Remembering Former CSG West Director Kent Briggs

The CSG West family is mourning the loss of Kent Briggs, who served as the organization’s executive director from 1996 to 2011. He passed away on April 19 at the age of 82.

Kent was a larger-than-life figure who was fun, kindhearted, and had a gregarious personality. He had the ability to light up a room and enamor people with his smile, charismatic presence, and great stories, as he was a walking encyclopedia of Western politics, leaders, and issues.

Kent had a distinguished public service career, which was sparked by his keen interest and love of public policy. He worked for a U.S. senator in Idaho, two Utah governors, co-founded a public policy think tank focused on the West, and capped his career with CSG West.

While at the helm of CSG West, Kent stabilized and helped grow the organization’s budget, oversaw the establishment of the Western Legislative Academy, which is our premier training program for newer legislators to this day, and was instrumental in furthering a continental vision through engagement with policymakers from Canada and Mexico. One of his passions was advocating for the advancement of the Western region. To this end, he established meaningful and lasting relationships with public officials, staff, academics, and entities from across the region, including the Western Governors’ Association, of which he was very fond of.

Kent was a beloved friend, colleague, and mentor to staff and leaders alike. He left a lasting impression and legacy. Those of us that had the privilege of knowing him can still recall his witty anecdotes and one-liners that made us laugh and ponder, even to this day. Kent will be missed and the CSG family is grateful for his commitment, dedication, and his many contributions to advance the public good. To learn more about Kent’s contributions, please view his obituary HERE.

The post Remembering Former CSG West Director Kent Briggs appeared first on CSG West.

Founding members of Transatlantic Climate Alliance to gather in Portugal

Long-time Energy and Environmental Policy Chair Senator Marc Pacheco is leading a new initiative tackling climate issues on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. He sent this letter to colleagues about the new NGO, its goals, and their upcoming launch.

 

 

Dear CSG Colleague:

I am contacting you as the Founding President and CEO of the Transatlantic Climate Alliance, with an invitation to join our upcoming formal announcement launch on May 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in the UNESCO city of Angra do Heroísmo on the island of Terceira, Portugal.

The Transatlantic Climate Alliance Inc. is filing for 501(c)3 status to become a non-governmental organization. The organization will convene subnational public and private sector leaders throughout the Atlantic region as part of a Transatlantic Climate Council to identify best practices and foster valuable partnerships for combating our climate crisis. We plan to accelerate and empower bold climate action. 

During the event we will be having an opening celebration consisting of a community concert hosted by the City of Angra do Heroísmo. On Friday, May 3rd we will have continued registration and a number of round table discussions about best practices from leaders across the Atlantic and will end the policy discussion in late afternoon. We are also working on finding appropriate sponsors for evening activities. To conclude our event, we will partake in a morning tour of a geothermal facility on the island of Terceira.

We have partnered with SATA Airlines and the Terceira Mar Hotel to offer discounts towards flights and lodging during the launch weekend. For additional information please reach out to the contact information provided below.

Eight states aim to improve homeless services through federal HSPA initiative

Maryland and Massachusetts are now poised to expand housing-related services for people with disabilities and older adults who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness, thanks to a newly launched Housing and Services Partnership Accelerator (HSPA).

Altogether, eight states and the District of Columbia were selected by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to participate in the program. Each state has already been approved for either a Medicaid section 1115 demonstration or section 1915(i) state plan amendment covering housing-related services. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released its most recent guidance for covering housing-related services through Medicaid authorities in November 2023.

A man wearing a blazer stands near a ramp railing and is addressing a group gathered between parked cars.

Housing leaders tour affordable housing during a CSG East policy summit in Connecticut.

Participating states were also required to assemble a core team from housing and health sectors comprised of at least one member from their state Medicaid agency, and three additional partners from an organization or agency focused on aging, disability, and homelessness. Teams will engage in a year-long collaboration, including needs assessments, peer-to-peer learning sessions, coaching, and meetings with subject matter experts, to study better practices for braiding funding from various sources, designing services and benefits, developing needs-based criteria for services, strategies for service delivery, and improving billing and rate-setting practices.

The District of Columbia aims to achieve a whole-person Medicaid health system by enhancing and expanding the housing services provided to Medicaid-eligible older adults and people with disabilities under its 1915(i) state plan benefit.

