diff --git a/.github/workflows/release-please.yml b/.github/workflows/release-please.yml
index 22c514f..d9523eb 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release-please.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release-please.yml
@@ -9,6 +9,10 @@ on:
   push:
     branches:
       - main
+  pull_request:
+    paths:
+      - ".github/workflows/release-please.yml"
+      - "release-please-config.json"
   workflow_dispatch:
     inputs:
       tag:
@@ -18,6 +22,7 @@ on:
 
 jobs:
   release-please:
+    if: github.event_name != 'pull_request'
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     permissions:
       contents: write
@@ -27,7 +32,7 @@ jobs:
       tag_name: ${{ inputs.tag || steps.release.outputs.tag_name }}
     steps:
       # Only run the bot on push events; skip it for manual re-publish triggers.
-      - uses: googleapis/release-please-action@5c625bfb5d1ff62eadeeb3772007f7f66fdcf071 # v4
+      - uses: googleapis/release-please-action@45996ed1f6d02564a971a2fa1b5860e934307cf7 # v5
         id: release
         if: github.event_name == 'push'
         with:
@@ -133,3 +138,17 @@ jobs:
         uses: pypa/gh-action-pypi-publish@dc37677b2e1c63e2034f94d8a5b11f265b73ba33 # release/v1
         with:
           print-hash: true
+
+  validate-action:
+    name: Validate release-please action (read-only)
+    if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 5
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+    steps:
+      - name: Start the same release action without creating releases or pull requests
+        uses: googleapis/release-please-action@45996ed1f6d02564a971a2fa1b5860e934307cf7 # v5
+        with:
+          skip-github-release: true
+          skip-github-pull-request: true
diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index 5fa6815..e9496d2 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ git push  # This bypasses PR review!
 
 All commits must follow the [Conventional Commits](https://www.conventionalcommits.org/) specification:
 
-- `feat:` - New feature (bumps minor version pre-1.0.0)
+- `feat:` - New feature (bumps the patch version while the project is pre-1.0.0)
 - `fix:` - Bug fix (bumps patch version)
 - `docs:` - Documentation changes
 - `chore:` - Maintenance tasks
@@ -101,11 +101,13 @@ This repository uses **release-please** for automated releases.
 
 We're currently pre-1.0.0, which uses special semver rules:
 
-- `fix:` commits → **minor** version bump (0.2.0 → 0.3.0)
-- `feat:` commits → **minor** version bump (0.2.0 → 0.3.0)
-- `BREAKING CHANGE:` → **major** version bump (0.2.0 → 1.0.0)
+- `fix:` commits → **patch** version bump (0.2.0 → 0.2.1)
+- `feat:` commits → **patch** version bump (0.2.0 → 0.2.1)
+- Breaking commits (`type!:` or a `BREAKING CHANGE:` footer) → **minor** version bump (0.2.0 → 0.3.0)
 
-This is configured via `bump-patch-for-minor-pre-major: true` in `release-please-config.json`.
+This is configured by both `bump-minor-pre-major: true` and `bump-patch-for-minor-pre-major: true`
+in `release-please-config.json`. See the [release-please versioning options](https://github.com/googleapis/release-please/blob/main/docs/cli.md#creatingupdating-release-prs)
+for their behavior before 1.0.0.
 
 ### Release Configuration Files