Interstate compacts are the only form of multi-state cooperation specifically referenced in the Constitution.  This brief outlines the history of interstate compacts and specifically addresses how modern compacts are being used to address cross border policy challenges.
 

CSG’s recent National Leadership Conference in La Quinta, Calif., not only supplied the backdrop for an excellent meeting, but also provided the venue at which significant progress was made on proposed changes to CSG’s national governance structure and processes.  “I’m pleased with the progress our working group and drafting team have made. These proposed changes provide CSG leaders the necessary tools to govern this diverse organization and advance CSG’s nonpartisan, multibranch and multistate mission,” said Kansas Senate Majority Leader Jay Emler, CSG’s 2012 national chair.

In recent years, state policymakers have been bombarded with warnings about the sustainability of their public pension systems. A Pew Center on the States 2010 report warned that there was a $1 trillion gap between what states had set aside for pensions and the real price tag for those benefits. But after years of bad news, things are starting to look up.  2010 was the first year that public pension systems have shown positive earnings since 2007, just before financial markets – and public pension assets – took a dive. Those retirement systems saw a $722.2 billion loss in 2009 and a $178.8 billion loss in 2008.