# Stale/Blocked PR Policy

**Scope:** `hermes-agent` and all Timmy_Foundation repositories  
**Effective:** 2026-04-29  
**Related:** Issue timmy-home#491, hermes-agent#129/#108/#107

## Purpose

Blocked or merge-conflicted PRs stall delivery and clutter the pipeline. This
policy defines when such PRs must be closed and how exceptions are handled.

## 7-Day Stale-Conflict Rule

- A PR that **cannot be merged due to merge conflicts** and remains in that
  state for **7 consecutive days** is considered _stale-blocked_.
- Stale-blocked PRs should be **closed** with a comment explaining:
  1. why the PR is being closed (merge conflicts, unrebased)
  2. whether the underlying work is still needed
  3. how to rebase or reopen if still relevant
- The closure comment should reference the related issue(s) or epic.

## Exceptions

A PR may be exempt from automatic closure if:
- It is linked to an active milestone with an explicit rebase plan
- The author has explicitly requested extra time in a comment
- The PR is kept open intentionally for long-running experimental work
  (must carry the `experimental` label)

## Process

1. **Daily check** (via cron): scan all open PRs with `mergeable = false`
2. **Age filter**: if PR is >7 days old and `blocked = true` or conflicts present → flag
3. **Comment**: pester author to rebase within 48h
4. **Close**: if no action after 48h, close with standard closure message

## Record

Closed PRs are documented in:
- timmy-home: the cross-audit triage report links to closed PRs
- hermes-agent: closure comments explain the decision in each case

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This policy directly implements timmy-home#491's final acceptance criterion.