In 1932, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis wrote that states are good laboratories to "try novel social and economic experiments." State legislatures are where those public policy enterprises take place, and for the last several years have been able to offer responses to important issues while Congress remains gridlocked. Often referred to as the "first branch of government," all states and U.S. territories choose how their legislatures operate: full-time, part-time or a hybrid. The resources below serve as a starting point to learn more about how these institutions operate.