January 2, 2007
Forty-four State Legislatures will Hold Sessions in 2008
DENVER -With the new year comes the start of legislative sessions for 44 states, 36 of those begin in January. While only eight meet throughout the year, several others will finish in a few months. In 2007, all states held sessions.
Legislators across the country will tackle a host of tough issues in 2008. They’ll have to prioritize and balance strained budgets. They’ll have to contend with rising health care and education costs, in addition to facing bigger dilemmas: immigration and creating unity in a divided nation, for example.
Additionally, 7,382 elected members serve in the nation's 50 state legislatures. However, the number of legislators serving in each state varies dramatically, from New Hampshire's 400 seat House of Representatives to Alaska's 20 member Senate.
The length of states' sessions vary from a few months to most of the year. Illinois, Michigan, New York and Pennsylvania are several of the states that meet throughout the year. Utah's session, by contrast, will last less than two months. And Wyoming's will go from February 13 to mid March. Six states will not meet this year because they meet biennially; click here for a podcast discussing this.
Democrats control 23 legislatures; Republicans control 14 legislatures, and 12 are split between the two parties. In 2007, only six state legislatures elected new members. Of those, Democrats claimed narrow majorities in the Mississippi and Virginia Senates. In addition, they maintained majority status in both New Jersey chambers and the Mississippi House. The GOP held its majority control in the Virginia House of Delegates, but lost a few seats.
Click here for a list of state legislative sessions.
NCSL is the bipartisan organization that serves the legislators and staff 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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