diff --git a/.github/workflows/continuous-integration.yml b/.github/workflows/continuous-integration.yml
index fd939040..703af1ac 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/continuous-integration.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/continuous-integration.yml
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ permissions:
 jobs:
   quality:
     name: Code Quality
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout git repository 🕝
@@ -85,7 +85,7 @@ jobs:
 
   test:
     name: Run Tests
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     strategy:
       matrix:
         python-version: [3.8, 3.9, '3.10']
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ jobs:
 
   docker_linter:
     name: Lint Dockerfile
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     steps:
       - uses: actions/checkout@8f4b7f84864484a7bf31766abe9204da3cbe65b3
       - name: Lint Dockerfile
@@ -141,7 +141,7 @@ jobs:
 
   rasa-sdk-dev-docker-image:
     name: Build dev Docker image
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
 
     steps:
       - name: Check out code
@@ -167,7 +167,7 @@ jobs:
 
   rasa-sdk-with-dev-deps-docker-image:
     name: Build dev Docker image with dev dependencies
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
 
     steps:
       - name: Check out code
@@ -193,7 +193,7 @@ jobs:
 
   grpc_standalone_integration_tests:
     name: Run gRPC integration tests using standalone server
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     needs: [rasa-sdk-with-dev-deps-docker-image]
 
     steps:
@@ -219,7 +219,7 @@ jobs:
 
   grpc_docker_integration_tests:
     name: Run gRPC integration tests using Docker containers
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     needs: [rasa-sdk-dev-docker-image, rasa-sdk-with-dev-deps-docker-image]
 
     steps:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/dev-release.yml b/.github/workflows/dev-release.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..97e10147
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/dev-release.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+name: DEV Release Workflow
+
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      version:
+        description: 'Version to release'
+        required: true
+      base-branch:
+        description: 'Base branch'
+        required: true
+
+env:
+  COMMIT_EMAIL: sara-tagger@users.noreply.github.com
+  DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION: "3.10"
+  GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.RASASDK_GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+jobs:
+  prepare-dev-release:
+    name: Prepare DEV Release
+    if: ${{ github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch' }}
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout repository
+        uses: actions/checkout@11bd71901bbe5b1630ceea73d27597364c9af683 # v4.2.2
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0    
+    
+      - name: Check-out base branch
+        run: |
+          git checkout $BASE_BRANCH
+          git branch
+        env:
+          BASE_BRANCH: ${{ github.event.inputs.base-branch }}
+
+      - name: Setup Python Environment
+        uses: ./.github/actions/setup-python-env
+        with:
+            PYTHON_VERSION: ${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}
+
+      - name: Prepare the release
+        run:  |
+          git config user.name "rasabot"
+          git config user.email "rasabot@rasa.com"
+          poetry run python scripts/release.py --next_version $INPUT_VERSION
+        env:
+          INPUT_VERSION: ${{ github.event.inputs.version }}
+
+      - name: Create pull request
+        uses: devops-infra/action-pull-request@e66e2ba93519dc63b9884a26e620e2fd0cffab2c # v0.5.5
+        with:
+          github_token: ${{ env.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          source_branch: prepare-release-${{ env.INPUT_VERSION }}
+          target_branch: ${{ env.BASE_BRANCH }}
+          body: "**Automated pull request for Rasa SDK release.**"
+          title: Release ${{ github.event.inputs.version }}
+        env:
+          INPUT_VERSION: ${{ github.event.inputs.version }}
diff --git a/.github/workflows/git-backup.yml b/.github/workflows/git-backup.yml
index 77d3dc85..9979451e 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/git-backup.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/git-backup.yml
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ permissions:
 
 jobs:
   backup:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
         uses: actions/checkout@ac593985615ec2ede58e132d2e21d2b1cbd6127c
diff --git a/.github/workflows/pr-cleanup.yml b/.github/workflows/pr-cleanup.yml
index 8d834605..2332880e 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/pr-cleanup.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/pr-cleanup.yml
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ jobs:
     # Skip any PR created by dependabot to avoid permission issues
     if: (github.actor != 'dependabot[bot]')
     name: Delete PR Docker Images
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     steps:
       - name: Configure AWS credentials
         uses: aws-actions/configure-aws-credentials@8c3f20df09ac63af7b3ae3d7c91f105f857d8497 #v3.0.1
diff --git a/.github/workflows/pr-merged.yml b/.github/workflows/pr-merged.yml
index 25bcbb27..5be91b50 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/pr-merged.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/pr-merged.yml
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ permissions:
 jobs:
   rasa-sdk-dev-docker-image:
     name: Build Dev Docker Image and Push to AWS
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
 
