Bill Page Information on MassTrac
Welcome to MassTrac! Whether you're tracking a specific bill, researching legislative history, or keeping up with committee discussions, our bill information page is designed to provide everything you need in one place. Let’s walk through how to find and use bill information effectively.
Finding a Bill
The quickest way to access a bill’s details is by typing the bill number directly into the search bar. Here I will demonstrate using the 2024 Senate Budget bill, "SB3." This brings you directly to the bill information page, where you’ll find essential details at a glance.
Key Features of the Bill Information Page
At the top of the page, you’ll see:
Sponsor Information – Who filed the bill.
Bill Status – Where the bill is in the legislative process.
Last Action Taken – The most recent movement on the bill.
Progress Bar – A visual representation of where the bill stands.
Bill Overview – An AI generated summary of the bill.
Customizing Your Bill Tracking Experience
On the right-hand side, you have several tools to organize and track bills:
Add to Tracking Lists – Save the bill for easy access. Pick from any of your tracking lists to include this bill
Generate a Report – Create a customized bill summary that you can email, print, or save
Workflow Options – Assign a position, priority, or task related to the bill
Advanced Tools for Legislative Professionals
MasTrac also provides more powerful tools to dive deeper into legislative details:
Whip Count Tool – This feature allows you to record legislative positions on bills or amendments
Bill Text Collaboration – Share bill text and staff-written summaries with colleagues and discuss them in a dedicated thread. You can also upload and share files of written testimony or a fact sheet
Bill Text Comparisons – Compare the current bill text to previous versions or similar bills
Understanding Bill Details
MassTrac ensures you have access to all the necessary legislative context:
Section-by-Section Summaries – In-depth analysis for major bills and budgets.
Bill History & Actions – A detailed timeline of the bill’s progress. If you see a “CC” icon next to a bill action there is a clickable link to related transcripts. And if you see a checkbox icon next to bill actions there is an associated roll call vote that you can go through and see
Bill Text & Amendments – You can find bill texts in both HTML and PDF formats. The amendments tab will take you to a searchable amendment page. Here you can see amendment summaries, amendment results, and track amendments of interest
We even identify if the amendment has been filed before on another bill or budget and if it matches the text of any existing bill. But most importantly, we unravel the complex language of amendments so you know what language actually made it through.
Transcript Access – You can view and access every transcript in which the bill was discussed either on the committee level or on the House/Senate floor.
Additional Resources
Comment/Files – The option to add comments and files to a bill, seen only by colleagues on your account.
Legislative Citations – Find all statutory references and link to other bills containing the same citations.
Reports & Analysis – Access summaries from stakeholders, advocacy groups, and our in-house research team.
Budget Insights – Breakdowns of earmarks by legislator and line-item comparisons.
Co-Sponsors & Categories – See who supports the bill and how it’s classified in MassTrac’s system.
State Comparisons – Through our partnership with LegiScan, find similar bills across the country.
News & Press Coverage – We track and tag relevant news stories and press releases daily.
Roll Call Votes – Easily view all recorded votes.
Testimony & Related Bills – Access written testimony and track prior versions of the bill.
Lobbying Disclosures – View lobbying positions submitted to the Massachusetts Secretary of State’s office.
Stay Informed and Competitive
The MassTrac bill information page is the most comprehensive legislative tracking tool available, ensuring that you stay ahead in Beacon Hill’s fast-moving policy landscape. Whether you’re an advocate, analyst, or policymaker, we provide the tools you need to navigate Massachusetts legislation with confidence.
Need help or interested in subscribing? Reach out to us at info@instatrac.com. We’re here to support you!
Training Sessions: Join our twice-weekly training sessions to learn how to maximize MassTrac’s features. Sessions are held every Wednesday at 2 p.m. and Friday at 10 a.m.
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