Score reduction may be made for taking credit for unconfirmed QSOs or multipliers, duplicate contacts or other scoring discrepancies.

An entry with more than two-percent duplicate contacts left in the log or an entry in which more than 2% "rubber clocking" (altering the actual time to increase the operating time so that it is greater than the allowable limit) is detected will be automatically disqualified.

Participants that are disqualified will be barred from submitting an entry in the next annual running of that specific contest, for example, disqualification from the 1998 phone SS prohibits submission of an entry for the 1999 phone SS, but 1999 CW SS participation is allowable.

Call signs of all disqualified participants will be listed in the QST contest report.

Any participant on the borderline of disqualification, but not actually disqualified, may receive a warning letter.

For each duplicate contact that is claimed for credit and each miscopied call sign that is removed from the log by HQ, three additional contacts will be deleted as a penalty. The penalty will not be considered part of the 2% disqualification criteria.

In all cases of question, the decisions of the ARRL Awards Committee are final.