How to track legislative bills with Distill

Vaishnavi Srinath and Ishani Saha
Usecase Bills How-to Guide

Track legislative bills using Distill

Tracking federal legislative processes is vital for citizens and organizations. It empowers informed participation, ensures compliance, and supports advocacy for aligned interests. In the US, an intricate legislative process led by elected members of Congress shapes federal laws, involving the House, Senate, and presidential decisions. Politics, party affiliations, public opinion, and competing priorities influence this vital system, which defines national policies and governance. Tracking bills is essential for staying engaged in this process and understanding its impact on society.

We’ve broken this guide into different sections so you can navigate through the topics of your interest. Here’s a look at the different sections:

  1. Understanding the bill lifecycle
  2. Why is bill tracking important?
  3. Leveraging Tools for bill tracking
  4. How to track bills on Congress.gov?

Understanding the bill lifecycle

The legislative bill cycle in the United States typically refers to the process by which a proposed bill becomes law at the federal level. In bullet points, here’s an overview of the legislative bill cycle in the USA:

  • Introduction: A bill is introduced in either the House of Representatives or the Senate. Members of Congress, committees, or other sources, such as the President or advocacy groups, can initiate it.

  • Committee Review: The bill is referred to one or more committees for review and possible amendments. Committees may hold hearings, gather information, and debate the bill before voting.

  • Floor Consideration: If the bill passes the committee, it goes to the full chamber (House or Senate) for debate and vote. Amendments may be proposed and debated during this stage.

  • Conference Committee: If the House and Senate pass different versions of the bill, a conference committee is formed to reconcile the differences and create a single version that both chambers can agree on.

  • Final Passage: Once the House and Senate approve the bill in identical form, it goes to the President for approval or veto. If approved, it becomes law. If vetoed, it can be overridden by a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers of Congress.

  • Implementation: Once a bill becomes law, relevant federal agencies and departments are responsible for implementing and enforcing its provisions.

  • Ongoing Monitoring: Bills and laws may be subject to review, amendments, or repeal in subsequent legislative sessions, and stakeholders may continue to advocate for changes or monitor their implementation.

It’s important to note that the legislative bill cycle may vary in different states within the U.S., as each state may have its legislative processes and timelines.

Why is bill tracking important?

In the US, Congress and state legislatures see a staggering number of bills each year. For example, in the 116th Congress (2019-2020), the House introduced over 12,000 bills, the Senate over 4,600, and enacted 300+ laws. Bill volumes vary by jurisdiction and session, making tracking time-consuming. Keen citizens face challenges in keeping up with updates and changes as bills move through the process. Some of the challenges include:

  • Bills can move through the legislative process quickly, with frequent updates and changes, making it challenging to keep up with each bill’s latest information and actions.

  • Bills may be referred to multiple committees, making it necessary to track progress in multiple places and stay updated on committee hearings, markups, and votes.

  • Access to bill-tracking tools and resources may vary depending on the jurisdiction, with some jurisdictions providing more comprehensive and user-friendly systems than others.

  • Stakeholders may face challenges in effectively prioritizing and managing the large volume of bills to track, interpret and analyze proposed legislation’s impact on their interests.

In this context, page monitoring tools serve as a potent resource, significantly enhancing the efficiency of bill tracking. They play a crucial role in keeping individuals informed about legislative updates, aiding in effort prioritization, ensuring timely engagement, and simplifying the intricacies of the legislative process. Advocacy groups and lobbyists can leverage these tools to strategically influence decision-makers and effectively champion their causes.

Leveraging Tools for bill tracking

Bill-tracking tools provide easy access to information and updates on legislative developments, enhancing engagement. There are several features to look for in bill-tracking tools that can help you achieve successful tracking:

  • Customization options: Tools that customize your tracking experience can help you focus on bills most relevant to your interests and priorities.

  • Integration APIs: Tools that integrate with other tools and workflows you use can simplify the process of tracking bills.

