By Senator Richard T. Moore

Being elected to serve as a state legislator in any of the fifty states or U.S. territories is a special honor and it is also a significant responsibility. After the excitement and ego-enhancing experience of any election or re-election, state legislators need to work at understanding the will and mood of their constituents as well as to understand the many sides of key policy issues in their state. It’s also important to understand the arcane rules of procedure and how to get things done.

There’s an old joke that says that when a new member is elected to a state legislature, they are in awe of their veteran legislative colleagues and think, “How did someone like me ever get elected to this prestigious body?” After a few weeks, the new member asks, “How did people like the rest of the legislators ever get elected?”

Most state legislatures conduct an orientation session to help acquaint new members with their new responsibilities. However, there’s a lot more to learn about being an effective legislator. Legislators rarely have enough staff to research the numerous, complex issues that will need to be addressed in any session. Additionally, the media and the public, rightfully, hold their elected representatives to a higher standard of ethical behavior. How do new, or even experienced, legislators and their staff get better informed and avoid the many political landmines?

Fortunately, there’s a well-respected, bi-partisan national organization dedicated to providing objective research, technical assistance and opportunities for state policymakers to exchange ideas on the most pressing state issues. It’s called the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), headquartered in Denver, Colorado, and with offices on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Every one of the nation’s 7,328 state legislators and their legislative staff belong to this prestigious association.

Most of the big issues confronting legislators in one state are also issues confronting legislators in many other states. Consequently, there’s a lot to be learned about what works and what may not by sharing information and experience with legislators and legislative staff from around the country. State legislatures, as Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis once remarked, are “laboratories of democracy.” Many ideas that become good public policy are later adopted by other states, or even by the federal government.

State legislators, from time to time, gather in national or regional conferences to share information and learn from policy experts. Although the news media usually derides these gatherings as “junkets,” the vast majority of state legislators can be found attending the seminars and meetings trying to become better, more effective legislators for those they represent back home. The NCSL Annual Meeting also chooses the organization’s leadership and sets federal-state relations policy to guide our lobbying efforts on behalf of states. Sure, there are social events after hours, but that’s normal for business and fraternal organizations as well. These days, most legislators attend at their own expense since few states pay for out of state travel expenses. Massachusetts, for example, has not paid for legislators’ travel since 1990.

NCSL also collects and shares information from scholars and policy experts and is often contacted by legislators, legislative staff and the news media on issues and policy solutions developed in the states. The NCSL is viewed by many, including the President of the United States and members of Congress, as an effective and respected advocate for the interests of state governments in America’s federal system of government. After all, the current President and more than half of the members of the U.S. Congress are former state legislators, and half of all of our Presidents throughout history once served in their state’s legislature.

State governments and state taxpayers are often concerned with federal programs that could mandate new duties and costs on state or local levels of government. The proposals for new unfunded or under-funded, federal mandates, and the burdens of those already passed by Congress, are frequently subjects of debate among states and lobbying by NCSL and other groups to halt or reduce the impact on the states. This process is authorized by the tenth right of the “Bill of Rights,” which states that: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” 

Whether you consider yourself as a conservative Republican, liberal Democrat, Tea Party Activist, or any other position on the political spectrum, your state legislator will be better able to respond to your concerns and serve you with greater competence and integrity if they are active in the NCSL. As an engaged legislator in the work of the National Conference of State Legislatures, your state senator or representative will be better equipped to rebalance the role of states in our federal system, pushing back at Beltway Big Government, and making state government more transparent and responsive to the citizens it is intended to serve.
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Senator Richard T. Moore represents south central Massachusetts and was elected by legislators from every state to serve as President of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) for 2010-2011.

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