Ensuring that document changes align with government policies and regulatory requirements is a critical aspect of government content management. DITA XML offers effective strategies to guarantee compliance with these standards.

Structured Compliance Elements

DITA enables the creation of structured compliance elements within government documents. Government agencies can define specific XML elements or attributes that indicate compliance with particular policies and regulations. For example, “” elements can be added within the content, and these elements can include metadata or descriptions of how the document aligns with the required policies. This structured approach provides transparency and clarity regarding compliance within the document.

Version Control and Audit Trails

Version control is essential for ensuring that document changes align with government policies. DITA’s versioning capabilities allow government agencies to maintain a history of document versions. Each version can be linked to specific compliance requirements. This ensures that changes made to the document are tracked and evaluated against established policies. Audit trails help government agencies verify compliance with regulatory requirements over time.

Example:

Here’s an example of how DITA can be used to ensure document changes align with government policies:

<topic id="government-report">
  <title>Government Report</title>
  <content>...
  <compliance>
    <policy>Privacy Act Compliance</policy>
    <description>This report adheres to the Privacy Act of 1974.
  </compliance>
  <version>2.0</version>

In this example, a DITA topic representing a government report includes a “” element, specifying the policy name and a description of the document’s alignment with the Privacy Act. The “” element indicates the document’s version, enabling agencies to track changes in compliance with government policies.