Enhancing Scientific and Technical Expertise for the Washington State Legislature

On Wednesday, October 4, 2017, thirty-eight people representing the legislature, scientists and engineers from multiple institutions, and those who work in “bridge” roles between the two gathered at the SeaTac Conference Center to discuss how to ensure that the Washington Legislature has the scientific and technical expertise it needs to effectively address complex issues in a time of rapid scientific and technological advancement. Twenty-three of the participants gave short presentations to establish a common information base about opportunities for science and technology to inform policy. This workshop report contains highlights from presentation on the following topics:

• Legislative needs
• Internal and external resources for the legislature
• Mechanisms for S&T input for government
• Policy issues of big data and emerging technologies
• How to make scientific information useful for decision making

After these and several “getting to know you” sessions, participants worked in small groups to develop proposals for enhancing scientific and technical capacity for the Washington State Legislature. The result was four interdependent proposals which would require collaboration among legislators from both parties, legislative staff, scientists and engineers from multiple institutions, and a range of knowledge brokers: science and technology policy fellows, state policy professionals, translators of complex S&T information for multiple audiences. The final four proposals were:

1. Annual “Science, Technology, and the Legislature” Summit
2. External “Matchmaking” and Research Resource
3. Internal Science & Technology Caucus
4. Scientific and Technical Review of Draft Legislation

This workshop was supported by a one-time planning grant from the California Council of Science and Technology Policy, with funding from the Moore and Simons Foundation. Building upon the momentum created at this workshop will require the commitment of organizations represented at the workshop, backing of additional legislators across parties, and funding for additional staff time and educational and planning events.