National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators Holds 22nd Annual Summit in Denver, the Organization's Founding City

Check out the photos of the event here.

Washington, D.C. – The National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL) held its 22nd Annual Summit in Denver, the city where the organization was founded 35 years ago by State Rep. Larry Trujillo (CO).

During the convening, Hispanic state legislators from all over the country got together to attend policy sessions and discuss the Caucus’ resolutions that defined some of the year’s key priorities, with a look ahead into the 2025 state legislative sessions and included a keynote speech from U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper (CO).

The convening kicked off at the Colorado State Capitol, with a conversation about secured store laws for firearms featuring Everytown for Gun Safety moderated by Rep. Javier Mabrey (CO), followed by a tour of the iconic capitol building.

The sessions focused on healthcare featured conversations around opportunities for early screening of Type 1 Diabetes, an increasingly prevalent disease within Latino communities, featuring Tom Boyer of the Diabetes Leadership Council, Healthcare specialist Karmeen Kulkarni, and Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk (MD), who lead a bill in her state around the issue; and solutions to increase access to treatment for obesity at the state level, with Joseph Nadglowski of the Obesity Action Coalition, Cristy Gallagher of STOP Obesity Alliance, and Dr. Carina Kugelmas from Denver Health, moderated by Sen. Gustavo Rivera (NY).

After keynote remarks from Sen. Hickenlooper (CO), Melody Gonzales, Executive Director of the White House Hispanic Initiative, joined Dr. Perry Daniel from Stride for a conversation about challenges and opportunities in education equity for Hispanic communities facilitated by Sen. Daniel Ivey-Soto (NM). And, to continue the multi-year focus on Artificial Intelligence (A.I.), NHCSL also hosted Natalie Austin from Google, for a policy session around the role of A.I. in civic tools, with remarks from Rep. Arturo Alonso-Sandoval (OK), NHCSL’s Broadband and Technology Task Force Chair.

The Summit also hosted two fireside chats, the first to address the increasing threats to communities from wildfires and the critical role of legislation in mitigation and management with Rep. Elizabeth Velasco (CO) and Hollie Velazquez Horvath of Xcel Energy, moderated by Rep. Eva-Dina Delgado (IL); and a second one with Caroline Van Wie and Garett Doyle of AT&T, moderated by Assemblymember Juan Carrillo (CA), discussing the mandates at the state level of the continued operation of outdated copper wire landlines (POTS) alongside the transition to broadband networks, to ensure an equitable and efficient shift, protecting consumers and preserving emergency services.

Additionally, female legislators and partners were invited to a wellness breakfast that addressed women’s empowerment with the American Cancer Society.

During the Summit, state legislators also held their Annual Meeting and voted resolutions to be adopted as the Caucus’ policies on several issues around healthcare, education, gun control, and other topics relevant to Hispanic communities nationwide. Please learn more about these resolutions here.

To close the convening, legislators, partners and donors gathered for the Noche de Celebración gala and honored Sen. Cristina Castro (IL) as the 2024 John S. Martinez Legislator of the Year, Javier Gonzalez from Google as Partner of the Year for his role in helping our legislators navigate the challenges around A.I., and NHCSL’s Immediate Past President, Congresswoman-elect Senator Nellie Pou (NJ), who recently became the first Latina to be elected to represent her state in the U.S. Congress, with the Trailblazer Award. The organization’s Business Board of Advisors also elected its new leadership.

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The National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL) is the premier national association of Hispanic state legislators working to design and implement policies and procedures that will improve the quality of life for Hispanics throughout the country. NHCSL was founded in 1989 as a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with the mission to be the most effective voice for the more than 450 Hispanic legislators. For more information visit www.nhcsl.org.