aget-close-project

name	aget-close-project
description	Close a PROJECT_PLAN with verifiable-assertion gate (V-tests + commits + retrospective), deferred-surface scan for next-plan handoff, and status transition (ACTIVE → COMPLETE / CLOSED / ABANDONED / SUPERSEDED). Strict counterpart to /aget-create-project (D71 Layer 2). Closes asymmetric verb-pair gap at PROJECT_PLAN lifecycle.

/aget-close-project

Terminally close a PROJECT_PLAN with verifiable assertion, closure checklist, and deferred-surface handoff. Strict counterpart to /aget-create-project.

Input

$ARGUMENTS — PROJECT_PLAN filename (or slug; resolved against planning/)

Mode Detection

Input Pattern	Mode	Behavior
Empty	Interactive	List candidate plans (status=IN PROGRESS or all gates [x]), prompt for selection
<filename> or <slug>	Explicit	Resolve to planning/PROJECT_PLAN_<name>.md; close that plan
<filename> --reason <text>	Explicit with reason	Required for non-COMPLETE closures (CLOSED, ABANDONED, SUPERSEDED)
<filename> --override <text>	L178 override	Bypasses gate-completion gate (Step 2) with recorded reason

Project Closure Process

Step 0: Scope-Fit + Identity Check

1. Read .aget/identity.json — extract name, domain
2. Resolve PROJECT_PLAN path; verify file exists under planning/
3. If file absent: ERROR with candidate-list suggestion

Step 1: Input Analysis

Parse $ARGUMENTS:

• Plan filename or slug
• Optional --reason <text> (required for CLOSED/ABANDONED/SUPERSEDED)
• Optional --override <text> (L178 path — bypasses Step 2 with recorded reason)

Step 2: Gate-Completion Gate (Strict — C-CLOSE-001)

Automate the scan, don't eyeball it (C-P1 guard, v3.20; L736 assert-before-verify):

python3 scripts/close_gate_check.py planning/PROJECT_PLAN_<name>.md

Exit 2 = BLOCK (unchecked conformance signals listed: Pending/In-Progress gate status, PENDING V-test rows, unchecked Closure/Finalization items). Exit 0 = clean. The script is the consumer's check (C-P4) that backs the prose criteria below — do not assert closure-readiness without running it.

REFUSE close if any of:

• Any gate marked [ ] (unmarked) in plan body — UNLESS override path
• Any V-test result missing for a CAP that has gates
• Plan header **Status:** field absent or not parseable
• close_gate_check.py exits 2 (unchecked conformance signals) — UNLESS override path

Output on refusal:

REFUSE: /aget-close-project gate-completion gate failed
  Plan: planning/PROJECT_PLAN_<name>.md
  Unmarked gates: <list>
  Missing V-tests: <list>
  Override path: re-invoke with --override "<reason per L178>"

Override path (L178): principal supplies reason; recorded in retrospective + commit.

Step 2.5: Authorization Gate (Strict — C-CLOSE-002; L1102 / Q3:A hardening)

A principal-attributed close MUST link its authorizing event; an irreversible consequence MUST be legible. This closes the L1102 root cause — the v3.23 close recorded Reason (principal-ruled): ... private milestone / fold to v3.24 with no linked authorization event and no legibility on the irreversible consequence (burning the v3.23.0 public number).

python3 scripts/close_authorization_guard.py planning/PROJECT_PLAN_<name>.md

Exit 1 = BLOCK. Two checks fire only when relevant (an agent-autonomous close with no irreversible consequence passes — guard N/A):

• CHECK-A: the close reason attributes the decision to the principal (principal-ruled, approved by the principal, …) but carries no authorization-event pointer (a /aget-go record, an Authorization log entry, an AskUserQuestion/Q#:X selection, a dated principal quote). Free-text "(principal-ruled)" is not provenance.
• CHECK-B: the close carries an irreversible / identity-level consequence (private milestone, skip/burn a public version, fold to a later version, abandon a public release) that is not made legible — the consequence must be surfaced explicitly, never buried under a mechanism label, and never agent-recommended against a standing requirement (e.g. "release publicly each weekend").

REFUSE close if the guard exits 1 — UNLESS --override with a recorded L178 reason. On a principal-attributed close, the fix is to add the event pointer (link the GO/selection), not to override.

