Evaluation and Compliance in Persistent Autonomous Systems_ Testing Identity, Drift, and Verifiable Autonomy

This paper introduces an evaluation framework for persistent autonomous systems, building on prior work defining their structure and enforcement. A system must not only satisfy identity persistence, bounded drift, and replay-verifiable action in principle; it must be demonstrably compliant under structured testing. We define PAS compliance criteria and introduce test protocols for identity persistence, drift governance, replay verification, and continuous enforcement. Systems are evaluated through failure diagnostics and classified across levels of compliance, from non-compliant to PAS-compliant. The result is a practical evaluation standard that converts theoretical requirements into testable conditions. Autonomy is not assumed from capability; it is demonstrated through reproducible evidence that a system persists as the same lawful subject across time.