The winners of the 2017 Notable Documents Awards have been chosen.

Each year the Legislative Research Librarians (LRL) staff section sponsors the competition for outstanding state and legislative documents.

The purpose of the award is to formally recognize excellence in documents or publication that explore topics of interest to legislators and legislative staff and present substantive material in an outstanding format and advertise the extensive range of information available to legislators and staff.

This year’s selection committee was composed of, Elizabeth Lincoln, Minnesota, Chair; Sabah Eltareb, California; Ingrid Hernquist, New Jersey; Molly Riley, Minnesota and Jenna Steward, Louisiana.  Thirteen documents, in six categories, from 11 states were chosen out of 38 total submissions from across the nation.

All documents submitted were evaluated using set criteria; such as, significantly contributes to knowledge of concern to legislators, is innovative in presentation of material, attempts to provide balance and perspective from various sides in the political spectrum, etc.

The 2017 Notable Documents covered topics ranging from state jurisdiction in Indian country, prescription drug abuse, recess and physical education and much, much more. The winners will be awarded their certificates and recognized during the LRL business meeting, Monday, Aug. 7 at 7:45 a.m. during the NCSL Legislative Summit in Boston, Mass. Please join NCSL in congratulating this year’s winners!

The winners:

Economy

• Business Ready Community Program – Wyoming Legislative Service Office
• Climate Solutions and Economic Opportunities – Minnesota Environmental Quality Board
• History, Public Policy, and the Geography of Poverty: Understanding Challenges Facing Baltimore City and Maryland – Maryland Department of Legislative Services, Office of Policy Analysis 

Education

• Allotment-Specific and System-Level Issues Adversely Affect North Carolina’s Distribution of K-12 Resources – North Carolina General Assembly, Program Evaluation Division
• Arizona School District Spending: Fiscal Year 2016 – Arizona Office of the Auditor General
• Distribution of State Funds for K-12 Public Education – Idaho Office of Performance Evaluations 
• Recess and Physical Education (K-5) – Kentucky Legislative Research Commission

Intergovernmental Relations

• State Jurisdiction in Indian Country – Idaho Office of Performance Evaluations

Legislatures

• Report of the Legislative Salary Council – Minnesota Legislative Salary Council

Public Health

• Opioids: Preventing and Addressing Prescription Drug Abuse – Office of Minnesota Attorney General 
• Prescription Drug Costs: Maximizing State Agency Purchasing Power – New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee 
• Student Mental Health Services Inventory – State of Washington Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee

State Comparison

• Hands-Free and Distracted Driving Laws in Other States – Kansas Legislative Research Department

Megan McClure is a senior staff assistant with NCSL's Legislative Staff Services program.

Email Megan.