Stated Briefly
Western Legislators
From July 12-15, lawmakers participated in the 11th annual Western Legislative Academy, the West’s most prestigious training experience for newer state legislators selected from the 13 states in the CSG-WEST region.
Lieutenant Governors
The National Lieutenant Governors Association will conduct an economic mission Sept. 19-26, 2010, through Beijing and Shanghai. Nevada Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki will lead the mission which includes meeting and outreach opportunities at the World Fair. Most lieutenant governors play economic development roles in their states and territories. For more, visit www.nlga.us.
Midwestern Legislative Leaders
In July, 37 lawmakers from 11 Midwestern states and three Canadian provinces attended 16th annual Bowhay Institute for Legislative Leadership Development (BILLD) in Madison, Wis.
The five-day program is produced by the Midwestern Legislative Conference in partnership with the University of Wisconsin’s Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs. It provides professional development and leadership training for newer legislators from around the region.
The agenda included policy sessions on the regional economy, corrections reform, evidence-based policymaking and government reform initiatives.
In addition, fellows took part in a series of professional-development sessions on topics such as time management, effective communications and consensus building.
During the institute, a panel of four current and former legislative leaders from the region (Iowa Speaker Pat Murphy, Kansas Senate Majority Leader Derek Schmidt, North Dakota Senate Minority Leader David O’Connell and former Ohio Speaker Jo Ann Davidson) shared their insights and advice on being more-effective legislators and policymakers.
Each year, fellowships are awarded through a competitive, nonpartisan selection process overseen by the BILLD Steering Committee. Iowa Rep. J. Scott Raecker and Illinois Rep. Elaine Nekritz are the committee’s co-chairs. Minnesota Rep. Laura Brod and Michigan Rep. Mark Meadows are co-vice chairs.
Next year’s Bowhay Institute will be held Aug. 12-16. Applications will be available in December.
For more information, visit www.csgmidwest.org/About/BILLD.htm.
Record Disasters
The number of disasters and emergencies are on the rise, reinforcing emergency management as a priority function of government. This decade has had the most presidential emergency declarations since the Federal Emergency Management Agency started keeping records more than 50 years ago, averaging 56 per year.
Despite the struggle to balance budgets, states have been able to maintain funding for local emergency management programs; provide disaster assistance for citizens and communities and further professionalize the discipline with certification programs.
These are just a few of the findings in the National Emergency Management Association 2010 Biennial Report. Based on an in-depth survey of state emergency management directors, the NEMA 2010 Biennial Report represents the most comprehensive compilation of state emergency management data and information available. The report is available for purchase on the NEMA website, www.nemaweb.org.
Midwestern Governors
The Midwestern Governors Association will hold an investment summit that explores ideas on how to increase the level of investments in the Midwest in areas related to the new energy economy. The investment summit, “Invest in the Midwest: We Make the Things that Power the World,” will take place in Columbus, Ohio, Sept. 21-22. The summit will focus on ways the investment community—including venture capitalists, angel investors and traditional financial institutions—can collaborate with regional business, government and nonprofit leaders to maximize the region’s efforts to increase investment in the new energy economy.
As current chair of the MGA, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland has focused on increasing investment capital opportunities for the Midwest’s small and mid-sized businesses.
“As a governor, I see firsthand how important investment capital is in attracting new businesses to Ohio. If we want to continue the Midwest’s progress in becoming a global leader in the new energy economy, we must find ways to increase investment opportunities into our region,” said Strickland. “I look forward to welcoming my fellow governors and other summit participants to Columbus for a productive discussion on how we can strengthen the Midwest as an innovator in energy development.”
More information on the investment summit, including registration materials, is available at www.midwesterngovernors.org/investsummit.htm.
CSG Videos
Check out the newest CSG videos on the CSG website. Click on “About” and “CSG Videos” to find out who is CSG. Also, watch videos of your peers discussing the hottest topics of the day in other CSG videos. Want to embed a CSG video into your own website? Visit the CSG YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/CSGovts. Click on a video, then click on “embed.”
