METHODOLOGY

How we do the work

Scorecards and standards without a public methodology are just opinions. Ours is designed to be published, versioned, and revised when it is wrong.

Sourcing

  • Primary sources only — statutes, regulations, meeting minutes, agency filings, court records, FOIL/FOIA productions, bylaws, and the entity's own published materials.
  • Secondary sources (news articles, academic papers) are cited for context but never as the basis for a governance claim.
  • Every claim on every profile is designed to be linked to the underlying source.

Scoring & rubric

  • Each area of focus will define its own rubric — the dimensions scored, the weighting, and the threshold for each grade band.
  • Rubrics will be versioned (v1.0, v1.1, etc.). When a rubric changes, all affected profiles will be re-scored and the version number will be visible on the profile.
  • Rubric drafts are intended to be opened for public comment before adoption.

Review

  • Internal review — every profile is intended to be read by a second TASFGA researcher before publication.
  • Counsel review — profiles naming specific entities or officials will be reviewed for defamation and factual-accuracy risk prior to release.
  • Accountability Council review — systemic claims (e.g., "this agency systematically violates X") will go to the Council before publication, once the Council is seated.

Corrections

See our Corrections Policy for how we handle errors. Material errors are corrected promptly, marked on the profile, and logged in a public changelog.

Conflicts of interest

  • Researchers and reviewers will disclose financial and personal interests in writing.
  • Any researcher with a material interest in a profiled entity will be recused. Recusals will be logged and available on request.
  • TASFGA's Independence Policy provides that it will accept no funding from entities whose conduct it audits in an active area of focus — see Transparency.

Versioning

Every published profile, standard, and scorecard carries a version number and date. Prior versions remain accessible. "Paper reform is not reform" applies to our own work: if the methodology changes, the record of that change is part of the record.