Paul A. Smith, Citizen Impact Founder & Executive Director

Many Americans are fed-up, jaded, discouraged, or cynical, after November’s election, because they think “nothing has changed.” Unfortunately, this is a focus on the national scene, and a result of a news media who offers only the news they decide we need/want to hear. Yet now is a crucial time to get informed about state legislation. Too often we are better informed about national issues. However, so much of what affects our daily lives comes from laws and regulations on the state level.

As Georgia General Assembly (and most other states) prepares for the new legislative session, most of us are still in a post-Christmas languor. For many, the credit card bills will start arriving just as we reach a mid-winter funk. Who wants to think about anything complicated or try to understand talking points on a piece of legislation written in lawyer-speak? Most of us would rather just curl up by the fire, or hunker down until the first signs of spring emerge.

It is imperative that we are – as the Citizen Impact motto states – “informed and active citizens.” Let’s be honest – it is much easier to complain than to act. Since we live in the Information Age, access to pending legislation, and the names and contact information of our legislators, is literally at our fingertips. Get informed. Get involved.