[shail-mehta]

What

Trac ticket: #65819

Makes the data provider in tests/phpunit/tests/category/walkerCategory.php static.

Why

PHPUnit data providers should be static so they do not depend on test instance state and remain compatible with current PHPUnit usage in Core.

How

• Convert data_start_el_with_empty_attributes() to public static

Test-only; no production code changes.

Testing Instructions

1. npm run test:php -- --filter Tests_Category_Walker_Category
2. npm run test:php -- --filter Tests_Category_Walker_Category -c tests/phpunit/multisite.xml
3. npm run test:php -- --filter Tests_Category_Walker_Category --order-by=random
4. npm run test:php -- --group category

Use of AI Tools

• Cursor

[Copilot]

🟢 Approval recommended

The provider has no instance dependencies, and the single-line change preserves its behavior; tests were not run.

No open issues 🎉

What changed in this PR

Updates a category walker test data provider to follow PHPUnit’s static-provider requirements. No production code changes.

Changes:

• Makes data_start_el_with_empty_attributes() public static, preserving its data and existing test reference.

File	Description
tests/​phpunit/​tests/​category/​walkerCategory.php	Converts the data provider to a static method.

_{Review effort: Balanced}