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+<!--
+**Note:** When your KEP is complete, all of these comment blocks should be removed.
+
+To get started with this template:
+
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+  Make sure that the problem space is something the SIG is interested in taking
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+Stuff that is being argued.
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+
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+**Note:** Any PRs to move a KEP to `implementable`, or significant changes once
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+If none of those approvers are still appropriate, then changes to that list
+should be approved by the remaining approvers and/or the owning SIG (or
+SIG Architecture for cross-cutting KEPs).
+-->
+# KEP-5625: HPA - Improve pod selection accuracy across workload types
+
+<!--
+This is the title of your KEP. Keep it short, simple, and descriptive. A good
+title can help communicate what the KEP is and should be considered as part of
+any review.
+-->
+
+<!--
+A table of contents is helpful for quickly jumping to sections of a KEP and for
+highlighting any additional information provided beyond the standard KEP
+template.
+
+Ensure the TOC is wrapped with
+  <code>&lt;!-- toc --&rt;&lt;!-- /toc --&rt;</code>
+tags, and then generate with `hack/update-toc.sh`.
+-->
+
+<!-- toc -->
+- [Release Signoff Checklist](#release-signoff-checklist)
+- [Summary](#summary)
+- [Motivation](#motivation)
+  - [Goals](#goals)
+  - [Non-Goals](#non-goals)
+- [Proposal](#proposal)
+  - [User Stories (Optional)](#user-stories-optional)
+    - [Story 1](#story-1)
+    - [Story 2](#story-2)
+  - [Notes/Constraints/Caveats (Optional)](#notesconstraintscaveats-optional)
+  - [Risks and Mitigations](#risks-and-mitigations)
+- [Design Details](#design-details)
+  - [Test Plan](#test-plan)
+      - [Prerequisite testing updates](#prerequisite-testing-updates)
+      - [Unit tests](#unit-tests)
+      - [Integration tests](#integration-tests)
+      - [e2e tests](#e2e-tests)
+  - [Graduation Criteria](#graduation-criteria)
+  - [Upgrade / Downgrade Strategy](#upgrade--downgrade-strategy)
+  - [Version Skew Strategy](#version-skew-strategy)
+- [Production Readiness Review Questionnaire](#production-readiness-review-questionnaire)
+  - [Feature Enablement and Rollback](#feature-enablement-and-rollback)
+  - [Rollout, Upgrade and Rollback Planning](#rollout-upgrade-and-rollback-planning)
+  - [Monitoring Requirements](#monitoring-requirements)
+  - [Dependencies](#dependencies)
+  - [Scalability](#scalability)
+  - [Troubleshooting](#troubleshooting)
+- [Implementation History](#implementation-history)
+- [Drawbacks](#drawbacks)
+- [Alternatives](#alternatives)
+- [Infrastructure Needed (Optional)](#infrastructure-needed-optional)
+<!-- /toc -->
+
+## Release Signoff Checklist
+
+<!--
+**ACTION REQUIRED:** In order to merge code into a release, there must be an
+issue in [kubernetes/enhancements] referencing this KEP and targeting a release
+milestone **before the [Enhancement Freeze](https://git.k8s.io/sig-release/releases)
+of the targeted release**.
+
+For enhancements that make changes to code or processes/procedures in core
+Kubernetes—i.e., [kubernetes/kubernetes], we require the following Release
+Signoff checklist to be completed.
+
+Check these off as they are completed for the Release Team to track. These
+checklist items _must_ be updated for the enhancement to be released.
+-->
+
+Items marked with (R) are required *prior to targeting to a milestone / release*.
