The changeSet Element

The changeSet is the core of AKN Diff. It lives as a direct child of the document element (bill, amendment, or act) and describes the computable difference between two versions of a document.

Structure

<akndiff:changeSet base="..." result="...">
  <akndiff:vote .../>             <!-- optional: voting record -->
  <akndiff:articleChange .../>    <!-- one per modified article -->
  <akndiff:articleChange .../>
</akndiff:changeSet>

Attributes

Example

<akndiff:changeSet
  base="/poc/receta/paella-valenciana/esp@2023-03-18"
  result="/poc/receta/paella-valenciana/esp@2024-05-10">

This says: "applying the changes in this changeSet to the 2023-03-18 version produces the 2024-05-10 version."

The articleChange element

Each articleChange describes a single article-level modification.

<akndiff:articleChange article="art_5" type="substitute">
  <akndiff:old>Previous text of the article.</akndiff:old>
  <akndiff:new>New text of the article.</akndiff:new>
</akndiff:articleChange>

Attributes

Change types

substitute — Replace an article's text

The most common change type. Both <old> and <new> contain text.

<akndiff:articleChange article="art_1" type="substitute">
  <akndiff:old>Se utilizarán 400 gramos de arroz bomba de denominación
  de origen Valencia. Queda prohibido el uso de cualquier otra
  variedad de arroz.</akndiff:old>
  <akndiff:new>Se utilizarán 400 gramos de arroz bomba o, alternativamente,
  arroz redondo de grano medio. Se recomienda preferentemente el arroz
  bomba cuando esté disponible.</akndiff:new>
</akndiff:articleChange>

insert — Add a new article

The after attribute specifies where the new article goes. <old> is empty or absent.

<akndiff:articleChange article="art_5bis" type="insert" after="art_5">
  <akndiff:new>Cuando se utilicen mariscos según el artículo 5, el plato
  deberá denominarse 'paella mixta' y no 'paella valenciana'.</akndiff:new>
</akndiff:articleChange>

repeal — Remove an article

<new> is empty or absent. The article is deleted.

<akndiff:articleChange article="art_12" type="repeal">
  <akndiff:old>Text of the repealed article.</akndiff:old>
</akndiff:articleChange>

renumber — Change an article's number/position

Used when articles are renumbered without changing their content.

Version chaining

The base and result attributes create a chain across multiple amendments. Each amendment's result becomes the next amendment's base:

Original act         : esp@2023-03-18
                         ↓ base
Bill (approved)      : esp@2023-03-18 → esp@2024-05-10
                                           ↓ base
Amendment 2 (approved): esp@2024-05-10 → esp@2024-06-15
                                            ↓ base
Amendment 4 (approved): esp@2024-06-15 → esp@2024-07-01
                                            ↓
Final act            : esp@2024-09-01

Only approved amendments advance the chain. Rejected and withdrawn amendments have base == result (see below).

When base equals result

For rejected, withdrawn, or inadmissible amendments, the base and result URIs are identical. This signals that the amendment did not produce a new version:

<!-- Amendment 1: unanimously rejected -->
<akndiff:changeSet
  base="/poc/receta/paella-valenciana/esp@2024-05-10"
  result="/poc/receta/paella-valenciana/esp@2024-05-10">

The articleChange elements still describe what would have changed, preserving the full legislative record. The vote element's result attribute clarifies why the change didn't happen.

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