Do Legislators Have Enough Information to Do Their Jobs?

Legislators require knowledge to pass laws; however, it is not always easy for legislators to become fully informed about bills on the docket. The complexity of modern government, the size of the legislative agenda, and the demands of running for re-election make it impossible for legislators to become experts on each issue on which the government makes policy. State legislatures also vary in their capacity, as the 50 legislatures throughout the U.S.have different salary levels and benefits, time demands of service, and staff resources. This variation has an impact on the ability of state legislatures to amass the knowledge they need to successfully pass laws. How do legislatures overcome this information deficit? Less knowledge about proposed laws leads to uncertainty, which leads to makeshift decisions, sunset provisions or regulations stating that laws will cease to exist unless renewed by the legislature. 

Dr. Elizabeth Dorssom, a political science professor at Lincoln University whose expertise is legislatures, will discuss how well informed legislators are and how this affects the quality and type of laws they pass. She will discuss the impact of lower legislative resources on the rise of use of temporary laws.