+
+- [ ] (R) Enhancement issue in release milestone, which links to KEP dir in [kubernetes/enhancements] (not the initial KEP PR)
+- [ ] (R) KEP approvers have approved the KEP status as `implementable`
+- [ ] (R) Design details are appropriately documented
+- [ ] (R) Test plan is in place, giving consideration to SIG Architecture and SIG Testing input (including test refactors)
+  - [ ] e2e Tests for all Beta API Operations (endpoints)
+  - [ ] (R) Ensure GA e2e tests meet requirements for [Conformance Tests](https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/contributors/devel/sig-architecture/conformance-tests.md) 
+  - [ ] (R) Minimum Two Week Window for GA e2e tests to prove flake free
+- [ ] (R) Graduation criteria is in place
+  - [ ] (R) [all GA Endpoints](https://github.com/kubernetes/community/pull/1806) must be hit by [Conformance Tests](https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/contributors/devel/sig-architecture/conformance-tests.md) 
+- [ ] (R) Production readiness review completed
+- [ ] (R) Production readiness review approved
+- [ ] "Implementation History" section is up-to-date for milestone
+- [ ] User-facing documentation has been created in [kubernetes/website], for publication to [kubernetes.io]
+- [ ] Supporting documentation—e.g., additional design documents, links to mailing list discussions/SIG meetings, relevant PRs/issues, release notes
+
+<!--
+**Note:** This checklist is iterative and should be reviewed and updated every time this enhancement is being considered for a milestone.
+-->
+
+[kubernetes.io]: https://kubernetes.io/
+[kubernetes/enhancements]: https://git.k8s.io/enhancements
+[kubernetes/kubernetes]: https://git.k8s.io/kubernetes
+[kubernetes/website]: https://git.k8s.io/website
+
+## Summary
+
+The Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA) has a critical limitation in its pod selection mechanism: it collects metrics from all pods that match the target workload's label selector, regardless of whether those pods are actually managed by the target workload. This can lead to incorrect scaling decisions when unrelated pods (such as Jobs, CronJobs, or other Deployments) happen to share the same labels.
+
+This often results in unexpected behavior such as:
+
+* HPAs stuck at maxReplicas despite low actual usage in the target workload
+* Unnecessary scaling events triggered by temporary workloads
+* Unpredictable scaling behavior that's difficult to diagnose
+
+This proposal adds a parameter to HPAs which that ensures the HPA only considers pods that are actually owned by the target workload (through owner references), rather than all pods matching the label selector.
+
+
+## Motivation
+
+Consider this example:
+```yaml
+apiVersion: apps/v1
+kind: Deployment
+metadata:
+  name: test-app
+spec:
+  replicas: 1
+  selector:
+    matchLabels:
+      app: test-app
+  template:
+    metadata:
+      labels:
+        app: test-app
+    spec:
+      containers:
+      - name: nginx
+        image: nginx
+        resources:
+          requests:
+            cpu: 100m
+---
+apiVersion: batch/v1
+kind: Job
+metadata:
+  name: test-job
+spec:
+  template:
+    metadata:
+      labels:
+        app: test-app  # Same label as deployment
+        workload: scraper
+    spec:
+      containers:
+      - name: cpu-load
+        image: busybox
+        command: ["dd", "if=/dev/zero", "of=/dev/null"]
+        resources:
+          requests:
+            cpu: 100m
+      restartPolicy: Never
+---
+apiVersion: autoscaling/v2
+kind: HorizontalPodAutoscaler
+metadata:
+  name: test-app-hpa
+spec:
+  scaleTargetRef:
+    apiVersion: apps/v1
+    kind: Deployment
+    name: test-app
+  minReplicas: 1
+  maxReplicas: 5
+  metrics:
+  - type: Resource
+    resource:
+      name: cpu
+      target:
+        type: Utilization
+        averageUtilization: 50
+```
+In this case, the HPA will factor in CPU consumption from the Job's pod despite it not being part of the Deployment, potentially causing incorrect scaling decisions.
+
+
+### Goals
+
+* Improve the accuracy of HPA's pod selection to only include pods directly managed by the target workload
+* Maintain backward compatibility with existing HPA configurations
+* Provide clear visibility into which pods are being considered for scaling decisions
+* Allow users to choose between selection strategies based on their needs
+
+### Non-Goals
+
+* Modifying how metrics are collected from pods
+* Changing the scaling algorithm itself
+* Addressing other HPA limitations not related to pod selection
+
+## Proposal
+
+We propose adding a new field to the HPA specification called `strictPodSelection` that allows users to specify how pods should be selected for metric collection:
+* If set to true only pods that are actually owned by the target workload (through owner references) are being selected.
+* If not set or set to false - default behavior.
+
+The default value will be Labels to maintain backward compatibility with existing HPAs.
+
+### Risks and Mitigations
+
+* Backward compatibility: Mitigated by making the new behavior opt-in with the current behavior as default.
+* User confusion: We'll provide clear documentation on when and how to use each strategy.
