Copycat Legislation

September 22, 2022

Since I started working on the Racial Justice State Legislative Tracker I see copycat legislation popping up. This type of legislation comes up in two scenarios: In response to recent events or as an organized campaign.

In both scenarios, the text of the bills usually comes from an organization lobbying on behalf of the issue. This prefab legislation makes it easier for legislators to push these bills forward since most state legislatures are part-time and don’t have the staff to put legislation together. 

With these bills coming from one central place it allows them to create a coded language that when first reading can seem benign, but when you truly understand politics can see the bills' true purpose. For example, the push for “Anti Critical Race Theory Bills” state with text that says “one race is not inherently superior to another” and “racial stereotypes shall not be taught” it is not until you read further along to page 20 or 50 that you really begin to understand what the legislation is really trying to accomplish.

These bills come quickly and can be introduced in up to 10 states at a time. The only way to ensure that you are prepared to fight against this legislation is to have a team dedicated to keeping on top of state legislation.