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A national network of state-based science and technology policy fellows can strengthen the exchange of information between scientists and policymakers.
State legislators have a tough job. Over 7,500 elected officials in statehouses across the United States and its territories make thousands of decisions every year related to scientific and technological issues, on subjects including artificial intelligence, public health, transportation and energy systems, wildfire risk and prevention, and many more. Few state legislators-only about 4%-have received training as scientists, health care professionals, or engineers. But they are nevertheless routinely called upon to make policy decisions affecting their constituents that hinge on their ability to interpret arcane technical facts and scientific knowledge.
Years ago, physicist Harvey Brooks articulated the dual aspects of science and policy as "policy about science" and "science in policy" Both matter for the United States at both the federal and state levels -but states operate under vastly different conditions. Turnover within state legislatures is high; typically more than one-fifth of state legislators are new after even-year elections. Offices can be slim-staffed, and some states' legislative sessions last only a matter of weeks.
In his interactions with voters, Speaker of the West Virginia House of Delegates Roger Hanshaw observed a common assumption that the state legislature was staffed with experts in a manner similar to Congress. He noted, "When I explain that we dont have scientific and technical experts on radioactive material, on virology, on vaccine efficacy, on every possible range of topic, there is often surprise because our federal counterparts do have access to that level of information." In fact, West Virginia's legislature employs fewer than 350 permanent and legislative session staff to serve 100 delegates and 34 senators.
To bridge the gap, West Virginia, along with six other states, has adopted an approach to meeting legislators' needs for expert scientific and technical information: connecting elected officials with science and technology policy fellows. The fellows are highly credentialed scientists, doctors, and engineers with training on communicating scientific information to policymakers....