@attalabs/vinaya 0.1.3 → 0.3.0

package/aeg-root/enforcement.md

@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ The same check implementations run at ring 0 and ring 1 — one codebase, two en
 | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
 | Editing a governed file | Ever had a teammate change code they clearly never read the docs for? | hook | Refuses an edit to a governed file until the document that governs it has been read in this session. | **Edit gate** | The architecture document that owns the file has been loaded in this session — no editing governed code from pattern-matching alone | `.claude/hooks/check-skill.sh` |
 | `git commit` | Ever pushed code that didn't even compile? | hook | Refuses a commit that does not build or pass its own checks, before the broken state exists at all. | **Git pre-commit hooks** | The code compiles, passes lint and formatting, the unit tests pass, and the commit message follows the repo's message convention | `.husky/pre-commit` |
-| `git push` | Ever had someone accidentally push straight to main? | hook | Refuses a push that would land straight on main, on the machine that attempted it. | **Git pre-push hook** | No pushing straight to `main` — a direct push cannot be refused for a commit that already landed on `main` some other way (e.g. a repo-admin action outside the hook's reach); that residual class now has a ring-2 detection backstop (see below, task 24 item 1). A task branch's name must exactly match its planned task row in the tranche plan. A task branch whose most recent pull request is already `MERGED` or `CLOSED` is refused outright — closing the class of bug where stale local work lands on an already-resolved branch, silently reopening/confusing forge state (live-fire incident, 2026-07-03: six topology rows landed on a plan PR's branch after that PR had merged); this check is fail-open (hook-dependent), so it too now has a ring-2 detection backstop (see below, task 24 item 2). This check is deliberately **fail-open**: if the forge cannot be reached (network flake, auth issue, rate limit) it is treated the same as "no pull request exists yet" and the push is allowed — a transient reachability issue must never block every push. On a task branch's first push (before its PR exists), `verify-dispatch` also runs itself here — see the dedicated row below (task 25). Any changed code that has a designated owning document must have that document updated in the same branch, OR (task 29) carry an actor-verified `vinaya/waiver:docs` label on the open pull request — a waiver is a forge-authenticated human act, never a parseable string. Before a PR exists (first push) no such label can exist yet, so an owned-doc violation here is **warn-with-declared-intent, not a hard block**: the push always succeeds, and the printed message states plainly that ring 1 stays red until a principal applies the label or the doc is updated — this replaces the earlier first-push `Doc-waiver:` commit-trailer self-service, which is now dead code (that path is superseded). `Doc-ack:` (URL-pointer acknowledgment) is unaffected by the waiver change — still read from the branch's own last commit message before a PR exists, or — for a pre-authoring dry run via `verify-dispatch --simulate`, before any commit exists — from a local drafted-PR-body file. | `.husky/pre-push` |
+| `git push` | Ever had someone accidentally push straight to main? | hook | Refuses a push that would land straight on main, on the machine that attempted it. | **Git pre-push hook** | No pushing straight to `main` — a direct push cannot be refused for a commit that already landed on `main` some other way (e.g. a repo-admin action outside the hook's reach); that residual class now has a ring-2 detection backstop (see below, task 24 item 1). A task branch's name must exactly match its planned task row in the tranche plan. A task branch whose most recent pull request is already `MERGED` or `CLOSED` is refused outright — closing the class of bug where stale local work lands on an already-resolved branch, silently reopening/confusing forge state (live-fire incident, 2026-07-03: six topology rows landed on a plan PR's branch after that PR had merged); this check is fail-open (hook-dependent), so it too now has a ring-2 detection backstop (see below, task 24 item 2). This check is deliberately **fail-open**: if the forge cannot be reached (network flake, auth issue, rate limit) it is treated the same as "no pull request exists yet" and the push is allowed — a transient reachability issue must never block every push. On a task branch's first push (before its PR exists), `verify-dispatch` also runs itself here — see the dedicated row below (task 25). Any changed code that has a designated owning document must have that document updated in the same branch, OR (task 29) carry an actor-verified `vinaya/waiver:docs` label on the open pull request, OR (task 4) carry a `Doc-neutral: <pointer> — <note>` PR-body declaration whose matched-file diff is verified comment/whitespace-only (`isMechanicallyNeutralDiff`) — a waiver is a forge-authenticated human act, never a parseable string, and a Doc-neutral declaration is never sufficient by itself; only diff-confirmed evidence satisfies it. Before a PR exists (first push) no waiver label can exist yet, so an owned-doc violation here is **warn-with-declared-intent, not a hard block**: the push always succeeds, and the printed message states plainly that ring 1 stays red until a principal applies the label, the doc is updated, or a Doc-neutral declaration with confirming evidence is added — this replaces the earlier first-push `Doc-waiver:` commit-trailer self-service, which is now dead code (that path is superseded). `Doc-ack:` (URL-pointer acknowledgment) is unaffected by the waiver change — still read from the branch's own last commit message before a PR exists, or — for a pre-authoring dry run via `verify-dispatch --simulate`, before any commit exists — from a local drafted-PR-body file. | `.husky/pre-push` |
 | Creating a pull request, or editing its title/description | Ever opened a PR that was missing half the info reviewers needed? | event | Refuses to open or edit a pull request until it carries everything a reviewer needs to judge it. | **Forge command gate** — the raw command is refused; the validated wrapper is the only path | The title follows the naming convention. The description carries every required section of the task brief: the impact tier, the executing model, the project(s) touched, a tagged test plan, the file surface the task may touch, the documentation it must update, the isolated-worktree setup step, the stop conditions, the standing autonomy clause, the Issue this work closes,. A *plan* pull request must never close a task Issue. The documentation required by the change's impact tier is present — a doc-coverage finding here is honored ONLY by an actor-verified `vinaya/waiver:docs` label, never a body field. The branch, its planned task row, and the Issue it closes all agree with each other. **Single-plan-PR guard (task 19):** a diff that touches a tranche's topology file (`aeg-root/tranches/*.md`, excluding `completed/`) is refused outright if another OPEN pull request's diff already touches that SAME tranche's topology file — closing the race that produced two concurrent plan pull requests for the same tranche, each cut before the other's newly-added Issue was visible. Ordinary task pull requests never touch a topology file, so this never fires for them. A PR opened via the web UI bypasses this wrapper entirely, so this predicate (extracted to `packages/aeg-core/src/single-plan-pr.ts`, task 24 item 3) now also has a ring-1 CI backstop (see below) — one implementation, two enforcement points. | `packages/aeg-core/bin/open-pr.ts` |