     steps:
       - name: Check out code
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release-artifacts.yml b/.github/workflows/release-artifacts.yml
index 5b44ce0e..1fa9b515 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release-artifacts.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release-artifacts.yml
@@ -5,101 +5,70 @@ on:
     tags:
       - "*"
   workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      tag_version:
+        description: 'Tag version:'
+        required: true
 
 jobs:
-  build_docker_image_set_env:
-    name: Prepare environment for Docker build
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
-    if: github.repository == 'RasaHQ/rasa-sdk'
+  define-release-version:
+    name: Define Release Version
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+
     outputs:
-      # Tag name used for intermediate images created during Docker image builds, e.g. 3886 - a PR number
-      image_tag: ${{ steps.set_output.outputs.image_tag }}
-      # Return 'true' if tag version is equal or higher than the latest tagged rasa-sdk version
-      is_newest_version: ${{ steps.rasa_sdk_get_version.outputs.is_newest_version }}
+      version: ${{ steps.set-tag-version.outputs.tag_version }}
+    
     steps:
-      - name: Checkout git repository 🕝
-        uses: actions/checkout@8f4b7f84864484a7bf31766abe9204da3cbe65b3
-
-      # Set environment variables for a tag
-      #
-      # In this scenario, we've pushed the '2.4.1' tag
-      #
-      # Example output:
-      # IMAGE_TAG=2.4.1
-      - name: Set image_tag
+      - name: Define release version
+        id: set-tag-version
         run: |
-          TAG_NAME=${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/}
-          echo "IMAGE_TAG=${TAG_NAME}" >> $GITHUB_ENV
-          echo "image_tag=${{ env.IMAGE_TAG }}" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-
-      - name: Set is_newest_version
-        id: rasa_sdk_get_version
-        run: |
-          # Get latest tagged rasa-sdk version
-          git fetch --depth=1 origin "+refs/tags/*:refs/tags/*"
-          # Fetch branch history
-          git fetch --prune --unshallow
-          LATEST_TAGGED_NON_ALPHA_RASA_SDK_VERSION=$(git tag | sort -r -V | grep -E "^[0-9.]+$" | head -n1)
-          CURRENT_TAG=${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/}
-          # Return 'true' if tag version is equal or higher than the latest tagged rasa-sdk version
-          IS_NEWEST_VERSION=$((printf '%s\n%s\n' "${LATEST_TAGGED_NON_ALPHA_RASA_SDK_VERSION}" "$CURRENT_TAG" \
-            | sort -V -C && echo true || echo false) || true)
-
-
-          if [[ "${IS_NEWEST_VERSION}" == "true" && "$CURRENT_TAG" =~ ^[0-9.]+$ ]]; then
-            echo "is_newest_version=true" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          if [[ -n "$GITHUB_REF" && "$GITHUB_REF" == refs/tags/* ]]; then
+            echo "tag_version=${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/}" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          elif [[ -n "$INPUT_TAG_VERSION" ]]; then
+            echo "tag_version=$INPUT_TAG_VERSION" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
           else
-            echo "is_newest_version=false" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+            echo "No tag version found."
+            exit 1
           fi
-
-  build_docker_image:
-    name: Build Docker image
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
-    needs: [ build_docker_image_set_env ]
-    if: github.repository == 'RasaHQ/rasa-sdk'
-
+        env:
+          INPUT_TAG_VERSION: ${{ github.event.inputs.tag_version }}
+      
+  release-artifacts-docker:
+    name: Release Artifacts Docker
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    needs: define-release-version
+  
     steps:
-      - name: Checkout git repository 🕝
-        uses: actions/checkout@8f4b7f84864484a7bf31766abe9204da3cbe65b3
-
+      - name: Check out code
+        uses: actions/checkout@b4ffde65f46336ab88eb53be808477a3936bae11 # v4.1.1
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}
+          
       - name: Set up QEMU
         uses: docker/setup-qemu-action@68827325e0b33c7199eb31dd4e31fbe9023e06e3 # v3.0.0
 
       - name: Set up Docker Buildx
         uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@0d103c3126aa41d772a8362f6aa67afac040f80c  # v3.1.0
 
