Code of Federal Regulations Title 41. Public Contracts and Property Management § 41.60–3.9 No assumption of validity

A. Unacceptable substitutes for evidence of validity. Under no circumstances will the general reputation of a test or other selection procedures, its author or its publisher, or casual reports of it's validity be accepted in lieu of evidence of validity. Specifically ruled out are:  assumptions of validity based on a procedure's name or descriptive labels;  all forms of promotional literature;  data bearing on the frequency of a procedure's usage;  testimonial statements and credentials of sellers, users, or consultants;  and other nonempirical or anecdotal accounts of selection practices or selection outcomes.

B. Encouragement of professional supervision. Professional supervision of selection activities is encouraged but is not a substitute for documented evidence of validity. The enforcement agencies will take into account the fact that a thorough job analysis was conducted and that careful development and use of a selection procedure in accordance with professional standards enhance the probability that the selection procedure is valid for the job.