COMMUNITY

Community

GovSchema is being built in the open. The specification, the schema registry, and the verification practices all live in a public source repository that is open now, the same one linked from the top of every page. Standards are stronger when more jurisdictions and more builders shape them, so if you work on agents or know a government process well, you can read the spec, review the registry, and propose schemas today.

Propose a schema on GitHubRead the specification

CONTRIBUTE

Three ways to help build the standard

Propose a new schema

Describe a government form or process the registry doesn't cover yet: pick its registry path, author it against the schema format, and cite the live source you checked it against.

  • Start at version 0.1.0 for a new, not-yet-stable schema
  • Name a real verification practice and the source you checked
  • Validate locally before opening a pull request

Correct or re-verify one

Published schema versions are never edited in place. A correction or a fresh check against the live source ships as a new version directory, following the same PATCH/MINOR/MAJOR rules as any other change.

  • PATCH for a re-verify with no field changes
  • MINOR for an additive field, MAJOR for a breaking one
  • The prior version stays published; mark a retired one deprecated

Shape the specification

A gap in the format itself affects every published schema, not just one, so spec and tooling changes start as an issue and, for anything breaking, a written proposal.

WORKFLOW

How a schema gets proposed and verified

  1. 1

    Author

    Write schema.json against the published meta-schema, using an existing reference schema in the registry as a template.

  2. 2

    Cite & verify

    Record the live government URL you checked it against and name the verification practice you used, with the date you checked.

  3. 3

    Validate

    Run node tools/validate.mjs locally. It checks the schema against the meta-schema before a human ever has to.

  4. 4

    Review & merge

    Open a pull request against the schema checklist. A maintainer reviews it in the open, the same two-way-door process as any other schema change.

GROUND RULES

Two rules every contribution follows

No personal data

Schemas describe a form's fields and rules, never a real applicant's data or a filled-in submission.

No affiliation claims

A schema describes a public process. It must never state or imply that it is endorsed, certified, or operated by the government that runs that process.

Ready to contribute?

A new schema, a correction, or a specification change all start on GitHub, under the same contribution guide and code of conduct.

Read the contribution guideCode of Conduct