-      - name: Set environment variables
-        run: |
-          echo "IMAGE_TAG=${{ needs.build_docker_image_set_env.outputs.image_tag }}" >> $GITHUB_ENV
-
       - name: Login to Docker Hub Registry 🔢
         run: echo ${{ secrets.DOCKER_HUB_PASSWORD }} | docker login -u ${{ secrets.DOCKER_HUB_USERNAME }} --password-stdin || true
 
       - name: Build and Push Docker image 📦
         run: |
-          IS_NEWEST_VERSION=${{ needs.build_docker_image_set_env.outputs.is_newest_version }}
-
-          # Push image
-          IMAGE_NAME=rasa/rasa-sdk \
-          IMAGE_TAG=${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/} \
+          IMAGE_NAME=rasa/rasa-sdk
+          IMAGE_TAG="${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}"
           make build-and-push-multi-platform-docker
-
-          # Tag the image as latest
-          if [[ "${IS_NEWEST_VERSION}" == "true" ]]; then
-            IMAGE_TAG=latest \
-            make build-and-push-multi-platform-docker
-          fi
-
-  deploy:
-    name: Deploy to PyPI
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
-
-    # deploy will only be run when there is a tag available
-    needs: [ build_docker_image ] # only run after all other stages succeeded
-
+            
+  release-artifacts-pypi:
+    name: Release Artifacts PyPI
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    needs: define-release-version
+    
     steps:
       - name: Checkout git repository 🕝
-        uses: actions/checkout@8f4b7f84864484a7bf31766abe9204da3cbe65b3
+        uses: actions/checkout@b4ffde65f46336ab88eb53be808477a3936bae11 # v4.1.1
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}
 
       - name: Set up Python 3.10 🐍
         uses: actions/setup-python@d27e3f3d7c64b4bbf8e4abfb9b63b83e846e0435
@@ -126,37 +95,53 @@ jobs:
           password: ${{ secrets.PYPI_TOKEN }}
           skip_existing: true
 
+  release-atifacts-publish-release:
+    name: Release Artifacts Publish Release
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    needs: [define-release-version, release-artifacts-docker, release-artifacts-pypi]
+
+    steps:
+      - name: Check out code
+        if: success()
+        uses: actions/checkout@b4ffde65f46336ab88eb53be808477a3936bae11 # v4.1.1
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}
+      
       - name: Publish Release Notes 🗞
-        if: env.IS_TAG_BUILD
+        if: success()
         env:
-          GITHUB_TAG: ${{ github.ref }}
+          GITHUB_TAG: ${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}
           GITHUB_REPO_SLUG: ${{ github.repository }}
-          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.RASASDK_GITHUB_TOKEN }}
         run: |
-          GITHUB_TAG=${GITHUB_TAG/refs\/tags\//}
-          sudo apt-get update
-          sudo apt-get -y install pandoc
-          pip install -U github3.py pep440_version_utils
-          python3 ${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}/scripts/publish_gh_release_notes.py
+          GITHUB_TAG=$GITHUB_TAG
+          pip install -U github3.py pep440-version-utils
+          python3 scripts/publish_gh_release_notes.py
 
-      - name: Get RASA SDK Version
-        env:
-          RASA_SDK_VERSION: ${{ github.ref }}
-        run: |
-          echo "RASA_SDK_VERSION=${RASA_SDK_VERSION/refs\/tags\//}" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+  release-artifact-slack-notifications:
+    name: Release Analytics Artifact Slack Notifications
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    needs: [define-release-version, release-artifacts-docker, release-artifacts-pypi, release-atifacts-publish-release]
 
-      - name: Notify Slack 💬
-        if: success()
-        env:
-          SLACK_WEBHOOK: ${{ secrets.SLACK_RELEASE_ASSISTANT_RELEASE_WEBHOOK }}
-        uses: Ilshidur/action-slack@2.1.0
-        with:
-          args: "⚡ New *Rasa SDK* version ${{ env.RASA_SDK_VERSION }} has been released! Changelog: https://github.com/RasaHQ/rasa-sdk/blob/${{ env.RASA_SDK_VERSION }}/CHANGELOG.mdx"
+    if: always()  # Ensures this job runs regardless of the result of previous jobs
 
