Melanie Horton In her role as senior program coordinator, Melanie Horton supports NCSL's Environment Program as well as several state and tribal working groups, which NCSL supports through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy. Horton... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Environment, Energy & Transportation
Tahra Johnson As director of NCSL’s Health Program, Tahra Johnson oversees the public health and maternal and child health projects and research at NCSL. Johnson has been with NCSL for more than seven years and has several additional years of experience... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Health
Jim Reed As director of the Environment, Energy and Transportation program at NCSL, Jim Reed oversees the collaborative efforts of 15 outstanding colleagues in state legislative bill tracking and analysis, policy research and writing, grant project... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Environment, Energy & Transportation
Landon Jacquinot In his role as a policy analyst, Landon Jacquinot researches state policy on minimum wage, occupational licensing, and workforce development. Jacquinot comes to NCSL with experience working with and around state legislatures as a policy and... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Employment, Labor & Retirement
Sunny Deye Sunny Deye is an associate director in NCSL’s Education Program and serves as the liaison to her home state of Oregon. Deye leads the postsecondary education team in tracking and analyzing legislation in all 50 states, publishing state... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Education
Emily Maher As a project manager in NCSL’s Fiscal Affairs Program, Emily Maher focuses on state budgets, intergovernmental relations and economic development policy. She also staffs NCSL’s Labor and Economic Development Committee. Prior... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Fiscal
Sarah Brown Sarah Brown is the director of the Criminal and Civil Justice Program (CCJ) at NCSL. As the director, she oversees all of NCSL’s criminal and civil justice work, with specific expertise in juvenile justice. Brown has been with NCSL for 20... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Civil and Criminal Justice
Erica MacKellar Erica MacKellar works primarily on issues around state fiscal conditions and the state budget process for NCSL. She also staffs the National Association of Legislative Fiscal Offices (NALFO), a NCSL professional staff association. She joined... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Fiscal
Samantha Scotti In her role, Samantha Scotti focuses on state policy issues relating to health care access, costs and coverage. She has over six years of experience working with state legislators, legislative staff and other partners on a variety of health... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Health
Karmen Hanson As a senior fellow in NCSL’s Health Program, Karmen Hanson specializes in behavioral health and cannabis policy topics and collaborates with programs across the organization. With more than 22 years at NCSL, Hanson has presented to dozens... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Health
Marilyn Villalobos As a project manager with the Employment, Labor and Retirement Program, Marilyn Villalobos focuses on disability employment policy. She also serves as the New Mexico state liaison. Previously, Villalobos worked for the Colorado Department of... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Employment, Labor & Retirement
Mandy Rafool Mandy Rafool is the director of the Fiscal Affairs Program, where she oversees the products and services NCSL delivers on state budgets, state taxes, economic development and financial services. Rafool has more than 25 years of experience at... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Fiscal
Patrick Lyons Patrick Lyons is a policy specialist focused on prekindergarten to third grade education policy. Patrick facilitates the State Policy and Research in Early Education workgroup and focuses on issues such as school readiness, the early childhood... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Education
Colleen Becker As a project manager in NCSL’s Health Program, Colleen Becker focuses on prescription drug access and affordability. Becker comes to NCSL with 20 years of experience performing multiple roles in health advocacy and direct patient care. She... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Health
Jennifer Schultz As a program principal in NCSL’s Environment, Energy and Transportation Program, Jennifer Schultz covers a wide range of policy topics including waste and recycling, wildlife, land use, environmental health, disaster resilience, and... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Environment, Energy & Transportation
Natalie Wood Natalie Wood serves as vice president of policy and research at NCSL. She previously directed NCSL’s Center for Legislative Strengthening, providing expertise and leading research on legislative institutional issues, including internal... Staff Directory, Executive Management Team, Research & Policy
Suzanne Hultin Suzanne Hultin is the director of NCSL's Employment, Labor & Retirement ProgramL. In this role, she oversees issues around employment, occupational licensing and workforce development. Prior to joining NCSL in 2013, she served as... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Employment, Labor & Retirement
Heather Morton Financial Services, Technology and Communications Program, Heather Morton leads a team of policy analysts focusing on broadband and telecommunications, internet and technology, consumer and financial services, civil liability and alcohol... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Financial Services, Technology & Communications
Walker Stevens As a policy associate in NCSL’s Children and Families Program, Walker Stevens focuses his research on policy topics related to child and family well-being, including child support and family law, economic security, food security, housing... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Children & Families
Heather Wilson As a senior policy specialist, Heather Wilson focuses on policies that support child and family well-being. Wilson comes to NCSL with nearly 15 years of experience leading social and economic policy initiatives, program design and... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Children & Families
Clare Link-Oberstar As a program coordinator for NCSL’s Health Program, Clare Link-Oberstar supports her team with meeting coordination and logistics. Prior to joining NCSL, Link-Oberstar was a preschool teacher. She is dedicated to supporting her team in its... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Health
Camilla Rodriguez Guzman In her role, Camilla Rodriguez Guzman’s research focuses on elections and redistricting. Prior to joining NCSL, Rodriguez Guzman was a legislative assistant at the Colorado State Capitol and gained additional experience working in the legal... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Elections & Redistricting
Molly Widoff Molly Widoff supports the Health Program as a policy analyst focused on overdose, suicide, injury prevention and infectious diseases. She comes to NCSL with experience in policy research and programming around mental health and substance use.... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Health
Johnny Valdez As a policy analyst, Johnny Valdez focuses on Medicaid and the intersection of housing and health policy. Valdez comes to NCSL with experience as a researcher in technology, digital finance, economic development and Indigenous governance. Valdez... Staff Directory, Research & Policy, Health