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and Introduction
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State
Policy Development Information
Tips
for Facilitating State IDA Legislation
In
policy making, every state is different. The process for passing
legislation in a state usually develops over years. As a policy
advocate, you will need to know how things work, politically and fiscally,
in your state. Listed below are some factors that might affect efforts
to pass IDA legislation.
State-Level
Political Issues
State-Level Funding Issues
How to Gain Political Support
Drafting Legislation
How to Gain State Funding for IDAs
Moving IDA Legislation Forward
State-Level
Political Issues 
- State
governance may be set up in a non-typical fashion (e.g., home rule,
unicameral) or convene every other year, instead of annually.
- The political
party balance in your state may be very even or very uneven.
- The political
agenda, for any given year, may be influenced by the previous session
(time spent on bills that that were "timed" out).
- Regional
conflict (such as urban versus rural issues) may affect the legislation
process in your state.
- Legislators
may develop positive or negative associations with any legislation,
based on previous experiences.
- Key legislators
may be at odds, or be good friends.
- Legislators
often make deals for support of various bills.
- The governor,
or other high-ranking state officials, may greatly affect process in
a positive or negative way.
- Special
interest groups may have developed effective lobbying efforts, which
could work for or against any legislation.
State-Level
Funding Issues
- State
general funds may be scarce for administrative and/or other appropriations.
- Tax revenue
may be low in your state, or your state may be experiencing a budget
shortfall.
- Any new
legislation may be perceived, by key political figures or groups, as
too costly.
Important
Things to Know, or Find Out
About Your State's Legislative Process
How
to Gain Political Support
Are
you a part of an IDA coalition? If so, have any of the coalition
members worked with legislators to sponsor and/or promote previous legislation?
Having legislative "friends" is a great plus. Particularly helpful
are those who have successfully championed social and economic development
legislation, or community renewal legislation, for low-income populations.
What
is the time frame for the annual legislative calendar in your state?
Does your state work through the calendar year, or is there a down time
for pre-session planning and/or special sessions. Are there sporadic
breaks for legislators, during the year? Are legislators on the
chamber floor five days out of the week, or do they get days off for
planning and other legislative work? Knowing your state's legislative
calendar, and the time constraints and work patterns of your legislators,
is key to successful policy work.
Drafting Legislation
Can
you use pre-session months to promote the sponsorship and drafting of
IDA legislation?
Pre-session time can be used to determine likely bill sponsor(s), acquaint
them with IDAs, and forge bill content. It is important that you
serve as an authority on IDA legislation, and provide examples of how
it has been drafted in other states. This, of course, requires
you to become knowledgeable on the subject. You need to know what
well-crafted IDA legislation contains, and how to fit it to the policy
needs of your state. As you come to an agreement with your bill
sponsor(s) on the program design that will most likely achieve the policy
goals you have set, you can benefit from your sponsors' knowledge of
the state process, and take into consideration what type of legislation
he/she thinks is likely to succeed.
Is bill
pre-filing helpful in your state? When is it done?
If the pre-session period culminates in a bill pre-filing period, you
will need to encourage the bill sponsor to file your bill as early as
possible. In many states pre-filing determines how quickly a bill
goes to committee and/or the floor of the legislature.
Who
drafts legislation? Are you in a position to help draft the legislation?
You may have some good ideas about what IDA legislation should include.
However, even if you hand your sponsoring legislator a complete bill,
it will probably be changed. A legislative sponsor may want to
add or subtract something, the committee hearing the bill will likely
make changes, the person drafting the language may change it to the
commonly accepted forms of your state government, and it may be even
be amended on the floor, after it is proposed.
The process
requires that you and the bill sponsor be flexible, while monitoring
whether or not key points are getting lost along the way. It is
best to keep the bill language as simple as possible, while retaining
elements that establish the core program you desire. After the
legislation is passed, and becomes law, it is difficult to make changes
and will require legislative amendments in a future session. All
changes should be monitored and accepted by the majority of the bill
supporters and proponents before going to the floor of the legislature.