  • Single dashboard to track multiple bills: Having a single dashboard that tracks multiple bills can help you monitor and organize information in a more streamlined way.

  • Alerts for legislative priorities: Alerts that notify you when bills related to your legislative priorities are introduced or have significant updates can help ensure you don’t miss important developments.

  • Utilizing keyword-based tracking: Tracking tools that utilize keyword-based tracking can filter out irrelevant bills and highlight those that contain your specific areas of interest, making it easier for you to stay informed.

By leveraging these features, you can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of your bill-tracking efforts, ultimately enabling you to stay better informed and engaged with the legislative process.

How to track bills on Congress.gov?

One of the most comprehensive sources for tracking U.S. federal legislation is Congress.gov, an official website that provides a wealth of information on current and past bills, as well as resources for researching congressional activity and legislative histories.

To track bills on Congress.gov, users can create an account and save bills to their personal trackers or use third-party apps like Distill for more efficient tracking.

This guide will cover ways to track different sections of the bills with a simple browser extension. You can expand the use-cases that are of interest to you and follow along the step-by-step instructions to set up your monitor.

  1. Tracking bill feeds for updates

  2. Monitor to track the status of bills

  3. Monitor to track for new Actions taken against the bill

  4. Monitor to track bill feed for specific states

Alternatively, you can also download the respective JSON files and import the ready-to-use monitors provided under every use-case. You can refer to Distill docs or refer to this video for a step-by-step guide on importing the JSON monitors provided below each of the use cases7

Distill allows users to add bills as trackers, customize labels for better organization, and receive notifications for status changes, making it a convenient and efficient tool for bill tracking. Below are the steps to track different sections of the bills with this simple browser extension.

Click here to install the Distill Chrome extension. This browser extension is also available on Firefox, Opera and Microsoft Edge.

Tracking the bills feed for updates

Setting up a webpage to monitor

Step 1: Navigate to the congress.gov website.

Step 2: Click Advance Search.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 3: You can select the filters on this page and click search or directly click Search to open the bill feed page. For this example, we will select the search option to open the bill feed page.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 4: You can see the filters on the left side of the bill feed page. We will be using the filters here to narrow the search.

For this example, we will track the Bill Type Bills (H.R. or S.) with is under the Introduced status of legislation for the policy area on Health.

Setting a tracker for this webpage alerts us on the new bills introduced in the House or Senate.

Step 5: Sort the feed by Date of Introduction- Newest to Oldest. This will make sure that the bill that has been introduced recently is placed on the top.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Setting up the monitor for tracking

Step 6: Click Distill icon on the top right corner of the browser.

Step 7: Click Monitor parts of page.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 8: Select the bill number section of the first bill on the webpage.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 9: Click Save selection. You will be navigated to the options page.

Step 10: Choose a device to run your monitor under the options page. We will use the local browser to check for changes in this case. You can also set an interval for checking the webpage.

Step 11: Configure your alert mode via email/SMS/ Discord etc.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 12: Click Save.

How does the monitor work?

Since the bills are sorted by Date of Introduction- Newest to Oldest anytime a new bill is introduced and recorded on the website, it will replace the content in row 1. Distill picks up this change, alerting you that a new bill has been introduced in the House or Senate.

How will the monitor help?

Tracking bills can help businesses and individuals in the following ways:

  • Stay up-to-date on the latest developments and progress of proposed legislation that may impact their interests.

  • Identify bills that align with their interests and goals, prioritize their advocacy efforts, and develop strategic plans for engagement.

  • Users with information on committee meetings, hearings, and markups, allowing them to engage in the legislative process promptly and effectively.

  • Stay updated on key issues and trends in their industries and areas of interest

  • Build relationships with lawmakers and other stakeholders by providing information on their legislative activities and engagement opportunities.

