Writing a bill, or writing proposed legislation can seem like an intimidating task. But is it? With this foundational episode of Freelance Legislator we hope to arm you with the tools, to light the path forward for you, to take an educated and active part of the legislative process. You might be surprised at how little you need to know in order to get started with this process.

This episode is part two in our foundational episodes. If you haven’t listened to our previous episode on How to read a (bill) law, please take a moment to go listen to that first. This episode features former legislator and lawyer, Ken Ivory. We address some of the mechanics of how a bill is composed and by whom (big secret, you don’t have to be a lawyer or be good at writing to be an effective leader with legislation). We also address questions we should ask when considering proposed legislation that will help us to write more effective legislation.

What level of government should this law be written for? (city, county or parish, state, or federal)

What is the section of code that this would impact?

Is there another law in somewhere else in the country that we can use as a template?

...And many more questions that are all worth asking when trying to write proposed legislation.

Sit back, take some notes, and enjoy this episode of Freelance Legislator.