- Improved FormatMap: Improves performance by about 4x, or nearly 2x in the worst case ([#112661](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/112661), [@aimuz](https://github.com/aimuz)) [SIG Node]

- Fix kube-apiserver not to create default/kubernetes service endpoints before it reports readiness via the /healthz and therefore is ready to serve requests. Also early during startup old endpoints are remove which might be left over from a previously crashed kube-apiserver. ([#74668](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/74668), [@sttts](https://github.com/sttts))

- `ValidatingAdmissionPolicy` now preserves types of composition variables, and raises type-related errors early. ([#121001](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/121001), [@jiahuif](https://github.com/jiahuif))

- Endpoint slice controller now mirrors parent's service label to its corresponding endpoint slices....

A survey conducted in early 2019 by the working group (WG) Long Term Support (LTS) showed that a significant subset of Kubernetes end-users fail to upgrade within the previous 9-month support period. 
A yearly support period provides the cushion end-users appear to desire, and is more in harmony with familiar annual planning cycles.

- Fixed: deleted a non-existent Azure disk issue. ([#107406](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/107406), [@andyzhangx](https://github.com/andyzhangx))
- Fixed: do not return early in the node informer when there is no change of the topology label. ([#108149](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/108149), [@nilo19](https://github.com/nilo19))

nodes with pods may see pods that fail due to node admission

1.22 addressed a long-standing issue in the Kubelet where terminating pods were [vulnerable to race conditions](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/102344) leading to early shutdown, resource leaks, or long delays in actually completing pod shutdown. As a consequence of this change the Kubelet now correctly takes into account the resources of running and terminating pods when deciding to accept new pods, since terminating...