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| Conference of State Legislatures | |
|---|---|
| Name | Conference of State Legislatures |
| Caption | Headquarters of the Conference of State Legislatures |
| Formation | 1975 |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | Denver, Colorado |
| Leader title | Executive Director |
Conference of State Legislatures is a U.S. nonprofit organization that serves legislators and staff from the fifty United States states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. It provides research, technical assistance, and convening services to state legislative bodies and committees, informing policy deliberations across a wide array of issues. The organization operates as a nonpartisan resource linking state capitols with national institutions, federal agencies, and international bodies.
Founded in the mid-1970s, the organization emerged from earlier interlegislative efforts that trace back to the 19th century where bodies such as the National Governors Association and state legislative caucuses sought coordinated responses to federal policy shifts. Early influences included the landmark Great Depression-era expansions of federal programs and the subsequent New Deal-era interactions between state executives and federal agencies. During the postwar period, legislative leaders who had participated in forums like the Council of State Governments and the National Conference of State Legislatures (earlier names) pressed for a permanent national legislative support entity. In subsequent decades the group played roles in responses to events such as the Energy Crisis of the 1970s, the passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, and state-level implementation of the Affordable Care Act following the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act debates. The organization has adapted through eras including the Reagan Administration, the Clinton Administration, the George W. Bush Administration, the Obama Administration, and the Trump Administration, reflecting changing federalism dynamics.
The core mission emphasizes nonpartisan assistance to lawmakers for policy development, budget review, and oversight. Functions include comparative analysis for committee deliberations, training for legislative staff from offices such as the Office of Legislative Counsel and the Chief Clerk offices, and provision of model statutes informed by precedents like the Uniform Commercial Code and compacts similar to the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children. It fosters coordination with bodies such as the United States Congress, the Supreme Court of the United States, federal agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services and the Environmental Protection Agency, and international organizations when state interests intersect with cross-border issues.
The organization is governed by an elected leadership drawn from state legislative leaders, with a professional staff headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Committees and task forces mirror legislative committees—budget, judiciary, health, transportation—and include subject-specific standing committees that interface with state counterparts like the California State Legislature and the New York State Assembly. The staff includes researchers, policy analysts, information technology specialists, and meeting planners who coordinate national conferences and regional gatherings. Governance instruments include a board of directors and executive committee composed of members from both chambers of state legislatures, modeled after practices seen in bodies such as the United States Conference of Mayors.
Programs include annual national meetings, intensive regional forums, webinars, and technical assistance projects supporting legislative capacity in areas like fiscal forecasting and regulatory oversight. Signature services comprise comparative databases on statutes and case law, model policy options similar in utility to publications from the Brookings Institution or the Pew Charitable Trusts, and leadership academies for incoming legislators akin to training offered by the Harvard Kennedy School. It operates legal research services, fiscal analysis units, and maintains policy databases that mirror datasets used by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics for state-level comparisons. The organization also facilitates interstate compacts and collaborative procurement initiatives modeled after successful efforts like the Western Governors' Association compacts.
Research spans fiscal policy, health care financing, criminal justice reform, education finance, energy regulation, transportation infrastructure, and technology policy, including issues intersecting with agencies such as the Federal Communications Commission and programs like Medicaid. Studies compare statutory frameworks, aggregate legislative precedents, and synthesize judicial decisions from courts including the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Analysts produce issue briefs, white papers, and model legislation that draw on sources like the Tax Policy Center, the Heritage Foundation, and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities while maintaining nonpartisan framing.
Membership encompasses legislators and staff from all fifty states, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the District of Columbia. Voting governance rests with elected legislative leaders who serve on the board and executive committees, with representation balanced by chamber and region. Annual elections and bylaws determine leadership succession, committee chairmanships, and regional caucus representation, reflecting parliamentary practices similar to those in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate.
Funding arrives from membership dues, foundation grants from organizations such as the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Gates Foundation, federal grants, and fee-for-service contracts with state legislatures and philanthropic institutions like the Ford Foundation. Partnerships span academic collaborators including the University of Michigan and Georgetown University, nonprofit partners like the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and intergovernmental liaisons with agencies including the Department of Transportation and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. These alliances support research, training, and policy implementation projects while preserving the organization’s nonpartisan posture.
Category:Nonprofit organizations based in the United States