Glossary

Plain-language definitions for every term used on this site.

Budget & cost terms

TEI — Total Estimated Investment The government's published total expected cost of a project, including contingency. Published annually in Budget Paper 4. When we say "blowout", we mean the gap between the original TEI and the current TEI.

Original TEI The TEI at the first year the project appeared in Budget Paper 4.

Current TEI The TEI in the most recent Budget Paper 4.

Cost drift The percentage difference between original and current TEI. Positive = over budget. Negative = under budget (rare).

Contingency Money set aside within the TEI for unknowns. Governments often draw down contingency silently — which is why watching the TEI alone misses some drift.

Schedule terms

Original completion date The expected completion date when the project first appeared in BP4.

Current completion date The latest expected completion date.

Schedule drift Months (or years) between original and current completion.

Rating terms

RAG status Red, Amber, Green. The government's own status rating. Red = serious concerns, Amber = at risk, Green = on track. Self-reported, so treat with appropriate scepticism.

Wall of Shame Our shorthand for the 10 projects with the largest absolute cost increase. No editorial judgement — it's a sort.

Wall of Fame The 10 projects performing best against original commitments.

Donation terms

Hedging ratio When a donor gives to both major parties, we report the ratio. A hedging ratio near 1.0 means even splits; near 0 means donations flow almost entirely to one side.

Contractor donor A company that is both (a) a donor disclosed to the AEC and (b) a contractor on projects tracked in our database.

Verified contractor→ALP donations Donations we've matched between AEC disclosures and our contractor list. The word "verified" means the name match is confirmed, not that we're alleging anything.

Network terms

Node A point in the network graph — a contractor, politician, project, or donation.

Edge A connection between two nodes — e.g. "contractor X donated to party Y" or "contractor X worked on project Z".

Degree How many edges a node has. High-degree nodes are hubs of the network.

Mate On the Mates Detector, a "mate" is a person or company that appears in two or more overlapping networks (donation, directorship, contract, family). It is not an allegation.

Council terms

LGPRF — Local Government Performance Reporting Framework The 22,776-indicator dataset councils are required to publish. This is where most council data on this site comes from.

VLGGC Victorian Local Government Grants Commission — collects standardised council financial data.

Rates vs services A comparison of how much of a council's rates income is spent on frontline services vs corporate/governance overhead.

Grant terms

Program A named pot of money (e.g. Regional Development Grants Program, Community Batteries).

Recipient The organisation that received a grant.

Selection method How the grant was awarded — competitive, discretionary, or formula-based. Discretionary grants carry higher political risk and are flagged accordingly.

Missing a term? Open an issue.

Last reviewed: 11 Apr 2026