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Checklist States

Every checklist item has exactly one of four states at any time.

States

State Display Meaning
pending Not yet addressed. Default when an item is first added.
done Completed.
na Not applicable to this issue.
exception ⚠️ Needs approval from a qualified second party.

Transitions

Any collaborator with write access to the repo can move an item to done or na.

Moving an item to exception requires the approver to be logged in — because the exception is tied to the approver's identity. See Exception Approvals for the full rules.

Pending items block closure

A checklist is considered complete when no item is in the pending state. Items in exception still require an approver to sign off before they count as resolved.

Note

The app does not automatically block issue closure — it surfaces status via the SVG badge and the bot comment. Enforcement (e.g. a branch protection rule or CI check) is up to your workflow.

State in the comment

All state is serialized as JSON inside a hidden HTML comment in the bot's managed comment:

<!-- CHECKLIST_STATE: eyJzZWN0aW9ucyI6W...base64... -->

The JSON is never visible to end users. To inspect it manually, click Edit on the bot comment and look for the HTML comment.