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For Agents
Manage Accela civic records, inspections, addresses, parcels, and documents through a streamlined 30-endpoint surface so agents can automate permit lookups and inspection scheduling.
Use for: I want to create a new permit record for an applicant, Find all open permits at a specific street address, Schedule a final inspection on permit ABC-2026-001, Retrieve the contacts attached to a record
Not supported: Does not handle card payment capture, GIS rendering, or constituent identity verification - use for core Accela record, inspection, address, and contact operations only.
The Accela API is a focused 30-endpoint cut of the Accela Civic Platform surface, covering the most common operations for managing records, inspections, addresses, contacts, parcels, documents, and professionals. It targets civic engagement applications - permitting portals, contractor tools, and inspection apps - where developers need core CRUD on records and inspections without the full breadth of the platform API. Authentication is OAuth 2.0 against auth.accela.com and requests are scoped to an agency via the X-Accela-Agency header.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the Accela API to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the Accela API, or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
1
Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Faccela.com%2Faccela" | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Faccela.com%2Faccela" | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with Accela API.
Search and retrieve agency records (permits, licenses, applications) with id and filter queries
Create new records and update existing record fields via PUT /v4/records/{id}
Schedule inspections on a record and update results once they are complete
Look up addresses and parcels to populate or filter records
Manage contacts attached to a record, including applicants and owners
Retrieve and attach documents associated with a specific record
Use Cases
Patterns agents use Accela API for, with concrete tasks.
★ Citizen-Facing Permit Status Lookup
A municipal portal lets citizens check the status of permits and licenses on their property using GET /v4/records and GET /v4/addresses. The portal forwards the citizen's address to Accela, retrieves matching records, and displays current status, fee balance, and next inspection date. This reduces inbound phone calls to the permit office and gives applicants real-time visibility.
Search GET /v4/records using an address filter and return the most recent permit's status, balance, and next scheduled inspection
Contractor Permit Submission and Tracking
A contractor management tool calls POST /v4/records to submit new permit applications on behalf of licensed contractors, then polls GET /v4/records/{id} for status changes. The tool also uses /v4/inspections to request inspections as work progresses. Contractors get a single dashboard across multiple agencies that all run Accela.
Call POST /v4/records to create a new electrical permit, then schedule a rough-in inspection via POST /v4/inspections
Inspection Field App with Result Capture
Field inspectors use a mobile app that loads the day's inspections, captures result codes and notes, and updates them via PUT on the inspection record. The app also attaches photos to the record using the documents endpoints. Compared to paper-based workflows, agencies see same-day case updates and a complete digital audit trail.
Update inspection id 12345 with result code 'Passed', add notes, and attach a verification photo to the parent record
Agent-Driven Permit Operations via Jentic
An AI assistant inside an agency's helpdesk uses the Accela API through Jentic to handle constituent calls - looking up record status, finding the next inspection slot, or creating a service request record. The agent searches Jentic for the right operation, the OAuth flow is brokered, and credentials never enter the agent's context window.
Through Jentic, search 'find all open permits at an address', load GET /v4/records, and return open records ordered by date
Key Endpoints
30 endpoints — the accela api is a focused 30-endpoint cut of the accela civic platform surface, covering the most common operations for managing records, inspections, addresses, contacts, parcels, documents, and professionals.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
GET
/v4/records
Search records with filters
POST
/v4/records
Create a new record
GET
/v4/records/{id}
Retrieve a specific record
PUT
/v4/records/{id}
Update a record
GET
/v4/addresses
Search addresses
GET
/v4/addresses/{id}
Retrieve a specific address
POST
/oauth2/token
Obtain an OAuth access token
GET
/v4/records
Search records with filters
POST
/v4/records
Create a new record
GET
/v4/records/{id}
Retrieve a specific record
PUT
/v4/records/{id}
Update a record
GET
/v4/addresses
Search addresses
GET
/v4/addresses/{id}
Retrieve a specific address
POST
/oauth2/token
Obtain an OAuth access token
Jentic AI Readiness Score
This API is usable in Jentic One now. Its AI-readiness score against Jentic's framework shows where it stands today and where improvements would make it even easier for agents to use.
A
Accela API
- AI-Aware (A-)72/100
99
Foundational Compliance63
Developer Experience & Jentic Compatibility49
AI-Readiness & Agent Experience94
Agent Usability90
Security100
AI DiscoverabilityPowered by JenticScoring Framework 1.0.0 | Scoring Engine 0.4.0
Show dimension breakdown
99
Foundational Compliance
Base layer of spec validity and structural soundness.
Grade: A+Signals: 4
98%
Lint Results
Aggregated quality score from linter diagnostics, weighted by severity.
100%
Resolution Completeness
Percentage of `$ref` references that resolve successfully.
