References & Methodology

• Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), "Penalty Amounts," osha.gov, 2024. — Current maximum per-violation penalties for serious, willful, and repeat citations.
• International Code Council (ICC), "International Building Code (IBC)," 2021. — Model building code adopted by most U.S. jurisdictions governing permit requirements.
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), "Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities (IIF)," bls.gov. — TRIR and DART rate calculation methodology and national industry averages.
• National Association of State Contractors Licensing Agencies (NASCLA), "Licensing Requirements by State," nascla.org. — State-by-state contractor licensing fee and reciprocity data.

Understanding TRIR and DART

TRIR (Total Recordable Incident Rate) counts all OSHA-recordable injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time equivalent workers. An OSHA-recordable incident is any work-related injury or illness that results in days away from work, restricted work, job transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, or diagnosis of a significant illness by a healthcare professional.

DART (Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred Rate) is a subset of TRIR that counts only the more severe incidents — those resulting in days away from work, job restrictions, or job transfers. A lower DART relative to TRIR suggests less-severe incidents overall.