docs: define post-merge queue state

BUILDER.md

@@ -125,7 +125,12 @@ triage bug, and the move is to say so on the issue, not to guess.
   merge — a live proof of a workflow trigger, a released-artifact check,
   anything whose subject does not exist until the change is on the base
   branch — the same-repo PR uses `Refs #N` instead, and triage closes the
-  issue by hand on the evidence, exactly as it does for cross-repo work.
+  issue by hand on the evidence, exactly as it does for cross-repo work. The
+  merge releases the claim: the issue moves to `post-merge`, the builder
+  walks away, and triage owns verification and closure. If evidence later
+  requires corrective build work, triage returns it to `ready` or mints a
+  fresh `ready` issue; any builder claims from current `main`, and the
+  original builder has no special standing.
   The issue body is what says so; you never judge which issues qualify, and
   absent that instruction `Closes #N` remains the default. The exception was
   bought the hard way: #143 carried `Closes #137` as doctrine then required,

LABELS.md

@@ -52,14 +52,32 @@ strips it on sight).
 | `ready` | `#0E8A16` | triaged, spec complete, unblocked — a builder can start now and succeed | triage |
 | `claimed` | `#1D76DB` | a builder owns it: assignee set, a draft PR expected shortly | the claiming builder |
 | `blocked` | `#6A737D` | waiting on another issue or PR (`Blocked by #N` in the body names it) | triage; anyone may correct it |
+| `post-merge` | `#006B75` | the Refs-linked PR merged; post-merge acceptance criteria remain; the claim is released — nothing here is buildable and nobody owes a draft | the sweep or triage |
 | `epic` | `#5319E7` | organizes other issues via a dependency-ordered task list; **builders never pick an epic** | triage |
 
 The work-queue sweep enforces the invariant a board scan relies on: every open issue is either
 `needs-triage`, `epic`, or carries exactly one of `ready` / `claimed` /
-`blocked`. It flags conflicts rather than guessing intent. A `claimed` issue
+`blocked` / `post-merge`. It flags conflicts rather than guessing intent. A `claimed` issue
 with no open PR and no activity for 48 hours is reclaimed by the sweep: it
 comments, unassigns the stale owner, and restores `ready`.
 
+When a merged PR references a `claimed` issue with `Refs #N` and unchecked
+criteria remain, the sweep moves the issue to `post-merge`, clears the
+assignee, and comments with the remaining criteria verbatim. The comment says
+that the claim is released and that triage owes a follow-up naming the owner
+and wake condition for completion. Triage writes that full transition comment
+in the same tick when it or the operator makes the move by hand. The sweep
+never reclaims `post-merge`: weeks of quiet can be the state working.
+
+`post-merge` never composes with `blocked`; the transition comment carries the
+wait. It never composes with `attention`, because releasing the claim clears
+the assignee and leaves nobody parked-for. An assigned `post-merge` issue is
+flagged rather than repaired: a hand-assignment is intent. `needs-ruling`
+still composes. When the remainder becomes buildable, triage moves
+`post-merge` to `ready` or mints a fresh `ready` issue. Any builder may claim
+that work from current `main`; the original builder has no special standing,
+and re-entry does not set `attention`.
+
 ## Cross-cutting (PRs and issues)
 
 | Label | Color | Meaning |
@@ -155,7 +173,8 @@ unanswered `attention` is exactly the silence the 48-hour reclaim should
 take. It is hand-set doctrine only: nothing in `actions/` sets, clears,
 reads, or validates it, and no reconciler enforces the assignee requirement.
 An `attention` issue without an assignee is therefore a board bug, not a
-demand; anyone may assign it or remove the flag.
+demand; anyone may assign it or remove the flag. It never composes with
+`post-merge`, whose released claim has no assignee to answer the demand.
 
 The three signals are mutually distinct: `attention` means an assignee owes
 a move; `needs-ruling` means a human owes a decision under

TRIAGE.md

@@ -96,7 +96,12 @@ Every issue you mint carries, in this order:
   rather than `Closes #N`. A criterion that survives the merge only if
   someone remembers to reopen the issue is an incomplete criterion — #137's
   amended body is the worked example, reopened by hand after `Closes #137`
-  closed it with the criterion unmet (#151).
+  closed it with the criterion unmet (#151). The merge moves the issue to
+  `post-merge` and releases the claim. The sweep writes the transition
+  comment when it derives the move; when triage or the operator moves it by
+  hand, triage writes the comment in the same tick. In either case triage
+  follows up with the remaining criteria, their owner, and the wake condition
+  for completion.
 - **Test plan**: what proves it, including the cases that must fail.
 - **Dependencies**: `Blocked by #N` / `Blocks #N`, and `Part of #E` when an
   epic organizes it. Name a cross-repo dependency the same way with its
@@ -126,6 +131,11 @@ itself. Keep the checklist current — a stale epic misleads every scan.
   lands, and flags a blocked issue whose dependency declaration is unreadable.
 - The sweep reclaims abandoned claims after 48 hours: `claimed` + no open PR
   + no activity → comment, unassign, restore `ready`.
+- `post-merge` is triage's completion queue, not a parked claim. Tick verified
+  criteria and close under the criterion's existing contract. If corrective
+  build work becomes necessary, move it to `ready` or mint a fresh `ready`
+  issue: any builder claims from current `main`, the original builder has no
+  special standing, and re-entry does not set `attention`.
 - Automation never guesses intent. Resolve the conflict comments it leaves on
   malformed queue states, and close or extend completed epics when nudged.
 - **Close obsolete issues** with the reason and a link to what obsoleted

actions/labels-reconcile/labels-reconcile.sh

@@ -472,6 +472,7 @@ release|0E8A16|Release flow and version/packaging work
 needs-triage|FBCA04|Did not come through triage — owes normalization or conversion to a discussion
 ready|0E8A16|Triaged, spec complete, unblocked — a builder can start now and succeed
 claimed|1D76DB|A builder owns it: assignee set, draft PR expected shortly
+post-merge|006B75|Refs-linked PR merged; post-merge criteria remain and triage owns completion
 epic|5319E7|Organizes other issues via a dependency-ordered task list — builders never pick it
 EOF
 }

changelog.d/175.md

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+- Add `post-merge` issue state for merged `Refs` work awaiting triage-owned verification.