Capitol Comments

Fed Bank Presidents, Southern Governors Discuss Regional and Global Economy

Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour hosted the presidents of the
Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta, Dallas and St. Louis, respectively Saturday, Aug. 25 to discuss regional economic
growth and workforce pressures in a globalized economy.The session was part of the 73rd annual convening of the Southern Governors' Association meeting in Biloxi, Mississippi

Dennis P. Lockhart, president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta,
was the lead presenter at the meeting’s opening plenary session entitled “Regional Economic
Trends.” In his remarks, Lockhart discussed the importance of education and retraining to make
workers resilient to competitive pressures in a global economy, and described the Sixth Federal
Reserve District as an economic microcosm of the nation, overall, noting that the emergence of
automotive manufacturing and the service industry helped to compensate for weaknesses in
manufacturing job losses in recent decades.

CSG Unveils New Video and Trends Report

Two new CSG products were unveiled Monday – an updated CSG informational and promotional video as well as the organization’s newest publication, Trends in America: Ten Forces of Change States Can’t Ignore.  Each of the more than 300 attendees received a copy of the new report.

Daniel M. Sprague, CSG executive director, openend the breakfast session by introducing \ the video, which provided an overview of CSG’s national and regional activities and featured commentary from CSG state leaders.  Sprague then introduced Jennifer Burnett and Meggan Taylor Trevey, two members of the research team, to explain more about the new Trends in America. 

Burnett and Taylor-Trevey provided some background on the research and process that led to the publication of the new report.  They then made a PowerPoint presentation that highlighted the dominant issues within each of the ten trends featured in Trends in America.

They've Got Next

Research indicates that Generation Next -- those young people born between 1981 and 1988 -- are less civically engaged than any other generation when they were the same age.

What can policymakers do to prompt higher participation? Find out in this May 2007 State News article.

Among the suggestions from experts in the area:

• Engage with youth, not for youth. Avoid the stereotypes in dealing with young people.
• Make issues pertinent to young people.
• Get the party involved. Political parties should strive for greater impact on young people.

What Do You Think?

Staff from The Council of State Governments have researched 10 issues facing state governments and prepared a new report, Trends in America, to be released at the spring meeting in June.

State News magazine will feature the trends in the June issue. We need your input. Why are these issues important to state government? Click on the Trend to make your comments.

• America The Safe and Secure?
• Balance of Power
• Chasing the American Dream
• Critical Infrastructure: Cracks in the Foundation
• Demographic Change
• Economic Transformation
• Educating for Outcomes
• Environmental Gluttony
• Health Care: Paying More, Getting Less
• Tech Revolution

Trends In America: Ten Forces of Change States Can't Ignore

In 2005, CSG published two Trends in America Reports.  The first report highlighted the 10 major forces shaping our society, our political climate and our world, along with implications for state government.  The second report provided examples of state responses to these trends.

Building on those reports, CSG's research group has taken a fresh look at the trends that will be of strategic importance to states in future years.  Our new report will be unveiled in June 2007.  We would like to know what you think about these trends and the ways in which they may affect your state.

What follows is a brief description of each of the 10 trends, in no particular order. Feel free to comment on all or just a few.  Your feedback will help shape our future research and guide us in identifying new and emerging issues within each of the areas.

States in Transition

State governments are facing increasingly complex challenges challenges resulting from changing demographics and rising citizen expectations.

To assist leaders in better understanding the issues facing them, Deloitte Research has spent a year examining today's most significant governance challenges. The results are published in a new book: "States of Transition: Tackling States' Toughest Policy and Management Challenges."

The book, edited by William Eggers and Robert Campbell, has received rave reviews from state officials, and is endorsed by Dr. Keon Chi, the editor-in-chief of CSG's Book of the States and coordinator of CSG's state governance transformation initiative.