While not technically a hojillion, as of now we've downloaded over 5,000 reports using reliable scrapers for 5 agencies.
Continue readingFollow Congress on your Kindle Fire
Good news if you have a Kindle Fire! You can now use Sunlight's [Congress app](http://congress.sunlightfoundation.com) for Android.
Continue readingMaking JSON as simple as a spreadsheet
Recently, I gave a workshop at Open Data Day whose goal was to demystify JSON. I searched, but couldn't find any tools to do this that worked inside the browser. The only solution was to make a new one!
Continue readingCongress in photos, a civic hacking success story
For the last 5 years or more, we've maintained a dataset of photos of members of Congress, mostly manually, and published them as zip files. It worked, but wasn't a great process for us or for people using the photos. We also weren't 100% certain about the copyright status of the photos, or whether a contractor's copyright might be involved. But thanks to an enthusiastic contributor, and an ensuing burst of discussion and work, all of that's been fixed up!
Continue readingOpen Data Day 2014, D.C.’s biggest ever
At Open Data Day, our focus was on getting people together and building momentum — rather than finishing "apps." There was no judging or prizes, no pizza or soda, and a clear welcome to anyone without a technical background.
Continue readingEncrypting our Congress API and protecting your location
If you're using our Congress API — **especially** if you use our endpoints that look up Congressional representation based upon zip code or latitude/longitude — we **strongly recommend** you use HTTPS. It's for your own protection, after all.
Continue readingAn all-Bitcoin super PAC opens, then immediately closes
The Bitcoin Voters PAC — a super PAC intending to receive and spend money entirely in Bitcoin — opened its doors on Jan. 6, and promptly closed them just two days later. Why?
Continue readingMaking US Government Data License-Free
What license should government apply to open data? No license at all, because it’s not their data — it’s ours
Continue readingScout Delivering Court Opinions Through the Awe-Inspiring Power of CourtListener
[Scout](https://scout.sunlightfoundation.com/), Sunlight Foundation's government search and alert system, is now delivering daily alerts on [federal court opinions](https://scout.sunlightfoundation.com/search/court_opinions/citizens%20united). Court opinions will be included by default — along with regulations, legislation, speeches, and reports — for any alert based on search terms.
Continue readingGovernment APIs Aren’t A Backup Plan
When the government shuts down and takes most of its data with it, the public needs to have a backup plan.
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