A newsletter's blanket permission is not a license to copy the books onto another site.

You can read Conference-approved literature and still need a meeting or a clinician. The meeting finder searches public A.A. and N.A. feeds. Topic meetings often draw on this literature, which the discussion-meeting guide notes. FindTreatment.gov lists licensed programs. The dated fellowship record, including the 1952 Twelve and Twelve, stays on the history guide.

SmarterRecovery is a referral helpline. SMART Recovery is a separate mutual-help program. Neither one is A.A. World Services. Call or text (800) 653-9376 if you want help finding a program. If you wanted a meeting, say so.

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Common Questions

What does Conference-approved mean?

A.A.'s FAQ and service piece SMF-29 use the same definition. The term describes written or audiovisual material the General Service Conference approved for publication by the General Service Office. The process is meant to keep that literature in accord with A.A. principles. It deals with the recovery program or with information about the fellowship. SMF-29 says members across the United States and Canada read a booklet or pamphlet and comment before it is approved.

Does the label ban other books about A.A.?

No. The FAQ and SMF-29 say the term has no relation to material the General Service Office does not publish, and that it does not imply disapproval of other material about A.A. They say other publishers print a great deal of literature helpful to alcoholics, and that A.A. does not tell a member what to read. SMF-29 adds that a central office may write its own pamphlet and still call it A.A. literature locally.

Is the Grapevine Conference-approved?

Not issue by issue. The FAQ says the Grapevine is published 12 times a year and La Viña 6 times a year, while the Conference meets once a year. A 1986 Conference action recognizes the Grapevine as the international journal of Alcoholics Anonymous because each issue cannot wait for that review. SMF-29 says La Viña is recognized the same way, and that a Conference Committee on the Grapevine was formed in 1954.

Is a Joe and Charlie tape set Conference-approved?

It was not in the 2025 A.A. World Services catalog checked for the books guide, and the Big Book page on aa.org does not describe it. The workshop site presents it as a member study. That puts it outside material GSO published through the Conference process. The same definition says the label is not a ban. The Joe and Charlie guide stays with that history and does not quote the tapes.

How can I tell a piece is Conference-approved?

SMF-29 says to look for this statement on books, pamphlets, and audiovisual materials: 'This is A.A. General Service Conference-approved literature.' It also says GSO produces some items that do not need Conference approval, including service material, guidelines, and bulletins. SMF-29 itself is service material. The books guide names catalog titles, including Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, and leaves prices off.