+
+## Design Details
+
+The HPA specification (v2) will be extended with a new boolean field:
+```yaml
+apiVersion: autoscaling/v2
+kind: HorizontalPodAutoscaler
+spec:
+  # Existing fields...
+  strictPodSelection: true  # Default: false
+```
+When the HPA controller processes an HPA resource:
+
+* If strictPodSelection is not specified or set to false:
+  * The controller will use the current behavior, selecting all pods that match the target workload's label selector
+  * This maintains backward compatibility with existing HPAs
+
+* If strictPodSelection is set to true:
+  * The controller will identify the target workload (e.g., Deployment)
+  * It will traverse the ownership chain (e.g., Deployment → ReplicaSet → Pods)
+  * Only pods that are directly owned by the target workload through this chain will be included in metric collection
+  * Pods that match labels but aren't in the ownership chain will be excluded
+
+Additionally, the HPA status will be enhanced to include information about the pod selection:
+```yaml
+status:
+  # Existing fields...
+  podSelectionInfo:
+    strategy: "Strict"  # or "Label" when strictPodSelection is false
+```
+
+### Test Plan
+
+<!--
+**Note:** *Not required until targeted at a release.*
+The goal is to ensure that we don't accept enhancements with inadequate testing.
+
+All code is expected to have adequate tests (eventually with coverage
+expectations). Please adhere to the [Kubernetes testing guidelines][testing-guidelines]
+when drafting this test plan.
+
+[testing-guidelines]: https://git.k8s.io/community/contributors/devel/sig-testing/testing.md
+-->
+
+[x] I/we understand the owners of the involved components may require updates to
+existing tests to make this code solid enough prior to committing the changes necessary
+to implement this enhancement.
+
+##### Prerequisite testing updates
+
+None required.
+
+##### Unit tests
+
+<!--
+In principle every added code should have complete unit test coverage, so providing
+the exact set of tests will not bring additional value.
+However, if complete unit test coverage is not possible, explain the reason of it
+together with explanation why this is acceptable.
+-->
+
+<!--
+Additionally, for Alpha try to enumerate the core package you will be touching
+to implement this enhancement and provide the current unit coverage for those
+in the form of:
+- <package>: <date> - <current test coverage>
+The data can be easily read from:
+https://testgrid.k8s.io/sig-testing-canaries#ci-kubernetes-coverage-unit
+
+This can inform certain test coverage improvements that we want to do before
+extending the production code to implement this enhancement.
+-->
+
+- `<package>`: `<date>` - `<test coverage>`
+
+##### Integration tests
+
+<!--
+Integration tests are contained in https://git.k8s.io/kubernetes/test/integration.
+Integration tests allow control of the configuration parameters used to start the binaries under test.
+This is different from e2e tests which do not allow configuration of parameters.
+Doing this allows testing non-default options and multiple different and potentially conflicting command line options.
+For more details, see https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/contributors/devel/sig-testing/testing-strategy.md
+
+If integration tests are not necessary or useful, explain why.
+-->
+
+<!--
+This question should be filled when targeting a release.
+For Alpha, describe what tests will be added to ensure proper quality of the enhancement.
+
+For Beta and GA, document that tests have been written,
+have been executed regularly, and have been stable.
+This can be done with:
+- permalinks to the GitHub source code
+- links to the periodic job (typically https://testgrid.k8s.io/sig-release-master-blocking#integration-master), filtered by the test name
+- a search in the Kubernetes bug triage tool (https://storage.googleapis.com/k8s-triage/index.html)
+-->
+
+- [test name](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/blob/2334b8469e1983c525c0c6382125710093a25883/test/integration/...): [integration master](https://testgrid.k8s.io/sig-release-master-blocking#integration-master?include-filter-by-regex=MyCoolFeature), [triage search](https://storage.googleapis.com/k8s-triage/index.html?test=MyCoolFeature)
+
+##### e2e tests
+
+<!--
+This question should be filled when targeting a release.
+For Alpha, describe what tests will be added to ensure proper quality of the enhancement.
+
+For Beta and GA, document that tests have been written,
+have been executed regularly, and have been stable.
+This can be done with:
+- permalinks to the GitHub source code
+- links to the periodic job (typically a job owned by the SIG responsible for the feature), filtered by the test name
+- a search in the Kubernetes bug triage tool (https://storage.googleapis.com/k8s-triage/index.html)
+
+We expect no non-infra related flakes in the last month as a GA graduation criteria.
