TRENDS IN STATE Legislation

Among the bills lawmakers passed in 2022, some notable trends emerged across the states. According to FiscalNote, the biggest policy issues that state legislatures dealt with last year fall into the areas of health, labor and employment, and education. These broad trends in legislative focus coincide with a few policy choices made in several states. Looking at specific policies, The Council of State Government conducted a scan of state legislation that revealed multiple states enacted bills in 2022 on daylight savings policy, consumer privacy, reproductive health care, paid family leave and gender-affirming health care. This does not include all trends in state legislation but does highlight areas of common interest in multiple states.

Please note: CSG is a nonpartisan organization and takes no position on state legislation or laws mentioned. CSG provides unbiased research that is based on evidence-informed and objective analysis.

FOUR STATES have passed laws regarding the protection of personal data: Colorado, Connecticut, Utah and Virginia.

These laws establish processes for how businesses can use and collect personal data.

Georgia lawmakers focused on education , which was a topic in 62% of bills introduced in 2022.

but

NEW JERSEY introduced the most bills in 2022 sessions, NEW YORK enacted the highest number.

While the future of the federal Sunshine Act is unknown, 15 states* have passed legislation to start operating permanently on daylight saving time in November.

At the beginning of 2022, nine states and one territory* offered a type of paid family leave. In 2023, four additional states (Colorado, Maryland, New Hampshire and Oregon) will implement a paid family leave policy.