TRANSPARENCY
Data Sources
We believe in full transparency about where our data comes from and how we process it.
Official Sources
| Source | Type | Update Frequency | Data Provided |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland General Assembly (MGA) | CSV / JSON | Hourly | Bill text, status, sponsors, committee assignments, hearing schedules. |
| OpenStates API | REST API | Daily | Vote records, legislator data, geographic district lookup. |
| Google Civic Information API | REST API | On demand | District lookup by address, polling place information, candidate data. |
| MD State Board of Elections | Web scrape | Weekly | Candidate filings, election dates, voter registration data. |
| U.S. Census Bureau | ACS API | Annually | District demographics, population data for contextual information. |
How We Process Data
Collect
Automated pipelines pull data from official sources on regular schedules.
Validate
Data is checked for completeness, consistency, and accuracy against known records.
Normalize
Records are standardized into a unified format and cross-referenced across sources.
Publish
Processed data is served through our API and displayed on the platform.
Data Verification
We cross-reference data across multiple sources to ensure accuracy. Bill information from MGA CSV exports is validated against the official MGA website. Vote records from OpenStates are checked against published committee and floor vote reports. If you find a discrepancy, please report it so we can investigate and correct it promptly.
Disclaimer
Show Up Maryland is an independent civic technology project and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the State of Maryland, the Maryland General Assembly, or any government agency. While we strive for accuracy, always verify critical information (such as registration deadlines, polling locations, and ballot details) with official state sources. Data may be delayed relative to real-time legislative activity.