Law Library Presenting at 2021 AALL

On July 22, 2021 at 3:45 CDT, two Law Library staff members, and one former Law Library colleague will be participating in a presentation at this year’s annual conference of the American Association of Law Libraries. The conference was scheduled to be in Cleveland originally but has changed to be an all virtual event.

I will be presenting along with my colleague Jim Martin and our former colleague John Cannan on the topic of how legislative procedure can be compared to baking. The presentation is titled Baking the Legislative Cake: How Congress Passes Legislation Now. John has provided the following summary of the presentation which was his brainchild (though I am providing the recipes and baking expertise while Jim helps with the arcana of legislative procedure):

Justice Elena Kagan called legislative history icing on a cake already baked, but how is Congress actually baking legislation into existence now? The traditional Schoolhouse Rock model has legislation assembled in a layered process of specific tiers. This view has been challenged by another that assumes bills are whisked together through unorthodox procedures. Which is correct? This presentation uses baking analogies to review how Congress goes from the batter of submitted bills to putting the glaze on the finished product.  Data collected on bills—from the major multi-tiered appropriations acts to mini-muffin single subject provisions—passed by the 111th-116th Congress to determine which recipes legislators are following to make law.

We are hoping to see many colleagues from around the country at this event. Cake and frosting recipes will be included as part of the presentation along with data on legislative process.