 | Creating a task Issue, or editing its title/description | Ever seen a ticket with zero context on why it exists? | event | Refuses to open or edit a task Issue until it carries the full reasoning behind the task. | **Forge command gate** → validated wrapper | The title follows the naming convention, and the Issue carries the complete planning rationale — what the task is and is not, its sizing, the projects and blast radius it touches, why its dependency edges exist, the known traps, the suggested agent class, the stop-and-escalate conditions, and the documents it must keep coherent. Issues outside the task system pass through untouched. **Beyond presence, three content checks block: the rationale's declared surface must not reach into a shared collision domain (`.aeg/packages`) that none of its declared projects owns without either a second project or an explicit `blast-radius-ack:` line; the body must carry no brief-shaped section (`## References`, `Technical surface map`, `Premise`, `Step 0`, `Test Plan`) — brief content goes stale before work starts and belongs in the brief; and the rationale must name at least one concrete doc/skill path (or the explicit `no-doc-surface` sentinel), which is the only read-obligation signal a forge write produces, since the skill-check hook fires on file edits and cutting an Issue edits no file. A fourth check warns, never blocks: two open task Issues naming the same collision domain with no mutual `Conflicts-with` edge.** **Label-name validity is checked here too:** a tranche label is the one label whose value the Planner invents, and `vinaya/tranche:` spends 15 of GitHub's 50-character label budget before the slug starts — so a slug that reads fine in prose can be one the forge refuses to create. The wrapper refuses an over-long slug with the exact overshoot, at the point the label is first applied, rather than letting `gh` fail with an opaque 422. **Dependency-edge amendments have exactly one path — the `amend-deps` subcommand, which rewrites the structured `Dependency rationale` field AND appends the `**Amendment (...)**` note in one atomic write, gated on a runtime round-trip parse (`parseRationaleDeps` must read back exactly the requested edges) — no code path changes one representation without the other (closing a five-incident field-vs-amendment drift class this session; modeled on the actor-verified waiver pattern: the sanctioned path is the only path).** | `packages/aeg-core/bin/open-issue.ts` |
 | Writing to pull requests or Issues through the raw API | Ever had a bot silently edit a PR or issue behind your back? | event | Refuses raw API writes to pull requests and Issues, so nothing can edit them behind the gates. | **Forge command gate** | Refused outright — there is no unvalidated path | `.claude/hooks/check-forge-gates.sh` |
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ The same check implementations run at ring 0 and ring 1 — one codebase, two en
 | Starting the Dig (before authoring a brief) / starting Step 0 (before executing one) / **every push on a task branch before its PR exists** | Ever started work only to find out halfway it was blocked on something else? | hook | Refuses to start work until every precondition for the task is checked live and found clear. | **`verify-dispatch` CLI** (`packages/aeg-core/bin/verify-dispatch.ts` — mandated by `roles/developer.md` and `skills/brief-authoring/SKILL.md`; **now also hook-automated** — task 25) | Every dispatch precondition is re-checked live against the forge (the task's row/Issue are derived directly from a Milestone + `vinaya/tranche:<slug>`-labeled Issues as of the forge-native migration — no `origin/main` file read involved; leftover-branch detection still fetches `origin/main` for its own commit-count comparison): the task's row and Issue exist; the Issue passes the rationale gate; every `depends-on` PR is merged and no `conflicts-with` PR is open/in-flight; every named project's prior tranche is archived. (2026-07-13: the immediately-prior task's three-predicate archival bar — the row-adjacency predicate — was removed once the provenance-posting signal it existed to protect became automated.) A `NOT READY` result is a stop condition. Every `gh` call this script makes carries an explicit `-R <owner>/<repo>` (task 23) — from a linked `git worktree add` checkout, an untargeted `gh issue list`/`gh issue view`/`gh pr list` silently scopes to the wrong repo (or returns nothing), which previously produced false prior-tranche-archival blockers. **`.husky/pre-push`** now runs this gate itself on a `task/*/*` branch's first push (before a PR exists), refusing on genuine `NOT READY` and failing OPEN — loudly — when a `gh auth status` reachability probe fails or `verify-dispatch`'s own repo/token resolution fails (task 18's fail-open precedent). The gate reads only the `dispatch-readiness:` predicate, not verify-dispatch's combined exit code, which also folds in `leftover-detection` (a pre-Step-0 "safe to branch fresh" advisory that would otherwise false-block every push after the first on a task legitimately mid-flight — discovered live while building this gate). Once a PR exists, later pushes skip the gate: dispatch was already validated once. | `packages/aeg-core/bin/verify-dispatch.ts` |
 | Opening a task PR whose surface includes real code | Ever had a PR's description quietly stop matching what the code does? | event | Refuses a code-carrying pull request whose description no longer matches what it changes. | **Brief Validation — `checkPremiseCoverage`** | The PR body carries a `Premise:` block with at least one assertion (`contains`/`absent`/`sha256`) whose path falls inside the task's surface map — re-assertable at any point via `verify-dispatch --premise` or `verify-task`. | `packages/aeg-core/src/brief-validation.ts` |
 | Opening a task PR (final self-check before creation) | Ever opened a PR and only then discovered the tests were failing? | event | Runs the whole exit check before a pull request is created, so failures surface first. | **`verify-task` CLI** (`packages/aeg-core/bin/verify-task.ts` — mandated by `roles/developer.md`; **now also hook-automated** — task 25) | Typecheck, lint, tests, build, `verify-docs --pr`, and the premise coverage/recheck pair all pass, as one summary, against the PR's actual diff, before `open-pr.ts` is invoked. **`open-pr.ts` now runs this composite itself** for task branches (via `gatePlanForBranch`), invoked wholesale rather than partially re-implemented — non-task branches are unaffected (byte-identical gate set). `verify-docs --pr` runs twice on a task-branch PR-open as an accepted, measured overlap (~4s with a warm turbo cache). | `packages/aeg-core/bin/verify-task.ts` |
+| Spawning a check (`vinaya check`, ring-0 pre-push AND ring-1 CI) | Ever had a check quietly read a secret it had no business seeing, because nothing scoped what it could reach? | hook | Governs which environment variables a spawned check's child process can see, instead of every check inheriting the full parent environment unconditionally. | **Env allowlist** (`CheckSpec['env']`, `apps/vinaya/cli/src/checks/contract.ts`; construction: `buildCheckEnv`, `apps/vinaya/cli/src/checks/runner.ts`) | **⚠️ BREAKING, live (task 3):** a spawned check's child process sees only a fixed baseline (`PATH`, `LANG`, `HOME`, `HTTPS_PROXY`, `HTTP_PROXY`, `NO_PROXY`, `TMPDIR`) plus whatever its own `env` declaration (`true` / `{ optional: true }` / `{ anyOf: [...] }` / a literal string) explicitly forwards — **no longer the full parent environment.** An undeclared variable a check's own code reads is now genuinely invisible to it, not merely warned about; a `true` or unsatisfied `anyOf` declaration missing from the caller's environment synthesizes a `CheckError` and the check never spawns at all. All 15 core checks in `registry.ts` carry an audited declaration, so this repo's own core checks are unaffected — an adopter's **custom** check that reads `process.env` directly with no `env` declared will lose that access at this minor; declare `env` on it (`vinaya.config.json`'s `checks.<name>.env`) before upgrading. `vinaya check`'s prior warn-phase print (task 2) is retired now that the behavior it warned about is live; `vinaya doctor` still carries the same missing-declaration diagnostic permanently, at `info` severity, so a custom check's gap remains visible after upgrade even though `vinaya check` no longer prints it inline. | `apps/vinaya/cli/src/checks/runner.ts` |
 
