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Goals may also be submitted via the NCACC website at www.ncacc.org /legislativegoals. This streamlines the internal processing of proposals. Stage 2 - Steering Committee Review (September - October) The Steering Committee Review is the first step in our legislative goals development process. The Association has seven Steering Committees, organized by subject matter. These are permanent, standing committees. Membership on the Steering Committees is open to any county official - elected, appointed or administrative; chairs are appointed by the Association President following each annual conference. The Steering Committees are: • Agriculture • Environment • General Government • Health and Human Services • Justice and Public Safety • Public Education • Taxation and Finance Proposed goals are sorted according to subject matter by NCACC staff and referred to the appropriate Steering Committees for review. A goal may be assigned to a "lead" steering committee that will take action on the goal, but the same goal may also be assigned to a secondary steering committee for the purpose of receiving "comments only." The intent of this process is to allow for the issues raised in a proposed goal that may bridge two or more subject matter areas, to receive greater review and opportunity for committee input. The comments will be sent to the Legislative Goals Committee for their review. Steering Committees may hear from county officials who submit goal proposals and also may review staff research and analysis. The participation of county staff on Steering Committees provides professional expertise that can be critically important when Steering Committees deliberate. Though staff expertise is critical, particularly at this early stage, as the goals- setting process moves forward elected county commissioners will ultimately decide the legislative goals package. During the goal- setting process the Steering Committee members are asked to make specific recommendations and take action on each submitted goal. Committee actions include: • Favorable - A goal is approved to send to the Legislative Goals Com- mittee for further discussion and consideration. • Amend - The committee may revise or amend a proposal. • Unfavorable - The committee declines to send the goal forward. • Forward Without Prejudice - The Committee has no opinion on the proposal, but wants the Legislative Goals Committee to consider it. • Needs Further Study - The Committee has insufficient information to make an informed decision and requests that the sponsors either do further research or bring back answers to particular questions at a later date. In addition to considering proposed goals submitted by counties and part- ner organizations, the Steering Committees review goals from the previous legislative session to determine whether they are still relevant and should be continued. The committees are also empowered to develop their own suggested goals when needed. Each committee submits its proposed goals to the Legislative Goals Committee. To focus the Association's leg- islative priorities and efforts, the Legislative Goals Committee will select no more than 21 goals (three per Steering Committee subject area) for the organization's legislative agenda. While the goals set the organization's legislative direction, the guiding principles and their review help to guide NCACC staff as they advocate in the best interest of counties. Guiding Principles Review The Steering Committees also review the Association's subject area guid- ing principles. The guiding principles are general declarations of ongoing positions that give guidance on broad policy objectives, such as "no man- dates without funding." These statements also guide the staff in dealing with unanticipated issues that arise in the legislative context or that affect the counties in other ways, as with proposed administrative rules and reg- ulations or state agency policies. Because the Steering Committees are ongoing and have broad member participation, they are a critical first step in the Legislative Goals develop- ment process. The committees meet quarterly and are available to review legislation during the legislative session; they are used to guide unantici- pated legislative action and to recommend any actions that might be ad- visable to the NCACC Board of Directors for formal consideration and action. This issue is described in greater detail in a later section included In this handbook. Attachment number 1 \n F -2 Page 62 9