Today’s interview is with John Pollock, the director of the Legislative Information System Project Office for the United States Senate.
John Pollock is a seasoned professional in legislative information technology, with a distinguished career spanning over three decades. After graduating from the University of Oregon, John began his publishing career at RAM Associates, Inc., where he pioneered converting federal regulatory data into CD-ROM formats and later transitioned these publications online. His expertise was further honed at the Bureau of National Affairs (BNA), now Bloomberg BNA, where he managed online government regulation publishing projects. Subsequently, he joined United Communications Group, overseeing publishing, fulfillment, and marketing systems.
John has served the United States Senate since 2008. In his current position as the director of the Legislative Information System Project Office (LISPO). In this role, he co-chairs the Legislative Branch XML Working Group, which is instrumental in maintaining and advancing XML standards. Currently, John collaborates with the Government Publishing Office, the United States House of Representatives, the United States Senate, and the Library of Congress to develop the United States Legislative Markup (USLM), a next-generation XML standard for legislative information. John drives innovation in legislative document production by managing a team of skilled developers. His leadership in creating tools like the Legislative Editor in XML Application (LEXA) has streamlined the Senate’s legislative drafting process, enabling drafters to concentrate on content rather than repetitive tasks.
How would you describe your job to other people?
I work with Senate professional staff to help automate and streamline the legislative process. I’m especially active in developing systems used to draft legislation. I also work with groups throughout the legislative branch on various modernization projects including helping to define the next-generation standards and systems for XML publishing of legislative information.
What is your role in the development of Congress.gov?
As the Senate is a primary source data partner for Congress.gov, I help troubleshoot data issues, explain changes to data structures, and work to implement new data streams into Congress.gov.
What is your favorite feature of Congress.gov?
I use Congress.gov most often to identify and download versions of bills I am interested in. So, I would say my favorite feature is the advanced search functionality. It helps me quickly narrow down search results based on specific criteria (congress, chamber, bill no., etc…). I also like that I can easily track versions of a bill as it moves through the legislative process.
What is the most interesting fact you’ve learned about the legislative process while working on Congress.gov?
There are SO many! It was surprising to find that amendments in the Senate can be proposed to be introduced before they are introduced. In this case, they are printed in the Congressional Record and then subsequently posted on Congess.gov. However, I would say the most interesting fact to me is just how complex the legislative process is.
What’s something most of your co-workers do not know about you?
My first job in Washington, DC was working as a desktop publisher in the Kinko’s Copy store between 3rd and 4th on Pennsylvania, Ave.
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