 **Documentation coverage, specifically** (a historical pain point): the code→document ownership rule is enforced at *two* prevention chokepoints — at every push (over the branch's cumulative change set) and again at pull-request creation and editing. A change to owned code cannot be published, let alone turned into a pull request, without its owning document.
 

package/aeg-root/roles/archivist.md

@@ -164,4 +164,4 @@ You are the last step of the flow (`process.md`) — the close-out that sits und
 
 ## Turn-end: record the ledger rows for every role that turned on this task
 
-You are the **sole writer** of `aeg-root/tranches/<name>.tokens.md` for a task branch — no other role appends its own row. **In practice there is usually no such file:** it is deleted for every active tranche and CI blocks creating a new one (item 6 above), so for those tasks the rows live in the forge — the Developer's PR-body "Token report" entries and the chat roles' `Tokens: …` verdict lines — and are re-derived on read. Do not create the file to have somewhere to write. Only when a legacy file survives do you append to it; then append one row per role-turn you collected in item 7 above (`Phase | Role | Agent/Model | Tokens in | Tokens out | Cost | Date`), then append your own turn's row last (`Phase: <task-id>: archive`, `Role: Archivist`). When you run as automation in Claude Code, you are a **terminal role** for your own row: fill its numeric cells with exact values from the session meter. Every chat-role row you record (Reviewer, Security, Planner) carries whatever the role reported — `—` where the report itself had no numeric figure; you never estimate or fill in a chat role's cell yourself. Drift cron: as part of the close-out checks, flag any merged task in this tranche that has **no Developer row** for `<task-id>: develop` (the role obligation was missed), and any inline `## Token ledger` section that violates the append-only rule (an existing row was edited rather than a new one appended). The ledger is append-only.
+You are the **sole writer** of `aeg-root/tranches/<name>.tokens.md` for a task branch — no other role appends its own row. **In practice there is usually no such file:** it is deleted for every active tranche and CI blocks creating a new one (item 6 above), so for those tasks the rows live in the forge — the Developer's PR-body "Token report" entries and the chat roles' `Tokens: …` verdict lines — and are re-derived on read. Do not create the file to have somewhere to write. Only when a legacy file survives do you append to it; then append one row per role-turn you collected in item 7 above (`Phase | Role | Agent/Model | Tokens in | Tokens out | Cost | Date`), then append your own turn's row last (`Phase: <task-id>: archive`, `Role: Archivist`). When you run as automation in Claude Code, you are a **terminal role** for your own row: run `bun packages/aeg-core/bin/report-tokens.ts --phase "<task-id>: archive" --role Archivist` against your own session and fill its numeric cells with the exact values it emits — not `/cost`, which an automated session cannot invoke itself. Every chat-role row you record (Reviewer, Security, Planner) carries whatever the role reported — `—` where the report itself had no numeric figure; you never estimate or fill in a chat role's cell yourself. Drift cron: as part of the close-out checks, flag any merged task in this tranche that has **no Developer row** for `<task-id>: develop` (the role obligation was missed), and any inline `## Token ledger` section that violates the append-only rule (an existing row was edited rather than a new one appended). The ledger is append-only.

package/aeg-root/roles/developer.md

@@ -107,7 +107,7 @@ Items 3, 5, and 7 read live forge state. Item 6 checks the brief's own Step 0 te
 
 **Opening the PR with a complete description.** The PR description must (1) **carry the full brief** — paste it into the PR body; it is the brief's permanent, durable home, and the Reviewer and Archivist read it there; (2) follow the canonical form in [§ PR body — canonical form](#pr-body--canonical-form) below — that section holds the verbatim copy-pasteable template, including the **exact `Tier:` field syntax** the `verify-docs` gate requires; (3) reference the task's Issue (`Closes #N`) so the merge auto-closes it. The description is not optional — the reviews depend on it. Opening the PR is itself the `in-flight → in-review` transition; you write no status field.
 
