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congressgov-mcp-server

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Congress.gov Bill Summaries

congressgov_bill_summaries
Read-onlyIdempotent

Browse recent CRS (Congressional Research Service) bill summaries — plain-language summaries of bills at each legislative stage, useful for answering "what's happening in Congress?". The fromDateTime/toDateTime filters apply to the summary's update time, not the bill's action date, so results include recently rewritten summaries of older bills. Defaults to summaries updated in the last 7 days. Each item shows both the bill's action date and the summary update date. A page stops adding rows once it reaches a fixed response-character budget, and a summary longer than the per-row window arrives as an exact character window carrying textTotalCharacters/textTruncated/textNextOffset; pagination.nextOffset continues the page and a row's textNextOffset continues its text. For summaries of one specific bill — and to read a windowed summary to the end — use congressgov_bill_lookup with operation='summaries' instead.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
limitNoResults per page (1-250).
offsetNoPagination offset.
billTypeNoBill type filter. Requires 'congress'.
congressNoCongress number. Optional — omit for summaries across all congresses.
toDateTimeNoEnd of date range (ISO 8601), filtered on the summary update time. Defaults to now.
fromDateTimeNoStart of date range (ISO 8601), filtered on the summary update time. Defaults to 7 days ago if neither date param is set.

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema
NameRequiredDescriptionDefault
dataNoResult rows. Per-tool item shape is rendered in the markdown body.
errorNoPresent when the call failed. Absent on success.
noticeNoGuidance when results are empty, a page is past the end, or a caveat applies.
paginationNoPagination metadata: total count and next offset.
totalCountNoTotal results across all pages.
effectiveQueryNoThe browse scope and applied filters.