+If e2e tests are not necessary or useful, explain why.
+-->
+
+We will add the following e2e tests:
+- Test scaling with a deployment and unrelated job sharing labels (with and without strictPodSelection)
+- Test scaling with multiple workload types that share label selectors
+
+[e2e autoscaling tests]: https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/tree/master/test/e2e/autoscaling
+
+### Graduation Criteria
+
+<!--
+**Note:** *Not required until targeted at a release.*
+
+Define graduation milestones.
+
+These may be defined in terms of API maturity, [feature gate] graduations, or as
+something else. The KEP should keep this high-level with a focus on what
+signals will be looked at to determine graduation.
+
+Consider the following in developing the graduation criteria for this enhancement:
+- [Maturity levels (`alpha`, `beta`, `stable`)][maturity-levels]
+- [Feature gate][feature gate] lifecycle
+- [Deprecation policy][deprecation-policy]
+
+Clearly define what graduation means by either linking to the [API doc
+definition](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/overview/kubernetes-api/#api-versioning)
+or by redefining what graduation means.
+
+In general we try to use the same stages (alpha, beta, GA), regardless of how the
+functionality is accessed.
+
+[feature gate]: https://git.k8s.io/community/contributors/devel/sig-architecture/feature-gates.md
+[maturity-levels]: https://git.k8s.io/community/contributors/devel/sig-architecture/api_changes.md#alpha-beta-and-stable-versions
+[deprecation-policy]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/using-api/deprecation-policy/
+
+Below are some examples to consider, in addition to the aforementioned [maturity levels][maturity-levels].
+
+#### Alpha
+
+- Feature implemented behind a feature flag
+- Initial e2e tests completed and enabled
+
+#### Beta
+
+- Gather feedback from developers and surveys
+- Complete features A, B, C
+- Additional tests are in Testgrid and linked in KEP
+- More rigorous forms of testing—e.g., downgrade tests and scalability tests
+- All functionality completed
+- All security enforcement completed
+- All monitoring requirements completed
+- All testing requirements completed
+- All known pre-release issues and gaps resolved 
+
+**Note:** Beta criteria must include all functional, security, monitoring, and testing requirements along with resolving all issues and gaps identified
+
+#### GA
+
+- N examples of real-world usage
+- N installs
+- Allowing time for feedback
+- All issues and gaps identified as feedback during beta are resolved
+
+**Note:** GA criteria must not include any functional, security, monitoring, or testing requirements.  Those must be beta requirements.
+
+**Note:** Generally we also wait at least two releases between beta and
+GA/stable, because there's no opportunity for user feedback, or even bug reports,
+in back-to-back releases.
+
+**For non-optional features moving to GA, the graduation criteria must include
+[conformance tests].**
+
+[conformance tests]: https://git.k8s.io/community/contributors/devel/sig-architecture/conformance-tests.md
+
+#### Deprecation
+
+- Announce deprecation and support policy of the existing flag
+- Two versions passed since introducing the functionality that deprecates the flag (to address version skew)
+- Address feedback on usage/changed behavior, provided on GitHub issues
+- Deprecate the flag
+-->
+
+#### Alpha
+
+- Feature implemented behind a feature gate (`HPAStrictPodSelection`)
+- Initial e2e tests completed and enabled
+
+### Upgrade / Downgrade Strategy
+
+#### Upgrade
+Existing HPAs will continue to work as they do today, using label-based pod selection regardless of pod ownership. Users can use the new feature by enabling the Feature Gate (alpha only) and setting the new strictPodSelection field to true on an HPA.
+
+#### Downgrade
+On downgrade, all HPAs will revert to using label-based pod selection, regardless of any configured strictPodSelection value on the HPA itself.
+
+### Version Skew Strategy
+
+1. `kube-apiserver`: More recent instances will accept the new `strictPodSelection` field, while older instances will ignore it during validation and persist it as part of the HPA object.
+2. `kube-controller-manager`: An older version could receive an HPA containing the new `strictPodSelection` field from a more recent API server, in which case it would ignore it (i.e., continue to use label-based pod selection regardless of the field's value).
