Amy Meli is a postdoctoral research associate at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy at the University of Virginia, working with the Center for Effective Lawmaking. Her research centers around interest groups and the way they influence the political system.

The Center for Effective Lawmaking has compiled a massive database to measure the effectiveness of nearly every state legislator in the U.S.  Based on the center's trusted methodology developed a decade ago to rank the effectiveness of members of Congress, the project is the first to collect this kind of data at the state level in a comprehensive fashion.

The UVA Batten School is excited to co-host the national State Politics and Policy Conference this weekend, bringing together some 140 political science researchers from across the country to share their recent findings on a wide range of topics. Immediately following, Batten hosts the annual conference of the Center for Effective Lawmaking, a joint project with Vanderbilt University.

This week’s Batten Hour featured Bill Howell, former Speaker of the House of Delegates, and David Toscano, former House Minority Leader, in a discussion about how the legislature is addressing past, present and future policy challenges. Their discussion was moderated by Craig Volden, professor of public policy and politics and co-director of the Center for Effective Lawmaking.

George Hadijski is the Senior Program Associate at the Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL), a joint partnership between the Batten School and Vanderbilt University. He is responsible for increasing the use of CEL’s research by lawmakers, their staffs, and their influencers. 

The co-directors of the Center for Effective Lawmaking -- Craig Volden of the Batten School and Tom Wiseman of Vanderbilt University -- held a briefing in DC recently with staff members of the congressional Problem Solvers Caucus to share their insights into what it takes to become an effective lawmaker. 

In an op-ed published in The Messenger, Craig Volden and Alan E. Wiseman of the Center for Effective Lawmaking write that without proper career training for congressional staffers, expertise gaps on Capitol Hill will continue to be problematic. 

Cosponsored by the Center for Effective Lawmaking

Laurel Harbridge-Yong’s teaching and research focuses on partisan conflict and the lack of bipartisan agreement in American politics. Her research examines why Congressional parties prioritize partisan conflict, focusing on both institutional changes and public preferences for bipartisanship.

Are effective state lawmakers more likely than ineffective state lawmakers to be elected to Congress? Our findings offer important insights into how American federalism contributes to representation by effective lawmakers.

Despite perceptions that Congress is dominated by partisan interests, a new study from the Center for Effective Lawmaking -- co-directed by Batten professor Craig Volden -- finds that legislators who draw in cosponsors from both sides of the aisle are more effective.