diff --git a/.github/workflows/auto-tag.yaml b/.github/workflows/auto-tag.yaml
deleted file mode 100644
index 731bc09..0000000
--- a/.github/workflows/auto-tag.yaml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,59 +0,0 @@
-name: Auto Tag on Version Change
-
-on:
-  push:
-    branches:
-      - main
-    paths:
-      - 'package.json'
-
-jobs:
-  auto-tag:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-
-    permissions:
-      contents: write
-
-    steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          fetch-depth: 0 # Fetch all history for tag checking
-
-      - name: Get version from package.json
-        id: package-version
-        run: |
-          VERSION=$(node -p "require('./package.json').version")
-          echo "version=$VERSION" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-          echo "tag=v$VERSION" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-
-      - name: Check if tag exists
-        id: check-tag
-        run: |
-          if git rev-parse "v${{ steps.package-version.outputs.version }}" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
-            echo "exists=true" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-          else
-            echo "exists=false" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-          fi
-
-      - name: Create and push tag
-        if: steps.check-tag.outputs.exists == 'false'
-        run: |
-          git config user.name "github-actions[bot]"
-          git config user.email "github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com"
-          TAG="${{ steps.package-version.outputs.tag }}"
-          # Try to create the tag; if it already exists locally, continue.
-          git tag -a "$TAG" -m "Release $TAG" || echo "Tag $TAG already exists locally, continuing."
-          # Try to push the tag. If the push fails, check if the tag now exists on the remote.
-          if ! git push origin "$TAG"; then
-            if git ls-remote --tags origin "$TAG" | grep -q "$TAG"; then
-              echo "Tag $TAG already exists on remote (likely created concurrently), skipping."
-            else
-              echo "Failed to push tag $TAG to remote."
-              exit 1
-            fi
-          fi
-
-      - name: Tag already exists
-        if: steps.check-tag.outputs.exists == 'true'
-        run: |
-          echo "Tag ${{ steps.package-version.outputs.tag }} already exists, skipping"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/node.js.yml b/.github/workflows/node.js.yml
index 06fec69..108441b 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/node.js.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/node.js.yml
@@ -25,3 +25,11 @@ jobs:
       - run: npm run build --if-present
       - run: npm test
       - run: npm run lint
+
+  status-check:
+    name: Node.js CI
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    needs: build
+    if: always()
+    steps:
+      - run: exit 0
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yaml b/.github/workflows/release.yaml
index ad39bb2..057c3f0 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yaml
@@ -2,11 +2,13 @@ name: Publish to npm
 
 on:
   push:
-    tags:
-      - 'v*'
+    branches:
+      - main
+    paths:
+      - 'package.json'
 
 jobs:
-  publish:
+  publish-release:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
 
     permissions:
@@ -14,13 +16,26 @@ jobs:
 
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0 # Fetch all history for tag checking
 
-      - name: Verify tagged commit is in main branch history
+      - name: Get version from package.json
+        id: package-version
         run: |
-          git fetch origin main
-          if ! git merge-base --is-ancestor $GITHUB_SHA origin/main; then
-            echo "Tag is not based on main. Aborting release."
-            exit 1
+          VERSION=$(node -p "require('./package.json').version")
+          echo "version=$VERSION" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          echo "tag=v$VERSION" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+
+      - name: Check if version changed
+        run: |
+          LATEST_TAG=$(git describe --tags --abbrev=0 2>/dev/null || echo "v0.0.0")
+          CURRENT_TAG="v${{ steps.package-version.outputs.version }}"
+
+          if [ "$LATEST_TAG" = "$CURRENT_TAG" ]; then
+            echo "Version $CURRENT_TAG has not changed from latest tag. Skipping release."
+            exit 0
+          else
+            echo "New version detected: $CURRENT_TAG (previous: $LATEST_TAG)"
           fi
 
       - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
@@ -29,8 +44,22 @@ jobs:
           registry-url: https://registry.npmjs.org
 
