The State Legislative Leaders Foundation was established in 1972 as a nonprofit corporation dedicated to working with state legislative leaders in their efforts to reform the institution of the state legislature. The Foundation's earliest funding derived from a multi-million dollar Ford Foundation grant which was earmarked for a seven-state pilot project known as The Program for Legislative Improvement. The seven states selected for this project included: Ohio, Colorado, Minnesota, Arizona, Louisiana, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

The early 70's was a time of dramatic change in state government and state legislatures in particular. A series of books and studies had been published at the turn of the decade calling for significant reform of state legislatures which at that time were roundly characterized as inefficient, lacking adequate institutional capacity to tackle the public issues of the day, devoid of professionalism in their staffing ranks, and suffering from an overall malaise that many students of state government felt was severely hampering the proper functioning of our democracy.

The Program for Legislative Improvement evolved out of a national study conducted by the Citizens Conference on State Government. That study led to the publication of a book, "The Sometimes Governments", ranking all 50 state legislatures according to how well they carried out their responsibilities as law making bodies for the people. Those rankings, from 1 for best in the country to 50, the worst, generated a significant uproar, particularly among the lower 25 state legislatures.

The State Legislative Leaders Foundation became the vehicle to implement the many recommendations emanating out of "The Sometimes Governments" study. For four years, from 1972 through 1976, the SLLF worked with the leadership in these seven state legislatures, sharpening our skills about the inner workings of state government and developing an abiding respect for the role state legislative leaders play in the process.

When the grant finally had run its course, the Foundation's President, Stephen G. Lakis, elected to reincorporate SLLF in Massachusetts and redefine its mission to be more focused on serving state legislative leaders.