Guide · Reviewed November 2026 · Not legal advice
Adverse-Outcome Explanations in Plain Language
The short answer: an adverse-outcome explanation tells a person, in plain words, what the decision was, the main reasons for it, what data the tool used, and what they can do next — correct the data, or ask a person with authority to change the outcome to review it. Colorado requires it within 30 days of the decision. The worked examples below are generated from the ADMT Notice Kit's own document templates and are labelled examples, not real notices.
What does the explanation document actually say?
The kit generates every explanation from the same structure (app/documents.py): a heading, who it is from and to, the dates of the decision and of the explanation, then four sections — what happened, the main reasons, the data the tool used, and what the person can do next — closing with the record-keeping note and the kit's footer. Here is that structure filled in, as an example.
The bracketed lines and the two reasons are example content. In a real document the kit inserts the business's own profile (business name, tool name, review and correction contacts), the decision's real dates, and the principal reasons the business entered for that person — or, if none were entered, the document says so rather than inventing reasons.
What does the notice before the decision look like?
The explanation has a companion: the pre-use notice sent before the tool is used. Same kit, same plain-language structure — here in outline, as an example.
The duty behind each document — which states require it and from when — is laid out in Colorado AI Act Automated Decision Notices: What to Send, and every date is collected on the ADMT deadline tracker.
How do you write one that a person can act on?
- Name the decision and the outcome in the first lines — no preamble
- Give the principal reasons concretely; "the tool scored you low" is a restatement, not a reason
- Summarize the data the tool used, honestly — including when a summary was not entered
- State the two next steps as actions with named contacts: correct your data, ask for human review
- Keep a copy, its date, and any review that follows in the decision record for three years
Generate a real pre-use notice — free Check your duties first
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Frequently asked questions
What is an adverse-outcome explanation?
A plain-language statement sent after an automated or automated-assisted decision goes against a person. In Colorado it states the principal reasons for the outcome and the tool's role, and it is due within 30 days of the decision.
What should a plain-language explanation include?
What happened, the main reasons for the decision, the data the tool used, and what the person can do next: correct their data and ask for human review by a person with authority to change the outcome — with named contacts for both.
Are the examples on this page real notices?
No. They are worked examples, labelled as examples, generated from the ADMT Notice Kit's own document templates with example names and example reasons, so you can see the exact structure the kit produces.
What makes an explanation 'plain language'?
Short sentences a non-lawyer can act on: the reasons named concretely, the data summarized honestly, and the next steps stated as actions with a contact — not a legal citation or a restatement of the tool's output.
Does every state set a 30-day explanation deadline?
No. The 30-day clock is Colorado's (SB 26-189). The kit's data states no fixed day count for California or Connecticut explanations, so the kit shows those decisions as 'no fixed clock' rather than inventing one.