Quick Start Guide

Time to value: 5 minutes

Step 1: Set Up Your First Keyword Alert (2 minutes)

Keywords are the foundation of State Affairs monitoring. They automatically surface bills, hearings, and news about your priority issues.

What to do:

1. Click Keyword Alerts in the top navigation

2. In the search box, type an issue you care about (example: "renewable energy" or "data privacy")

3. Review the preview results showing how many bills, hearings, and news articles mention this term

4. Click Add Keyword to start monitoring

5. Repeat for 3-5 of your most important issues

Why this matters: You'll now receive automatic email alerts whenever these terms appear in new bills, committee discussions, or news coverage—no manual searching required.

Step 2: Track Your First Bill (1 minute)

Bill tracking gives you action alerts and detailed intelligence on specific legislation.

What to do:

1. Use the search bar at the top to find a bill:

   • Type a bill number (example: "HB 123" or "S 456")

   • OR search by topic and browse results

2. Click into the bill page

3. Click the Track button

4. Optionally: Add to a Group, set a Priority (High/Medium/Low), or assign to a team member

Why this matters: You'll receive alerts when this bill moves—committee hearings, floor votes, amendments, or passage. Your tracked bills appear in your Bill Tracking dashboard for easy monitoring.

Step 3: Configure Notification Preferences (1 minute)

Control how and when you receive alerts.

What to do:

1. Click your profile icon (top right) → Settings

2. Navigate to Notifications

3. Choose your alert style:

   • Real-time: Immediate email when keywords/bills match (best for urgent monitoring)

   • Daily digest: Single email summarizing all activity in the past 24 hours (reduces inbox volume)

   • Both: Real-time for critical keywords, daily digest for broader monitoring

4. Save your preferences

Why this matters: The right notification setup prevents both alert fatigue and missed developments.

Step 4: Explore Key Platform Sections (1 minute)

Understand where to find different types of information.

Top navigation tabs:

• News: Capitol news from Gongwer and state house outlets

• Bill Tracking: Your tracked bills and all available legislation

• Keyword Alerts: Search and manage your monitoring terms

• Hearings: Recorded committee meetings with searchable transcripts

• Directories: Legislator profiles, committees, contact information

• Schedules: Upcoming committee meetings and floor sessions

Quick tip: Click into any news article mentioning a bill—the bill number is a clickable link taking you directly to the full bill page.

Step 5: Download the Mobile App (Optional, 1 minute)

Access State Affairs on your phone for monitoring on the go.

What to do:

1. Search "State Affairs" in the Apple App Store (iOS) or Google Play Store (Android)

2. Download and log in with your same credentials

3. Your keywords and tracked bills automatically sync

Why this matters: Check hearing transcripts while at the capitol, review daily activity during your commute, or get push notifications for urgent developments.

What You've Accomplished

After this 5-minute setup, you're now:

✅ Monitoring your priority issues with keyword alerts
✅ Tracking specific bills for action notifications
✅ Receiving alerts on your preferred schedule
✅ Familiar with where to find different types of legislative intelligence
✅ (Optional) Set up for mobile access

State Affairs will now automatically surface relevant legislative activity. You don't need to check the platform daily—alerts come to you.

Next Steps

Now that you're set up, explore these features as needed:

This week:

• Browse a Hearing transcript to see how searchable testimony works

• Try Bill Comparison to see how legislation changes through amendments

• Create your first Group to organize bills by topic or client

This month:

• Set up Reports for client deliverables or stakeholder updates

• Explore Advanced Boolean Search to refine keyword precision

• Review Dashboard (Enterprise customers) for AI-powered summaries

When needed:

• Upload and compare bills from prior years to track language evolution

• Use Bulk Actions to track or group multiple bills simultaneously

• Configure Scheduled Reports to automate weekly client updates

Common First-Day Questions

Q: How many keywords should I monitor?
A: Start with 5-10 core issues. Monitor alert volume for a week. If overwhelmed, use Boolean operators (AND, NOT) to narrow. If missing content, add variations or broader terms.

Q: Should I track every bill mentioning my keywords?
A: No. Keywords surface relevant bills; tracking is for bills you're actively monitoring or influencing. Track only legislation requiring regular attention.

Q: How do I know what tier I have?
A: Check "Understanding Your Subscription Tier" in this knowledge base, or look for Enterprise-only features like Dashboard and 360 Views in your navigation.

Q: Can I search past legislative sessions?
A: Platform and Enterprise customers can search bills and hearings from current and recent sessions. For older content, you may need to download from legislature websites and upload for comparison.

Q: What if I need help?
A: Browse this knowledge base for feature guides, or contact your State Affairs account manager for personalized assistance.

You're ready to go. State Affairs is now monitoring legislation on your behalf. When relevant activity happens, you'll be notified.