Frequently asked questions

Formal Colorado Springs City Council meetings. Work sessions, committee meetings, and other governing bodies are not yet covered.

City Council meets roughly every two weeks, and analysis is typically published within days of each regular meeting.

All nine councilmembers. Members who join or leave mid-term are scored on the meetings they actually sat for, so a newly appointed member is not judged on votes they never cast.

Civix IQ, LLC operates a network of government transparency services on its civicprinciples.com platform — CouncilWatch in Colorado Springs and CommissionWatch in El Paso County. Each service analyzes that government’s meetings against the same 15 principles of good governance, creating a structured public record of votes, discussion, process and performance.

No. We apply the same 15 governance principles to every member and every vote, regardless of ideology or political alignment. Every service in the network evaluates governance conduct and public decision-making — not partisan outcomes or political preferences.

The CivicPrinciples network of government transparency services is operated by Civix IQ, LLC, and is currently funded through founder investment and subscriber revenue. It is not directed by any political party, campaign, government entity, or advocacy organization.

No. We do not endorse candidates, political parties, or ballot measures.

Where a potential violation appears, it is classified as Clear, Likely, or Potential. Those findings are weighted and combined into a final 0-to-5 score, where lower scores indicate stronger alignment with the principles of good governance. Scores map to three tiers: Principled (0.00–1.50), Questionable (1.51–3.50), and Screwed (3.51–5.00).

A set of governance standards covering transparency, fairness, fiscal responsibility, public engagement, accountability, and related civic expectations citizens should be able to expect from elected officials.

Each vote is evaluated independently based on the full meeting record available at the time — the policy itself, public testimony, discussion, alternatives considered, procedural handling, and member conduct. Two votes on related matters may score differently if the surrounding record differs materially.

Scores reflect whatever votes a member has cast during the current session. A member with few votes will have a less stable score than one with a longer history. Per-member evaluations note limited-sample situations explicitly, and scores generally stabilize as the record grows.

Yes. Scores may be revised if factual errors are identified or if additional official records materially affect the evaluation. Material changes to a member’s score are noted on their evaluation. Scores may also be recalculated when the methodology is updated, in which case the change applies consistently across all members.

The body-wide rating uses "Screwed" because it evaluates the collective outcomes experienced by residents. Individual members in the equivalent tier are labeled "Screwed Up" because no single member alone determines the body’s overall direction.

It transcribes meeting video, identifies agenda items and votes, matches speakers to comments, and applies the 15-principles rubric to each vote. Every vote in every market runs through the same evaluation pipeline using the same criteria.

Human oversight is applied throughout the analysis pipeline, and we conduct periodic quality reviews. Our Audit Policy describes the formal review process available for significant concerns, and we accept reader-submitted corrections.

No. These services provide structured analysis intended to inform human judgment — by readers, journalists, civic groups, researchers, and the public. Voters and policymakers make the decisions.

If you believe a vote contains a factual error, missing context, or an incorrect principle classification, submit a report through Report an Issue. We review credible submissions and update the underlying record when warranted. Broader concerns about methodology are addressed through our Audit Policy.

Civix IQ is exploring partnership and licensing models that would bring new councils and commissions into the network, operated for or alongside journalism outlets, nonprofits, universities, and civic organizations. These offerings are still in development — get in touch for an early conversation.