Assessment Methodology for Economic Analysis GAO-18-151SP: Published: Apr 10, 2018. Publicly Released: Apr 10, 2018. “GAO identifies five key methodological elements to the baseline structure of an economic analysis: Objective and scope, Methodology, Analysis of effects, Transparency and Documentation. GAO’s assessment methodology evaluates each key element and provides an overall assessment based on the assessment of the individual key elements. We prepared this report to answer the question: What are key methodological elements of an economic analysis that is intended to inform decision-makers and stakeholders?”