Greetings,

If you're getting this email, then you've probably heard about the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and its destructive impact on our country. Simply stated, ALEC's aim is to increase business domination of American public life and decrease democratic capacity and experimentation. And ALEC does this through backroom deal-making that connects state policymakers with corporate lobbyists who hold regressive model legislation in one hand and campaign donations in the other. While ALEC's influence over statehouses has gone unchecked for almost 40 years, sunlight is starting to shine on its operations and corporate connections. And, increasingly, progressives have begun to realize the importance of a coordinated response.

We’re writing to you today to let you know about a new part of that response: ALICE, the American Legislative and Issue Campaign Exchange, your public library of progressive state and local law. Here, in one place, sorted by major conventional categories of state and local policy, you’ll find hundreds of examples of “exemplary” laws, meaning good law that’s been introduced or enacted somewhere, worthy of replication. You’ll find a smaller number of “model” laws, meaning suggested general language for a law, ready to be tailored to a particular jurisdiction. And you’ll find different kinds of “support” for both, meaning background research, talking points, and other aids in their effective communication.

ALICE is not a corporate funded juggernaut, nor does it aspire to be one. Instead, ALICE is an open, public, transparent resource that relies on the knowledge and goodwill of a network of professors, students, activists, researchers and others. ALICE is just getting started, and it is only one part of the overall response to ALEC, but we hope that you'll join us in the important work of building a one-stop clearinghouse for progressive best practices. Take the first step by going to: www.alicelaw.org.

Let us know what you think, and please feel free to share this notice with colleagues, friends, family and other potential supporters. And remember to sign-up on the website to get future emails or to get involved. Thanks for taking the time to check us out!

Best,



Joel Rogers