Step 3: Research Phase

Before writing closure artifacts, gather context:

3.1 Read full PROJECT_PLAN body

• All gate sections
• All V-test result blocks
• Existing retrospective section (if any)
• All deferred-surface markers ("deferred to next session", "Loading Dock", "spawn", "future")

3.2 Read sibling closed plans for closure-pattern grounding

grep -l "^\*\*Status\*\*:\s*COMPLETE" planning/PROJECT_PLAN_*.md | head -3

Read the most recent 1-2 closed plans to ground retrospective style.

3.3 Read commit log for this plan

git log --oneline -- planning/PROJECT_PLAN_<name>.md

Build V-test → commit-SHA mapping (per L001: gate completion = plan update + commit).

Step 4: Closure Checklist Authoring (C-CLOSE-002)

Generate or update these sections in the plan body (per AGET_PROJECT_PLAN_SPEC template, CAP-PP-013/016/018):

1. Retrospective (required, non-empty):
   • Worked: What landed as intended
   • Didn't Work: Friction, rework, gaps
   • Spawned: Items routed to other plans / initiatives / L-docs
2. Velocity Analysis: gates planned vs gates landed; time-on-plan vs estimate
3. Closure Checklist (per template — 10 items spec-defined)
4. Finalization Checklist — pre-close gates: index updated, supervisor notified, handoff filed if applicable

Step 5: Status Transition (C-CLOSE-003 — Verifiable Assertion)

Update **Plan_Status**: header field to one of:

Status	Meaning	Required Evidence
COMPLETE	All gates [x], V-tests pass, retrospective recorded	Full closure checklist + V-test SHA mapping
CLOSED	Terminated without full completion (deferred/superseded/abandoned)	--reason text + reroute targets in retrospective
ABANDONED	Closed without success, no reroute	--reason text + lesson-record link
SUPERSEDED	Replaced by another plan	Pointer to replacement plan filename

Verifiable-Assertion requirement (per CAP-PRJ-001): Status transition is NOT text-edit alone. The transition is valid only when accompanied by:

• V-test summary block referencing commit SHAs
• Closure timestamp + closing agent identity
• Retrospective section non-empty

Step 6: Deferred-Surface Scan (C-CLOSE-004 — MANDATORY)

Scan plan body for deferred-surface markers and emit a structured list for next-plan handoff (L913 closure):

## Deferred Surface (emitted by /aget-close-project — consumed by /aget-propose-actions Step 2 KB review)

| Item | Source line | Suggested route |
|------|-------------|-----------------|
| <text matching "deferred to next session" / "Loading Dock" / "spawn" / "future"> | line N | <next-plan candidate or initiative stream> |

This block MUST be written verbatim into the plan body (under section ## Deferred Surface). /aget-propose-actions SKILL-024 v1.3.0+ scans for this header at next-plan-creation time (per #1186 wiring).

Step 7: Output Summary

Emit one-page summary to stdout:

=== /aget-close-project: <plan-slug> ===

Plan: planning/PROJECT_PLAN_<name>.md
Status transition: <prev> → <new>
Gates: <X/Y> [x]   V-tests: <A/B> recorded
Retrospective: <N> lines  Deferred-surface items: <N>
Closure timestamp: <ISO-8601>
Closing agent: <identity from .aget/identity.json>
Commit prep: ready (run `git add` + `git commit` per L001)

Step 7.5: Self-Verification (C-CLOSE-005)

For each closure-checklist item, emit PASS/FAIL line:

self-verify:
  retrospective:        PASS (3 sub-sections non-empty)
  velocity_analysis:    PASS
  closure_checklist:    PASS (10/10 items addressed)
  finalization:         PASS
  deferred_surface:     PASS (N items scanned)
  status_assertion:     PASS (V-test SHA mapping recorded)

If any FAIL: do NOT proceed to Step 8; surface for principal review.

Step 8: Cross-Plan Coordination

• If planning/INDEX_PROJECT_PLANS.md exists (Stream 3 deliverable of INIT-PROJECT-MATURATION): update row for this plan
• Scan plan body for "Spawned" items in retrospective; flag any that lack a target plan/initiative/L-doc
• Update owning initiative file (if plan references one) — mark stream/deliverable status if applicable

Step 9: INDEX update (C-CLOSE-006)

When planning/INDEX_PROJECT_PLANS.md exists: MUST update the row corresponding to this plan with new status + closure date. If INDEX absent (Stream 3 not yet landed): emit a one-line note in the closure summary noting the gap.

