comments_index

Public comment counts

A small row-count index over comments. Each row counts the comments of one agency, docket and posting month, so consumers can compute comment totals without scanning the full table. It is rebuilt from the same catalog snapshot as each comments publication. Its rows are groups, not files: no Parquet file exists per row. Months are posting months: an agency posts in batches, so a spike here dates postings, and comments.receive_date, the agency's stated receipt date, dates receipt.

Coverage. Derived. Counts over comments by agency, docket and posting month; it covers exactly what that table covers and adds no rows of its own. (measured 2026-09-06)

Data quality. Its counts include the comments held on a posting Regulations.gov removed (see comments), which agency_stats and feed_summary subtract. To subtract them yourself, count those rows in comments by agency, docket and posting month.

• Parquet file: comments_index.parquet
• MCP query_sql support: Configured; requires an available artifact.
• Publication status: Not established by this schema page or its measurement date.
• Row count: Not stated here; the MCP describe_table reply gives the live count under publication.

Column	Type	Description
agency_code	VARCHAR	Agency code of the counted comments.
docket_id	VARCHAR	Source docket identifier, or NULL when the source gives none.
year	BIGINT	Year from posted_date. NULL when the source posted date is unknown.
month	BIGINT	Month (1–12) from posted_date. NULL together with year when the source posted date is unknown.
row_count	BIGINT	Number of posted comment records in the group. These are posted comment records, not comments received: an agency posts one record for a mass-mail campaign that can stand for thousands of submissions (EPA-HQ-OW-2022-0114 has 1,629 posted records for about 122,200 comments EPA received). To estimate submissions received, sum comments.duplicate_comments as its description says; this table does not carry it.