Contribute
Every verified signal makes this early-warning system more effective. There are three ways to contribute.
Submit a tip
Spotted a county commission agenda item about detention? A job posting from a detention consultant? A warehouse sale near a county jail? File a tip and we'll research it.
Good tips include a county and state, a source URL, and a date. We verify every tip before adding it to the system.
Submit a tip →Add data directly
Know your way around markdown and git? Fork the repo, add entries, and submit a pull request. Every entry is a markdown file with YAML frontmatter.
Each entry needs: a title, county, state, FIPS code, signal type, and at least one source. See kb.yaml for the full schema.
Fork the repo →Improve the methodology
Think a signal should be weighted differently? Want to propose a new signal type? Disagree with how convergence bonuses work? Open a methodology discussion.
Propose a change →What makes a good tip
Strong tips (Tier 1 sources):
- County commission meeting minutes mentioning ICE, detention, or IGSA
- Government contract awards (USAspending.gov)
- Court filings or FOIA releases
- Official job postings from detention contractors
Good tips (Tier 2):
- Local newspaper coverage of detention proposals
- Investigative journalism or advocacy org reports
Leads (Tier 3 — we'll investigate):
- Social media posts from county officials
- Word of mouth from community members
Report an error
Found incorrect data? Every entry page has an "Edit" button that links to the GitHub editor and a "Report an issue" button for flagging errors.
Report a data correction →