Lawmaking
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50-State Legislation Now Searchable by Smartphone

The new Open States app lets users identify and contact their state reps, scroll through voting records and follow bills through the legislative process.

BY: | April 30, 2012



Mobile government apps that alert you to emergencies or let you post about potholes are becoming more common. But one new application has a broader scope: tracking all legislative action in all 50 states. Launched in March by the Sunlight Foundation, the transparency advocate group (which has partnered with Governing on projects in the past), the new Open States app lets users identify and contact their state representatives, scroll through members’ voting records and even follow specific bills as they move through the legislative process on the way to becoming law. The app, for use on iPhones and iPads (an Android version is being discussed), posts state-specific news headlines and even committee schedules and capitol maps where they’re available. What’s more, it’s free. Statehouse stalking has never been easier.


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Zach Patton
Zach Patton

Zach Patton -- Executive Editor. Zach has written about a range of topics, including social policy issues and urban planning and design. Originally from Tennessee, he joined GOVERNING as a staff writer in 2004. He received the 2011 Jesse H. Neal Award for Outstanding Journalism

E-mail: zpatton@governing.com
Twitter: @governing

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