People are right to ask where a number came from before they repeat it. This page answers that question for everything on SourceLine, and it is written so you can check our work instead of taking our word for it.
Where the information comes from
SourceLine uses official public records: the U.S. Census Bureau, USAspending.gov for federal money, Congress.gov and the U.S. Senate for congressional votes, Open States for Georgia legislative votes, the Georgia Secretary of State for voter registration and turnout, and the minutes, agendas and voting systems of each city and county we cover. Every figure on the site names its source and the date we last checked it, with a link to the original.
What gets updated and when
Records are checked on a schedule. The list of who holds each office and DeKalb County’s voting records are checked every day. Votes in Congress and the Georgia legislature, and the minutes of the other councils and commissions we cover, are checked every week. Federal money and Census figures are checked every month, and district lines every three months. Voter registration and turnout figures are updated when the Secretary of State publishes new reports. When a source has not changed, we leave our copy alone. When a check fails, the item goes to a fix list and the page keeps showing the last good figure with its date, so you always know how current it is.
Local votes read from the minutes
Many councils do not publish votes in a database. For those, SourceLine reads the official minutes the council already approved. Before a vote appears, it must pass automatic checks: a clear result, a named mover and seconder, a description of the item, the source file, and where the minutes state a tally, a count that matches it. A vote that fails any check stays off the page until it is fixed. Each one says it was read from the minutes and links to them. When the minutes are still a draft, the vote is marked provisional.
Numbers we keep apart
Population, Black population, voting age population, voting age citizens, registered voters and people who actually voted are six different numbers, and each one tells a different story. SourceLine never swaps one for another or blends them. The same care applies to money: a grant awarded, the money actually paid out and money passed on to another organization are shown as separate stages, and a dollar passed along is never counted twice.
Facts, concerns and commentary
What officials did, what residents told us, and any summary written by artificial intelligence are kept apart and labeled. A plain language summary always says it was written by AI and links to the full official document. Residents’ concerns are counted and shown as concerns, not as findings. When SourceLine offers analysis, it is marked as analysis.
The same method for everyone
Every official is shown the same way, whatever their party, and every housing authority, city and county is measured by the same method.
What we never publish
SourceLine does not publish any individual’s voter record. Turnout and registration appear only as totals for a district or place. Campaign donors may be shown by name and amount, never with an address, phone or email, and donor information is never sold. When you share a concern, your name never appears beside it.
When we get something wrong
We will. Public records contain errors, and so can we. Every page has a way to report a problem, and corrections are made in the open. How corrections work