Division of Operational Efficiency & Domestic Systems
Policy BIC-OPS-0054
Rev 1 · Effective immediately
1. Finding
The Bureau has confirmed the existence of covert scoring systems operating in a substantial majority of reviewed cohabitation arrangements. In each such system, one party has been assigning points, marks, or credits to the other for an extended period. The receiving party has, in most cases, not been informed that scoring is taking place.
The systems are not symmetrical. Where both parties score, the weighting, thresholds, and consequences differ. The Bureau does not have jurisdiction over the fairness of the scoring. It does, however, have jurisdiction over whether the scoring exists at all without the receiving party's knowledge.
2. Policy change
Effective immediately, any covert scoring system in operation within a cohabitation arrangement must be disclosed to all participating parties. Disclosure consists of, at minimum, an acknowledgment that the system exists. A full rubric is preferred but not required. A partial list of scored behaviors is acceptable, provided the list is genuine and not constructed for the purposes of this disclosure.
3. Representative scored behaviors
The Bureau has compiled the following from reviewed households as behaviors that reliably generate unreported negative marks. The list is illustrative, not exhaustive:
— Commenting on the other party's snacking.
— Describing dry dishes in the sink as "soaking."
— Repeating a joke that did not succeed the first time.
— Attempting to explain a joke that did not succeed the first time.
— Pretending to have followed a conversation because following it would have been, at the relevant moment, more effort than the subject wished to expend.
— Referring to a gift as being "from both of us" when one party procured it alone.
— Producing an apology that contains the phrase "if you feel that way."
The Bureau notes that the scoring party has, in many cases, no documented positive-mark column. Where such a column exists, it is often described by the scoring party as "under review" or "in discovery."
4. Obligations upon disclosure
Once the existence of a scoring system has been disclosed, the scored party may request the current total and, where possible, the rubric. The scoring party is not obligated to comply, but refusal to share the rubric is itself a disclosable condition and the Bureau regards repeated refusals as a secondary compliance issue.
Scoring may continue after disclosure. Most scoring does. The Bureau does not prohibit the practice; it regulates only its concealment.
5. Exemptions
The Bureau recognizes one (1) exemption: scoring performed silently, with no expectation that it will ever produce a consequence, conducted as a private emotional hygiene practice and not acted upon. This is classified as internal record-keeping and is not subject to this policy.
The Bureau notes that very little scoring, under review, falls into this category. Most scoring has consequences. The consequences are what make it a system.
6. Enforcement
None. The Bureau does not enter households to verify disclosure. This policy operates on the understanding that the scoring party knows what they are doing and will now, having read this, be obligated to acknowledge it. Whether they do so is a matter between the parties. The Bureau has done its part.