Stateline.org's 2006 "State of the States" Report  

Building on the "Monitor the Mid-term Elections " tip from December's Recommends, Stateline.org's annual "State of the States" report can help your organization learn about what's happening on your issue at the state level and advise your communications planning throughout the new year.

Released every January, "State of the States" contains in-depth reports on the most significant developments in the 50 states. New to the report this year is a pull-out reference poster that provides important state dates and political party information. The "Major 2006 State Meeting Dates" lists the annual meetings and conferences of prominent councils and associations across the country, including the Council of State Governments, the National Governors Association and the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The publication features reports on politics, homeland security, aging, health care, taxes and budget, education, energy, and immigration. The "Issues to Watch" section highlights events from 2005 that will likely continue to be highly-contested topics throughout 2006, such as the death penalty, gay rights, stem cell research, abortion, Medicaid, and state pension systems. A final section profiles the recently-elected governors in Virginia and New Jersey.

The 2006 "State of the States" report can help your organization better understand how future public policy changes will have an impact on your issue throughout 2006. The report is also a valuable resource for learning about how the mid-term and gubernatorial elections will shape the policy agenda of the states in which your issue is most prevalent.

In addition to the annual report, Stateline.org offers two options to stay abreast of policy developments at the state level:

Daily News Alert: A run-down of the day's state politics and policy, including links to publications across the country. This alert is delivered weekdays. To view one of these alerts, click here.

Weekly Newsletter: The weekly newsletter features the top news of the week by Stateline.org reporters. This alert is delivered each Thursday. Click here to view one of these alerts.

To order the 2006 "State of the States" publication, click here to fill out the request form.

To view a PDF version of the report, click here. (Note: You will be asked to fill in your contact information, as well as a specific state, prior to seeing the report.)