
Public Safety and Legal Counsel
Governors legal counsel serve as senior staff, overseeing legal issues with legislation, policy, executive orders, administrative actions, and executive appointments. Additionally, Governors are focused on public safety, crime, delinquency and related social and economic consequences. NGA serves the needs of governors and their policy advisors in a broad range of criminal, sentencing, corrections and justice-related policies.
Latest

Governors Stand Against Antisemitism
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Supporting Successful Workforce Reentry for Justice-Involved Individuals
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Briefing on Government Ethics Considerations
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State Strategies to Address the Needs of Justice-Involved Youth Impacted by Collateral Consequences
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DPAD Learning Collaborative
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Onboarding Session for Governors’ Legal Counsel
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NGA Public Safety networks
Governors Criminal Justice Policy Advisors Network
The Governors Criminal Justice Policy Advisors (CJPAs) Network provides a forum for governors’ criminal and juvenile justice policy advisors to connect with their peers in other states, promote regional information sharing and collaboration, and learn about best practices and the latest research in the field. NGA convenes CJPAs for an annual institute and offers customized technical assistance to them as requested through research and strategic planning support.
Consortium Of State Public Safety Executives
The Consortium of State Public Safety Executives is a network of cabinet-level secretaries and commissioners from across the country who are responsible for oversight of their state’s public safety enterprise, including state police, fire, corrections, emergency management and/or other related agencies. Through the consortium, members can connect with their peers in other states to share lessons learned, receive briefings from national experts on best practices in the field and receive ongoing technical support from NGA staff.
Meet the team
- Ken Hardy, Program Director
- Lauren Dedon, Senior Legal Policy Advisor
- Erin Daneker, Policy Analyst
- Maria Kearl, Policy Analyst
- Micaja Verna, Policy Coordinator
Resources

State Targeted Violence Prevention: Programming & Key Performance Indicators
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State Efforts to Improve the Continuum of Care for Substance Use Disorder and Opioid Use Disorder
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Governors Leading to Strengthen Traffic Safety by Reducing Impaired Driving
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Lessons Learned in State Collaboration to Address Substance Use Disorder and Justice-Involved Individuals
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Equity and Policy Preparedness During Public Health Emergencies
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National Governors Association Asks Congress to Swiftly Pass Funding Package
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Age Boundaries in Juvenile Justice Systems
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Letter on Canadian – U.S. Border Restrictions
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Governors on Criminal Justice and Public Safety Issues
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State of the States Opioid Survey and Analysis
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Community Supervision and Treatment of Individuals With Substance Use Disorder
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Governor Action Related to Law Enforcement and Policing
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