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

  1. Changed6 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / $schema
      Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
    • addedInput schema / additionalProperties
      Added value: +false
    • changedOutput schema / $schema
      Previous value: -"http://json-schema.org/draft-07/schema#"New value: +"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema"
    • addedOutput schema / anyOf
      Added value: +[
+  {
+    "not": {
+      "required": [
+        "error"
+      ]
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "data",
+      "pagination",
+      "effectiveQuery",
+      "totalCount"
+    ]
+  },
+  {
+    "required": [
+      "error"
+    ]
+  }
+]
    • addedOutput schema / properties / error
      Added value: +{
+  "additionalProperties": {},
+  "description": "Present when the call failed. Absent on success.",
+  "properties": {
+    "code": {
+      "description": "JSON-RPC error code for this failure.",
+      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+      "minimum": -9007199254740991,
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    "data": {
+      "additionalProperties": {},
+      "properties": {
+        "reason": {
+          "description": "Machine-readable failure mode. Declared by this tool: `not_found`: A requested bill, member, committee, report, vote, or nomination does not exist in Congress.gov. `rate_limited`: The Congress.gov API rate limit (5,000 requests/hour per key) was exceeded. `invalid_request`: Congress.gov rejected the request as malformed — a bad date range or an identifier with an unexpected shape. `upstream_error`: Congress.gov returned an unexpected error (5xx or another non-2xx status). Other values are possible when a failure originates below the handler.",
+          "examples": [
+            "not_found",
+            "rate_limited",
+            "invalid_request",
+            "upstream_error"
+          ],
+          "type": "string"
+        },
+        "recovery": {
+          "additionalProperties": {},
+          "description": "Actionable next step for the caller.",
+          "properties": {
+            "hint": {
+              "type": "string"
+            }
+          },
+          "required": [
+            "hint"
+          ],
+          "type": "object"
+        },
+        "retryable": {
+          "description": "Whether retrying may succeed.",
+          "type": "boolean"
+        }
+      },
+      "type": "object"
+    },
+    "message": {
+      "description": "Human-readable description of what went wrong.",
+      "type": "string"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "code",
+    "message"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}
    • removedOutput schema / required
      Removed value: -[
-  "data",
-  "pagination",
-  "effectiveQuery",
-  "totalCount"
-]
  2. Changed5 schema fields changed
    • addedOutput schema / properties / effectiveQuery
      Added value: +{
+  "description": "The browse scope and applied filters.",
+  "type": "string"
+}
    • addedOutput schema / properties / notice
      Added value: +{
+  "description": "Guidance when results are empty, a page is past the end, or a caveat applies.",
+  "type": "string"
+}
    • removedOutput schema / properties / query
      Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Echo of the applied filters for this query. Rendered as the first line of the response so the caller can confirm what was searched.",
-  "type": "string"
-}
    • addedOutput schema / properties / totalCount
      Added value: +{
+  "description": "Total results across all pages.",
+  "type": "number"
+}
    • changedOutput schema / required
      Previous value: -[
-  "data",
-  "pagination"
-]New value: +[
+  "data",
+  "pagination",
+  "effectiveQuery",
+  "totalCount"
+]
  3. Changed5 schema fields changed
    • removedOutput schema / description
      Removed value: -"Bill summary data from Congress.gov API."
    • addedOutput schema / properties / data
      Added value: +{
+  "description": "Result rows. Per-tool item shape is rendered in the markdown body.",
+  "items": {
+    "additionalProperties": {},
+    "description": "Upstream JSON record. Per-tool item shape is rendered in the markdown body.",
+    "properties": {},
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  "type": "array"
+}
    • addedOutput schema / properties / pagination
      Added value: +{
+  "additionalProperties": false,
+  "description": "Pagination metadata: total count and next offset.",
+  "properties": {
+    "count": {
+      "description": "Total result count across all pages.",
+      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+      "minimum": 0,
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    "nextOffset": {
+      "anyOf": [
+        {
+          "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+          "minimum": 0,
+          "type": "integer"
+        },
+        {
+          "type": "null"
+        }
+      ],
+      "description": "Offset to pass for the next page, or null when there are no more pages."
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "count"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}
    • addedOutput schema / properties / query
      Added value: +{
+  "description": "Echo of the applied filters for this query. Rendered as the first line of the response so the caller can confirm what was searched.",
+  "type": "string"
+}
    • addedOutput schema / required
      Added value: +[
+  "data",
+  "pagination"
+]
  4. Changed3 schema fields changed
    • removedOutput schema / properties / data
      Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Bill summaries returned by Congress.gov. Preserves upstream item shapes instead of narrowing them.",
-  "items": {},
-  "type": "array"
-}
    • removedOutput schema / properties / pagination
      Removed value: -{
-  "additionalProperties": false,
-  "description": "Pagination metadata for the returned summaries.",
-  "properties": {
-    "count": {
-      "description": "Total number of matching summaries.",
-      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
-      "minimum": 0,
-      "type": "integer"
-    },
-    "nextOffset": {
-      "anyOf": [
-        {
-          "maximum": 9007199254740991,
-          "minimum": 0,
-          "type": "integer"
-        },
-        {
-          "type": "null"
-        }
-      ],
-      "description": "Offset to request the next page, or null when there is no next page."
-    }
-  },
-  "required": [
-    "count",
-    "nextOffset"
-  ],
-  "type": "object"
-}
    • removedOutput schema / required
      Removed value: -[
-  "data",
-  "pagination"
-]
  5. Changed2 schema fields changed
    • changedInput schema / properties / fromDateTime / description
      Previous value: -"Start of date range (ISO 8601). Defaults to 7 days ago if neither date param is set."New value: +"Start of date range (ISO 8601), filtered on the summary update time. Defaults to 7 days ago if neither date param is set."
    • changedInput schema / properties / toDateTime / description
      Previous value: -"End of date range (ISO 8601). Defaults to now."New value: +"End of date range (ISO 8601), filtered on the summary update time. Defaults to now."
  6. Changed3 schema fields changed
    • addedOutput schema / properties / data
      Added value: +{
+  "description": "Bill summaries returned by Congress.gov. Preserves upstream item shapes instead of narrowing them.",
+  "items": {},
+  "type": "array"
+}
    • addedOutput schema / properties / pagination
      Added value: +{
+  "additionalProperties": false,
+  "description": "Pagination metadata for the returned summaries.",
+  "properties": {
+    "count": {
+      "description": "Total number of matching summaries.",
+      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+      "minimum": 0,
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    "nextOffset": {
+      "anyOf": [
+        {
+          "maximum": 9007199254740991,
+          "minimum": 0,
+          "type": "integer"
+        },
+        {
+          "type": "null"
+        }
+      ],
+      "description": "Offset to request the next page, or null when there is no next page."
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "count",
+    "nextOffset"
+  ],
+  "type": "object"
+}
    • addedOutput schema / required
      Added value: +[
+  "data",
+  "pagination"
+]
  7. First observed

TDQS

A4.9/5.0
Behavior5/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Even with readOnlyHint and idempotentHint already set, the description adds substantial behavioral detail: the update-time versus action-date distinction, response-character budget pagination, text windowing with textTotalCharacters/textTruncated/textNextOffset, and how pagination.nextOffset and textNextOffset work. This goes well beyond the annotations and schema.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness5/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Although the description is long, it is dense with necessary operational detail and every sentence earns its place. The core purpose is front-loaded, followed by filter semantics, pagination/truncation mechanics, and the sibling alternative in a logical order.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness5/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

With an output schema present and all parameters fully described, the description covers invocation, pagination, text truncation behavior, default date ranges, and the correct alternative tool. An agent has everything needed to call this tool correctly and interpret the result windowing.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters4/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

The schema already documents all parameters with 100% coverage, so this is above baseline. The description adds meaning by clarifying that fromDateTime/toDateTime apply to summary update time rather than bill action datehola, and that results can include recently rewritten summaries of older bills. It also confirms the default behavior.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description names a specific verb and resource ('Browse recent CRS bill summaries') and immediately clarifies the tool's purpose with a use case. It also distinguishes this tool from the sibling congressgov_bill_lookup by explicitly saying to use that tool instead for summaries of one specific bill.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines5/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

The description gives explicit guidance on when to use this tool versus congressgov_bill_lookup, including the exact operation for the alternative. It also explains the date filter semantics and default 7-day behavior, leaving no ambiguity about invocation context.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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