+
+## Production Readiness Review Questionnaire
+
+<!--
+
+Production readiness reviews are intended to ensure that features merging into
+Kubernetes are observable, scalable and supportable; can be safely operated in
+production environments, and can be disabled or rolled back in the event they
+cause increased failures in production. See more in the PRR KEP at
+https://git.k8s.io/enhancements/keps/sig-architecture/1194-prod-readiness.
+
+The production readiness review questionnaire must be completed and approved
+for the KEP to move to `implementable` status and be included in the release.
+
+In some cases, the questions below should also have answers in `kep.yaml`. This
+is to enable automation to verify the presence of the review, and to reduce review
+burden and latency.
+
+The KEP must have a approver from the
+[`prod-readiness-approvers`](http://git.k8s.io/enhancements/OWNERS_ALIASES)
+team. Please reach out on the
+[#prod-readiness](https://kubernetes.slack.com/archives/CPNHUMN74) channel if
+you need any help or guidance.
+-->
+
+### Feature Enablement and Rollback
+
+<!--
+This section must be completed when targeting alpha to a release.
+-->
+
+###### How can this feature be enabled / disabled in a live cluster?
+
+<!--
+Pick one of these and delete the rest.
+
+Documentation is available on [feature gate lifecycle] and expectations, as
+well as the [existing list] of feature gates.
+
+[feature gate lifecycle]: https://git.k8s.io/community/contributors/devel/sig-architecture/feature-gates.md
+[existing list]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/command-line-tools-reference/feature-gates/
+-->
+
+- [x] Feature gate (also fill in values in `kep.yaml`)
+  - Feature gate name: HPAStrictPodSelection
+  - Components depending on the feature gate: `kube-controller-manager` and
+    `kube-apiserver`.
+
+###### Does enabling the feature change any default behavior?
+
+<!--
+Any change of default behavior may be surprising to users or break existing
+automations, so be extremely careful here.
+-->
+No. By default, HPAs will continue to use label-based pod selection unless the new `strictPodSelection` field is explicitly set to true.
+
+###### Can the feature be disabled once it has been enabled (i.e. can we roll back the enablement)?
+
+<!--
+Describe the consequences on existing workloads (e.g., if this is a runtime
+feature, can it break the existing applications?).
+
+Feature gates are typically disabled by setting the flag to `false` and
+restarting the component. No other changes should be necessary to disable the
+feature.
+
+NOTE: Also set `disable-supported` to `true` or `false` in `kep.yaml`.
+-->
+Yes. If the feature gate is disabled, all HPAs will revert to using label-based pod selection regardless of the value of the `strictPodSelection` field.
+
+###### What happens if we reenable the feature if it was previously rolled back?
+
+When the feature is re-enabled, any HPAs with `strictPodSelection: true` will resume using the strict ownership-based pod selection rather than label-based selection. The HPA controller will immediately begin considering only pods directly owned by the target workload for scaling decisions on these HPAs, potentially changing scaling behavior compared to when the feature was disabled.
+
+Existing HPAs that don't have `strictPodSelection` explicitly set will continue using label-based selection and won't be affected by re-enabling the feature.
+
+###### Are there any tests for feature enablement/disablement?
+
+<!--
+The e2e framework does not currently support enabling or disabling feature
+gates. However, unit tests in each component dealing with managing data, created
+with and without the feature, are necessary. At the very least, think about
+conversion tests if API types are being modified.
+
+Additionally, for features that are introducing a new API field, unit tests that
+are exercising the `switch` of feature gate itself (what happens if I disable a
+feature gate after having objects written with the new field) are also critical.
+You can take a look at one potential example of such test in:
+https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/97058/files#diff-7826f7adbc1996a05ab52e3f5f02429e94b68ce6bce0dc534d1be636154fded3R246-R282
+-->
+
+We will add a unit test verifying that HPAs with and without the new `strictPodSelection` field are properly validated, both when the feature gate is enabled or not. This will ensure the HPA controller correctly applies the pod selection strategy based on the feature gate status and presence of the field.
+
+### Rollout, Upgrade and Rollback Planning
+
+<!--
+This section must be completed when targeting beta to a release.
+-->
+
+###### How can a rollout or rollback fail? Can it impact already running workloads?
+
+<!--
+Try to be as paranoid as possible - e.g., what if some components will restart
+mid-rollout?
