A centralized, regularly updated platform (sheet → website/wiki) that aggregates and links key committee proceeding data.
Problem
Information about congressional hearings and markups is scattered across multiple websites (Congress.gov, Docs.house.gov, committee pages, YouTube), making it difficult for staff and the public to get a comprehensive view of legislative activity.
Solution
Create a centralized, regularly updated platform (initially a spreadsheet, then a public-facing website/wiki) that aggregates key data points:
- Date of the hearing or markup.
- Event Type (Hearing or Markup).
- Title of the Proceeding (and separate column for Event ID).
- Committee of Jurisdiction (and separate column for unique Committee ID).
- Indication of Full Committee or Subcommittee proceeding.
- Direct Links to:
- The committee’s webpage for the proceeding.
- The Docs.house.gov page for the proceeding (if it’s a House event).
- The video of the proceeding (YouTube or Akami).
- The transcript of the proceeding (when available).
- Phases:
- Data Aggregation (Spreadsheet): Build the initial spreadsheet, populating it with data from the various sources. Implement automated data scraping where possible.
- Public-Facing Platform (Wiki/Website): Publish the aggregated data on a user-friendly website or wiki, with clear navigation and search capabilities. Manage hyperlinks appropriately.
- Alert System: Develop an alert system (e.g., email notifications) to notify users when new information is added for committees they are tracking. Priority: House Administration and Senate Rules Committees.