Maryland aims to expand its statewide coalition of stakeholders addressing homelessness among Medicaid participants. The state expects to expand its Assistance in Community Integration Services (ACIS) pilot launched in 2017, which focuses on individuals with disabilities and aging populations.

Massachusetts aims to create a map of housing-related services for people experiencing homelessness, and explore how Medicaid funding can support a permanent supportive housing program in the state.

 

Southern Pulse Newsletter, April

Spring has officially sprung at CSG South! We have completed a four-month-long office renovation with our entire team settling back in and enjoying seeing each other’s faces again. If you are ever near the ATL, feel free to stop by for a visit or work from our office. We would love to see you!

We continue to move through State Visits by visiting Louisiana (April 16-18), Alabama (April 23 – 24), and Arkansas (April 30 – May 1) this month. Keep an eye out for emails from my team so that we can schedule a meeting with you to discuss all things CSG South!

Lastly, we are sending out an all-call. Around our region, state agencies and officials are working hard to find innovative solutions to improve customer service, address policy challenges, and save taxpayer dollars while providing for citizens’ needs. As we move closer to awarding the State in Transformation in Action Recognition (STAR) award, presented during SLC, the search continues for programs that exemplify innovative qualities. If you know a program that is a STAR, please click here to apply. The deadline is May 17th. 

All the best,
Lindsey G.

Click here to read Southern Pulse – April 2024

The post Southern Pulse Newsletter, April appeared first on CSG South.

The Value of Legislative Libraries

The New Mexico Legislative Council Service Research Library recently wrapped up its first National Library Week celebration with bookmarks and a trivia contest. National Library Week is a week-long celebration to promote awareness of all types of libraries, whether a public library in a school, city or county, or a private library in a law firm, museum, or corporation.

Did you know that over 30 states have a library in the state’s legislative branch? Legislative libraries are often located within a state’s capitol, but can also be located in state office space near a state’s capitol. Legislative libraries are open and staffed year-round to assist legislators, legislative staff and other state, county, and city agency locate information to help staff make policy decisions or learn more about the background of an issue.

Legislative libraries’ collections often include a mix of history books, legislative materials, state agency reports, and legal resources. Many legislative libraries, including New Mexico’s Legislative Research Library, are open to the general public–including attorneys, lobbyists, advocacy groups, and constituents. Some of the most popular questions our library receives are for biographical information about legislators past and present; what other states’ legislatures have introduced or passed recently on any topic; statistics on the number of bills passed or vetoed in a specific time range; and news articles surrounding a high profile event in state history.

The questions legislative libraries can help with are interesting and rewarding. For example, we hear often from descendants of legislators who are wondering when their grandparents or great-grandparents served, what bills they introduced, and if our collection includes photos while they were in office.

Legislative libraries also respond to questions from law, political science professors or graduate students throughout the country conducting research on the political or electoral process for their dissertations or research. Legislative libraries collaborate with each other across state lines to compile information or data about other state’s laws or statistics.

Your legislative library can also help locate and gather information from other libraries in your state. Many state libraries offer an interlibrary loan service-meaning that if a book or article isn’t owned by their library, they can ask the state library to locate it from another library and get it shipped. For instance, we can get articles for legislators and staff that are from academic journals not freely available online.

Many legislative libraries, like ours, also field questions by email and phone, so you don’t have to drive to the state capitol to get research assistance. More information about the New Mexico Legislative Council’s Research Library can be found at https://www.nmlegis.gov/Legislative_Library.

Joanne Montague is a Senior Legislative Librarian with the New Mexico Legislative Council Service.

The post The Value of Legislative Libraries appeared first on CSG West.

Examining State-Level Recidivism Trends in the Second Chance Act Era

From The Council of State Governments Justice Center, this report highlights the significant progress made in reducing recidivism across the country over the past 15 years. Since its passage in 2008, the Second Chance Act has invested in state and local efforts to improve outcomes for people leaving prison and jail, with a total of nearly 1,200 grantees from 48 states and 3 territories administering programs that have served more than 400,000 people.

You can read more here or download the full report below.

Download Full Report Here

The post Examining State-Level Recidivism Trends in the Second Chance Act Era appeared first on CSG South.