July 6, 2004
'Public Policy Olympics:' Salt Lake City to
Host July Meeting of
Nation's State Legislators
From budgets to Medicaid to outsourcing, NCSL Annual Meeting
exposes the 'New Legislative Reality'
SALT LAKE CITY - After months of political
competition in their own state Capitols, state legislators and
policymakers from across the nation will soon convene in the last American
city to host the Olympics.
The National Conference of State Legislatures' Annual Meeting, a public
policy assembly unlike any other, takes place in Salt Lake
City July 19-23. More than 5,000 people are expected to be a
part of the meeting, including legislators, legislative staff,
policymakers, government officials and the nation's foremost issue
experts.
"This is the public policy Olympics event of the year," said NCSL
President and Utah House Speaker Marty Stephens. "Our sessions will
explore the complexities of Medicaid, the No Child Left Behind Act, jobs,
state budgets and a wide range of key issues." As NCSL President, Speaker
Stephens will have the honor of hosting the Annual Meeting in his home
state, which has not happened since Paul Mannweiler hosted the 1999
meeting in his home state of Indiana.
"Like the Olympics, the program for the NCSL Annual Meeting is
diverse," said NCSL Executive Director William Pound, who noted that the
closing session brings together the Weekly Standard's Bill
Kristol and Al Gore's 2002 campaign manager Donna Brazile to
discuss the 2004 elections. Other featured speakers include famed author
Stephen Covey, Business Roundtable President John
Castellani, Standard & Poor's David A. Wyss, and humorist
Christopher Buckley.
The event features more than 150 sessions on the challenges state
legislatures face today and the innovative ways they are overcoming them.
Sessions showcasing diverse opinions will be held on state budgets,
identity theft, school choice, the consequences of No Child Left Behind,
clean air, housing, pharmaceuticals, welfare reform, immigration, crime,
racial profiling and transportation.
State legislators will debate and vote on resolutions at the meeting
that will determine positions on major public policy matters. Last year,
NCSL members' lobbying efforts resulted in securing $20 billion in fiscal
assistance for state governments, which were reeling from three years of
record budget shortfalls. The lobbying priorities are determined through
the work of NCSL's 15 Standing Committees, which will meet during the
Annual Meeting.
NCSL's Annual Meeting is open to credentialed members of the media.
Reporters can obtain more information by contacting NCSL's Public Affairs
staff at press-room@ncsl.org.
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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