About

About TownHallOS

TownHallOS is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Richmond, Virginia. We build free tools that make legislation, legislators' votes and Census data easy to find and understand, for every state, DC and Congress, always linked to the official record.

Our mission

To make it simple to understand legislation, connect with representatives and take part in community decisions, by translating complicated legislative processes into clear, actionable information.

Our vision

A democracy where everyone understands the policy decisions that affect them, knows who represents them, and can advocate for change, with elected officials accountable to their communities.

What we do

Free tools for understanding government.

Everything is free to explore. An account adds following bills and asking questions about them.

Policy Tracker

Search every current bill in all 50 states, DC and Congress, and follow the ones that matter to you.

Open

Find a Legislator

See who represents you, what they sponsor, how they vote and how to reach them.

Open

Census Explorer

Understand who lives in each state, district and county a law affects, with margins of error.

Open

Ask about a bill

Get plain-language answers about a bill that cite its text, votes and sponsors.

Open

Trust

Nonpartisan by design.

We don't endorse candidates, parties or positions. Our Funding and Nonpartisanship page explains how we're funded and how we guard against bias.

  • Nonpartisan by design

    We show what a bill does and who voted how, never how to feel about it. No party colors, no endorsements.

  • Linked to the source

    Bills, votes and statistics link back to the official record, down to the page of the bill.

  • Honest about uncertainty

    Census estimates come with their margins of error, and AI answers are labeled and cite their sources.

Values

What guides our work.

Accessibility
We make government understandable to everyone, regardless of political experience, education or technical skill.
Action-oriented
Knowing what's happening is the first step. We connect information to clear ways to take part.
Community-powered
Communities drive change when they have the right tools and the facts.
Transparency
An informed public is essential to democracy, so we make government actions easy to see.
Accountability
We help people follow what their elected officials do, so they can hold them to account.

Our story

From one neighborhood to every legislature.

TownHallOS was founded by Shahaan Mirza, who in 2024 experienced firsthand the frustration of trying to track local legislation affecting his neighborhood. Government systems were complicated and discouraging: the information was public, but hard to reach through outdated websites, jargon and bureaucratic barriers.

Inspired by that challenge and by the World Economic Forum's Global Shapers Community, Shahaan set out to turn complexity into clarity and individual concerns into collective action. In early 2025 he brought together technologists, designers and community organizers to build TownHallOS, which launched that spring.

  1. 2024

    The inspiration

    After struggling to track local legislation affecting his community, Shahaan Mirza set out to build a platform that would make civic engagement accessible to everyone.

  2. Early 2025

    Research and development

    Research into civic technology and a first Policy Explorer prototype, tested with community members.

  3. March 2025

    TownHallOS founded

    The first version of the platform launched, focused on making local democracy more accessible, starting with the Policy Explorer beta.

  4. Mid 2025

    Alpha release

    The Policy Tracker and Representative Finder let people follow and understand legislation, with community feedback driving improvements.

  5. Late 2025

    Community growth

    We expanded to more localities and counties, fostering dialogue between residents and their representatives.

  6. October 2026

    Open to everyone, nationwide

    Every current bill in all 50 states, DC and Congress in one Policy Tracker, plus legislator profiles and the Census Explorer, all free and open without an account.

  7. Late 2026

    Ask about a bill

    Plain-language AI answers on every bill page, each one linked to the passages, votes and figures it relies on.

Our people

The team behind TownHallOS.

Technologists, civic innovators and community organizers who share one goal: making democracy more accessible and effective for everyone.
Shahaan Mirza

Shahaan Mirza

Executive Director

As a Global Shaper with the World Economic Forum and an experienced AI and ML Product Manager, Shahaan brings a unique perspective to civic technology. His background in both tech entrepreneurship and community engagement drives TownHallOS's mission to make democracy more accessible.

With a Master's in Tech Entrepreneurship from the Illinois Institute of Technology and experience building user-centric products, Shahaan leads the vision of transforming how people interact with their government.

shahaan@townhallos.org
Sanil Jain

Sanil Jain

Director of Technology

A Software Engineer at Capital One with a background in distributed systems, Sanil leads the technical backbone of TownHallOS. His expertise in cloud-native systems and API design keeps the platform reliable as it grows.

With a Bachelor's in Computational Modeling and Data Analytics from Virginia Tech and published research in quantum computing, Sanil combines academic rigor with hands-on engineering across finance, cybersecurity and civic technology.

sanil@townhallos.org
Mark Lou

Mark Lou

Volunteer

A Product Manager at American Express, Mark brings experience in product management and data analytics, helping make sure the platform is intuitive and effective.

With a Master's in Data Science and a Bachelor's in Computer Science, Mark first got involved in civic work teaching computer science to underrepresented youth.

mark@townhallos.org

Organization

The facts.

TownHallOS is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Organization
TownHallOS
Tax status
501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit
Founded
2025
Based in
Richmond, Virginia
Mailing address
8401 Mayland Drive, Suite A, Richmond, VA 23294
Contact
community@townhallos.org
Fundraising disclosures
State Solicitation Disclosures

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