Capitol Comments

Whatley Named CSG Washington Office Director

The Council of State Governments has a new leader in its Washington, D.C., office. Chris Whatley, who has served CSG as director of international affairs for eight years, has been named Washington Office director effective Aug. 18.

In announcing the appointment, CSG Executive Director Dan Sprague said Whatley is well-qualified to lead the office. “Chris has a good understanding of the wide range of Washington, D.C., office responsibilities and is well-prepared for this position,” Sprague said.

Whatley joined CSG in November 2000 and has directed international initiatives and federal advocacy campaigns while also serving as staff director for CSG’s affiliated association of international trade directors, The State International Development Organizations, or SIDO.

“Chris has significant experience working with federal constitutional principles and with experts in African nations,” Sprague said. “He has staffed a start-up affiliate organization of state trade directors and assisted in establishing SIDO as an effective influence on federal trade policy.”

Read the full press release about Whatley's appointment.

Governors Pay Tribute to Alan Sokolow

Alan Sokolow’s 41 years of distinguished service to The Council of State Governments Eastern Regional Conference was recognized Monday by the 12 governors in the CSG/ERC. Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell read a proclamation signed by the chief executives in the ERC states, provinces, territories and Puerto Rico. At the podium with Sokolow were (right to left) Rell, Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas and Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner. The three governors have all served as national presidents of CSG. They also share the experience of being introduced to CSG while serving as legislators, where they first met Sokolow. The retiring director thanked the governors in a heartfelt speech that drew tears and a standing ovation.

The Urban Agenda

The time is right for the federal government to pay greater attention to states, metro areas and cities, Philadelphia Mayor Michael K. Nutter said yesterday.

In his keynote speech—called Urban Agenda—for The Council of State Governments Eastern Regional Conference annual meeting, Nutter called for the federal government to support creative programs to help urban areas.

“There’s no doubt that the winds of change have been beating down on Washington D.C., and there’s no doubt that change is coming very soon,” Nutter said.

Nutter described Philadelphia’s successful push to reduce crime and high school dropout rates and increase its population. He said about 25 percent of Philadelphia residents live below the poverty line.

Governors’ Roundtable Assembles

The federal government has done too little to support state governments, and states have to work together to be economically successful.

That was the sentiment among five Northeastern governors, who said at a roundtable meeting Monday that states need to find creative ways to improve roads, create jobs, lower heating costs and develop alternative energy sources.

The roundtable, called Governing in Tough Fiscal Times, featured Gov. Jon Corzine of New Jersey, Gov. M. Jodi Rell of Connecticut, Gov. Ruth Ann Minner of Delaware, Gov. Jim Douglas of Vermont and Gov. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania. It was held during the annual meeting of The Council of State Governments Eastern Regional Conference.

Godfrey Nominated CSG Vice Chair

Connecticut deputy House Speaker Bob Godfrey, right, was nominated Sunday as a CSG vice chair candidate by the Eastern Regional Conference executive committee. Godfrey is expected to be appointed vice chair at the CSG annual meeting in Omaha Dec. 4-7. If selected, Godfrey will serve as national CSG chair in 2011. Here he is being congratulated by North Dakota Rep. Kim Koppelman, the 2008 CSG national chair.

Changes at the ERC

Alan Sokolow, who is retiring after 41 years with The Council of State Governments’ Eastern Regional Conference, spoke with State News Managing Editor Mary Branham Dusenberry for an article in the August 2008 issue. Due to space limitations, the interview was abbreviated in the magazinw. Here’s what Alan had to say on other topics:

About the growth of ERC member jurisdictions

“When I started in 1967 we were basically 10 states plus the U.S. Virgin Islands. In 1990 we were the first office that attracted a Canadian legislative assembly to join, in this case as an international associate, and that was Quebec. In 1992, there was a point at which Puerto Rico, which had been a member of the Southern Legislative Conference, was probably going to drop out of the CSG world and they were paying partial dues as a commonwealth rather than a state. We made some visits to the then speaker of the House of Puerto Rico and he felt that he wanted to give it one more shot to be seriously involved in CSG, both nationally and regionally through the Eastern office.

“I think you saw the connection where there was this large Puerto Rican population in many of the Eastern states, particularly New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and New Jersey, plus a lot of federal services to Puerto Rico came out of New York City federal regions, so we added Puerto Rico.

“And then in the late ’90s and 2000s we actually added five eastern Canadian provinces …”

Lawmakers Chosen for Leadership Institute

A select group of 37 Midwestern lawmakers will gather in Madison, Wis., in August for five days of intense leadership and professional development training.

The lawmakers are members of the 14th class of the Bowhay Institute for Legislative Leadership Development, conducted by The Council of State Governments Midwestern Office.

BILLD is one of five leadership programs offered through CSG—the Toll Fellows program in the national office and one in each of the four CSG regions.

States Strapped to Provide Low-Income Heating Assistance

Northeastern states are facing a difficult choice this winter: Increase the heating assistance benefit to adjust for higher energy prices and thereby reduce the number of households served or provide a smaller heating assistance benefit to a large number of homes. The key concern for the Eastern region is the rapid rise in heating oil prices.   

The Northeastern situation is unique. The Energy Information Administration has projected that prices in the Northeast for home heating oil could go as high as $1,879 this winter, about 25 percent higher than last year’s level.  In comparison, the price of natural gas, the other major heating fuel in the Northeast, is only expected to increase 9.1 percent. This is of particular concern to the Northeast, since the region uses 75 percent of the heating oil used in the nation.

MLC Innovations Award Recipients Named

Recipients from the Midwest were presented with the 2007 Innovations awards Tuesday evening during the Midwestern Legislative Conference’s Annual Meeting in Traverse City, Mich.
North Dakota’s Parental Responsibility Initiative for the Development of Employment (PRIDE) and Indiana’s BioTown USA were commended as exemplary state programs.

Fox "All-Stars" join MLC

Millions watch Fred Barnes and Juan Williams spar regularly on Fox News.

On Tuesday afternoon, attendees of the MLC Annual Meeting in Traverse City, Mich., saw the two political analysts up close and in person.

The Fox News’ “All-Stars” shared their insights and views on what is happening in Washington, D.C., including their take on war in Iraq, the fall session in Congress and the U.S. presidential election.

Not surprisingly, the conversation began with Iraq policy, an issue that Williams said not only consumes talk in the nation’s capital, but also is polarizing the political atmosphere.