InterAction.org | Policy and Legislative Advocacy

InterAction's Tips for Advocating Congress Effectively

Tip 1: What Counts as "Lobbying"?

Tip 2: We Do Not Have a Constituency

Tip 3: How Do I Establish Contact With Hill Staffers?

Tip 4: Four Steps for an Effective Advocacy Meeting

Tip 5: Committee Staff Versus Personal Staff, What's the Difference?

TIP 1

What Counts as "Lobbying"?

Many NGOs are hesitant to communicate with Hill offices because they are unsure what is allowed under the law. Lobbying by 501(c)(3) organizations is clearly permitted, provided that it falls within established spending limits (usually at least 15% of your overall budget, but there is a sliding scale.)

To count as a lobbying expense, a communication must

a) refer to specific legislation and

b) reflect a point of view on its merits.

It is NOT considered lobbying to:

For a thorough explanation of the lobby laws and how they apply to 501(c)(3)'s, see The Nonprofit Lobbying Guide by Bob Smucker, published by Independent Sector.

TIP 2

We Do Not Have a Constituency

1. So you say your organization has no "constituency" that can be organized for advocacy? Think again. There are many ways to build up networks that can be mobilized to lobby Members of Congress at critical moments.

2. Many NGOs have a potent resource they rarely use-- the lobbying power of their Boards of Directors. If you don't know the names, addresses, business and political connections of every member of your board, now is the time to find out. Where does the person live? S/he may turn out to be a constituent of a key Member of Congress. Does the Board Member have a connection to a major corporation, university, or other institution? A call from the current or former top executive of a Fortune 500 company is a lot more powerful than one from a regular "constituent".

Many Board Members also have good connections in the political world that you may not be aware of - they went to college with a particular Senator, previously worked with someone who is now a Cabinet official, or play poker every Thursday with the editor of a large-circulation newspaper. It is worth finding out more about who your Board Members are and whom they know, so you can ask them to help at a critical moment.

1. Do you know your staffers? If you have not developed a relationship with the individuals who handle foreign aid for your Senators and Representative (or, if you are based in DC, the ones who handle your issues on the relevant committees), the Congressional recess is a good time to do it.

When you call to set up the meeting, explain that it is simply a "courtesy call", which means that you won't be asking for anything - just introducing yourself and your organization. Come prepared with facts and background information: how many members you have, how many offices and staff you have, how many and which countries you operate in, what the size of your annual budget is, how much money you get from the US government, which particular issues you are focusing on this year.

Maps, annual reports, and printed materials help, but the shorter the better. Most Congressional staff will not sit through a video or a long presentation, so be prepared to make your presentation in 10 minutes or less, then answer questions. Invite the staffer to see your programs in the field next time s/he travels. And don't forget to bring a business card with your direct phone line, email address, and fax!

2. If you have headquarters or U.S. field offices located outside the District of Columbia, invite your Representative and Senators (separately) to visit your offices during the recess. This is a low-pressure way to show Members of Congress who you are and what you do, and to encourage them to view you as constituents.

Send a letter of invitation to their local offices and follow up with a phone call after about a week. Be flexible about timing, but when a Member does show up, roll out the red carpet - save a parking spot, make sure the Member is greeted by someone who will recognize him/her immediately (most Members have photos on their websites), arrange a tour of the office space (straighten up beforehand!), and plan out a brief (10-15 minute) presentation on what your organization does (including success stories). This is really a get-to-know-you session rather than a lobbying opportunity. You want the Member to leave feeling upbeat and positive about your organization rather than under pressure to do something. But have a simple, clear and reasonable request in mind, in case you are asked!

3. Can't get staffers to return your calls? You're not alone - but there are ways around this. First, make sure you are asking for the right person, and that the person is in the office that day. Second, try faxes, letters or emails, to which some staff are more receptive. The general formula for emails is:

Firstname.Lastname@mail.house.gov (for House offices) and

Firstname_Lastname@senatorslastname.senate.gov (for Senate offices),

but there are many exceptions. In your fax or email, state the reason you are calling (e.g., to arrange a meeting on a specific topic) and suggest times/dates if appropriate. Be sure to mention if you are a constituent. If this fails, you still have several options:

4. Helpful or annoying? Phone calls to Hill offices urging that a Member vote a certain way or cosponsor a given measure can be effective if done right...and counterproductive if handled poorly.