       - run: npm ci
+
       - run: npm test
 
+      - name: Create and push tag
+        run: |
+          git config user.name "github-actions[bot]"
+          git config user.email "github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com"
+          TAG="${{ steps.package-version.outputs.tag }}"
+          # Try to create the tag; if it already exists locally, continue.
+          git tag -a "$TAG" -m "Release $TAG" || echo "Tag $TAG already exists locally, continuing."
+          # Try to push the tag. If the push fails, bail out.
+          if ! git push origin "$TAG"; then
+            echo "Failed to push tag $TAG to remote (may already exist)."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+
       - name: Publish to npm
         run: npm publish
         env:
diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index 9bed376..b17f891 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -22,6 +22,11 @@ npm install
 npm test
 ```
 
+## Development Workflow
+
+1. Use feature branches for development.
+2. PRs for new features should target the main branch.
+
 ### The example test
 
 The input file for the `test/example/example.test.js` is taken from the
diff --git a/RELEASING.md b/RELEASING.md
index 78163c0..86214bb 100644
--- a/RELEASING.md
+++ b/RELEASING.md
@@ -8,20 +8,6 @@ about**, with minimal tooling and clear sources of truth.
 
 ---
 
-## Overview
-
-- Use `npm run release:{patch,minor,major}` to create a release branch.
-- Push that branch and open a PR to main.
-- Merging that branch triggers workflows that create a tag and publish the
-  release.
-  - The auto-tag workflow creates the new tag.
-  - The release workflow sees the new tag and publishes the npm and GitHub
-    releases.
-
-No release bots, changelog generators, or additional CLIs are required.
-
----
-
 ## Versioning
 
 This project follows **Semantic Versioning (SemVer)**:
@@ -31,9 +17,6 @@ This project follows **Semantic Versioning (SemVer)**:
 - **Major** (`x.0.0`) — breaking changes (rule behavior changes, removals,
   stricter defaults)
 
-Versions can be updated manually in package.json or using npm’s built-in
-tooling.
-
 ---
 
 ## Creating a Release
@@ -58,43 +41,35 @@ This script will:
 
 Then create a Pull Request to merge the release branch into main.
 
-Once the PR is merged, **the tag is created automatically**.
+Once the PR is merged, the `release` workflow will run since the PR makes
+changes to package.json. This workflow will run the tests (again), and if the
+tests pass will then attempt to create a tag for the new version. If that
+succeeds, it then creates a release in both npm and GitHub.
 
-The `auto-tag` workflow monitors package.json changes on main and automatically
-creates the corresponding git tag if it doesn't exist.
+The release branch can be deleted after the PR is merged and the releases are
+published.
 
-When the tag is created on main, this triggers the `release` workflow, which
-will create the release in npm and in GitHub.
+No release bots, changelog generators, or additional CLIs are required.
 
 ---
 
 ## Automation (GitHub Actions)
 
-### Automatic Tagging
-
-The `auto-tag` workflow monitors package.json changes on the main branch. When
-a version change is detected, it automatically:
+### Release Workflow
 
-1. Reads the version from package.json
-2. Checks if a tag for that version already exists
-3. Creates and pushes the tag if it doesn't exist
+The `release` workflow is triggered by a push to 'main' (e.g. a PR merge) that
+modifies "package json'. When triggered, it
 
-This eliminates the manual tagging step after PR merge.
-
-### Publishing and Releases
-
-The `release` workflow listens for pushed tags matching `v*` on the main
-branch.
-
-On tag push, it will:
-
-1. Check out the repository
-2. Install dependencies
-3. Run tests
+1. Check if a tag already exists for this version. If so, the workflow
+   terminates.
+2. Install dependencies and run the tests. These should never fail since PRs
+   targeting main must pass CI, but this is an extra precaution.
+3. Create and push a git tag matching the version in package.json
 4. Publish the package to npm
-5. Create a GitHub Release for the tag
+5. Create a GitHub Release with auto-generated notes
 
-The GitHub Release is only created if npm publishing succeeds.
+This single workflow handles the entire release process and ensures the npm and
+GitHub releases are in sync and use the version from package.json
 
 ---
 
@@ -116,18 +91,6 @@ Publishing requires:
 - An npm automation token stored as a GitHub secret named `NPM_TOKEN`
 - `publishConfig.access` set appropriately in `package.json`
 
-Example:
-
-```json
-{
-  "publishConfig": {
-    "access": "public"
-  }
-}
-```
-
----
-
 ## Optional: Changelog
 
 A manual `CHANGELOG.md` may be maintained if desired.
diff --git a/scripts/prepare-release.sh b/scripts/prepare-release.sh
index d72a9b4..1909b8d 100755
--- a/scripts/prepare-release.sh
+++ b/scripts/prepare-release.sh
@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ npm test
 # Run linter
 echo "Running linter..."
 npm run lint
+
 # Bump version
 echo "Bumping version ($VERSION_TYPE)..."
 npm version "$VERSION_TYPE" --no-git-tag-version