Thread by @digiphile

I’m back at the @uscapitol, this time for a Congressional Transparency Caucus event on tools for Congressional staff: transparencycaucus.info/2019/05/21/sav… Impressive line up of speakers & organizations. Thanks to @RepMikeQuigley for hosting & championing #opengov! #CivicTech

First up: Michael Horowitz, the inspector general (@JusticeOIG) of @TheJusticeDept, talking about oversight.gov, which brings together IG reports from across US government. @OversightGov tweets out every new report when it’s posted. Goal: inform the public! #opengov

1 million hits/year for @OversightGov, Horowitz says. Enhancements are planned. Public will see thousands of recommendations that have not been implemented & would result in cost savings, he explains, & a IG vacancies dashboard. Cc @POGOBlog pogo.org/database/inspe… #opengov

As we’ve learned as IGs, tansparency is the best disinfectant, says the inspector general of @TheJusticeDept.
“It is what causes change in government.” #opengov

2nd, @danielschuman, talking about @EveryCRSReport, which makes Congressional Research Services open to the public: sunlightfoundation.com/2016/10/19/eve…

3rd, @atweber talking about @congressdotgov, the @librarycongress legislative website that replaced THOMAS. They’ve come a long way since launch in 2012: radar.oreilly.com/2012/09/congre… among other things, bulk #opendata every 4 hours. #opengov

Coming by the end of 2019 to @congressdotgov: better search, unified committee info, improvements to saved search & alerts. Follow @LawLibCongress for news & tips about what’s happening with Congress.gov #opengov

4th, @marcidale talking about @POPVOX & a new dashboard for Congressional staff: “LegiDash.” At first glance, looks a bit like a proto-social network for Congress, with events, calendars, contact info, & legislative info, positions on bills, & posts for constituents. #opengov

5th, Veneice Smith, from the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives, talking about Live.House.gov, a new clipping service, & a beta website: clerkpreview.house.gov
These sites help the public see what’s happening in the House, whereever we are.
#opengov

Resource for Congressional staff: floorclips.house.gov: search of video archives & resources for how to make them. Important, in an increasingly visual environment. #opengov

6th: @sjschultze taking about @courtlistener & the RECAP project, which opens up court records to the public: courtlistener.com/recap/ As he noted, PACER is a cautionary tale for #opengov & merits reform: mobile.twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

In the long run, @courtlistener would like to be out of business, like @EveryCRSReport, he says: government itself should be doing this better. Here’s a bill that would help make that happen: congress.gov/bill/116th-con… #opengov

7th, Ben Hammer talking about @govtrack govtrack.us, one of the OG #opengov sites in the USA. He shows off a version tracker feature for a given bill, & ways to see which lawmakers work on certain issues.

8th, @derekwillis talking about the Represent Web app: propublica.org/nerds/represen…
Notably, @propublica combines #opendata from both legislative & executive branches, which US government doesn’t do. #opengov

A plea from @derekwillis to staffer: please turn on RSS feeds & put bill numbers in your press releases.
Amen!

9th, @skrmhlz from @OpenSecretsDC, an amazing public resource which I used for many years: opensecrets.org (Justice Roberts even cited them in a SCOTUS decision.) If you want to #followthemoney; they have #opendata! #opengov

While spending on lobbying is growing, the number of registered lobbyists is shrinking in DC, per @OpenSecretsDC. opensecrets.org/lobby/index.php Curious, that. #opengov

10th, Steve Dwyer from @LeaderHoyer’s office talking about “Dome Watch,” an app for Members of Congress (& staff, & the public!) to keep up to date on votes & what’s happening on the floor: Dome Watch by Office of the House Majority Leader itunes.apple.com/us/app/dome-wa… #opengov

Dwyer says they would like data & video from the Clerk’s Office, but for now they’re screenscraping votes (!) from a TV using a computer in Longworth. Now that’s “civic hacking.”

2019: now members of Congress check an app on the floor (including on an Apple Watch) instead of huddling around a given computer.