Terms of Service
Effective 2026
1. Agreement to Terms
By accessing or using How Congress Votes (the “Service”), available at howcongressvotes.app, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service (“Terms”). If you do not agree to these Terms, do not use the Service.
We may update these Terms from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you at least 14 days before the changes take effect. Your continued use of the Service after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.
2. Description of Service
How Congress Votes is a web-based platform providing access to congressional legislative data including roll-call votes, bills and resolutions, member profiles, amendments, and congressional district information.
The Service includes AI-generated summaries and an AI assistant that allows users to query congressional data in natural language. Congressional data is sourced from publicly available official sources including Congress.gov and the House and Senate clerks. While we strive for accuracy, we do not guarantee that all data is complete, current, or error-free at all times.
3. Accounts
3.1 Registration
To access certain features, you must create an account with accurate, current, and complete information.
3.2 Account Security
You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us immediately of any unauthorized use.
3.3 Account Restrictions
You must be at least 13 years of age to create an account. If you are under 18, you must have parental or guardian consent.
4. Subscription Plans and Billing
4.1 Free Tier
The Service offers a free tier with limited features. The free tier may be modified or discontinued at our discretion with reasonable notice.
4.2 Paid Subscriptions
Paid subscriptions are billed monthly or annually in advance through Stripe. By providing payment information, you authorize recurring charges.
4.3 Cancellation
You may cancel at any time through your account settings or the Stripe Customer Portal. You retain access to paid features until the end of your current billing period. No refunds are provided for partial billing periods.
4.4 Failed Payments
If payment fails and is not resolved within 7 days, your account may be downgraded to the free tier.
5. AI Features
5.1 AI-Generated Content
AI features generate summaries, answer questions, and provide analysis based on congressional data. AI-generated content is for informational purposes only. You should independently verify any AI-generated information before relying on it for professional, legal, advocacy, or journalistic purposes.
5.2 AI Usage Limits
Each subscription tier includes daily request limits per AI feature type. Pre-generated summaries displayed on bill and vote pages do not count toward your AI usage limits.
5.3 Prohibited AI Use
You agree not to use the AI assistant to generate misleading or defamatory content, attempt to extract or reverse-engineer the underlying database structure, submit adversarial prompts to bypass usage limits, or use automated scripts to submit AI queries at scale without prior written permission.
6. Acceptable Use
You agree not to use the Service for any unlawful purpose, attempt unauthorized access, scrape or extract data at scale without permission, interfere with the Service, impersonate others, send spam, or resell access without permission. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account for violations.
7. Intellectual Property
7.1 Our Content
The Service’s design, code, graphics, user interface, and AI-generated summaries are owned by or licensed to How Congress Votes. You may not copy, modify, or distribute our proprietary content without permission.
7.2 Congressional Data
Congressional data is derived from publicly available government sources and is in the public domain. Our presentation, organization, and AI-generated analysis of this data are proprietary.
8. Data Accuracy and Disclaimer
While we make commercially reasonable efforts to ensure data accuracy and timeliness, we do not guarantee completeness, accuracy, or currency at all times. The Service is not a substitute for official government sources, legal advice, or professional policy analysis.
9. Limitation of Liability
To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, How Congress Votes shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of your use of the Service. Our total aggregate liability shall not exceed the greater of (a) the amount you paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (b) $100.
10. Disclaimer of Warranties
The Service is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranties of any kind. We disclaim all warranties, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.
11. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless How Congress Votes and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims arising out of your use of the Service, your violation of these Terms, or your violation of any rights of a third party.
12. Termination
We may suspend or terminate your access to the Service at any time, with or without cause. Provisions that by their nature should survive termination (including Limitation of Liability, Disclaimer of Warranties, and Indemnification) shall survive.
13. Governing Law and Disputes
These Terms shall be governed by the laws of the State of Colorado. Disputes shall first be attempted through good-faith negotiation, then through binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association. You agree to resolve disputes on an individual basis and waive class action rights.
You may opt out of this arbitration agreement by sending written notice to contact@howcongressvotes.app within 30 days of creating your account.
14. Contact
Email: contact@howcongressvotes.app
Website: howcongressvotes.app