Center for Effective Lawmaking

Center for Effective Lawmaking

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Vanderbilt University

Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Arkansas Representative Andrew Collins
Conversations with Lawmakers / State Legislatures

Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Arkansas Representative Andrew Collins

Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Arkansas Representative Andrew Collins Representative Andrew Collins is a native of Little Rock, Arkansas, and has served in the Arkansas State House of Representatives since 2019, where he currently represents District 73, which runs from Pinnacle to Riverside and encompasses much of North and West Little Rock.Representative Collins earned a bachelor’s degree in history and public policy studies from Duke University. After graduating, he began his career with the AmeriCorps VISTA program, before earning his law degree from Columbia University Law School. He later returned to…

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August 18, 2026
The Center for Effective Lawmaking Attends the 2026 NCSL Summit
Blog / Events / State Legislatures

The Center for Effective Lawmaking Attends the 2026 NCSL Summit

The Center for Effective Lawmaking Attends the 2026 NCSL Summit Chicago, IL – Last week, thousands of state lawmakers, legislative staff, researchers, and advocates were in Chicago for the 2026 National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Summit, and the Center for Effective Lawmaking was excited to attend for the first time. The Summit provided the opportunity to connect directly with lawmakers and their staff who can apply our research to improve legislative effectiveness in their chamber. We shared information about the CEL’s mission and research and handed out our newly-published…

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August 13, 2026
Colleagues and Neighbors? Geographic Patterns of Collaboration and Legislative Effectiveness
Center Affiliates / Faculty Affiliates / Legislative Anaylsis / Legislative Research / State Legislatures

Colleagues and Neighbors? Geographic Patterns of Collaboration and Legislative Effectiveness

Colleagues and Neighbors? Geographic Patterns of Collaboration and Legislative Effectiveness Tuesday, August 11, 2026Geography plays a role in shaping American legislatures, but while there is often a focus on the importance of constituency representation, its role as a source of division does not always receive as much attention. Legislative politics scholarship increasingly recognizes the importance of social relationships and networks in shaping outcomes, and within this literature, one important observation is that collaboration across difference can be especially impactful. In state legislatures, within-state regional divisions are often common knowledge but…

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August 11, 2026
Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Alabama Senator Arthur Orr
Conversations with Lawmakers / State Legislatures

Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Alabama Senator Arthur Orr

Discussing Effective Lawmaking With Alabama Senator Arthur Orr Senator Arthur Orr is a sixth-generation Alabamian, who grew up in Danville, Alabama, where he worked on the Alabama Sheriff’s Boys Ranch. He attended Wake Forest University, and as a student he served as chairman of the university Honor Council, received several academic honors, and held numerous leadership positions throughout the university. This pattern of leadership continued when he attended law school at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, where he earned leadership and academic honors while teaching freshman English and volunteering…

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August 3, 2026
The Center for Effective Lawmaking Is Proud to Present Our New Guidebook for New State Legislators
Legislative Research / State Legislatures

The Center for Effective Lawmaking Is Proud to Present Our New Guidebook for New State Legislators

The Center for Effective Lawmaking Is Proud to Present Our New Guidebook for New State Legislators NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is pleased to announce the release of our new guidebook, Being An Effective Lawmaker From Day One, a resource designed to help newly elected state legislators become more effective lawmakers from the start of their legislative careers.Drawing on several years of research, the guide provides practical, research-based strategies for navigating the legislative process and building a foundation for effective lawmaking before legislators begin serving in…

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July 23, 2026
Announcing the Release of the 2024-2025 Virginia General Assembly’s and the 221st New Jersey Legislature’s (2024-2025) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)
State Highlights / State Legislative Effectiveness Scores / State Legislatures

Announcing the Release of the 2024-2025 Virginia General Assembly’s and the 221st New Jersey Legislature’s (2024-2025) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)

Announcing the Release of the 2024-2025 Virginia General Assembly’s and the 221st New Jersey Legislature’s (2024-2025) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is proud to announce the release of our State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) for the 2024-2025 Virginia General Assembly and the 221st New Jersey Legislature legislative sessions. This initiative is part of our broader effort to measure the lawmaking effectiveness of individual legislators in all 99 state legislative chambers in the United States. These scores capture lawmaking effectiveness by tracking the number of…

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June 25, 2026
Announcing the Release of the 67th Wyoming Legislature’s (2023-2024) and the 33rd Alaska Legislature’s (2023-2024) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)
State Highlights / State Legislative Effectiveness Scores / State Legislatures

Announcing the Release of the 67th Wyoming Legislature’s (2023-2024) and the 33rd Alaska Legislature’s (2023-2024) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)

Announcing the Release of the 67th Wyoming Legislature’s (2023-2024) and the 33rd Alaska Legislature’s (2023-2024) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is proud to announce the release of our State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) for the 67th Wyoming Legislature and the 33rd Alaska Legislature legislative sessions. This initiative is part of our broader effort to measure the lawmaking effectiveness of individual legislators in all 99 state legislative chambers in the United States. These scores capture lawmaking effectiveness by tracking the number of bills that legislators…

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June 18, 2026
Announcing the Release of the 82nd Oregon Legislative Assembly’s (2023-2024) and the 2023-2024 Washington Legislature’s State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)
State Highlights / State Legislative Effectiveness Scores / State Legislatures

Announcing the Release of the 82nd Oregon Legislative Assembly’s (2023-2024) and the 2023-2024 Washington Legislature’s State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)

Announcing the Release of the 82nd Oregon Legislative Assembly’s (2023-2024) and the 2023-2024 Washington Legislature’s State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is proud to announce the release of our State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) for the 82nd Oregon Legislative Assembly and the 2023-2024 Washington Legislature legislative sessions. This initiative is part of our broader effort to measure the lawmaking effectiveness of individual legislators in all 99 state legislative chambers in the United States. These scores capture lawmaking effectiveness by tracking the number of bills that…

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June 11, 2026
Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Michigan Senator Sarah Anthony
Conversations with Lawmakers / State Legislatures

Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Michigan Senator Sarah Anthony

Discussing Effective Lawmaking with Michigan Senator Sarah Anthony Senator Sarah Anthony has been representing District 21 in the Michigan Senate since 2023. Previously, she served in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2018 to 2022. Senator Anthony was the first African American woman elected to both the Michigan House of Representatives and Senate in the Lansing area. In 2023, she became the first African American woman to chair the Senate Appropriations Committee in the Michigan Senate. She also served as the first Vice-Chairperson of the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus and…

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June 8, 2026
Announcing the Release of the 88th Texas Legislature (2023-2024) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)
State Highlights / State Legislative Effectiveness Scores / State Legislatures / Uncategorized

Announcing the Release of the 88th Texas Legislature (2023-2024) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES)

Announcing the Release of the 88th Texas Legislature (2023-2024) State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is proud to announce the release of our State Legislative Effectiveness Scores (SLES) for the 88th Texas Legislature (2023-2024) legislative sessions. This initiative is part of our broader effort to measure the lawmaking effectiveness of individual legislators in all 99 state legislative chambers in the United States. These scores capture lawmaking effectiveness by tracking the number of bills that legislators sponsor, how far those bills advance through the legislative process,…

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June 4, 2026

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