Staying updated on state and federal regulations regarding self-storage just got simpler thanks to a partnership between two online organizations that track legislative activity. Civic Impulse and LegiNation are now exchanging bill data between their GovTrack and BillTrack50 websites to enable more thorough and transparent access to government information.
LegiNation created BillTrack50 to track state bill progress, while Civic Impulse developed GovTrack to monitor federal legislative activity. Self-storage operators, developers and investors can now use either site to track legislation that may affect self-storage policies and procedures, including the handling of lien sales and sales tax.
Federal and state bills can be accessed on both websites for free. An upgraded version with advanced tracking and sharing features is available for a subscription price through BillTrack50. The sites present bill text, status and summaries by using the sites search functions. Searches can be done by keyword or more exact information, such as legislator names or bill numbers. Tools to help stay informed of legislative activity, such as e-mail alerts, are also provided on both sites.
Karen Suhaka, president of LegiNation, said the combined data will present a more accurate picture of the political landscape across the nation, making it is easier to identify state and federal policy trends.
Several states, including Rhode Island, South Dakota and New Jersey, have recently explored sales-tax legislation relating to self-storage. Similarly, Florida, Kansas and Rhode Island recently updated their lien laws. Sixteen states have updated their lien laws since 2008.
Self-storage operators can obtain copies of current state lien laws from the Inside Self-Storage Lien Law Registry.