Step 10: Skill completion signal

Emit terminal block:

/aget-close-project: COMPLETE
  Plan closed: <path>
  Next action: git add <path> && git commit (commit IS structural proof — L001)
  Deferred-surface emitted: yes (consumed by next /aget-propose-actions)

Constraints

• C-CLOSE-001 (Strict gate): REFUSE close if any gate [ ] or any V-test missing. Override path L178 with --reason.
• C-CLOSE-002 (Closure checklist completeness): All template sections must be non-empty before write.
• C-CLOSE-003 (Verifiable assertion): Status transition requires V-test SHA mapping + timestamp + agent identity. Text-edit alone is insufficient.
• C-CLOSE-004 (Deferred-surface scan mandatory): Step 6 MUST execute. Output is consumed by /aget-propose-actions (L913 closure).
• C-CLOSE-005 (Self-verification): Step 7.5 PASS for every checklist item before Step 8 fires.
• C-CLOSE-006 (INDEX update mandatory when present): When INDEX_PROJECT_PLANS.md exists, MUST update.

Enforcement Level

Strict (D71 Layer 2 — per AGENTS.md §Structural Skill Routing). Direct status-field edit on a PROJECT_PLAN's **Plan_Status**: from IN PROGRESS to COMPLETE/CLOSED/ABANDONED/SUPERSEDED via Edit/Write is PROHIBITED. The closure must route through this skill so that:

• Gate-completion gate (C-CLOSE-001) fires
• Verifiable-assertion requirement (C-CLOSE-003) is met
• Deferred-surface scan (C-CLOSE-004) emits L913 handoff

Known risk (transparent at v1.0): AGET_PROJECT_PLAN_SPEC is DRAFT (#1180). Strict enforcement before spec finalization is principal-authorized (2026-05-21 GO). Follow-on: when spec lands, V-tests V-PRJ-001/002/004 wire to this skill's constraints.

Override path (L178): --override "<reason>" bypasses Step 2 only. Records reason in retrospective + commit message. Does not waive Steps 4-7.5.

Related Skills

• /aget-create-project — sibling verb-pair (Strict, exists). Pair completes lifecycle bookend.
• /aget-propose-actions — consumer of Step 6 Deferred Surface output (SKILL-024 v1.3.0+).
• /aget-record-lesson — for ABANDONED closures with lesson-record link.
• /aget-close-session — sibling close-mode skill (different artifact class: session vs project).

Traceability

Link	Reference
Skill ID	SKILL-052 (.aget/specs/skills/SKILL-052_aget-close-project.yaml)
Proposal	planning/skill-proposals/PROPOSAL_aget-close-project.md (APPROVED 2026-05-21)
Owning Initiative	INIT-PROJECT-MATURATION (Stream 4 — Lifecycle Symmetry; highest-WSJF per PP-020 D4)
Sibling verb-pair	/aget-create-project (Strict)
Spec (governing)	AGET_PROJECT_PLAN_SPEC.md (DRAFT — #1180)
L-docs	L001 (gate discipline), L617 (gate ordering), L649 (closure-time structural gap — originating), L675 (consequence gap), L908 (apply-to-others-not-self), L913 (plan-close→create handoff), L131 (stopping-point bypass), L178 (Human Override), L735 (push window)
CAPs	CAP-PRJ-001 (verifiable assertion), CAP-PRJ-002 (closure handoff scan), CAP-PRJ-004 (symmetric close-side gate), CAP-PRJ-007 (Loading Dock detection — consumer)
V-tests (pending spec landing)	V-PRJ-001, V-PRJ-002, V-PRJ-004
Cross-fleet evidence	FLEET-UPG-013 + FLEET-UPG-014 D4 root cause (status-field text-edit)
Verb registry	close (Active, row 29, Common, added v3.13.0; paired with open)
Architecture	SKILL.md-driven (mirrors /aget-create-project); no companion script per 2026-05-21 proposal revision

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aget-close-project v1.0.0 Category: Governance (lifecycle bookend) Enforcement: Strict (D71 Layer 2)