# AWS releases Dogwood Local Engine for agentic governance

> **Key takeaway:** The Dogwood Local Engine provides an Apache 2.0 licensed library to enforce temporal governance policies on AI agent actions.

**Published:** 2026-09-30T20:40:23+00:00 
**Source:** AWS Open Source Blog 
**Category:** bigtech-foss 
**Canonical URL:** https://fosswire.org/news/the-dogwood-local-engine-temporal-governance-for-agent-actio.html 

## Summary
AWS has released the Dogwood Local Engine under the Apache 2.0 license to complement its Dogwood governance language. The engine allows developers to embed a library into an enforcement layer that regulates AI agent tool calls based on past actions and outcomes. It specifically supports temporal conditions, such as permitting a git push only if tests passed within a specific recent timeframe.

## Temporal governance for AI agents
- Released under the **Apache 2.0** license.
- Functions as an embeddable library for an enforcement layer (agent harness).
- Maintains a **durable record** of past actions, including timing, order, and outcomes to survive system crashes.
- Supports **temporal conditions** in policies, allowing rules to depend on the history of tool call requests and responses.
- Handles **concurrent actions** to ensure a consistent view of the event sequence.
- Enables **dynamic policy updates** without requiring a workflow pause.

## Why it matters
This provides an open-source standard for controlling autonomous agent behavior through verifiable, time-sensitive rules.