-**Reporting exact tokens in the PR body at turn-end.** You do not append your own row to `aeg-root/tranches/<name>.tokens.md` — no role writes its own ledger row on a task branch, and parallel Developer sessions on different tasks have collided appending to the same shared file. Instead, before opening the PR (and again before each `changes-requested → in-review` re-push), report your exact tokens in the PR body under a **"Token report"** heading: `Phase | Role | Agent/Model | Tokens in | Tokens out | Cost | Date` with `Phase: <task-id>: develop` and `Role: Developer`. You are a **terminal role** — your session knows its own tokens (this repo's instance: `/cost` in Claude Code), so report exact figures, not `—`. The per-task Archivist reads this report at close-out and appends the ledger row post-merge — see `roles/archivist.md`. Re-entry (a second turn after `CHANGES_REQUESTED`) adds a **new** "Token report" entry to the PR body — never edits the first.
+**Reporting exact tokens in the PR body at turn-end.** You do not append your own row to `aeg-root/tranches/<name>.tokens.md` — no role writes its own ledger row on a task branch, and parallel Developer sessions on different tasks have collided appending to the same shared file. Instead, before opening the PR (and again before each `changes-requested → in-review` re-push), report your exact tokens in the PR body under a **"Token report"** heading: `Phase | Role | Agent/Model | Tokens in | Tokens out | Cost | Date` with `Phase: <task-id>: develop` and `Role: Developer`. You are a **terminal role** — your session's own transcript carries its exact usage, and `/cost` is an operator-only slash command you cannot invoke yourself (there is no human at the interactive prompt in a dispatched session). Run `bun packages/aeg-core/bin/report-tokens.ts --phase "<task-id>: develop" --role Developer` and report the numbers it emits — real figures, not `—`. The per-task Archivist reads this report at close-out and appends the ledger row post-merge — see `roles/archivist.md`. Re-entry (a second turn after `CHANGES_REQUESTED`) adds a **new** "Token report" entry to the PR body — never edits the first.
 
 ---
 
@@ -180,7 +180,7 @@ All of the following must pass before the PR is opened:
 - [ ] Code passes lint/format (this repo: `bun run format-and-lint`)
 - [ ] Tests pass if applicable (this repo: `bun test`)
 - [ ] PR description follows the template, carries the brief, and declares `Tier: 0`
-- [ ] "Token report" section in the PR body with exact tokens from `/cost` (and again on each re-push after `CHANGES_REQUESTED`) — the Archivist appends the ledger row post-merge, you do not
+- [ ] "Token report" section in the PR body with exact tokens from `bin/report-tokens.ts` (and again on each re-push after `CHANGES_REQUESTED`) — the Archivist appends the ledger row post-merge, you do not
 
 ### Tier 1 checklist
 

package/aeg-root/state-machine.md

@@ -443,10 +443,23 @@ For each changed code file in the PR, glob-match against every binding. Per **ma
 |---|---|
 | **Strong-pass** | The in-repo pointer is in the PR diff. |
 | **URL-ack** | The pointer is a URL **and** the PR body carries `Doc-ack: <pointer> — <note>` whose `<pointer>` exactly matches the binding's URL. |
+| **Neutral-edit** | The pointer is in-repo, absent from the diff, **and** the PR body carries `Doc-neutral: <pointer> — <note>` whose `<pointer>` exactly matches the binding's doc, **and** the diff of every matched code file is comment/whitespace-only (see below). Both the declaration and the evidence are required — either alone fails. |
 | **Waiver** | The pull request carries the `vinaya/waiver:docs` label, AND the actor of that label's most recent labeling timeline event is a configured principal. PR-wide, not per-binding — one verified label satisfies every fired binding in the PR. Label presence alone is never sufficient; there is no PR-body waiver field. |
 
 If none of the above hold, C5 fails the PR. A binding whose in-repo pointer **does not exist on disk** is a distinct *dangling* failure (fix the binding or add the doc) — never silently ignored, because a dangling pointer is the failure mode the seam was built to prevent.
 
+### The Neutral-edit branch — an honest path for nothing-owed changes
+
+The bind-or-waive rule is purely path-based: any edit to a bound file fires its binding, including comment fixes and mechanically-equivalent refactors that owe no doc update. Before this branch existed, a Developer facing one of these had exactly two honest options — write a no-op doc edit to satisfy strong-pass (which is what "correctness of the covered doc" in the table above exists to catch as a BLOCKER), or ask a principal for a `vinaya/waiver:docs` label on a change that isn't actually contested. Neither fits a change nothing is owed for.
+
+`Doc-neutral: <pointer> — <note>` (`evaluateC5` in `packages/aeg-core/src/doc-owners.ts`) closes that gap **without weakening bind-or-waive's default** (silence is still always a failure) and **without touching waiver machinery** (the label stays a principal-only, forge-authenticated escape for genuinely contested cases). It is deliberately not self-serve: the declaration is necessary but not sufficient. `evaluateC5` also reads the unified diff of every code file the binding matched and requires **every** added/removed line, once trimmed, to be blank or a comment-line prefix (`isMechanicallyNeutralDiff`) — a Developer cannot type the field over a real behavior change and have it pass. A declaration whose diff fails that check is a distinct failure, `C5 doc-neutral-unverified`, not a silent pass-through.
+
+This is bounded scope, by design: "mechanically neutral" here means comment/whitespace-only, not an open-ended semantic-equivalence judgment (reordering, dead-code removal, or a refactor that preserves behavior but changes tokens all still require strong-pass, URL-ack, or a waiver). The evidence stays diff-visible in both the PR body (the declaration + its `<note>`) and, mechanically, in the diff itself — a reviewer can judge both without re-deriving the claim from nothing, which is what keeps this branch honest under an agent that wants to pass the gate.
+
+`isMechanicallyNeutralDiff` selects its comment markers **per source-language file extension**, not a single flat prefix table — a marker is only ever treated as comment-only if no legitimate construct in that language can start a trimmed line with it. TS/JS/JSX keep only `//`, because `*`, `#`, `/* `, `*/`, and `--` are all real collisions in those languages (a generator method `*gen() {`, a private class field `#count = 0`, a block-comment-close hiding trailing code, a pre-decrement statement) — a bare per-line prefix scan misclassified all of these as comment-only in an earlier revision (code review, task 4). A shebang line (`#!…`) is never neutral even in a shell file, since it changes what interpreter runs the script. A file extension the table doesn't recognize gets no safe marker at all, so it can never be classified neutral — fail-closed under uncertainty, not an attempt at full per-language comment/string-region parsing.
+
+`--pr` and `--push` (ring 0) share the identical `evaluateC5` call — the Neutral-edit evidence check is one predicate evaluated at both enforcement points, never two implementations that could drift.
+
 ### Dormancy (silent no-op)
 
