Open States is a project that makes it possible for people to track and engage with what is happening in their state's capitol.

Via a system of custom crawlers for each state legislature, we collect information on state governments: bills, votes, committees, events, and legislators. This information allows journalists, academics, activists, and concerned citizens track what is happening in their state, and engage with their elected officials.

This information is then made available via OpenStates.org, the Open States API, and bulk downloads. The site and data are used by journalists, activists, academics, and everyday citizens interested in keeping track of their elected officials.

Originally a project of the Sunlight Foundation, Open States became an independent project in late 2016 and is now under the 501(c)(3) umbrella of the Open Media Foundation.