American Legislative Exchange Council

What American Legislative Exchange Council does

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan membership association founded in 1974 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It functions as a public-private partnership that convenes approximately 2,000 state legislators—representing nearly one-third of all U.S. state lawmakers—with nearly 300 corporate and private foundation members to develop and promote model legislation grounded in Jeffersonian principles of free markets, limited government, federalism, and individual liberty. Policy work is organized through nine task forces (including Energy, Education, Tax and Fiscal Policy, Commerce, and Judiciary) and five policy centers, with state chairs coordinating efforts in all 50 states.

ALEC's core products are model policies and publications rather than technology. Its flagship outputs include the annual Rich States, Poor States ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index (19th edition in 2026), the Energy Affordability Report (5th edition), the Index of State Education Freedom, Essential Policy Solutions for 2026, and the State AI Policy Toolkit featuring four model bills. The organization distributes these through its website, three major annual meetings (Annual Meeting, Spring Task Force Summit, States & Nation Policy Summit), the Across the States podcast, email newsletters, op-eds, press releases, and a $30 Certificate in Innovation, Efficiency and Accountability in Government.

Revenue comes from legislative membership dues ($200 for a two-year membership), private sector and foundation memberships (the primary economic engine), donations, and ancillary event and certification fees. The organization also operates the American City County Exchange (ACCE) to extend model ordinances into local government. Distribution is membership-led and event-driven rather than commercial sales, and the lack of disclosed revenue limits financial transparency but is consistent with 501(c)(3) norms.

Name

American Legislative Exchange Council

Legal name

American Legislative Exchange Council

Website

https://alec.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ALEC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public-private partnership of approximately 2,000 U.S. state legislators and nearly 300 corporate and foundation members that develops and promotes model legislation, policy research, and rankings on free-market, limited-government, and federalism issues across all 50 states.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Research and Advocacy Services

NAICS

Public Administration (92)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Equity, Access & Inclusion Policy Research (EDADADAF)

Keywords

• Model legislation
• Policy development
• Legislator advocacy
• Membership association
• Policy research

Headquarters

HQ city

Arlington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Legislative Membership Fees: Legislative membership dues at $200 for a two-year membership, providing access to America's largest nonpartisan voluntary membership organization of state policymakers
2. Private Sector Membership: Corporate and private foundation memberships supporting the public-private partnership model, with nearly 300 corporate and private foundation members
3. Publications and Registrations: ALEC waives cost of publications and meeting registration fees for credentialed members of the media, generating visibility and demand for policy positions
4. Certification Program: Certificate in Innovation, Efficiency and Accountability in Government with a $30 processing fee for members completing 15 credit hours across three tracks

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

ALEC develops and disseminates model legislation to state lawmakers through a public-private partnership between legislators and private sector members. Its core offering consists of task force-developed model policies, annual ranking and policy reports (Rich States Poor States, Energy Affordability Report, State AI Policy Toolkit, Index of State Education Freedom, Essential Policy Solutions), networking and convening via three major yearly meetings, and continuing education through the ALEC Certification program. Distribution and member engagement occur through the alec.org platform, email newsletters, podcasts, and a state chair network in all 50 states.

Product overview

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) operates as a policy development organization that provides public-private partnership services to state legislators. The core offering consists of model policies and publications including the annual Rich States, Poor States economic competitiveness index, Energy Affordability Report, State AI Policy Toolkit, and Essential Policy Solutions guide. ALEC also provides membership benefits including legislative certification programs, the State Intelligence Digest weekly briefing, and the Across the States Podcast. The organization facilitates policy exchange between state legislators and private sector members through task forces organized by policy area (Energy, Education, Commerce, Tax, etc.) and publishes research reports addressing state-level policy challenges.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• American City County Exchange (ACCE): A non-partisan free market forum for village, town, city and county policymakers.

