The short answer
Every dataset we publish states its source, version, retrieval date, filters, unit of analysis and exclusions. We use free public sources so anyone can reproduce the work. Where a figure is partial or distorted by a single event, we label it rather than smooth it into a trend.
The standing rules
- Public sources only. If a finding cannot be reproduced from a free, public dataset, we do not publish it as a finding. This is a deliberate contrast with the subscription market-research reports that currently dominate industry-statistics searches.
- State the unit of analysis. “Events”, “claims”, “establishments” and “licensees” are different things and are not interchangeable. We say which one a number is.
- State the retrieval date. Public datasets are revised. A figure is only true as of the moment it was pulled.
- Publish the exclusions. What we filtered out matters as much as what we kept.
- Label partial periods. A year in progress is never charted as a completed year.
- Check whether one event is carrying a trend. If a single declaration or storm system dominates a period, we say so rather than presenting it as a baseline shift.
- Publish the limits. Every data report ends with what the dataset cannot tell you.
Sources we use
| Source | What it gives us | Access |
|---|---|---|
| FEMA OpenFEMA | Federal disaster declarations, household assistance records and NFIP claims, at county level | Free, no key |
| BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics | Employment and wages for hazardous materials removal workers (SOC 47-4041) by state | Free API |
| BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages | Establishment and employment counts for remediation services by county | Free, no key |
| State licensing agencies | Mould and asbestos licensee rosters where a state publishes them | Free, varies by state |
| EPA and OSHA | Federal guidance and regulation on mould and asbestos | Free |
On industry size figures
Published estimates of the restoration industry’s size vary by an order of magnitude. A large part of that gap is definitional: there is no single industry classification code for restoration work. NAICS 562910 covers environmental remediation, which is a different trade, while fire and flood restoration of buildings sits in construction classifications and scatters across several specialty-trade codes.
We therefore do not quote a single market-size figure as fact. Where we discuss industry size we show which classification produced which number.
Reproducing our work
Each data report names the exact endpoint and the filters applied. If you pull the same source on the same basis you should get the same figures, allowing for revisions made after our retrieval date. If you do not, tell us.