Five days of leadership training held in August; 2026 BILLD graduates take home new skills, ideas and inspiration

The demands and stressors on state legislators have never been greater than today, due to factors such as intense partisanship, a changing media environment and term limits.

Helping newer lawmakers meet those challenges and thrive as public servants is the goal of the Bowhay Institute for Legislative Leadership Development (BILLD), a signature program of The Council of State Governments’ Midwestern Legislative Conference.

The 2026 BILLD program was held in July in Madison, Wis., with a bipartisan group of legislators from 11 Midwestern states and four Canadian provinces taking part in five days of intensive training. Along the way to becoming BILLD’s 31st graduating class, participants gained practical legislative tools and strategies, as well as inspiration about public service and a valuable new regionwide network of legislative colleagues.

How can lawmakers protect legislative institutions, provide effective oversight, and write laws that withstand judicial scrutiny? How can individuals contribute to a culture of civility, excellence and ethics in their legislatures? What is your leadership style and how can you positively affect others?

This year’s Fellows explored these questions through a series of interactive workshops. Other sessions focused on collaboration, conflict resolution and communication, as well as on policies such as state budgeting, criminal justice and U.S.-Canada relations.

Applications for the 2027 program will be available in early 2027. BILLD is designed for lawmakers in the first four years of legislative service.