What Authorization-First Frameworks Do Not Claim

This preprint clarifies the scope limits and non-goals of authorization-first frameworks. While such frameworks introduce upstream constraints on admissibility, permission, and ordering, they do not define values, optimize outcomes, grant authority, automate governance, or prescribe implementation mechanisms. The paper identifies common misreadings and overextensions that arise when foundational constraints are mistaken for operational solutions. It explains why non-specification and restraint are intentional design features rather than omissions. This work functions as a boundary document within the Authorization-First research series. It introduces no new mechanisms, enforcement systems, or governance proposals, and should be read as a clarification of limits rather than an expansion of scope.