+
+Be sure to consider highly-available clusters, where, for example,
+feature flags will be enabled on some API servers and not others during the
+rollout. Similarly, consider large clusters and how enablement/disablement
+will rollout across nodes.
+-->
+Rollout failures in this feature are unlikely to impact running workloads significantly, but there are edge cases to consider:
+- If the feature is enabled during a high-traffic period, HPAs with `strictPodSelection: true` might suddenly change their scaling decisions based on the reduced pod set. This could cause unexpected scaling events.
+- If a `kube-controller-manager` restarts mid-rollout, some HPAs might temporarily revert to label-based selection until the controller fully initializes with the new feature enabled.
+These issues would only affect HPAs that have explicitly set `strictPodSelection: true`. Existing HPAs will continue to function with the default label-based pod selection behavior.
+
+###### What specific metrics should inform a rollback?
+
+<!--
+What signals should users be paying attention to when the feature is young
+that might indicate a serious problem?
+-->
+Operators should monitor these signals that might indicate problems:
+
+- Unexpected scaling events shortly after enabling the feature
+- Significant changes in the number of replicas for workloads using HPAs with `strictPodSelection: true`
+- Increased latency in the `horizontal_pod_autoscaler_controller_metric_computation_duration_seconds` metric
+- Increased error rate in `horizontal_pod_autoscaler_controller_metric_computation_total` with error status
+If these metrics show unusual patterns after enabling the feature, operators should consider rolling back.
+
+###### Were upgrade and rollback tested? Was the upgrade->downgrade->upgrade path tested?
+
+<!--
+Describe manual testing that was done and the outcomes.
+Longer term, we may want to require automated upgrade/rollback tests, but we
+are missing a bunch of machinery and tooling and can't do that now.
+-->
+
+###### Is the rollout accompanied by any deprecations and/or removals of features, APIs, fields of API types, flags, etc.?
+
+<!--
+Even if applying deprecation policies, they may still surprise some users.
+-->
+No. This feature only adds a new optional field to the HPA API and doesn't deprecate or remove any existing functionality. All current HPA behaviors remain unchanged unless users explicitly opt into the new selection mode.
+
+### Monitoring Requirements
+
+<!--
+This section must be completed when targeting beta to a release.
+
+For GA, this section is required: approvers should be able to confirm the
+previous answers based on experience in the field.
+-->
+
+###### How can an operator determine if the feature is in use by workloads?
+
+<!--
+Ideally, this should be a metric. Operations against the Kubernetes API (e.g.,
+checking if there are objects with field X set) may be a last resort. Avoid
+logs or events for this purpose.
+-->
+The presence of the `strictPodSelection: true` field in HPA specifications indicates that the feature is in use. Additionally, the HPA status will include information about the pod selection strategy in use through the `podSelectionInfo` field, which can be examined to determine if strict pod selection is active for a given HPA.
+
+###### How can someone using this feature know that it is working for their instance?
+
+<!--
+For instance, if this is a pod-related feature, it should be possible to determine if the feature is functioning properly
+for each individual pod.
+Pick one more of these and delete the rest.
+Please describe all items visible to end users below with sufficient detail so that they can verify correct enablement
+and operation of this feature.
+Recall that end users cannot usually observe component logs or access metrics.
+-->
+
+- [x] API .status
+  - Other field: The HPA status will be enhanced to include pod selection information
+  ```yaml
+  status:
+  podSelectionInfo:
+    strategy: "Strict"  # or "Label" when strictPodSelection is false
+  ```
+Additionally, verbose controller logs will show which pods were included or excluded from metric calculations due to the strict selection policy when troubleshooting is needed.
+
+###### What are the reasonable SLOs (Service Level Objectives) for the enhancement?
+
+<!--
+This is your opportunity to define what "normal" quality of service looks like
+for a feature.
+
+It's impossible to provide comprehensive guidance, but at the very
+high level (needs more precise definitions) those may be things like:
+  - per-day percentage of API calls finishing with 5XX errors <= 1%
+  - 99% percentile over day of absolute value from (job creation time minus expected
+    job creation time) for cron job <= 10%
+  - 99.9% of /health requests per day finish with 200 code
+
+These goals will help you determine what you need to measure (SLIs) in the next
+question.
+-->
+N/A.
+
+###### What are the SLIs (Service Level Indicators) an operator can use to determine the health of the service?
