
Proposing Legislation
Research
Draft a Position Statement
Talk to Legislaters
Track Your Bill
Research is an imperative part of proposing legislation. As you explore your topic of interests and decide to propose legislation you have to understand how research is essential to backing your efforts. There must be a clear reason why this legislation is necessary and it should be data driven. You can use preexisting data from bureaucratic departments or you can conduct your own research. You can even do both! No matter the method, you NEED research. Click below to learn more about how you can conduct research in your community.
Position statements are the basis for legislation. How the legislative process works is that those who are constituents (you) draft position statements and present them to your legislators. Legislators then agree to sponser the purposed legislation and they turn your position statement into bill language. Position statements detail the issue including your research as well as your proposed solution. Position statements don't require much time but do require effort. Make sure to draft a well crafted and logistical position statement to increase your chances of the position statement being sponsered by a legislator.
Talk to your legislators about your position statement and ask if legislators would be interested in proposing the bill. We suggest meeting with your legislators in person to make this request. Be sure to present to them a quick summery of your position statements and its importance as well as bring multiple copies of the position statement so legislators can keep it as a souvenir. Talk to other legislators as well to see if they would be willing to co-sponsor the bill. Try your best to get people from different parties to sponsor or co-sponsor your position statement because it will increase your positions success. For more tips on how to talk to legislators visit the page below.
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Once your position statement has been proposed by a legislator it must go through committees and a series of votes. This process may vary depending on the state you are in so it's important that you are tracking the progress of your bill as well as maintaining contact with your legislator and other legislators who will vote on the bill. Try to talk to as many legislators as possible about your position!