Science and technology advice to state legislatures

This paper examines technical information and decision making in state legislatures. Reporting on field work from eleven state legislatures, we examine: 1) their need for science and technology policy support; 2) internal and external sources of such support available to them; 3) the characteristics of useful support; 4) their use of computer technology; 5) the role of technical information in a political environment; 6) and their level of satisfaction with existing science and technology policy support. We find an increasing need for technical information and analysis and some satisfactory access to a variety of internal and external sources. But a lack of specialized expertise among staff, scarce access to prospective analyses, and unfulfilled expectations for the informational role of state universities limit satisfaction. State legislatures should consider: 1) improving internal staff expertise; 2) increasing computer access, use, and training for staff and legislators; and 3) facilitating access to state universities and inter-sectoral organizations.