-      - name: Notify Slack of Failure ⛔
-        if: failure()
+    steps:
+      - name: Notify Slack of successful release 💬
+        if: ${{ needs.release-artifacts-docker.result == 'success' && needs.release-artifacts-pypi.result == 'success' }}
+        uses: slackapi/slack-github-action@6c661ce58804a1a20f6dc5fbee7f0381b469e001 #v 1.25.0
+        with:
+          # Send notification to #release slack channel
+          channel-id: "C024Z61K9QU"
+          slack-message: ":rocket: New *Rasa SDK* version `${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}` has been released! More information can be found <https://github.com/RasaHQ/rasa-sdk/releases/tag/${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}|here>."
         env:
-          SLACK_WEBHOOK: ${{ secrets.SLACK_RELEASE_ASSISTANT_DEV_TRIBE_WEBHOOK }}
-        uses: Ilshidur/action-slack@2.1.0
+          SLACK_BOT_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.SLACK_BOT_TOKEN }}
+
+      - name: Notify Slack of unsuccessful release ⛔️
+        if: ${{ needs.release-artifacts-docker.result == 'success' && needs.release-artifacts-pypi.result == 'success' }}
+        uses: slackapi/slack-github-action@6c661ce58804a1a20f6dc5fbee7f0381b469e001 #v 1.25.0
         with:
-          args: "⛔️ *Rasa SDK* version ${{ env.RASA_SDK_VERSION }} could not be released 😱 GitHub Actions: https://github.com/RasaHQ/rasa-sdk/actions?query=branch%3A${{ env.RASA_SDK_VERSION }}"
+          # Send notification to #devtribe slack channel
+          channel-id: "C061J0LGHU0"
+          slack-message: ":broken_heart: *Rasa SDK* release version `${{ needs.define-release-version.outputs.version }}` has failed! More information can be found <https://github.com/${{ github.repository }}/actions/runs/${{ github.run_id }}|here>."
+        env:
+          SLACK_BOT_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.SLACK_BOT_TOKEN }}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..09c4dc59
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,156 @@
+name: Release Workflow
+
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      version:
+        description: 'Version to release'
+        required: true
+  pull_request:
+    branches:
+      - main
+      - '[0-9]+.[0-9]+.x'
+    types: [closed]
+
+env:
+  COMMIT_EMAIL: sara-tagger@users.noreply.github.com
+  DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION: "3.10"
+  GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.RASASDK_GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+  INPUT_VERSION: ${{ github.event.inputs.version }}
+
+jobs:
+  prepare-the-release:
+    name: Prepare the Release
+    if: ${{ github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch' }}
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout repository
+        uses: actions/checkout@11bd71901bbe5b1630ceea73d27597364c9af683 # v4.2.2
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+      
+      - name: Minor Release Check
+        id: minor_release
+        run: |
+          version="$INPUT_VERSION"
+          
+          # Check if version is in format number.number.number
+          if ! [[ $version =~ ^[0-9]+\.[0-9]+\.[0-9]+$ ]]; then
+            echo "Invalid version format. It should be in format 'number.number.number'."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+
+          # Extract the third number
+          IFS='.' read -r -a version_parts <<< "$version"
+          third_number="${version_parts[2]}"
+
+          # Check if it's a minor release
+          if [ "$third_number" -eq 0 ]; then
+            echo "Minor release detected."
+            echo "is_minor=true" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+          else
+            echo "Not a minor release. Skipping branch creation."
+            echo "is_minor=false" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+          fi
+    
+      - name: Create and Push New Release Branch
+        if: env.is_minor == 'true'
+        run: |
+          version="$INPUT_VERSION"
+          IFS='.' read -r -a version_parts <<< "$version"
+          release_branch="${version_parts[0]}.${version_parts[1]}.x"
+
+          git fetch origin
+          git checkout origin/main
+          git checkout -b $release_branch
+          git push origin $release_branch
+        
