Legislation moves slowly but you still need to act fast. There’s only a short window of time to get legislation considered. Have a room to rent on Airbnb? Is your company thinking about investing in data centers? The Information Technology Council of North Dakota (ITCND) wants to help you voice your tech-related policy concerns.

Last week ITCND shared what it does. Now here’s what you can do, when you should do it, and why it matters.

Contact the ITCND. The organization may share your concerns, or know who does. Getting connected with other people may help you flesh out your idea. There’s also strength in numbers. ITCND may have already laid the groundwork on the issue saving you time and energy. It’s easier to join a cause than to spearhead one.

Contact your legislators. Now. The next legislative session convenes right after the new year. ITCND past president Gary Inman says there’s a 3-month window every two years to get new legislation considered. That’s because budgets and committees have two year cycles, and the committee members may only meet a couple times within those two years.

It’s also very important to think ahead. “If you have a big change idea to get through, you’ll need three sessions,” says Inman. That’s six years.

Emerging Prairie and the ITCND held a listening session last week to see what the main concerns are. Here’s what we heard.

– Expanding affordable broadband internet

– The future of autonomous vehicles

– ND policies and their effect on the sharing economy

– Favorable taxes for first businesses to put up data centers

– Net neutrality

What would you add? You know how to do it. Contact the ITCND. Contact your legislators.