Administrative rules, created for most new laws, can be used to more
clearly define the IDA program. A bill may need to be withdrawn
if it changes into something that does not reflect the original intent
of the authors, to be re-proposed in a future session.
Could
the IDA legislation be added to a bill that is similar in nature, and
likely to be passed?
If, by the end of a session, it looks like the IDA bill you support
may not get introduced, or has not gained the necessary support, your
sponsor(s) may be willing to propose amending the IDA bill to legislation
that is likely to pass. The ideal legislation to attach an IDA
bill to would pertain to similar community or economic development issues.
Several states have passed, and funded, IDA legislation using this method,
including Minnesota, Illinois, and Missouri.
How
to Gain State Funding for IDAs
Do you
know what your state budget looks like, and what the state fiscal picture
is?
Get a copy of your state budget. It is not as complicated as you
may think to get a quick picture of what issues and programs money is
being allocated toward. It is important to note budget surpluses
or shortfalls, especially at the time your bills'
fiscal note is proposed.
Have tax credits been used in your
state to fund community development initiatives?
If so, learn how to connect with a current program or gain support for
a new tax credit for IDAs.
Moving
IDA Legislation Forward
Are
you required to register as a lobbyist in your state to disseminate
informational materials? Can you?
Many states require you to register as a lobbyist if you visit legislators,
other than your own legislators, to promote specific legislation.
Providing information about a concept or initiative and supporting a
particular bill are two different things. Registering as a lobbyist
is usually a simple process. However, some non-profit organizations
put restrictions on employee lobbying, or do not allow it at all.
Check this out with your organization before you begin this process.
If your organization allows political lobbying, you might save yourself
some time and stress if you train a qualified intern (or part-time employee)
to lobby with you or your coalition. Another option would be to
share lobbying duties among members of the coalition.
Are
several key legislators (those in traditional leadership positions)
on board with IDAs?
Even with respected and knowledgeable legislative sponsors for your
bill, you will need the support of legislators known for being able
to make or break legislation. Identify these legislators and make
special attempts to convince them that your legislation should become
law. Hand deliver materials and make follow up phone calls; personal
contact is most effective. If possible, schedule visits of thirty
or more minutes in length, but be brief and to the point in your explanations.
Reserve plenty of time for the legislator to ask you questions. If you
don't know the answers, give the legislator assurance that you will
find out and get back to him. This has the added advantage of
keeping the idea fresh in the legislator's mind.
What
legislative committee or group routinely deals with issues similar to
IDAs?
Your state legislature probably moves filed bills into specific committees
(health, community development, social services, economic, business,
or other issue-based committees) for approval and/or amendment before
introducing them on the floor. If this is the case in your state,
you will need to consider the committee that would be the best fit for
your bill, and voice your opinion.
Is the
sponsor of the IDA bill on the selected committee, or does he/she know
someone on the committee?
It is probable that one of the IDA bill sponsors will be a member of
the house or senate committee that hears the IDA bill. Even better
would be for a sponsor to be the head of the committee. You should
discuss the possibilities of seeking these advantages with the legislators
sponsoring the IDA bill.
Do you
have people ready to testify?
You, or someone of your choice, may be asked to provide expert testimony
on the usefulness of IDAs. Expert testimony can greatly effect
the support of legislators. The testimony of current or past IDA
program participants can also be very effective at this juncture.
Do you
have informational packets available for legislators?
Legislators deal with so many bills and so much information in a year's
time that they are particularly appreciative of a short, concise, informational
packet. The packet should include contact information for a person
at a pertinent organization, and several one page fact sheets on IDAs
(including definition, how other states are supporting IDAs, the details
of a local IDA program, and a summary of any available program evaluation
data).
When
are special group or caucus meetings held? May you present at
them?
If the bill sponsor is a member of a particular party caucus, or special
concerns group, he/she can set up a presentation on IDAs at one of the
scheduled meetings. If you can arrange this, take enough materials
along to hand out, and try to arrange for one or more IDA program participants
to go with you, to explain how having an IDA has affected their lives.
This is a very effective way to reach several legislators at one time.
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