Nobody Does It Like ALEC: September CEO Update
Perhaps you’ve heard the adage that August is a slow time in D.C. That may be true for some, but certainly not here at ALEC! Even as we come off our record-breaking Annual Meeting, we’re still firing on all cylinders!
“Few on the right have been as influential as the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC.” That’s the conclusion of a recent piece in Stateline entitled Democrats Aim to Emulate Republicans in Building State Power. What an incredible validation of the work we do here at ALEC every day! The piece goes on to say, “The organization has made an indelible mark on state policy by pushing hundreds of pieces of model legislation that have reshaped public education, state labor laws and taxation.”
What a fitting description as we consider the HUGE win our pro-education freedom partners saw in Arizona last month. Teachers’ unions in the Grand Canyon State came together to take away education freedom from over 100,000 families via a misleading ballot measure. Despite submitting approximately 420,000 petition signatures, thousands were ultimately deemed invalid, leaving the measure short of the number needed to qualify for the November ballot.
This follows an educational effort by ALEC, Unleash Prosperity, and our partners in the Education Freedom Alliance called “Defend AZ Education,” which ran ads in Arizona to protect the state’s education freedom program, which ranks second in the nation in our Index of State Education Freedom. A similar effort in Arkansas also failed to gather enough signatures to challenge the state’s education freedom program—a strong sign that Americans want parents making the best education choices for their children.
ALEC is also releasing new landmark publications to aid lawmakers across the country. Just last week, our Veterans and Military Affairs Task Force released the State Defense Forces & Disaster Preparedness: Enhancing State Emergency Capacity report, a first-of-its-kind report detailing how states can supplement their current military structure to aid with homeland security and disaster recovery. Currently, 20 states employ State Defense Forces, including places like Florida, which use them in post-hurricane efforts; Virginia, which utilizes them in cybersecurity measures; and Indiana, which employs their SDF to assist with event security operations. This is ALEC’s fourth brand-new publication and eighth report overall since January — and the year isn’t even over! Plus, this week, we’ll be releasing our 4th annual States That Work 50-state ranking of pro-worker, pro-growth labor reforms. ALEC is the place where the free exchange of ideas thrives, and nowhere is that more evident than in our landmark publications. Be sure to head to ALEC.org and share these reports with your colleagues!
As we enter into September, we also pause to commemorate 25 years since the devastating terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. As we remember the nearly 3,000 lives lost on that terrible day, we should also recall the incredible courage of everyday Americans like Welles Crowther, a 24-year-old known as the “man in the red bandana,” who carried a woman down 17 flights of stairs before returning to help more—sacrificing his own life to save at least 18 others.
In May, President Trump announced that Welles would posthumously receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. And as we stop to remember that tragic day, a generation of Americans is now too young to remember September 11 firsthand — making it our responsibility to ensure they never forget. That’s why ALEC has been working with ACCE Public Sector Chair and Putnam County (NY) Executive Kevin Byrne to craft classroom materials that educate on the events of September 11.
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Common Sense Comeback of the MonthCOMMON SENSE COMEBACK: In honor of America 250, Bank of America recently announced their Critical Infrastructure Finance Initiative, which will deploy $250 billion across three categories: digital infrastructure, energy and power infrastructure, and core infrastructure. This initiative will create thousands of jobs and aid development in communities across the country. At a time when America needs greater investment in the infrastructure that powers our economy, it’s encouraging to see the private sector putting capital to work right here at home. Investments like these mean stronger communities, more American jobs, and infrastructure capable of supporting the next generation of economic growth. Let’s hope more companies follow suit!
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I’m still excited about how incredible our Annual Meeting in Orlando was, and now we’re just three months away from the States and Nations Policy Summit in Washington, D.C.! You can register now to join us from December 9-11 as lawmakers, policy experts, and private-sector leaders come together to discuss the issues shaping the states and what the midterm elections mean for the year ahead. It’s an event you won’t want to miss!
And as we gear up for our meeting in Washington, it bears repeating: ALEC is a 50-state organization. We do not shy away from any state, be it red, blue, or purple. That’s why our staff continues to travel across the country, recruiting members and promoting our model policies. In fact, our team has traveled everywhere from Hawaii to Kentucky, where we held our Energy Policy Academy last week in Lexington focused on data centers, critical infrastructure, and safe, reliable energy policies. So far, we’ve been to 38 states with several more to go!
See you in the states!