Public Safety and Legal Counsel

Governors legal counsel serve as senior staff, overseeing legal issues with legislation, policy, executive orders, administrative actions, and executive appointments. Additionally, Governors are focused on public safety, crime, delinquency and related social and economic consequences. NGA serves the needs of governors and their policy advisors in a broad range of criminal, sentencing, corrections and justice-related policies.

Latest

A Best Practices Dozen – Publications 2023

As we welcome a new year, it is natural to reflect on the year that has passed. In the realm of information dissemination, this act of reflection takes on particular ...

Briefing on 2023-2024 U.S. Supreme Court Term

The 2023-2024 U.S. Supreme Court term will feature cases on several issues of interest to state and territorial governments, including federal authority and administrative law, redistricting, free speech and social ...

Briefing on ‘Motor Vehicle Crime Trends’

On Tuesday, December 5th, the National Governors Association (NGA) hosted its monthly briefing for the Criminal Justice Policy Advisors (CJPA) network. The briefing discussed the increasing trend in motor vehicle ...

Briefing on Legal Considerations Related to State Cannabis Regulation

On Wednesday, November 1, the National Governors Association hosted its monthly briefing for Governors’ legal counsel, which discussed state cannabis regulation. The landscape of cannabis legalization and regulation remains a ...

Briefing on ‘Using Data and Technology to Improve Criminal Justice Systems’

On Thursday, October 26th, the National Governors Association (NGA) hosted its monthly briefing for the Criminal Justice Policy Advisors (CJPA) network. The briefing explored how states are evaluating AI and ...

Supporting State-Level Deflection and Pre-Arrest Diversion Initiatives

In August 2023, state participants from Illinois, Nevada, North Carolina and Pennsylvania attended the wrap-up meeting for the National Governors Association’s (NGA) Learning Collaborative on Strategies to Support the Development ...

Governors Criminal Justice Policy Advisors Network

The Governors Criminal Justice Policy Advisors (CJPAs) Network provides a forum for governors’ criminal and juvenile justice policy advisors to connect with their peers in other states, promote regional information sharing and collaboration, and learn about best practices and the latest research in the field. NGA convenes CJPAs for an annual institute and offers customized technical assistance to them as requested through research and strategic planning support.

Consortium Of State Public Safety Executives

The Consortium of State Public Safety Executives is a network of cabinet-level secretaries and commissioners from across the country who are responsible for oversight of their state’s public safety enterprise, including state police, fire, corrections, emergency management and/or other related agencies. Through the consortium, members can connect with their peers in other states to share lessons learned, receive briefings from national experts on best practices in the field and receive ongoing technical support from NGA staff.

Meet the team

Ken Hardy, Program Director
Lauren Dedon, Senior Legal Policy Advisor
Erin Daneker, Policy Analyst
Maria Kearl, Policy Analyst
Camille Lodugnon, Policy Coordinator

Resources

States Strengthen Youth Incarceration Alternatives

Today the National Governors Association (NGA) announced that five states and territories—Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Oklahoma and the Virgin Islands—have been selected to participate in a learning lab focused on alternatives to incarceration for justice-involved youth ...

Two More States Join Criminal Justice Reform Project

The National Governors Association (NGA), in partnership with the National Criminal Justice Association Center for Justice Planning, today announced that two additional states—Delaware and Vermont—have been selected to participate in the National Criminal ...

State Court Case Moves Online Sales Tax Reform One Step Closer to Resolution

WASHINGTON— Earlier today, South Dakota’s state circuit court found a law that would have allowed the state to collect sales tax from online retailers unconstitutional. Governors are not surprised by the ...

Veterans Affairs

4.1 Preamble Governors strive to honor the service of the men and women in our nation's armed services. Service members often encounter challenges in the transition to civilian life and ...

Immigration

5.1 Preamble The nation's governors urge Congress and the Administration to enact immigration reform that strengthens the economy and our communities and secures our borders and ports. Governors acknowledge the ...

States Plan Data-Driven Criminal Justice Reform

Today the National Governors Association (NGA) announced that three states—Arizona, Illinois and Oregon—have been selected to participate in the National Criminal Justice Reform Project (NCJRP). In partnership with the National Criminal Justice Association ...