+
+<!--
+Pick one more of these and delete the rest.
+-->
+This feature doesn't fundamentally change how the HPA controller operates; it refines which pods are included in metric calculations. Therefore, existing metrics for monitoring HPA controller health remain applicable.
+Standard HPA metrics (e.g.
+`horizontal_pod_autoscaler_controller_metric_computation_duration_seconds`) can
+be used to verify the HPA controller health.
+
+###### Are there any missing metrics that would be useful to have to improve observability of this feature?
+
+<!--
+Describe the metrics themselves and the reasons why they weren't added (e.g., cost,
+implementation difficulties, etc.).
+-->
+Not sure.
+
+### Dependencies
+
+<!--
+This section must be completed when targeting beta to a release.
+-->
+
+###### Does this feature depend on any specific services running in the cluster?
+
+<!--
+Think about both cluster-level services (e.g. metrics-server) as well
+as node-level agents (e.g. specific version of CRI). Focus on external or
+optional services that are needed. For example, if this feature depends on
+a cloud provider API, or upon an external software-defined storage or network
+control plane.
+
+For each of these, fill in the following—thinking about running existing user workloads
+and creating new ones, as well as about cluster-level services (e.g. DNS):
+  - [Dependency name]
+    - Usage description:
+      - Impact of its outage on the feature:
+      - Impact of its degraded performance or high-error rates on the feature:
+-->
+
+### Scalability
+
+<!--
+For alpha, this section is encouraged: reviewers should consider these questions
+and attempt to answer them.
+
+For beta, this section is required: reviewers must answer these questions.
+
+For GA, this section is required: approvers should be able to confirm the
+previous answers based on experience in the field.
+-->
+
+###### Will enabling / using this feature result in any new API calls?
+
+<!--
+Describe them, providing:
+  - API call type (e.g. PATCH pods)
+  - estimated throughput
+  - originating component(s) (e.g. Kubelet, Feature-X-controller)
+Focusing mostly on:
+  - components listing and/or watching resources they didn't before
+  - API calls that may be triggered by changes of some Kubernetes resources
+    (e.g. update of object X triggers new updates of object Y)
+  - periodic API calls to reconcile state (e.g. periodic fetching state,
+    heartbeats, leader election, etc.)
+-->
+No.
+
+###### Will enabling / using this feature result in introducing new API types?
+
+<!--
+Describe them, providing:
+  - API type
+  - Supported number of objects per cluster
+  - Supported number of objects per namespace (for namespace-scoped objects)
+-->
+No.
+
+###### Will enabling / using this feature result in any new calls to the cloud provider?
+
+<!--
+Describe them, providing:
+  - Which API(s):
+  - Estimated increase:
+-->
+No.
+
+###### Will enabling / using this feature result in increasing size or count of the existing API objects?
+
+<!--
+Describe them, providing:
+  - API type(s):
+  - Estimated increase in size: (e.g., new annotation of size 32B)
+  - Estimated amount of new objects: (e.g., new Object X for every existing Pod)
+-->
+Yes.
+- HorizontalPodAutoscaler objects will increase in size by approximately 1 byte for the boolean field when specified
+- The status will include additional pod selection information (approximately 50-100 bytes)
+- No additional API objects will be created
+
+###### Will enabling / using this feature result in increasing time taken by any operations covered by existing SLIs/SLOs?
+
+<!--
+Look at the [existing SLIs/SLOs].
+
+Think about adding additional work or introducing new steps in between
+(e.g. need to do X to start a container), etc. Please describe the details.
+
+[existing SLIs/SLOs]: https://git.k8s.io/community/sig-scalability/slos/slos.md#kubernetes-slisslos
+-->
+No.
+
+###### Will enabling / using this feature result in non-negligible increase of resource usage (CPU, RAM, disk, IO, ...) in any components?
+
+<!--
+Things to keep in mind include: additional in-memory state, additional
+non-trivial computations, excessive access to disks (including increased log
+volume), significant amount of data sent and/or received over network, etc.
+This through this both in small and large cases, again with respect to the
+[supported limits].
+
+[supported limits]: https://git.k8s.io/community//sig-scalability/configs-and-limits/thresholds.md
+-->
+No.
+
+###### Can enabling / using this feature result in resource exhaustion of some node resources (PIDs, sockets, inodes, etc.)?