100%
Specification Validity
Checks whether the API description parses successfully and conforms to its declared specification (e.g., OpenAPI).
100%
Structural Integrity
Structural correctness score based on schema issues using logarithmic dampening.
63
Developer Experience & Jentic Compatibility
Clarity, completeness, and ingestion readiness for developers and tooling.
Grade: B-Signals: 4
0%
Example Density
How richly the API is illustrated with examples.
100%
Example Validity
Percentage of examples that conform to their schemas.
50%
Response Coverage
Percentage of operations with complete response definitions (success, client error, server error).
100%
Tooling Readiness
Health of API ingestion, bundling, and resolution within Jentic pipelines.
49
AI-Readiness & Agent Experience
Semantic breadth, depth, and agent comprehension for AI systems.
Grade: D+Signals: 4
41%
Description Coverage
Coverage of descriptions across API elements.
0%
Error Standardization
Coverage of RFC 9457 Problem Details for error responses.
100%
OperationId Quality
Coverage, uniqueness, and casing consistency of operationIds for AI inference.
56%
Summary Coverage
Coverage of summaries across operations/tags/info.
94
Agent Usability
Functional utility, complexity comfort, and AI orchestration readiness.
Grade: A+Signals: 1
94%
Complexity Comfort
Agent comfort level based on API operational and structural complexity.
90
Security
Trust, risk posture, and security compliance.
Grade: A+Signals: 1
90%
Authentication Strength
Average quality of security schemes based on authentication method strength (weakest link for OAuth2).
100
AI Discoverability
Findability, semantic richness, and reasoning readiness.
Grade: A+Signals: 1
100%
Descriptive Richness
Clarity and depth of descriptions across API elements.
Score it yourself
Every API in the directory is allowlisted, so you can re-score it with no key required.
npx @jentic/api-scorecard-cli score <openapi-url>Why Jentic?
What agents get from Jentic-routed access to this vendor.
Setup
Wiring the Accela API by hand means brokering its OAuth flow, minting agency-scoped tokens, and threading the X-Accela-Agency header through every record and address call. Through Jentic you install once, import the Accela API from the API Directory, store the OAuth client credentials once, and your agent calls it.
Permission scoping
Accela puts the record id in the URL path (/v4/records/{id}), so a rule can pin your agent to one record: it can read and update that record and nothing else. You choose the operations it may call, so creating new records is not included unless you add it.
Credential isolation
Your Accela OAuth client credentials and agency scopes are stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time. They never enter the agent's prompt, logs, or context.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'create a new permit record', and Jentic returns the matching Accela operation with its input schema, including the X-Accela-Agency header field, so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
Complementary
Stripe API
Process card payments for civic fees and post the result back into Accela record fees.
Use Stripe to capture the payment, then call Accela to mark the fee on the record as paid.
FAQs
Specific to using Accela API through Jentic.
What authentication does the Accela API use?
OAuth 2.0 with authorization at GET /oauth2/authorize and token exchange at POST /oauth2/token. Each call also requires an X-Accela-Agency header to scope to the relevant agency. Through Jentic, OAuth client credentials are stored encrypted and tokens are injected at execution time.
Can I create new permit records with the Accela API?
Yes. POST /v4/records creates a new record of a configured record type, and PUT /v4/records/{id} updates fields on an existing record. The set of allowed record types is determined per agency, so look up the available types in the agency's Accela environment first.
What are the rate limits for the Accela API?
The OpenAPI spec does not document explicit rate limits. Accela enforces per-agency limits configured in the production and sandbox environments and documented in the agency's developer portal. Implement exponential backoff on HTTP 429 responses.
How is this Accela API different from the Accela Civic Platform API?
This Accela API is a 30-endpoint subset focused on the most common record, inspection, address, contact, and parcel operations. The Accela Civic Platform API is the full 86-endpoint surface that adds workflow, payment record detail, agency settings, and broader search. Pick this one when a smaller agent tool surface is preferable.
How do I create a permit through Jentic?
Run pip install jentic and search 'create a new permit record for an applicant'. Jentic returns POST /v4/records, you load the schema, supply the agency and applicant fields, and execute. The OAuth handshake and X-Accela-Agency header are handled by the Jentic execution layer.
Does the Accela API support webhook notifications?
The current OpenAPI surface focuses on synchronous record and inspection operations and does not expose webhook subscription endpoints. To detect record changes, poll GET /v4/records with a last-updated filter, or use Accela's separate event subscription channels in their portal.
Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the Accela API?
Yes. Because you run Jentic One yourself, your own rules decide which Accela operations and credentials the agent may use. The Accela API puts the record id in the URL path (/v4/records/{id}), so you can pin the agent to a single record and let it read and update only that record. You choose the operations it may call, so creating new records with POST /v4/records is not available unless you explicitly add it.
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