 Two cases produce **no output and no error** — not a "pass" message, nothing at all:
@@ -460,15 +473,16 @@ The seam has no opinion until the repo teaches it one. This is what makes the ga
 
 The tier system (Section 9) is class-level — "what kind of work is this, and what docs does that kind of work require?" The coherence seam is per-change — "this specific edit moved this specific surface; the doc bound to that surface must move with it." A Tier 0 PR that edits a bound code surface MUST satisfy C5; a Tier 3 PR that touches no bound code surface satisfies C5 trivially. Both gates run on every PR; both must pass.
 
-### `Doc-ack:` — the one remaining PR-body field; the waiver is a label, not a field
+### `Doc-ack:` and `Doc-neutral:` — the PR-body fields; the waiver is a label, not a field
 
-`Doc-ack:` is a **PR-body field**, parsed from the body text — *not* a GitHub label. It lives alongside `Tier:` in the canonical PR body (form in `roles/developer.md` § PR body — canonical form).
+`Doc-ack:` and `Doc-neutral:` are **PR-body fields**, parsed from the body text — *not* GitHub labels. Both live alongside `Tier:` in the canonical PR body (form in `roles/developer.md` § PR body — canonical form).
 
 - `Doc-ack: <pointer> — <note>` — acknowledgment for URL bindings. Unaffected — an acknowledgment, not a bypass.
+- `Doc-neutral: <pointer> — <note>` — declares a fired in-repo binding's doc is not owed because the matched code diff is comment/whitespace-only. Never sufficient alone — see the Neutral-edit branch above; `evaluateC5` cross-checks the actual diff before honoring it.
 
 The waiver itself is **not** a PR-body field. removed `Doc-waiver:` entirely — the escape hatch is the `vinaya/waiver:docs` label instead (Section 14), added to the closed label set specifically because a waiver must be a forge-authenticated act (an actor-verified labeling timeline event), and a body field can never carry that verification — anyone who can edit the body can type any string.
 
-The separator between `<pointer>` and `<note>` in `Doc-ack:` is **flexible**: em-dash `—`, en-dash `–`, or a plain ASCII hyphen `-` (with surrounding whitespace) are all accepted by `verify-docs`. The em-dash form remains canonical in templates and prose, but a human typing `Doc-ack: <pointer> - <note>` on a US keyboard parses identically. Required whitespace around the ASCII hyphen disambiguates it from hyphens that legitimately appear inside pointers (e.g. `.vinaya/doc-owners`, `.claude/skills/ui-components/SKILL.md`); writers do not need to think about it as long as they put a space on each side.
+The separator between `<pointer>` and `<note>` in `Doc-ack:` and `Doc-neutral:` is **flexible**: em-dash `—`, en-dash `–`, or a plain ASCII hyphen `-` (with surrounding whitespace) are all accepted by `verify-docs`. The em-dash form remains canonical in templates and prose, but a human typing `Doc-ack: <pointer> - <note>` on a US keyboard parses identically. Required whitespace around the ASCII hyphen disambiguates it from hyphens that legitimately appear inside pointers (e.g. `.vinaya/doc-owners`, `.claude/skills/ui-components/SKILL.md`); writers do not need to think about it as long as they put a space on each side.
 
 ### Where this leaves the Reviewer
 

package/aeg-root/tranche-model.md

@@ -276,10 +276,12 @@ Append-only. Each row records one role's turn at a phase. Re-entry appends a **n
 
 Token reporting is asymmetric — and any honest design has to encode that, because the asymmetry is a property of the surfaces, not of AEG. The asymmetry now lives in *what a role reports*, not in *who writes the ledger file* — the Archivist writes every row, but the precision of the numbers it copies still depends on the reporting role's surface:
 
-- **Terminal roles run in Claude Code (Developer; Archivist when automated).** The session knows its tokens. The role reports exact numbers from `/cost` in its PR body. The Archivist copies these numbers verbatim into the row it appends at close-out.
-- **claude.ai roles run in chat (Planner; Brief Author; Reviewer; Security).** A claude.ai conversation **cannot read its own token count** via tool or API. The role still reports at turn-end — phase, role, model, date, in its verdict comment or planning report — but leaves the numeric cells as `—`. The Archivist copies the report as-is; the **Principal** may later supply the real figures from the claude.ai UI usage figure, filling a previously-`—` cell (the one narrow forward-reference exception `state-machine.md` §13 allows).
+The split is **operator vs. agent, not terminal vs. chat** — `/cost` is a Claude Code slash command an operator types at the interactive prompt; an unattended agent session (dispatched, automated, no human at the keyboard) has no way to invoke it, terminal or not. (2026-08-08: retracted — an earlier revision of this section claimed a terminal role reports exact numbers "from `/cost`"; no agent session ever could.)
 
