This handbook is designed to assist USAID Missions in developing strategies to help legislatures function more effectively and to perform their functions more democratically and representatively. It explains the importance of legislatures in a democracy, describes structural and other factors that influence legislative behavior, and enumerates problems legislatures commonly face. It then presents an assessment framework that is designed to help USAID field officers pinpoint the weaknesses and understand the capabilities of their host-country legislature. The following section identifies various assistance activities designed to address the weaknesses and take advantage of strengths discovered in the assessment. The handbook concludes with a number of considerations for implementing legislative programs and a presentation of emerging issues in legislative strengthening