After 30 years of walking the marble halls and lobbies of Georgia’s Capitol, it’s a wonder I don’t hear the House and Senate voting bells ringing in my ears while I sleep. This year, I entered my 31^st consecutive legislative session. Here are my top three takeaways:

2. It ain’t pretty. While “ain’t” typically isn’t a word I use, sometimes the legislative arena calls for it. “There are two things you never want to see being made, sausage and laws,” so the expression goes. Both processes can be messy. But cities share with us the first-hand benefits of having GMA’s professional lobbying team to help navigate this process. Our legislative team also ensures a consistent, year-after year return to policy debates to improve imperfect bills.

I can vividly remember a legislator unironically exclaiming, “Everyone is in agreement on this legislation, except for the words.” Well, after the laughter subsided, it impressed on me the realism that words are the most important part of a bill. This is why GMA works daily to align these words with city interests.

3. If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu. While city and state priorities are not always aligned, it is crucial that city and state officials forge partnerships to solve problems for shared constituents. Legislators are people too. So, cut them some slack when they may not be on your side on particular issues and work to develop personal relationships, because you may call on them for future issues important to your city.

So, what makes our job easy? You—city officials and staff. We have the best “clients” among the entire lobbying corps who offer themselves up for public service to improve the lives of their communities. Thank you for being your city’s and GMA’s most powerful advocates!