Review documents in Adobe Acrobat Pro

If your agency uses Citizen Access, you can submit supporting documents as part of a permit application process in Citizen Access. When you submit document files, Civic Platform attaches the files to a record where a permit clerk or similar can interact with them. Citizens can also submit necessary documentation in support of permit applications from the Citizen Access web page.

In Civic Platform, you can submit supporting documents from the Documents tab of a record. You can attach one or more PDF files at a time. For more information on attaching a document in Civic Platform, see Attach files.

The Global search page supports searches for document attachments by using document-related search criteria such as document name, document description, and document category.

When Civic Platform returns search results, it lists any matches to the search criteria in a Documents list. You can do any of the following:

• Select the document name to view the Document information window for any listed document.

• Select the Review link in the Review column to open a document in Adobe Acrobat Pro, where you can comment, annotate, and use stamps.

• Select the record number link to open the record that contains the desired document.

See Global search for more information.

You can launch PDF document attachments for review from Civic Platform into Adobe Acrobat Pro. After you launch a document attachment, you can use the Adobe Acrobat’s commenting and annotation tools to mark up documents. After completing your review, use the Accela Toolbar Add-on tools to save your comments to the Civic Platform application server.

You can open a PDF document attachment in Adobe Acrobat Pro from the Documents tab of a record, the My tasks page, or the Global search page.

From the documents tab

1. Locate and select the record containing the document you want to open.

2. Select the Documents tab.

3. Open the Document information dialog by either selecting the document's File name or by selecting Actions > View doc info.

4. Select Review.

From the My Tasks

1. Open the My tasks page and select the Document review tasks tab.

2. Identify the document you want to open and select the Doc name link.

3. Select Review.

From the Global Search

1. Search for the document you want using the Document name, Document description, or Document category as your search criteria.

2. In the Documents tab of the search results, identify the document you want to open, and select the Review link for that row.

The document opens in Adobe Acrobat Pro where you can annotate the document(s) as needed.

The EDR feature includes an Adobe Acrobat plug-in that has several buttons for you to use when you review documents/plans. See the table below for descriptions of each of the buttons available in the Accela toolbar.

	Button	Description
	Check-in Revision	Use this button to save all comments made by the current user, and merge all comments added to the document by multiple users and the original PDF file into a new document that you must name. This button is typically the final action in a review process and it is accessible only if configured by your administrator.
	e-Codes	You can add one or more buttons to your toolbar to launch preconfigured URLs in a new browser window. You must configure this button to point to the ICC eCode site that you want to reference. Your agency must have an account and licensing set up with ICC to use the site.
	Publish Comments	Use this button to save comments made by the current user to the Civic Platform application server and allow others users to view the saved content. This button is typically the final action of a reviewer when all commentary is complete and ready for others to view. Note that Civic Platform saves comments to a file separate from the PDF file that you reviewed. You can merge the comments into the PDF file by using the Check-in Revision button.
	Get Updates	Use this button to save comments made by the current user to the Civic Platform application server but not allow others to view the saved comments. At the same time, Civic Platform downloads and displays any published comments by other users. Note that Civic Platform saves comments to a file separate from the PDF file that you reviewed. You can merge the comments into the PDF file by using the Check-in Revision button.

You can save any additions to a document during the Electronic Document Review process. Those changes are saved to the Civic Platform application server for others to view. When all reviews are complete, you can then merge the changes together with the original PDF file and save this new document to the record with a new name. The original PDF remains in its unedited state.

To save/publish your annotations

1. Review a PDF document launched from Civic Platform. You may use any review tools or measurement tools available in Adobe Acrobat Pro to annotate the document.

2. Select the Publish comments button in the Accela Add-on Tools to save your work to the Civic Platform application server. Other colleagues with access to the document can view your annotations.

To check in a document with all revisions

1. Review a PDF document launched from Civic Platform. You may use any review tools or measurement tools available in Adobe Acrobat Pro to annotate the document.

2. Select the Check in revision button in the Accela Add-on Tools to merge all saved annotations, comments, stamps, and measurements with the PDF file you are reviewing.

3. Save the new file to the Documents tab for the record, while preserving the original PDF file in submitted state. Be sure you save your file with a PDF extension (do not assume that it is appended automatically), or the file might not get checked in.

You can view the comments, stamps, measurements, and annotations of other reviewers when you are working with Electronic Document Review documents.

To get review comment updates

1. Open a PDF document from Civic Platform using the Review link

2. Select the Get updates button in the Accela Add-on Tools to publish your comments to the Civic Platform application server, and then download all comments and annotations published by other Civic Platform users for the current document.

All comments and annotations made on a PDF document attachment by a reviewer are viewable from the Document information window for the document after the reviewer has selected the Publish comments button in Adobe Acrobat Pro.

To view and edit a document’s comments

1. Locate the document you want to edit on the Documents tab for the selected record or on the Sub tasks tab of the Workflow tab.

   You can also use Global Search to locate the document. See Global search for more information.

2. Open the Document information dialog by either selecting the document's File name or by selecting Actions > View doc info.

3. Select the Doc review comments tab.

   Note: You can use Search to locate a particular comment. Search criteria include a search by document page number, by comment date, by reviewer, and by comment content.

4. Edit the Discipline or Status of the comment as needed.

   • The status of a comment is either Open or Closed. In Adobe Acrobat Pro, if you set a document comment to the Canceled, Completed, or Rejected status and publish the comment, the comment status is Closed in the Doc review comments tab. If you change the status of a comment from Open to Closed in the Doc review comments tab, the comment no longer displays in Adobe Acrobat Pro in the subsequent document reviews.

   • If you are working on a document which was resubmitted of an existing document, the comments list of the document includes all the open comments of the existing document. If you open the resubmitted document in Adobe Acrobat Pro, the comments display in the document in the same position as in the previous document.

5. Select the link at the comment to view the comment details. If the comment is added from a checklist item, the checklist item information displays as read-only with the comment details

You can remove review comments from a document via the Doc review comments tab on the Document information window

To remove one or more review comments

1. Access the Doc review comments tab for the desired document as described in View and edit the document review comments.

2. Select each comment you want to delete.

3. Select the Delete button.