+
+<!--
+Focus not just on happy cases, but primarily on more pathological cases
+(e.g. probes taking a minute instead of milliseconds, failed pods consuming resources, etc.).
+If any of the resources can be exhausted, how this is mitigated with the existing limits
+(e.g. pods per node) or new limits added by this KEP?
+
+Are there any tests that were run/should be run to understand performance characteristics better
+and validate the declared limits?
+-->
+No.
+
+### Troubleshooting
+
+<!--
+This section must be completed when targeting beta to a release.
+
+For GA, this section is required: approvers should be able to confirm the
+previous answers based on experience in the field.
+
+The Troubleshooting section currently serves the `Playbook` role. We may consider
+splitting it into a dedicated `Playbook` document (potentially with some monitoring
+details). For now, we leave it here.
+-->
+
+###### How does this feature react if the API server and/or etcd is unavailable?
+
+###### What are other known failure modes?
+
+<!--
+For each of them, fill in the following information by copying the below template:
+  - [Failure mode brief description]
+    - Detection: How can it be detected via metrics? Stated another way:
+      how can an operator troubleshoot without logging into a master or worker node?
+    - Mitigations: What can be done to stop the bleeding, especially for already
+      running user workloads?
+    - Diagnostics: What are the useful log messages and their required logging
+      levels that could help debug the issue?
+      Not required until feature graduated to beta.
+    - Testing: Are there any tests for failure mode? If not, describe why.
+-->
+
+###### What steps should be taken if SLOs are not being met to determine the problem?
+
+## Implementation History
+
+<!--
+Major milestones in the lifecycle of a KEP should be tracked in this section.
+Major milestones might include:
+- the `Summary` and `Motivation` sections being merged, signaling SIG acceptance
+- the `Proposal` section being merged, signaling agreement on a proposed design
+- the date implementation started
+- the first Kubernetes release where an initial version of the KEP was available
+- the version of Kubernetes where the KEP graduated to general availability
+- when the KEP was retired or superseded
+-->
+
+## Drawbacks
+
+<!--
+Why should this KEP _not_ be implemented?
+-->
+
+## Alternatives
+
+<!--
+What other approaches did you consider, and why did you rule them out? These do
+not need to be as detailed as the proposal, but should include enough
+information to express the idea and why it was not acceptable.
+-->
+
+## Infrastructure Needed (Optional)
+
+<!--
+Use this section if you need things from the project/SIG. Examples include a
+new subproject, repos requested, or GitHub details. Listing these here allows a
+SIG to get the process for these resources started right away.
+-->
diff --git a/keps/sig-autoscaling/5325-hpa-pod-selection-accuracy/kep.yaml b/keps/sig-autoscaling/5325-hpa-pod-selection-accuracy/kep.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..d5b40d6fb5f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/keps/sig-autoscaling/5325-hpa-pod-selection-accuracy/kep.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,47 @@
+title: KEP Template
+kep-number: 5325
+authors:
+  - "@omerap12"
+  - "@adrianmoisey"
+owning-sig: sig-autoscaling
+participating-sigs: []
+status: provisional #|implementable|implemented|deferred|rejected|withdrawn|replaced
+creation-date: 2025-05-21
+reviewers:
+  - TBD
+  - "@alice.doe"
+approvers:
+  - TBD
+  - "@oscar.doe"
+
+see-also: []
+replaces: []
+
+# The target maturity stage in the current dev cycle for this KEP.
+# If the purpose of this KEP is to deprecate a user-visible feature
+# and a Deprecated feature gates are added, they should be deprecated|disabled|removed.
+stage: alpha #|beta|stable
+
+# The most recent milestone for which work toward delivery of this KEP has been
+# done. This can be the current (upcoming) milestone, if it is being actively
+# worked on.
+latest-milestone: "v1.34"
+
+# The milestone at which this feature was, or is targeted to be, at each stage.
+milestone:
+  alpha: "v1.34"
+  beta: "v1.35"
+  stable: "v1.36"
+
+# The following PRR answers are required at alpha release
+# List the feature gate name and the components for which it must be enabled
+feature-gates:
+  - name: HPAStrictPodSelection
+    components:
+      - kube-apiserver
+      - kube-controller-manager
+disable-supported: true
+
+# The following PRR answers are required at beta release
+metrics:
+  - my_feature_metric