NCSL Podcasts
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NCSL Podcasts
Learn about the people, policies and politics of America's state legislatures with NCSL's three podcasts: "Our American States," "Across the Aisle" and the special limited series "Building Democracy."
Episoade Recente
236 episoade
Getting Back to College | OAS Episode 248
There are more than 38 million people in the U.S. under 65 who have completed some college courses but did not receive a degree or certificate. Dozens...
The Long View of Legislative Reform | OAS Episode 247
On this episode, we’re joined by Pev Squire, a political science professor at the University of Missouri and an expert on state legislatures.
H...
The Potential of Geothermal Power | OAS Episode 246
On this episode, we dive into geothermal energy, a process that involves tapping into underground reservoirs of heat and steam and using that heat eit...
Advice and Some Memories From Staff Veterans | OAS Episode 245
On this episode, two legislative staffers offer some advice to people new to working at the legislature.
Kate Wolf, a legislative aide in the N...
Understanding Kids, Smartphones and Social Media | OAS Episode 244
On this episode we sat down with Zach Rausch, the chief researcher at the Tech and Society Lab at NYU, and the lead researcher for “The Anxious Genera...
NCSL Legislative Summit: Day 3 | Aug. 6, 2025
This is our third podcast from NCSL’s Legislative Summit in Boston where the organization is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Joining today's s...
NCSL Legislative Summit: Day 2 | Aug. 5, 2025
We're coming to you again today from NCSL’s Legislative Summit in Boston where the organization is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Today's gue...
NCSL Legislative Summit: Day 1 | Aug. 4, 2025
For today's episode, we're podcasting from NCSL’s Legislative Summit in Boston where the organization is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
We're...
NCSL at 50: The Legacy of Legislators | OAS Episode 240
This episode is the fourth and final show in a series celebrating and exploring the 50th anniversary of NCSL.
On this episode, the focus is on...
Worker Benefits in the New Economy | OAS Episode 239
Nearly 60 million people in the U.S. fall into the broad category of independent workers. Those include contract, temporary and gig workers. Their job...
Helping Wildlife Cross the Road | OAS Episode 238
Our focus on this episode is wildlife crossings, underpasses or bridges built just for animals. Millions of animals are killed by vehicles annually on...
Security Challenges of Utilities in Rural America | OAS Episode 237
Electrical co-ops and public power utilities provide service to about a 100 million Americans, including many rural parts of the nation and counties w...
A New Approach to Competency to Stand Trial | OAS Episode 236
A core tenet of the U.S. legal system is that an accused person must be competent to stand trial, which means a defendant can understand the charges a...
Shortages in the Behavioral Health Workforce | OAS Episode 235
Our focus on this episode is the behavioral health workforce. More than a third of the U.S. population lives in areas with shortages of psychologists,...
The Growing Role of Biosimilars | OAS Episode 234
Biosimilars, a group of drugs that are similar to biologic drugs, which are medications produced using living organisms and are often used to treat co...
The Power of Saying No | OAS Episode 233
Defiance is often thought as a negative trait, but as our guest on this podcast explains, it can actually be a positive force both in the workplace an...
Oral Health Care and Medicaid | OAS Episode 232
Oral health care for children is required in every state under Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Plan. But dental coverage for adults is opt...
NCSL at 50: The Legislative Staff Story | OAS Episode 231
This is one in a series of podcasts celebrating the 50th anniversary of the National Conference of State Legislatures. On this episode we focus on leg...
Helping America Vote | OAS Episode 230
A new book published jointly by NCSL and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission is aimed at serving as a resource for election administrators, secret...
Medicaid and the States: The Post-COVID Era | OAS Episode 229
Medicaid is a program jointly funded by the federal and state governments. It provides health care coverage to nearly 80 million people, primarily tho...
Forty Years of the Women’s Legislative Network | OAS Episode 228
The Women’s Legislative Network of NCSL is celebrating its 40th anniversary. Every female state legislator in the 50 states, territories and the Distr...
What Americans Think About Voting | OAS Episode 227
Since 2008, Charles Stewart III, a professor of political science at MIT, has conducted the Survey of the Performance of American Elections, asking vo...
ATA Oregon Split House | ATA 16
Power-sharing in tied legislative chambers is typically no picnic. But about 15 years ago in Oregon when the House faced a historic tie, things went s...
2025 Legislative Session Preview With Tim Storey | OAS Episode 226
At the start of each year, we sit down with NCSL CEO Tim Storey to discuss the most important issues facing state legislatures in the upcoming session...
Looking at Nuclear Energy’s Future | OAS Episode 225
Nuclear energy plays a significant role in our national energy supply picture and is seen by some as an invaluable piece of a future clean energy syst...
Some Friendly Advice for New Legislators | OAS Episode 224
About 1,000 new lawmakers were elected in November’s election and will be joining their legislatures in the new year. Every legislature is different,...
Wildfire, Utilities and Mitigation Plans | OAS Episode 223
Massive wildfires in the U.S. have caused widespread damage in recent decades. The Smokehouse Creek Fire in Texas this year, the Marshall Fire in Colo...
Tackling Affordability and Outcomes in Higher Education | OAS Episode 222
Recent polls find that many Americans have declining confidence in higher education, in large part because of the levels of student debt, the cost of...
Election 2024: State Legislative Races and Ballot Measures | Oct. 27, 2024
On this episode, we sat down with two election experts from NCSL to discuss the state legislative races and statewide ballot measures in the Nov. 5 el...
NCSL at 50: Evolution of the Legislature | OAS Episode 220
This is one of the series of shows this year and next reflecting on the 50th anniversary of NCSL. For this episode, our focus is the legislative insti...
Legislatures Focused on AI in 2024 | OAS Episode 219
Artificial intelligence, most broadly thought of as the use of computer systems to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence, is being em...
The Debate Over Weight-Loss Drugs | OAS Episode 218
A class of drugs that are used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity are becoming increasingly popular as a weight-loss drug. However, the h...
A Lesson in Civics | OAS Episode 217
Americans of all ages do not score well on surveys of civic knowledge. One recent survey found a large majority of respondents could not pass a basic...
NCSL Turns 50 | OAS Episode 216
This podcast is the first of several to observe the 50th anniversary of NCSL. The organization has been an integral part of the change in state legisl...
Oregon Campaign Finance Reform ATA Episode 15
After a tsunami of campaign spending on the 2022 governor’s race in Oregon – a record-breaking $70 million – a broad coalition and lawmakers worked to...
The Role of Data Centers in Rising Energy Demand | OAS Episode 215
Data centers, the increasing use of AI and reindustrialization in some parts of the country are driving a big increase in energy demand that concerns...
What I Wish I Knew | OAS Episode 214
This is the third of a three-episode series exploring the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic in legislatures and how it affected state legislative sta...
Where Transit and Housing Meet | OAS Episode 213
Housing historically has been a local issue that was handled by cities and counties. The rising crisis of housing cost and availability, however, has...
Making Higher Education Accountable | OAS Episode 212
Enrollment in higher education has been on the decline for a decade, and research indicates a growing skepticism about the value of higher education....
Melissa Furman on the Pandemic and the Workplace | OAS Episode 211
Melissa Furman is a trainer, coach, and consultant to professionals and businesses who's worked with legislative staff. Furman was a college professor...