Developer Community
This section is for website developers.
GovTrack is an open source project (more about the site) and promotes the notion of open data. You can join in in the development of GovTrack or use our source data and APIs to build your own site.
The Community
GovTrack is part of a growing community around the idea of applying technology to civics and innovating civic life.
- HackingCongress.org is a new hub for this community and lists some mail lists you might be intested in joining and some other open source civics projects. Also, if you're on Facebook join the group oGosh: Open Government Open Source Hacking
- GovTrack has a mail list of its own for notices about site development and any related discussions. If you have any ideas or make a new feature, please post a message to let others know.
- I also keep a list of projects using data from GovTrack.
Source Data and APIs
If you're interested in starting your own civic project or contributing to another project:
- Check out our source data. All of the data that powers the site is made available in static XML files. The source data page describes how to access the raw XML files directly via HTTP or rsync: it's the simplest of APIs.
- We also have some APIs. The APIs provide some other means of access to the GovTrack data beyond what you can get in the static source data files.
- On an experimental basis, we also provide a RDF dump and SPARQL endpoint for the data that powers the site.
- Take a look at the list of U.S. open source civics projects ranging from federal legislative projects to judicial and elections projects.
- You may also want to create a GovTrack-type site for the politics in your own state. I wrote up some notes on that here, but these days Sunlight Foundation is heading up the effort of recruiting coders from each state to take this on. See their Fifty States Project.
Help Develop GovTrack
We would love to have you involved in the development of GovTrack. Some funding may be available.
- Take a look at the project ideas for improving this site.
- Check out the source data, data gathering code, and website source code.
- Email me, Josh, using the address at the bottom of the page, if you want to talk more about getting involved. I'm happy to give you pointers.
