red tagging
n.— «But the town of South Cle Elum has brought the sale of the single-family house to a halt by refusing to grant an occupancy permit. They also ordered Vaughn and his partners to stop work on the home, a procedure known as red tagging. Building inspectors say the house doesn’t meet setback requirements because of the roof overhang.» —“Developer, town at odds over setback” by Don Gronning Daily Record (Ellensburg, Washington) May 21, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
How do you pronounce pecan? Is it pee-KAHN or PEE-kan? And why are there different pronunciations of the name of this nut? The word pecan was borrowed into English more than once, and from numerous Native American languages that had variations on...
Ron in Gloverville, South Carolina, wonders about the phrase since hatchet was hammer, which some use to mean “for a long period of time,” as in My family has lived here since hatchet was hammer. Another phrase he’s heard indicating the same thing...