Track the bill feed for Bills type (H.R. or S.) under the Introduced status of legislation for the policy area on Health : Download monitor JSON for tracking bill feed

Monitor to track the status of bills

Setting up a webpage to monitor

Step 1: Navigate to the congress.gov website.

Step 2: Click Advance Search.

Step 3: Click on search and use the filters to narrow your search. For this example, we will be tracking the status of the Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act which is currently under the Introduced state at the House.

Setting up the monitor for tracking

Step 4: Click Distill icon on the top right corner of the browser.

Step 5: Click Monitor parts of page.

Step 6: Select the tracker section of the webpage.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 7: Click Save selections. You will be navigated to the options page.

Step 8: Choose a device to run your monitor under the options page. We will use the local browser to check for changes in this case. You can also set an interval for checking the webpage.

Step 9: Configure your alert mode via email/SMS/ Discord etc.

Step 10: Click Save.

How does the monitor work?

This monitor will alert you every time there has been any change in the bill’s status, thus giving you an overview of any updates made with respect to the bill. However, to get more detailed information on the changes in actions taken against the bill, you can set up a monitor using the steps given in this section.

How will the monitor help?

Tracking the tracker/status section of the bills can help businesses and individuals in the following ways:

  • Stay up-to-date on the latest developments related to bills of interest.

  • Monitor the progress of bills as they move through the legislative process, from introduction to passage or defeat.

Tracking the bill status of the Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act : Download monitor JSON to track bill status

Monitor to track for new Actions taken against the bill

Setting up a webpage to monitor

Step 1: Navigate to the congress.gov website.

Step 2: Click Advance Search.

Step 3: Click on search and use the filters to narrow your search. For this example, we will be tracking all the actions for the Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act which is currently under the Introduced state at the House.

Step 4: Click All actions. This option will show all the actions taken for the selected bill.

Step 5: Sort the actions from Newest to Oldest.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Setting up the monitor for tracking

Step 6: Click Distill icon on the top right corner of the browser.

Step 7: Click Monitor parts of page.

Step 8: Select the date of the first-row time and use to expand selection option to select the first row of the table.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 9: Click Save selections. You will be navigated to the options page.

Step 10: Choose a device to run your monitor under the options page. We will use the local browser to check for changes in this case. You can also set an interval for checking the webpage.

Step 11: Configure your alert mode via email/SMS/ Discord etc.

Step 12: Click Save.

How does the monitor work?

Since the action of the bills are sorted by Newest to Oldest anytime a new action is taken against the bill, the same is recorded on the website and will replace the content in row 1. Distill picks up this change and alerts you that a new action has been taken against the bill

How will the monitor help?

Tracking the actions taken against the bills can help businesses and individuals in the following ways:

  • Stay up-to-date on the latest developments related to bills of interest.

  • Identify key decision points in the legislative process, which can help them anticipate potential outcomes and plan advocacy efforts accordingly.

  • Monitor the progress of bills as they move through the legislative process, from introduction to passage or defeat.

  • Users can hold lawmakers accountable for their positions and votes on specific bills.

Tracking the new Actions taken against Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act : Download monitor JSON for tracking actions and updates on a bill

Monitor to track bill feed for specific states

Setting up a webpage to monitor

Step 1: Navigate to the Legiscan webpage.

Step 2: Under the National Legislative Search section, select the state you want to track the bills for and click Search.

For this example, we will be tracking the bills introduced in Florida.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 3: You can filter your search based on the Type and Status of the bill.

For this example, we will be tracing both the bills in Senate and House bills which are under the Introduced State.

Step 4: You can sort the feed based on the Last Action date, which is by default set in descending order.

We recommend you use the default sort option to get updates on the latest bills introduced in the House or the Senate.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Setting up the monitor for tracking

Step 5: Click Distill icon on the top right corner of the browser.

Step 6: Click Monitor parts of page.

Step 7: Select the first Bill ID and click on the Expand Selection option to select the first row of the Bill feed table.

