Description:
Legislative Counsel produce content for the State Voting Rights Tracker and support VRL’s advocacy work. Counsel research state laws relating to voter access and election administration and present the information in an accessible, easily digestible format on the Tracker. They also monitor and analyze relevant legislation for inclusion in the Tracker. Legislative Counsel assist in the preparation of reports and other editorial content, and they support VRL’s advocacy work by providing legal and legislative analysis, drafting policy products, and monitoring legislative trends and developments.
Legislative Counsel report to the VP of Law & Policy.
Voting Rights Lab is a fully remote organization. This position can be based anywhere in the United States.
Responsibilities:
- In an assigned set of states, review all election-related legislation and evaluate each bill for inclusion in the State Voting Rights Tracker based on a defined set of criteria.
- Provide a detailed summary of each bill’s provisions that clearly conveys to a non-legal audience how the bill would change existing law.
- Categorize legislation using a comprehensive and dynamic tagging system to enable Tracker users to search for bills by topic or subtopic.
- In an assigned set of states, research existing laws on issues relating to voter access and election administration, and present the information in a concise, easily-digestible format on the Tracker.
- Monitor and update information based on changes to the law resulting from legislation, regulation, or litigation.
- Collaborate with the Law and Policy Team to design surveys of existing law on additional topics.
- Collaborate with the Director of Digital Products to support the ongoing development and design of the Tracker website.
- Develop deep knowledge and expertise in voting rights policy, in the laws and legislation of your assigned states, and in legislative trends across states. Leverage that expertise to:
- Participate in the preparation of reports and other editorial content
- Assist with questions from partners and the media regarding specific bills and legislative trends
- Support VRL’s advocacy work by providing legal and legislative analysis, drafting policy products, and/or monitoring legislative trends and developments
- Operate as a member of a highly collaborative, cross-departmental team by participating in multiple weekly meetings with members of the Law and Policy Team, and occasionally with other departments (communications, advocacy, etc.).
What we’re looking for in you:
- Meticulous attention to detail
- Strong legal research, analytical, and writing skills
- Strong project and time-management skills
- Excellent relationship-building skills and ability to collaborate with the rest of the Voting Rights Lab team
- Experience working with diverse communities and a commitment to acting on the belief that racial equity and social justice are critical components to our work
- Law degree or commensurate experience
- Familiarity with voting and election law preferred
- Experience working with state legislative policy preferred
Compensation and Benefits:
We value our staff by offering competitive pay and a comprehensive benefits package, detailed below.
The hiring range for the Legislative Counsel position is $90,000 to $120,000 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. The total compensation package may include the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, depending on the level and position offered.
At this time, we provide the following benefits for eligible full-time regular employees:
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance that is 100% employer funded
- Option to enroll in an health savings account (HSA) with employer contribution
- 401(k) retirement plan, with up to 6% employer match
- Generous paid time off package, including 4 weeks vacation leave and 2 weeks sick leave, in addition to 13 paid holidays, 4 floating personal days, winter holiday closure, and other PTO opportunities
- Flexible spending account for medical and dependent care
- Short-term and long-term disability insurance
- Basic-term life and accidental death and dismemberment (ADD) insurance, with an employee buy-up option
- Additional benefits including work from home benefits, cell phone benefits, and fitness benefits
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement:
Voting Rights Lab is a non-profit organization that is committed to attracting, developing and retaining exceptional people, and to creating a work environment that is dynamic, rewarding and enables each of us to realize our potential. VRL’s work environment is safe and open to all employees and partners, respecting the full spectrum of race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, and all other classifications protected by law in the locality and/or state in which you are working.
Part of VRL's mission is to ensure that people with records of arrest or conviction can vote. As such, we give full and fair consideration to all applicants, regardless of a past record of arrest or conviction.
Please visit votingrightslab.org for more information.
