A Dose of Cozy
Do something that brings you joy this holiday weekend.
Remember how cozy you felt a couple of weeks ago? We hope you find that energy for a bit today. Go read a book, do something that brings you joy this holiday weekend.
Here’s what we’re cozying up with to read:
Sarah: Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
Beth: Oath and Honor by Liz Cheney
Alise: Evil Eye by Etaf Rum and The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
Maggie: Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune
A cozy recipe:
Snow Day Beef Stew (Ruth Reichl)
Baked Salmon with Amazing Lemon Sauce (A Pinch of Yum)
Self Love Potion (Leanne Brown)
Many state legislatures are going back into session in the coming weeks. State legislatures get a lot of negative press (including on Pantsuit Politics), so when Kathryn shared her love letter to state legislatures and the "indispensable facilitators of democracy” who work as staffers in these important bodies we knew we wanted to share it with all of you.
Sarah and Beth (and Alise and Maggie!),
I've been listening to the podcast for about two years now. I am a huge fan of Pantsuit Politics and your Premium content on Patreon. I deeply appreciate the nuance, kindness, and thoughtfulness you bring to every topic you discuss, and I look forward to catching up on your content during my commute. You make me a better thinker, communicator and human. So many dinner conversations with my husband start out with "Beth and Sarah had the most interesting/thought-provoking/poignant things to say today about . . ." This is a long message (there are footnotes), and I hope you'll extend some of your precious time to work through it at some point.
I've debated reaching out to you a lot over the last year, specifically on your discussions about state legislatures. State legislatures seem to have been a nascent theme in the podcast this year, from your episode with Ken Vogel (the word "bozos" may have come up) to your disappointment in the very nationally focused "blue state v. red state debate" between Gavin Newson and Ron DeSantis, to your Tuesday episode where you mentioned a lingering desire to discuss and mention the dysfunction in state legislatures this year as a trend.
I'm reaching out today because I feel called to – lovingly and gently – point out that your perspective on state legislatures may be lacking in the nuance that I've come to expect from Pantsuit Politics. And also point out some resources that may be of interest to you. Fair warning: this is a bit of a love letter to state legislatures. Sarah, I can feel your eyes rolling all the way here in Colorado, but hear me out.
I don't contest that state legislatures have been at the heart of some nasty, partisan fights this year. I don't contest that state legislatures also reflect national trends of increasing partisanship, with more single-party control and fewer split legislatures and governments than we've seen since at least 2009. I certainly don't contest that state policymakers have politicized issues and taken actions that cause real and tangible harm to their constituents and communities.
But the fights in the headlines are a fraction of what state legislatures actually do. I work at the National Conference of State Legislatures, also known as NCSL. It is the nonpartisan, professional membership organization for state legislators and legislative staff in all 50 states, D.C., and the territories. And in our work, we get insight into what is happening in state legislatures beyond the headlines.
Some facts about NCSL's membership and what we do:
NCSL's membership includes 7,386 state legislators and over 30,000 legislative staff.
For context, that's more than 70% of the way to the 10,000 members that Sarah would like to see in Congress (and maybe indicates something about the relevance of a federalist system of government).
NCSL supports its members through nonpartisan, evidence-based technical assistance, individualized and confidential research requests, professional development on 19 policy areas, federal lobbying on behalf of state legislatures, and more.
For context, we answer more than 20,000 requests for information from our members per year.
The number one request we get is, "What are other states doing?"
We also have a Center for Legislative Strengthening and a Center for Results Driven Governing. How cool is that?
States have unique jurisdiction and authority over some of the most important and difficult exercises of government power in people's lives, including a huge range of health policy issues, transportation, energy, infrastructure, dependency and neglect, consumer protection, civil commitment, corrections, and policing.
And if you think sports betting is the most complex policy area addressed by state legislatures, then you have never worked on Medicaid policy.[1][2]
All 50 states are required to balance their budgets . . .
. . . unlike Congress.
We're still waiting on final figures from 2023, but in 2022, state legislatures enacted over 20,000 pieces of legislation.
For context, not all state legislatures were in session in 2022. For 2023, all states were in session, and we are on track to exceed 40,000 pieces of enacted legislation. For comparison, Congress enacted 22 bills in 2023 so far, 3 of which have been continuing resolutions.
NCSL also maintains 45 active legislative databases that track state legislation and are available to the public.
Also, food for thought: Power abhors a vacuum, so in the absence of federal Congressional action and the presence of significant Congressional dysfunction, is it that surprising that states have stepped in to fill the void?
Of course, no system is perfect. There are both pros and cons to the part-time and under- or unpaid nature of most state legislatures, the fact that most members have full-time jobs elsewhere, and the fact that state legislatures are a more financially accessible leverage point for lobbyists. It would also be hypocritical for me to say that I wholeheartedly believe in the power of states as the laboratories of democracy when so much harm can result from the inconsistencies that we see between states on matters of civil rights, reproductive health, and even my beloved Medicaid program. Of course, there are times when federal governance is to be preferred.
Just like the halls of Congress, state legislatures represent the full spectrum of humanity within their walls. Sarah, you've noted that there are some equivalent idiots representing us all in Congress. But there are equally extraordinary public servants, brilliant minds, and decent and thoughtful people representing us in our state legislatures. And in many ways, the truest public servants are in state and local government – they sure aren't in it for the name recognition, money, or the work-life balance. They are good and bad and mediocre and everything in between.
But beyond all that, my defense of state legislatures comes from a very personal place for me. My experience at NCSL has given me something I forgot was possible to have in our tenuous democracy: hope. I started law school in 2016, right before Trump was elected, and progressively lost my faith in the sustainability of democracy, the rule of law, and the capacity of people to care and extend good faith. And all this right when I was learning how much these things matter to ensure a strong representative democracy.
I came to NCSL spiritually burned out from legal practice, craving a sense of purpose, and simultaneously harboring a deeply cynical outlook and skepticism that there was any sense of purpose or duty left in the work of policy and governing. I expected cynicism and mean-spiritedness. Since then, I've personally answered over 200 research requests, given technical assistance presentations in both "blue" and "red" states, staffed large conferences and small policy-focused meetings, and met and interacted with only a tiny fraction of our members.
You know what I've learned? State legislators and staffers genuinely care. They are curious, they are kind, they are chatty, and sometimes a bit ridiculous. But they ask me questions about how to solve problems, they want to learn from each other (and who cares what party a good idea comes from), they weigh the tradeoffs of policies with care and thoughtfulness, they genuinely care about making things better and they want to know how to help. And my goodness, does that make a world of difference.
I can honestly say two things have restored my pride and faith (not optimism) in our democracy: your beautiful, nuanced, grace-filled podcast and my work with state legislators and staff at NCSL. So please give your state legislative institutions a second look . . . and check out NCSL's publications and podcasts while you're at it.
With love and gratitude for the work that you do,
Kathryn Costanza
Proud NCSL Staffer and health policy nerd
[1] Full disclosure, Medicaid is my area of expertise. As an aside, the Medicaid program and its statutes have been described by courts in less than flattering terms, including as a “Serbonian bog,” “a statutory scheme that is among the most intricate ever drafted by Congress,” and (my personal favorite) as “an aggravated assault on the English language, resistant to attempts to understand it.”
[2] Some more fun facts about Medicaid: Did you know that Medicaid is the single largest payor of long-term care services, mental health, and substance use treatment services, and covers 40% of all children and 42% of births in the United States?
Copyright (C) 2024 Pantsuit Politics. All rights reserved.