Track legislative bills using Distill

Step 8: Click Save selections. You will be navigated to the options page.

Step 9: Choose a device to run your monitor under the options page and set an interval for checking the webpage. We will use the local browser to check for changes in this case.

Step 10: Configure your alert mode via email/SMS/ Discord etc.

Step 11: Click Save.

How does the monitor work?

Since the bills are filtered by Introduced status and sorted by the Last Action date, anytime a new bill is introduced in the selected state and recorded on the website, it will replace the content in row 1. Distill picks up this change, alerting you that a new bill has been introduced in the House or Senate for the given state.

Tracking the new bills introduced in Florida : Download monitor JSON for finding new bills introduced

How to create a bill-tracking dashboard

To create a bill-tracking dashboard in Distill, users can add multiple trackers for bills, assign labels, and organize them into a dashboard for easy tracking and monitoring.

Labels are a useful tool for managing large numbers of trackers and prioritizing information based on its importance or relevance. This feature in Distill allows users to organize their trackers into categories. Users can assign one or more labels to each tracker, depending on the topic, source, or other criteria they wish to use for categorization. Labels can be customized to fit user’s needs, and users can filter their trackers by label to focus on specific categories of information.

Distill also offers team features that allow multiple users to collaborate on tracking and monitoring activities while maintaining control over access to trackers. Some team features include:

  • Roles and permissions: Distill allows administrators to assign roles and permissions to team members, giving them control over who can view, edit, and delete trackers.

  • Shared folders: Team members can organize their trackers into shared folders, making collaborating easier on specific projects or topics.

  • Activity logs: Administrators can view activity logs to see who has accessed or made changes to specific trackers, helping to maintain accountability and transparency.

  • Notifications: Team members can set up notifications for specific trackers, ensuring that they receive timely updates on important information.

Hence, the features in Distill help teams collaborate more effectively on tracking and monitoring activities while maintaining control over access to trackers and ensuring accountability and transparency.

Best practices and tips for effective bill tracking

Here are some best practices and tips for effective bill tracking on Congress.gov:

  • Use the Saved Searches and Alerts feature: Congress.gov allows users to save searches and set up email alerts for bills that match specific criteria, making it easier to stay up-to-date on relevant legislation.

  • Monitor committee activities: Committees play a critical role in the legislative process, so monitoring committee activities, such as hearings and markups, can provide valuable insights into the status of bills.

  • Pay attention to key dates: Bills have deadlines for actions such as committee consideration, floor debate, and passage. Attention to these key dates can help businesses and individuals plan their advocacy efforts and stay ahead of the legislative process.

  • Engage with stakeholders: Engage with stakeholders such as lawmakers, industry associations, and other interested parties to build relationships and stay informed on the latest developments.

  • Customize your search: Congress.gov provides a variety of filters and search options, allowing users to customize their search for bills that align with their interests and goals.

By following these best practices and tips, businesses and individuals can effectively track bills on Congress.gov and stay informed and engaged in the legislative process.

Conclusion

Staying informed about proposed legislation that may impact your interests is crucial, whether you are an individual or part of a business or organization. By tracking bills on Congress.gov, you can stay up-to-date on their actions and updates, proactively engage with lawmakers, and advocate for your positions. In this case, Distill can be a useful tool to monitor Congress.gov and receive real-time alerts for changes to bill status or content, making it even easier to stay informed. With Congress.gov and Distill, staying on top of the legislative process has never been easier.

You can use the Distill extension to create custom alerts for keeping track of new bills or the status of existing bills. Setting up automated checks on bill web pages saves time and effort while keeping track of multiple bills.

Distill extension is available on Chrome, Firefox, Opera, and Microsoft Edge. Based on your requirement, you can browse the subscription plans for access to more frequent checks and instant alerts on the go via Distill iOS app and Android app.

You can contact us on Distill forums if you have any queries while setting up your trackers. Here we have an active community of users who will help you sort out your problem quickly.