The Importance of Open Data for Democracy

How has our open data improved democratic access and transparency? Since 2021, millions have leveraged Plural to engage in policy. Learn more!

The policymaking process can be opaque, hard to access, and difficult to navigate alone. At Plural, we want to cut the dishonesty and mistrust out of public policy. We believe that democracy can only function when information is accessible and honest. We envision a future where people and data drive public policy. We’re committed to making democracy more transparent for all. 

That’s why we offer public policy resources for professionals and concerned constituents alike. At Plural, you’ll find state-of-the-art legislative tracking and policy intelligence tools for professionals. You’ll also find the country’s leading free tools and data for public engagement in the policymaking process.

Plural’s Free Public Policy Tools

Since adopting the Open States project in 2021, Plural has continued to build upon its important offerings. These have enabled individuals to find their representatives, look up newsworthy bills, discover how their representatives are voting, and otherwise stay current with what’s happening in their state and federally.

Bill Search: Know What Bills are Out There 

With Plural’s free legislative search tool, anyone can search for bills across the U.S. Congress, all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Search for bills by keyword, bill number or a legislator’s name – within any currently active legislative session, or in legislative sessions from the recent past. 

Bill Tracking: Monitor Bills That Matter to You

Once you find bills that you’re interested in, set up a free account to track one or more bills. You’ll get notified any time there are important updates, such as new co-sponsors, introduced amendments, votes, and more.

Legislator Directory: Know Your Legislators and What They’ve Been Up To

With Plural’s Find Your Legislator tool, you can look up state and federal legislators by address. Plural provides a profile page for each legislator, with key information such as party affiliation, contact information, and committee memberships. You’ll also find a complete list of all bills that each legislator has sponsored as well as their vote history.

It’s a great resource for learning more about incumbent legislators ahead of elections, or to do accountability research on currently elected legislators.

Downloadable Bulk Data and API: Tailor Your Legislative Data Needs

At Plural, all of our public data is available for bulk download or via our powerful API. Anyone can use Plural’s best-in-class data to conduct research and analysis on legislative data, or to power your own custom democracy tools.

Plural’s Impact on Democracy

Since 2021, millions of individuals across the U.S. have leveraged Plural to engage in the policymaking process, including…

• Bill page views: 5.4+ million
• Legislator page views: 2.2+ million
• Bill tracks: 44,000+ 
• Legislative data API calls: 138+ million

The power of Plural and the millions of individuals who use its tools has only just begun. Plural has already fueled dozens of stories in national media outlets, groundbreaking research studies at top universities, state-wide voter mobilization efforts, national advocacy campaigns, and much more. 

Find out how Plural can make public policy more transparent and accessible for you.

More Resources for Public Policy Teams