-V1 accepts the manual seam: chat turns are the cheap ones; coding (terminal) dominates spend and is captured exactly. Auto-capture for terminal roles is the obvious next layer; auto-capture for chat roles depends on the surface giving us a self-token API, which it does not today. **Known gap (flagged, not solved):** tranche-wide chat-role turns with no task PR to report into — a Planner session outside a plan PR, a Brief Author session — have no established recording path; see `roles/planner.md` "Plan-PR close-out."
+- **Terminal roles run in Claude Code (Developer; Archivist when automated).** The session's own transcript (`~/.claude/projects/<slug>/<session-id>.jsonl`) carries a `usage` object per assistant message — real, agent-reachable, no operator required. The role runs `packages/aeg-core/bin/report-tokens.ts` against its own session and reports the exact numbers it emits in its PR body. The Archivist copies these numbers verbatim into the row it appends at close-out.
+- **claude.ai roles run in chat (Planner; Brief Author; Reviewer; Security).** A claude.ai conversation **cannot read its own token count** via tool or API, and has no transcript file the way a Claude Code session does — the reporter has nothing to run against. The role still reports at turn-end — phase, role, model, date, in its verdict comment or planning report — but leaves the numeric cells as `—`. The Archivist copies the report as-is; the **Principal** may later supply the real figures from the claude.ai UI usage figure, filling a previously-`—` cell (the one narrow forward-reference exception `state-machine.md` §13 allows).
+
+Terminal self-capture is real, not manual: the reporter sums a session's own transcript, so a Developer or automated Archivist turn's numbers are exact without any operator step. The remaining manual seam is chat roles only — auto-capture there depends on claude.ai giving a session a way to read its own token count, which it does not today. **Known gap (flagged, not solved):** tranche-wide chat-role turns with no task PR to report into — a Planner session outside a plan PR, a Brief Author session — have no established recording path; see `roles/planner.md` "Plan-PR close-out."
 
 ### Live reads (Studio) — a second, narrower read path
 

package/dist/checks/bin/check-branch-topology.js

@@ -1513,15 +1513,58 @@ function pointerToPath(p) {
   return idx === -1 ? p : p.slice(0, idx);
 }
 var SEPARATOR = /(?:[ \t]*[—–][ \t]*|[ \t]+-[ \t]+)/.source;
-function readDocAcks(body) {
-  const acks = [];
-  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*Doc-ack[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
+function readPointerNoteField(body, field) {
+  const out = [];
+  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*${field}[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
   for (const m of body.matchAll(re)) {
-    acks.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+    out.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+  }
+  return out;
+}
+function readDocAcks(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-ack");
+}
+function readDocNeutrals(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-neutral");
+}
+var LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES = [
+  { test: /\.(ts|tsx|js|jsx|mjs|cjs)$/, prefixes: ["//"] },
+  { test: /(^|\/)(pre-push|pre-commit|pre-merge-commit)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.(sh|bash)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.ya?ml$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.py$/, prefixes: ["#"] }
+];
+function commentPrefixesForPath(path) {
+  for (const { test, prefixes } of LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES) {
+    if (test.test(path))
+      return prefixes;
   }
-  return acks;
+  return [];
 }
-function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive) {
+function isNeutralDiffContentLine(line, prefixes) {
+  const t = line.trim();
+  if (t === "")
+    return true;
+  if (t.startsWith("#!"))
+    return false;
+  return prefixes.some((p) => t.startsWith(p));
+}
+function isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diffText, path) {
+  const prefixes = commentPrefixesForPath(path);
+  let sawChange = false;
+  for (const raw of diffText.split(`
+`)) {
+    if (raw.startsWith("+++ ") || raw.startsWith("--- ") || raw.startsWith("@@"))
+      continue;
+    if (raw.startsWith("+") || raw.startsWith("-")) {
+      if (!isNeutralDiffContentLine(raw.slice(1), prefixes))
+        return false;
+      sawChange = true;
+    }
+  }
+  return sawChange;
+}
+function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive, getDiff) {
   const out = { errors: [], notes: [] };
   if (docOwnersContent === null)
     return out;
@@ -1534,13 +1577,15 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
   const fired = [];
   for (const b of bindings) {
     const re = globToRegex(b.glob);
-    if (codeFiles.some((f) => re.test(f)))
-      fired.push(b);
+    const matchedFiles = codeFiles.filter((f) => re.test(f));
+    if (matchedFiles.length > 0)
+      fired.push({ binding: b, matchedFiles });
   }
   if (fired.length === 0)
     return out;
   const acks = readDocAcks(prBody);
-  for (const b of fired) {
+  const neutrals = readDocNeutrals(prBody);
+  for (const { binding: b, matchedFiles } of fired) {
     if (waiverActive) {
       out.notes.push(`C5 doc-waiver active for ${b.pointer} (binding ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum})`);
       continue;
@@ -1557,9 +1602,22 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
       out.errors.push(`C5 doc-owners-dangling: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} points to ${b.pointer}, which does not exist on disk. Fix the binding or add the doc.`);
       continue;
     }
-    if (!changed.includes(pointerPath)) {
-      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+    if (changed.includes(pointerPath))
+      continue;
+    const declared = neutrals.find((n) => n.surface === b.pointer);
+    if (declared) {
+      const evidenced = getDiff !== undefined && matchedFiles.every((f) => {
+        const diff = getDiff(f);
+        return diff !== null && isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diff, f);
+      });
+      if (evidenced) {
+        out.notes.push(`C5 doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} not required for ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\`) — declared neutral ("${declared.note}"), diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} confirmed comment/whitespace-only.`);
+        continue;
+      }
+      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-neutral-unverified: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}) declared \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — ${declared.note}\`, but the diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} contains changes beyond comments/whitespace. Update ${pointerPath}, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+      continue;
     }
+    out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, declare \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — <why>\` if the change is genuinely mechanically-neutral, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
   }
   return out;
 }