+      - name: Check-out Release Branch
+        run: |
+          version="$INPUT_VERSION"
+          IFS='.' read -r -a version_parts <<< "$version"
+          release_branch="${version_parts[0]}.${version_parts[1]}.x"
+          echo "base_branch=${version_parts[0]}.${version_parts[1]}.x" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+          echo $base_branch
+          
+          git checkout $release_branch
+          git branch
+
+      - name: Setup Python Environment
+        uses: ./.github/actions/setup-python-env
+        with:
+            PYTHON_VERSION: ${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}
+
+      - name: Prepare the release
+        run:  |
+          git config user.name "rasabot"
+          git config user.email "rasabot@rasa.com"
+          poetry run python scripts/release.py --next_version $INPUT_VERSION
+
+      - name: Create pull request
+        uses: devops-infra/action-pull-request@e66e2ba93519dc63b9884a26e620e2fd0cffab2c # v0.5.5
+        with:
+          github_token: ${{ env.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          source_branch: prepare-release-${{ env.INPUT_VERSION }}
+          target_branch: ${{ env.base_branch }}
+          body: "**Automated pull request for Rasa SDK release.**"
+          title: Release ${{ github.event.inputs.version }}
+
+  if_merged_tag_release:
+    name: Tag Release Version
+    if: startsWith(github.head_ref, 'prepare-release-') && github.event.pull_request.merged == true
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout git repository 🕝
+        uses: actions/checkout@b4ffde65f46336ab88eb53be808477a3936bae11 # v4
+        with:
+          token: ${{ secrets.RELEASE_TAGGER_PAT }}
+
+      - name: Set up Python ${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }} 🐍
+        uses: actions/setup-python@0a5c61591373683505ea898e09a3ea4f39ef2b9c # v5.0.0
+        with:
+          python-version: ${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}
+
+      - name: Read Poetry Version 🔢
+        run: |
+          echo "POETRY_VERSION=$(scripts/poetry-version.sh)" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+        shell: bash
+
+      - name: Install poetry 🦄
+        uses: Gr1N/setup-poetry@15821dc8a61bc630db542ae4baf6a7c19a994844 # v8
+        with:
+          poetry-version: ${{ env.POETRY_VERSION }}
+
+      - name: Load Poetry Cached Libraries ⬇
+        id: cache-poetry
+        uses: actions/cache@13aacd865c20de90d75de3b17ebe84f7a17d57d2 # v4.0.0
+        with:
+          path: .venv
+          key: ${{ runner.os }}-poetry-${{ env.POETRY_VERSION }}-${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}-${{ hashFiles('**/poetry.lock') }}-${{ secrets.POETRY_CACHE_VERSION }}
+          restore-keys: ${{ runner.os }}-poetry-${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}
+
+      - name: Clear Poetry cache
+        if: steps.cache-poetry.outputs.cache-hit == 'true' && contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'tools:clear-poetry-cache-unit-tests')
+        run: rm -r .venv
+
+      - name: Create virtual environment
+        if: steps.cache-poetry.outputs.cache-hit != 'true' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'tools:clear-poetry-cache-unit-tests')
+        run: python -m venv create .venv
+
+      - name: Set up virtual environment
+        run: poetry config virtualenvs.in-project true
+
+      - name: Install Dependencies 📦
+        # Poetry intermittently fails to install dependency if it is not PEP 517 compliant
+        # This is a workaround for that issue
+        run: |
+          sudo apt-get -y install libpq-dev
+          make install
+
+      - name: Configure git
+        run: |
+          git config --global user.email ${{ env.COMMIT_EMAIL }}
+          git config --global user.name "Github Actions"
+
+      - name: Tag Release
+        run: make tag-release
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.github/workflows/scan_docker_image_dependencies.yml b/.github/workflows/scan_docker_image_dependencies.yml
index e8f00323..2fa14070 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/scan_docker_image_dependencies.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/scan_docker_image_dependencies.yml
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ on:
 