Products and services

• Model Policies

Quantifiable outcome

• All 50 states considering AI-focused legislation in 2025, with 38 states adopting approximately 100 measures influenced by ALEC model legislation
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• National Conference of State LegislaturescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 January 2026ALEC coordinates through NCSL working group on AI policy, with both organizations influencing state-level AI legislation as Congress fails to pass federal AI legislation
• American Consumer InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint report with American Consumer Institute and R Street Institute highlighted ALEC's State AI Policy Toolkit as examples of sound AI governance that states can adopt to protect consumers while fostering innovation
• R Street InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint report recognized ALEC's State AI Policy Toolkit as innovation-friendly alternatives to more restrictive AI regulations
• Cato InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCato Institute and ALEC have both advanced similar proposals allowing data centers to operate off-grid through 'power islands' exempt from traditional grid regulations
• Competitive Enterprise InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCEI leads coalition of free-market and conservative advocacy organizations submitting comments to FCC on ATSC 3.0 broadcast standards; ALEC participates in similar deregulatory coalitions
• Center for Innovation and TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerALEC Policy Center focused on providing state lawmakers with guides, data, research and structure for how innovation could benefit their states
• Private Enterprise Advisory CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCouncil of private, foundation and think tank members advising ALEC governance alongside Board of Directors of state legislators
• America 250 Civics Education CoalitionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerALEC partnership in nationwide effort led by Secretary McMahon to restore civic pride through civics education as part of America's 250th anniversary preparations
• South Carolina Senate Judiciary SubcommitteeminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerALEC Commerce, Insurance and Economic Development Task Force Director Alan Jernigan submitted testimony supporting Small Business Regulatory Freedom Act in South Carolina

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Competitive Enterprise Institute: Free-market advocacy organization focused on deregulation. Comparable as a fellow deregulatory coalition partner with overlapping ideological positioning and policy networks, though more litigation/advocacy-driven than ALEC's legislative-model focus.
• FreedomWorks: Grassroots conservative advocacy organization promoting free markets and limited government. Comparable in ideological positioning and policy-network reach, but focused on federal advocacy and member mobilization rather than state model legislation.
• Cato Institute: Libertarian public-policy research foundation. Comparable as a fellow free-market think tank that has co-developed deregulatory proposals with ALEC (e.g., data center 'power islands'); shares ideology but differs in being broader, national, and academic in focus.
• American Consumer Institute: Consumer-focused free-market policy organization. Comparable as an ALEC partner that co-published the joint report recognizing ALEC's State AI Policy Toolkit; shares free-market orientation but is narrower in mission scope.
• Americans for Tax Reform: Advocacy organization opposing tax increases and promoting limited-government policy. Comparable as a free-market advocacy ally with overlapping issue areas (especially tax and fiscal policy) where ALEC's Center for State Fiscal Reform operates.

Direct peers

• Council of State Governments: Nonpartisan, interstate organization serving all three branches of state government. Highly comparable to ALEC's policy-development and member-service mission across states, though broader in scope including executive and judicial branches.
• R Street Institute: Free-market think tank focused on limited, effective government. Directly comparable as an ALEC partner on AI policy and aligned on free-market, limited-government principles; shares similar policy-advocacy methodology and corporate-foundation funding model.
• National Conference of State Legislatures: Bipartisan membership organization serving all U.S. state legislators and staff. Directly comparable to ALEC as both serve state legislators and influence state-level policy development; explicitly named as a coordinating partner on AI policy work.

Broad incumbents

• National Governors Association: Bipartisan organization representing U.S. state governors. Comparable as a high-influence state-government policy organization with overlapping stakeholder networks, though serves the executive rather than legislative branch and has a larger permanent staff.
• Heritage Foundation: Large, established conservative think tank influencing federal and state policy. Comparable in ideological alignment and policy-network reach, but operates at much larger scale and broader scope (federal focus) than ALEC's state-legislator niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/alec_states
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/AmericanLegislative
• Facebookfacebook.com/AmericanLegislativeExchangeCouncil
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/american-legislative-exchange-council
• Instagraminstagram.com/alec_states

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about American Legislative Exchange Council