package/dist/checks/bin/check-brief-shape.js

@@ -1510,15 +1510,58 @@ function pointerToPath(p) {
   return idx === -1 ? p : p.slice(0, idx);
 }
 var SEPARATOR = /(?:[ \t]*[—–][ \t]*|[ \t]+-[ \t]+)/.source;
-function readDocAcks(body) {
-  const acks = [];
-  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*Doc-ack[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
+function readPointerNoteField(body, field) {
+  const out = [];
+  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*${field}[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
   for (const m of body.matchAll(re)) {
-    acks.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+    out.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+  }
+  return out;
+}
+function readDocAcks(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-ack");
+}
+function readDocNeutrals(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-neutral");
+}
+var LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES = [
+  { test: /\.(ts|tsx|js|jsx|mjs|cjs)$/, prefixes: ["//"] },
+  { test: /(^|\/)(pre-push|pre-commit|pre-merge-commit)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.(sh|bash)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.ya?ml$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.py$/, prefixes: ["#"] }
+];
+function commentPrefixesForPath(path) {
+  for (const { test, prefixes } of LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES) {
+    if (test.test(path))
+      return prefixes;
   }
-  return acks;
+  return [];
 }
-function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive) {
+function isNeutralDiffContentLine(line, prefixes) {
+  const t = line.trim();
+  if (t === "")
+    return true;
+  if (t.startsWith("#!"))
+    return false;
+  return prefixes.some((p) => t.startsWith(p));
+}
+function isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diffText, path) {
+  const prefixes = commentPrefixesForPath(path);
+  let sawChange = false;
+  for (const raw of diffText.split(`
+`)) {
+    if (raw.startsWith("+++ ") || raw.startsWith("--- ") || raw.startsWith("@@"))
+      continue;
+    if (raw.startsWith("+") || raw.startsWith("-")) {
+      if (!isNeutralDiffContentLine(raw.slice(1), prefixes))
+        return false;
+      sawChange = true;
+    }
+  }
+  return sawChange;
+}
+function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive, getDiff) {
   const out = { errors: [], notes: [] };
   if (docOwnersContent === null)
     return out;
@@ -1531,13 +1574,15 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
   const fired = [];
   for (const b of bindings) {
     const re = globToRegex(b.glob);
-    if (codeFiles.some((f) => re.test(f)))
-      fired.push(b);
+    const matchedFiles = codeFiles.filter((f) => re.test(f));
+    if (matchedFiles.length > 0)
+      fired.push({ binding: b, matchedFiles });
   }
   if (fired.length === 0)
     return out;
   const acks = readDocAcks(prBody);
-  for (const b of fired) {
+  const neutrals = readDocNeutrals(prBody);
+  for (const { binding: b, matchedFiles } of fired) {
     if (waiverActive) {
       out.notes.push(`C5 doc-waiver active for ${b.pointer} (binding ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum})`);
       continue;
@@ -1554,9 +1599,22 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
       out.errors.push(`C5 doc-owners-dangling: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} points to ${b.pointer}, which does not exist on disk. Fix the binding or add the doc.`);
       continue;
     }
-    if (!changed.includes(pointerPath)) {
-      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+    if (changed.includes(pointerPath))
+      continue;
+    const declared = neutrals.find((n) => n.surface === b.pointer);
+    if (declared) {
+      const evidenced = getDiff !== undefined && matchedFiles.every((f) => {
+        const diff = getDiff(f);
+        return diff !== null && isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diff, f);
+      });
+      if (evidenced) {
+        out.notes.push(`C5 doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} not required for ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\`) — declared neutral ("${declared.note}"), diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} confirmed comment/whitespace-only.`);
+        continue;
+      }
+      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-neutral-unverified: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}) declared \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — ${declared.note}\`, but the diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} contains changes beyond comments/whitespace. Update ${pointerPath}, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+      continue;
     }
+    out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, declare \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — <why>\` if the change is genuinely mechanically-neutral, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
   }
   return out;
 }

package/dist/checks/bin/check-closes-n.js

@@ -1513,15 +1513,58 @@ function pointerToPath(p) {
   return idx === -1 ? p : p.slice(0, idx);
 }
 var SEPARATOR = /(?:[ \t]*[—–][ \t]*|[ \t]+-[ \t]+)/.source;
-function readDocAcks(body) {
-  const acks = [];
-  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*Doc-ack[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
+function readPointerNoteField(body, field) {
+  const out = [];
+  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*${field}[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
   for (const m of body.matchAll(re)) {
-    acks.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+    out.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+  }
+  return out;
+}
+function readDocAcks(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-ack");
+}
+function readDocNeutrals(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-neutral");
+}
+var LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES = [
+  { test: /\.(ts|tsx|js|jsx|mjs|cjs)$/, prefixes: ["//"] },
+  { test: /(^|\/)(pre-push|pre-commit|pre-merge-commit)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.(sh|bash)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.ya?ml$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.py$/, prefixes: ["#"] }
+];
+function commentPrefixesForPath(path) {
+  for (const { test, prefixes } of LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES) {
+    if (test.test(path))
+      return prefixes;
   }
-  return acks;
+  return [];
 }
-function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive) {
+function isNeutralDiffContentLine(line, prefixes) {
+  const t = line.trim();
+  if (t === "")
+    return true;
+  if (t.startsWith("#!"))
+    return false;
+  return prefixes.some((p) => t.startsWith(p));
+}
+function isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diffText, path) {
+  const prefixes = commentPrefixesForPath(path);
+  let sawChange = false;
+  for (const raw of diffText.split(`
+`)) {
+    if (raw.startsWith("+++ ") || raw.startsWith("--- ") || raw.startsWith("@@"))
+      continue;
+    if (raw.startsWith("+") || raw.startsWith("-")) {
+      if (!isNeutralDiffContentLine(raw.slice(1), prefixes))
+        return false;
+      sawChange = true;
+    }
+  }
+  return sawChange;
+}
+function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive, getDiff) {
   const out = { errors: [], notes: [] };
   if (docOwnersContent === null)
     return out;
@@ -1534,13 +1577,15 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
   const fired = [];
   for (const b of bindings) {
     const re = globToRegex(b.glob);
-    if (codeFiles.some((f) => re.test(f)))
-      fired.push(b);
+    const matchedFiles = codeFiles.filter((f) => re.test(f));
+    if (matchedFiles.length > 0)
+      fired.push({ binding: b, matchedFiles });
   }
   if (fired.length === 0)
     return out;
   const acks = readDocAcks(prBody);
-  for (const b of fired) {
+  const neutrals = readDocNeutrals(prBody);
+  for (const { binding: b, matchedFiles } of fired) {
     if (waiverActive) {
       out.notes.push(`C5 doc-waiver active for ${b.pointer} (binding ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum})`);
       continue;
@@ -1557,9 +1602,22 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
       out.errors.push(`C5 doc-owners-dangling: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} points to ${b.pointer}, which does not exist on disk. Fix the binding or add the doc.`);
       continue;
     }
-    if (!changed.includes(pointerPath)) {
-      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+    if (changed.includes(pointerPath))
+      continue;
+    const declared = neutrals.find((n) => n.surface === b.pointer);
+    if (declared) {
+      const evidenced = getDiff !== undefined && matchedFiles.every((f) => {
+        const diff = getDiff(f);
+        return diff !== null && isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diff, f);
+      });
+      if (evidenced) {
+        out.notes.push(`C5 doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} not required for ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\`) — declared neutral ("${declared.note}"), diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} confirmed comment/whitespace-only.`);
+        continue;
+      }
+      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-neutral-unverified: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}) declared \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — ${declared.note}\`, but the diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} contains changes beyond comments/whitespace. Update ${pointerPath}, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+      continue;
     }
+    out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, declare \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — <why>\` if the change is genuinely mechanically-neutral, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
   }
   return out;
 }