 jobs:
   scan_and_alert:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
 
     steps:
     - name: Checkout repository to check tags
diff --git a/.github/workflows/security-patching.yml b/.github/workflows/security-patching.yml
index f86b364a..4c58a668 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/security-patching.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/security-patching.yml
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ permissions:
 
 jobs:
   get_tags:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     continue-on-error: true
     outputs:
       tags: ${{ steps.tags.outputs.tags }}
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ jobs:
       
 
   build:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     needs: get_tags
     # Don't allow a single image failure to block all the image builds.
     continue-on-error: true
diff --git a/.github/workflows/security-scans.yml b/.github/workflows/security-scans.yml
index 93dd1a0c..60cc4282 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/security-scans.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/security-scans.yml
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ jobs:
 
   trivy:
     name: Detecting hardcoded secrets
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     steps:
     - uses: actions/checkout@8f4b7f84864484a7bf31766abe9204da3cbe65b3
       with:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/semgrep-check.yml b/.github/workflows/semgrep-check.yml
index 10e428e9..615e239b 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/semgrep-check.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/semgrep-check.yml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ jobs:
     # User-definable name of this GitHub Actions job:
     name: Semgrep Workflow Security Scan
     # If you are self-hosting, change the following `runs-on` value: 
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
 
     container:
       # A Docker image with Semgrep installed. Do not change this.
diff --git a/.github/workflows/spellcheck.yml b/.github/workflows/spellcheck.yml
index 70b421d1..57be6108 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/spellcheck.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/spellcheck.yml
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ on:
 jobs:
   spellcheck:
     name: Typo CI (GitHub Action)
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    runs-on: ubuntu-24.04
     timeout-minutes: 4
     if: "!contains(github.event.head_commit.message, '[ci skip]')"
     steps:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/tag-release.yml b/.github/workflows/tag-release.yml
deleted file mode 100644
index 6a570e7b..00000000
--- a/.github/workflows/tag-release.yml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,72 +0,0 @@
-name: Tag Release Version
-on:
-  pull_request:
-    branches:
-      - main
-      - '[0-9]+.[0-9]+.x'
-    types: [closed]
-  workflow_dispatch:
-
-env:
-  COMMIT_EMAIL: sara-tagger@users.noreply.github.com
-  DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION: "3.10"
-
-jobs:
-  if_merged_tag_release:
-    name: Tag Release Version
-    if: startsWith(github.head_ref, 'prepare-release-') && github.event.pull_request.merged == true
-    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
-    steps:
-      - name: Checkout git repository 🕝
-        uses: actions/checkout@b4ffde65f46336ab88eb53be808477a3936bae11 # v4
-        with:
-          token: ${{ secrets.RELEASE_TAGGER_PAT }}
-
-      - name: Set up Python ${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }} 🐍
-        uses: actions/setup-python@0a5c61591373683505ea898e09a3ea4f39ef2b9c # v5.0.0
-        with:
-          python-version: ${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}
-
-      - name: Read Poetry Version 🔢
-        run: |
-          echo "POETRY_VERSION=$(scripts/poetry-version.sh)" >> $GITHUB_ENV
-        shell: bash
-
-      - name: Install poetry 🦄
-        uses: Gr1N/setup-poetry@15821dc8a61bc630db542ae4baf6a7c19a994844 # v8
-        with:
-          poetry-version: ${{ env.POETRY_VERSION }}
-
-      - name: Load Poetry Cached Libraries ⬇
-        id: cache-poetry
-        uses: actions/cache@13aacd865c20de90d75de3b17ebe84f7a17d57d2 #v4.0.0
-        with:
-          path: .venv
-          key: ${{ runner.os }}-poetry-${{ env.POETRY_VERSION }}-${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}-${{ hashFiles('**/poetry.lock') }}-${{ secrets.POETRY_CACHE_VERSION }}
-          restore-keys: ${{ runner.os }}-poetry-${{ env.DEFAULT_PYTHON_VERSION }}
-
-      - name: Clear Poetry cache
-        if: steps.cache-poetry.outputs.cache-hit == 'true' && contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'tools:clear-poetry-cache-unit-tests')
-        run: rm -r .venv
-
-      - name: Create virtual environment
-        if: steps.cache-poetry.outputs.cache-hit != 'true' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'tools:clear-poetry-cache-unit-tests')
-        run: python -m venv create .venv
-
-      - name: Set up virtual environment
-        run: poetry config virtualenvs.in-project true
-
-      - name: Install Dependencies 📦
-        # Poetry intermittently fails to install dependency if it is not PEP 517 compliant
-        # This is a workaround for that issue
-        run: |
-          sudo apt-get -y install libpq-dev
-          make install
-
-      - name: Configure git
-        run: |
-          git config --global user.email ${{ env.COMMIT_EMAIL }}
-          git config --global user.name "Github Actions"
-
-      - name: Tag Release
-        run: make tag-release
diff --git a/scripts/publish_gh_release_notes.py b/scripts/publish_gh_release_notes.py
index f96d8b08..99d1050b 100644
--- a/scripts/publish_gh_release_notes.py
+++ b/scripts/publish_gh_release_notes.py
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ def main():
         return 1
 
     version = Version(tag_name)
-    if version.pre:
+    if version.pre or version.dev:
         md_body = "_Pre-release version_"
     else:
         md_body = parse_changelog(tag_name)