Internal approval authority

The AHP owner is the final internal approver for publishing, verification upgrades, guide publication, partner activation, and affiliate link activation.

External partner truth

AHP must keep partner status factual. Prospect, applied, pending, and approved are not the same as active. A program should be marked active only when the relationship is operational.

Public affiliate CTA gate

A public affiliate button can appear only when the product is published, the affiliate link is active, the partner/program status is active, a valid tracking or destination URL exists, and disclosure appears near the CTA.

Home Depot and retailer workflow

Retailer workflows such as Home Depot must remain draft-first until real program status and real link data exist. Retailer product text alone should not become a verified Made in USA claim.

What never changes because of affiliate money

Affiliate payout, commission potential, or partner pressure must not change verification status, source evidence requirements, approval status, Ask AHP answers, or editorial language.