package/dist/checks/bin/check-coherence.js

@@ -1514,15 +1514,58 @@ function pointerToPath(p) {
   return idx === -1 ? p : p.slice(0, idx);
 }
 var SEPARATOR = /(?:[ \t]*[—–][ \t]*|[ \t]+-[ \t]+)/.source;
-function readDocAcks(body) {
-  const acks = [];
-  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*Doc-ack[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
+function readPointerNoteField(body, field) {
+  const out = [];
+  const re = new RegExp(`^[ \\t]*${field}[ \\t]*:[ \\t]*(.+?)${SEPARATOR}(.+?)[ \\t]*$`, "gim");
   for (const m of body.matchAll(re)) {
-    acks.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+    out.push({ surface: (m[1] ?? "").trim(), note: (m[2] ?? "").trim() });
+  }
+  return out;
+}
+function readDocAcks(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-ack");
+}
+function readDocNeutrals(body) {
+  return readPointerNoteField(body, "Doc-neutral");
+}
+var LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES = [
+  { test: /\.(ts|tsx|js|jsx|mjs|cjs)$/, prefixes: ["//"] },
+  { test: /(^|\/)(pre-push|pre-commit|pre-merge-commit)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.(sh|bash)$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.ya?ml$/, prefixes: ["#"] },
+  { test: /\.py$/, prefixes: ["#"] }
+];
+function commentPrefixesForPath(path) {
+  for (const { test, prefixes } of LANGUAGE_COMMENT_PREFIXES) {
+    if (test.test(path))
+      return prefixes;
   }
-  return acks;
+  return [];
 }
-function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive) {
+function isNeutralDiffContentLine(line, prefixes) {
+  const t = line.trim();
+  if (t === "")
+    return true;
+  if (t.startsWith("#!"))
+    return false;
+  return prefixes.some((p) => t.startsWith(p));
+}
+function isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diffText, path) {
+  const prefixes = commentPrefixesForPath(path);
+  let sawChange = false;
+  for (const raw of diffText.split(`
+`)) {
+    if (raw.startsWith("+++ ") || raw.startsWith("--- ") || raw.startsWith("@@"))
+      continue;
+    if (raw.startsWith("+") || raw.startsWith("-")) {
+      if (!isNeutralDiffContentLine(raw.slice(1), prefixes))
+        return false;
+      sawChange = true;
+    }
+  }
+  return sawChange;
+}
+function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive, getDiff) {
   const out = { errors: [], notes: [] };
   if (docOwnersContent === null)
     return out;
@@ -1535,13 +1578,15 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
   const fired = [];
   for (const b of bindings) {
     const re = globToRegex(b.glob);
-    if (codeFiles.some((f) => re.test(f)))
-      fired.push(b);
+    const matchedFiles = codeFiles.filter((f) => re.test(f));
+    if (matchedFiles.length > 0)
+      fired.push({ binding: b, matchedFiles });
   }
   if (fired.length === 0)
     return out;
   const acks = readDocAcks(prBody);
-  for (const b of fired) {
+  const neutrals = readDocNeutrals(prBody);
+  for (const { binding: b, matchedFiles } of fired) {
     if (waiverActive) {
       out.notes.push(`C5 doc-waiver active for ${b.pointer} (binding ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum})`);
       continue;
@@ -1558,9 +1603,22 @@ function evaluateC5(changed, docOwnersContent, prBody, fileExists, waiverActive)
       out.errors.push(`C5 doc-owners-dangling: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} points to ${b.pointer}, which does not exist on disk. Fix the binding or add the doc.`);
       continue;
     }
-    if (!changed.includes(pointerPath)) {
-      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+    if (changed.includes(pointerPath))
+      continue;
+    const declared = neutrals.find((n) => n.surface === b.pointer);
+    if (declared) {
+      const evidenced = getDiff !== undefined && matchedFiles.every((f) => {
+        const diff = getDiff(f);
+        return diff !== null && isMechanicallyNeutralDiff(diff, f);
+      });
+      if (evidenced) {
+        out.notes.push(`C5 doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} not required for ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\`) — declared neutral ("${declared.note}"), diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} confirmed comment/whitespace-only.`);
+        continue;
+      }
+      out.errors.push(`C5 doc-neutral-unverified: ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}) declared \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — ${declared.note}\`, but the diff of ${matchedFiles.join(", ")} contains changes beyond comments/whitespace. Update ${pointerPath}, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
+      continue;
     }
+    out.errors.push(`C5 doc-coverage: code change matched ${DOC_OWNERS_PATH}:${b.lineNum} (glob \`${b.glob}\` → ${b.pointer}), but ${pointerPath} is not in the PR diff. Update it, declare \`Doc-neutral: ${b.pointer} — <why>\` if the change is genuinely mechanically-neutral, or have a principal apply the \`${WAIVER_LABEL}\` label.`);
   }
   return out;
 }