June 3, 2005
Architects of Public Policy Converge in Seattle in August for NCSL's "Strong States, Strong Nation" Meeting
Bill Gates, state economies, No Child Left Behind, health costs highlight 150 public policy sessions
DENVER - The designers of public policy will meet in Seattle this August to share ideas and learn from experts about how best to build and maintain sturdy state governments.
The National Conference of State Legislatures' "Strong States, Strong Nation" 2005 annual meeting is expected to draw more than 7,000 attendees, including state legislators, legislative staff, private sector representatives and others August 16-20 at the Washington State Convention & Trade Center.
"State legislators are the architects of public policy," said NCSL Executive Director Bill Pound. "We believe that when the states are strong, the nation is strong. Our annual conference provides a unique opportunity for the framers of state laws to come together and compare blueprints."
Bill Gates headlines an impressive list of speakers at NCSL's meeting. Other featured speakers include Carr Hagerman, author and FISH! Philosopher; Uwe Reinhardt, one of the nation's leading authorities on health care economics; and world-renowned biomedical researchers Lee Hartwell, a Nobel laureate who is president and director of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center; and Leroy Hood, who is president of the Institute for Systems Biology.
Attendees will have to choose among more than 150 sessions on specific public policy issues, including:
- The Impending Crisis for Higher Education and What State Legislators Can Do
- New School Funding Models
- Natural Gas Supply and Demand, State Policy Opportunities
- Electronic Waste
- It Costs What?! Uninsured and Uncompensated Care
- Backgrounding America: Who are We Protecting and How?
- Driver Distractions: How Much is Too Much?
NCSL's "Strong States, Strong Nation" meeting is also the place where members of NCSL's 15 Standing Committees debate and vote on the positions that guide the organization's advocacy for states in Washington, D.C.
This is the first year that NCSL's annual meeting will be held at the same place as Capitolbeat's annual reporters' convention. August 19-21, statehouse journalists from across America will converge to hear from experts on a range of fiscal, political and social issues, to share Capitol war stories and hone their skills at numerous workshops.
Attendance at NCSL's meeting is free to credentialed members of the media. More information and registration forms are available online. Send questions to press-room@ncsl.org.
There is a fee to attend Capitolbeat. More information is available online.
NCSL is the bipartisan organization that serves the legislators and staffs of the states, commonwealths and territories. It provides research, technical assistance and opportunities for policymakers to exchange ideas on the most pressing state issues and is an effective and respected advocate for the interests of the states in the American federal system.
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