CivicLoon Privacy Policy
Last updated: March 15, 2026
Who we are
CivicLoon is a civic engagement app for Minnesota state legislation, created by Colin Lee. You can reach us at colintheshots.com.
Data we collect automatically
Crash reports (Firebase Crashlytics)
When the app crashes, we collect a crash report containing:
- Device model and manufacturer
- Operating system version
- App version
- A stack trace describing what the app was doing at the time
- An anonymous installation identifier
- Timestamp of the crash
Crash reports do not include your name, address, the bills you viewed, or any other personally identifiable information. They are processed by Google Firebase Crashlytics. You can disable crash reporting through your device's usage and diagnostics settings.
Usage analytics (Looker / Google)
We collect anonymous usage data to understand how the app is used and to guide improvements. This includes things like which features are used and how often, but does not include your name, address, or the specific bills or legislators you viewed. Analytics data is processed by Looker Studio (Google). You can opt out in Settings.
Data you enter voluntarily
Your address (Find My Representatives / Write to My Rep)
When you use "Find My Representatives" or "Write to My Rep," you may enter your street address. This information is:
- Stored locally on your device only. It is never automatically uploaded to our servers.
- Sent to our server (civicloon.space) only when you actively look up your representatives. The server uses it to identify your legislative district and does not retain it after the request completes.
- Forwarded from our server to Nominatim (OpenStreetMap's geocoding service) to convert your address to coordinates. Nominatim's privacy policy is at osmfoundation.org/wiki/Privacy_Policy.
- Used locally to show you geographically relevant sponsored content (for example, ads from candidates in your district). Your address is not sent to advertisers. You can disable address-based ad targeting in Settings.
Letters to representatives
Letter drafts are composed entirely on your device using an on-device AI model. Letter content is never transmitted to our server. You send the letter yourself through your device's email app.
Advertising inquiries
If you voluntarily fill out the in-app advertising inquiry form, we collect your name, organization or campaign name, email address, phone number (optional), and your stated targeting preferences. This is used solely to respond to your inquiry and is not sold or shared with any third party.
On-device AI
Bill summaries and letter drafts are generated by an AI model (LFM2.5) that runs entirely on your device. Your bill text and letter content are never sent to our server or any external AI service.
Server-side caching
Our server caches public legislative data — bill text, legislator information, news articles, and campaign finance records — to reduce load on upstream government APIs. None of this cached data is personally identifiable.
Third-party services
- Google Firebase Crashlytics — anonymous crash reporting.
- Looker Studio (Google) — anonymous usage analytics.
- Nominatim / OpenStreetMap — address geocoding when you look up representatives.
- Bluesky public API — displays a legislator's public posts on their profile. No personal user data is sent.
- Azure Communication Services — sends us an email when you submit an advertising inquiry.
- OpenStates, Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, Minnesota Legislature — public government APIs for bill and legislator data. No personal user data is sent.
Your choices
- Crash reporting: Disable through your device's usage and diagnostics settings.
- Analytics: Opt out in the CivicLoon Settings screen.
- Address-based ad targeting: Turn off in the CivicLoon Settings screen. Your address will still be used locally to find your representatives, but will not influence which sponsored content you see.
Children's privacy
CivicLoon is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 13.
Changes to this policy
If we make material changes to this policy, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page.
Contact
Questions about this privacy policy? Visit colintheshots.com.