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The Council of State Governments-WEST (CSG-WEST) provides a nonpartisan platform for regional cooperation among the legislatures of the West, creating opportunities for legislators and staff to share ideas and experiences as well as institutional linkages with other elected political leaders throughout the region. |
The CSG-WEST legislative membership of 13 western states benefits from its associate memberships with the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia and the Pacific islands of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam, and benefits from its collaborative partnerships with the border states of Mexico.
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| Summary of CSG-WEST Programs |
| CSG-WEST programs and meetings are open to all legislators, staff, private sector and the public upon payment of required registration fees which off-set select direct costs for the meeting. This includes CSG-WEST Committee meetings; however, votes on policy, organizational and issues are limited to western state legislators appointed by their respective chamber's appointing authorities. |
| - As it has for 63 years, the Western Legislative Conference (WLC) brings together legislators from western states to learn from each other and collaborate on issues of regional concern such as water, public lands, energy and transportation. The WLC committees convene at the CSG-WEST annual meeting, which also offers training and professional development opportunities for all legislators.
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- The Western Legislative Academy is an intensive professional development program designed to support newer western state legislators to become more effective leaders and to strengthen legislative institutions.
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- WESTRENDS is a regional leadership board comprised of one legislator from each western state that addresses demographic, economic and cultural trends shaping the West.
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Summary of CSG-WEST Projects |
- The U.S.-Mexico State Alliance Partnership is a collaborative, multi-branch program aimed at strengthening cooperation among state officials and institutions of both countries. The Partnership promotes and convenes binational exchanges among border legislators, attorneys general, treasurers, Lt. Governors and other officials to enhance the role of state officials to address shared public policy concerns that transcend international borders.
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- Pursuing cooperative solutions to issues that arise along the 2000-mile U.S.-Mexican border is the focus of the Border Legislative Conference, which is comprised of state legislators from California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and the six Mexican border states of Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Nuevo Leon, Coahuila and Tamaulipas.
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- CSG-WEST acts as a convener for the Legislative Council on River Governance, a cooperative association of legislators from Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana focused on water, environment and energy issues along the Columbia River Basin.
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- CSG-WEST joined the Wyoming Legislature as a co-sponsor of the Western States Energy and Environment Symposium that brought together legislative leaders and energy committee chairs from all 13 western states to discuss the West’s energy future. One of the out-boxes for the final report will be the CSG-WEST Energy and Environment Committee.
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- The Modernization and Strengthening of the Capacity of the Western Electrical Grid is a project in cooperation with the Western Governors’ Association and the U.S. Department of Energy that will provide substantial financial support for western state legislator involvement in the policy decisions affecting transmission of electrical power that impacts eleven western states as well as British Columbia and Alberta in Canada and northern Baja California in Mexico.
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Background In 1947, the Western Regional Conference of The Council of State Governments (CSG) was organized and convened its first meeting in San Francisco. The name has changed from the Western Regional Conference to the Western Legislative Conference to CSG-WEST, which focuses exclusively on western state legislatures and the legislative process. CSG-WEST office was first located in San Francisco, California, and moved its office to the state capital of Sacramento in 2001. |
| The Council of State Governments-WEST (CSG-WEST) is the Western Regional Office of The Council of State Governments (CSG), a national nonpartisan organization serving multiple branches of state government officials and staff. |
About CSG 
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