2023: A Monumental Year for POPVOX Foundation

Written By Marci Harris

As we take stock of an eventful year, we see significant progress in Congressional capacity — much of it under the radar and out of the headlines. We at POPVOX Foundation have been hard at work on our mission to make government work better for everyone, and are proud to have helped:

  • shepherd Congress into the AI era

  • bolster modernization in the US Congress

  • support staff and interns with the tools they need to excel

Congress is preparing for the paradigm shift AI will bring and is taking significant strides toward addressing its three “pacing problems.”

That’s in no small part because of the ongoing collaborative work by organizations we are grateful to call our friends and partners, such as Foundation for American Innovation, TechCongress, and Tech Talent Project (just to name a few!).

Artificial Intelligence in the Legislative Branch

We began the year with a widely shared joint op-ed that kicked off Congressional conversations about internal use of AI, along with convenings, Hill briefings, and policy recommendations on responsible adoption. You will hear much more from us on that in 2024, with the forthcoming release of our report on “Representative Bodies in the AI Era.”

Our goal is to spark action on Capitol Hill to bridge the gap between legislators and the growing speed at which technology and society are changing.

We’re succeeding: The House and Senate have both proactively established policy guidance for de-risking staff exploration of how AI can enhance their productivity. We are celebrating:

There’s more good news: The House and Senate are leading and learning from legislatures around the world on emerging technologies. On the international front, we and our colleagues in the #CapitolStrong coalition started the year extending a hand of friendship and solidarity with Brazil’s legislature following the attack on their capitol. We launched the Comparative Legislative Strengthening Project and held the first two meetings of the International Legislative Modernization Working Group, an initiative that promotes the exchange of experiences and insights about modernization efforts across the globe. We joined international discussions on “AI for Parliaments” both in-person at a convening in Friedrichshafen, Germany and by joining the Westminster Foundation for Democracy to submit evidence to the UK House of Commons on how AI will impact transparency. And yesterday, we joined Argentina’s Congressional new member orientation with tips on how new legislators can responsibly leverage AI in their workflow.

Modernization

The work of the hugely successful Select Committee on Modernization (or “ModCom”) lives on as a permanent Subcommittee in the Committee on House Administration, thanks in part to encouragement from POPVOX Foundation and our “FixCongress” allies. Congress is now embracing policies we’ve collectively recommended to strengthen its ability to recruit and retain diverse and qualified staff such as the CAO’s new Career Paths portal.

There’s more reason to celebrate: The GPO recently launched a public database of mandatory federal agency reports to Congress, a milestone over a decade in the making that empowers Congressional and public oversight.

In June, we were the first to host former US Deputy CTO Jennifer Pahlka in the pre-launch of her extraordinary “Recoding America” book, convening the former Obama administration official alongside former Trump White House official and GOP Leadership staffer Matt Lira at the Library of Congress in a bipartisan conversation about what government needs to succeed in the digital age.

We’ve incubated projects that Congress is now adopting. On January 18, we will co-host our last Internapalooza (in collaboration with the Committee on House Admin) before we proudly pass the baton to the Chief Administrative Officer of the House and the newly created House Intern Resource Office. This in-person orientation has become a must-attend event for Congressional interns and prepares them to succeed in careers on and off the Hill. We are honored to have helped de-risk and model a project that will continue to thrive as an official project of the House.

Speaking of launching Hill careers, we’re already setting our sights on November 6, 2024 to inspire new innovations to successfully onboard newly elected Members of Congress. Informed by conversations we’ve had with former Members of Congress and by insights from our own staff’s experience as legislative staffers, our recommendations will help newly elected Members with an enduring support network and ways to foster bipartisan relationships as they quickly deepen their understanding of how Congress works.

Likewise, we’re cultivating the next generation of rising public servants with our Congressional Modernization Fellowship in partnership with the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and the Cyber Policy Leadership Institute in partnership with Advocacy Blueprints and Crowdstrike.

POPVOX Foundation is raising awareness about how Congressional caseworkers can help Congress improve its capacity. In 2023, we launched our Casework Navigator to support the caseworkers who serve constituents and interact on a daily basis with Executive branch agencies. We've held numerous workshops and training opportunities and launched a special blog and newsletter that have had a positive side effect of reinforcing a network of these hardworking Congressional staff and supporting their efficiency, effectiveness, and resilience. One way Congress can support these staff is to implement the ModCom recommendation to improve casework data sharing, a goal informed by our work and 2022 testimony to Congress.

Scaling POPVOX Foundation

2023 was also a year of internal growth at POPVOX Foundation.

  • Anne Meeker took on an expanded role as Deputy Director

  • Juan Garcia improved absolutely everything about our branding and design and was recently named Creative Director

  • We hosted Katherine Long as Senior Fellow, which expanded our Casework Navigator offerings

  • We welcomed Senior Advisor Victoria Houed, currently detailed to the Department of Commerce as Director of AI Policy and Strategy

  • We hosted spectacular interns Lauren Fitzgerald, Connor Lee, and Madeline Pira

  • In September, Aubrey Wilson joined as Director of Government Innovation, bringing her wealth of experience as former Deputy Staff Director for the House Committee on Administration Majority in the 118th Congress and Director of Oversight and Modernization for the Committee on House Administration in the 117th Congress

  • In October, we facilitated a happy nonprofit merger in what Politico called the “Alliance to Fix Congress,” bringing into our fold the “First Branch Forecast” newsletter and former “First Branch” team from Demand Progress Education Fund:

    • Chris Nehls (formerly of Democracy Fund) joined as a Strategic Advisor

    • Gabriela Schneider joined as Senior Communications Advisor

    • Daniel Schuman joined as Director of Governance

    • Taylor J. Swift joined as Deputy Director of Governance and Innovation

The team brings diverse backgrounds, ideologies, and expertise to help us meet our mission of informing and empowering people and making government work better for everyone.

POPVOX Foundation in the Media

ICYMI, some of our notable earned media mentions in 2023 include:

In Gratitude

With emerging technologies bringing ever-accelerating changes, it is essential that our democratic institutions can keep up and remain relevant and responsive. We are working to ensure that is the case. We are so grateful for your support and we welcome your ideas and continued collaboration. Please consider a year-end donation to help us continue to support and strengthen Congress during this transformational period.

Wishing you and yours a peaceful holiday season,

Marci Harris
Cofounder and Executive Director

Marci Harris
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