Most Members ask how many letters and phone calls have been received on a particular issue before deciding how to vote or whether to cosponsor legislation. They may not act unless they receive a certain number of calls or are contacted by a favorite organization. However, staffers can quickly feel overwhelmed by a large volume of calls. Thus, it's important to let them know that we are paying attention and do want their support, without coming across as "pestering" or taking up a lot of their time.

For these purposes, a voice mail or email message is usually sufficient, with a brief but friendly statement that that the issue is important to your organization and you hope to have their support. It is not usually wise to spend a long time trying to convince a staffer that your position is the correct one or demanding a "yes-or-no" answer over the phone. A quick "thank you" note or call if the Member takes the requested action is always appreciated, and will make your call more welcome the next time.

1. Compose a one-pager: While staff do not like to be bombarded with paper, they will appreciate a one-pager on your issues. Oftentimes, they refer back to these one-pagers as they develop legislation, write speeches, or advise their boss on a vote. The one-pager should highlight your request(s) and provide a few lines of supporting information. You should use this one-pager as the basis for your discussion, as well.

2. Rehearse Your Message: It is important to do a practice run before your meeting, particularly if there is more than one person from your group attending. Determine who will be the lead spokesperson (this person should also be in charge of thanking the staff person after the meeting). Then determine who will be the lead for each of your key points (this person should be responsible for answering questions relevant to that point). Plan to spend only a few minutes on each point, as your meeting will probably last about 15 to 30 minutes. Take this opportunity to address any concerns or points not included in the one-pager and determine if they should be mentioned.

3. Be Conscientious At the Meeting: Always be prompt. If you are running late, call the office immediately and ask the staff person if they are still able to meet with you. Staff usually have several meetings a day and appreciate recognition of their time constraints. When you greet the staff person, briefly thank them for agreeing to meet with you. Then dive into your request. Be articulate and stay focused. Try not to veer off into issues that are not mentioned in your one-pager. You do not want to appear disorganized. More importantly, you do not want the staff person to wonder what the purpose of your meeting was, when reflecting later. When you have concluded all your points, wrap-up the meeting with a polite but direct request for the Member's support. Thank the staff person once again for taking the time to meet with you, and offer to be a resource for any questions that may arise regarding your issues.

4. Follow-Up After the Meeting: You may want to follow-up on the meeting by sending a quick thank you note (via email is usually best) to the staff person. Do not send a long email or attach additional documents. Rather, briefly reiterate your request in three sentences or less.

Every Member of Congress has a "personal" staff in her/his DC office, who handle legislative issues, press, and correspondence. On the House side, they usually number 6-10, and are often quite young, many straight out of college. On the Senate side, the size of the personal staff depends on the size of the state, and the size of their salaries.

Committee staff tend to be slightly older, and stay longer. Members also have staff in their state and district offices to handle constituent relations and "casework", such as resolving problems constituents may experience with federal government agencies.

As for Committees, the Chairman and Ranking Member (senior member of the minority party) each hire professional staff to cover the issues under the Committee's jurisdiction. They tend to have substantive expertise as well as longer Hill experience. Some are hired at the request of the Subcommittee Chairs and Ranking Members. Thus, each Committee may conceivably have 4 staffers who handle the same issue: a Democrat and a Republican both from the full Committee and from the Subcommittee.

A Senator may have a Legislative Assistant and a Legislative Correspondent who handle an issue on his/her personal staff, as well as one or more Committee staffers. Which one to call depends very much on the division of responsibilities within that particular office, but generally the Committee staff are considered more senior.

All bills that are introduced are listed in the Congressional Record, a transcript of proceedings on the House and Senate floors. It is available in hard copy or online the following day at: http://thomas.loc.gov/r107/r107.html.

To search newly introduced legislation, go the MOST RECENT ISSUE. Then, select proceedings from either the House or Senate. Scroll down until you find PUBLIC BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS. When you click on this link, you will be forwarded to all bills and resolutions introduced on that day, as well as links to Members' comments on the legislation.

"Thomas" is a search engine run by the Library of Congress, listing every bill and resolution introduced in the US Congress as far back as the 93rd Congress (1973-1974). You can search by bill number, key words, bill title, the Member of Congress who sponsored the bill, the date it was introduced or the committee to which it was referred.

From your search, you will be provided with a link to the text of the bill. However, to locate information such as who sponsored the bill, what date was it introduced, who are the cosponsors, and what committees has it been referred to, you can link to the BILL SUMMARY & STATUS FILE, directly from the bill's text page. Often times before a congressional meeting, it is wise to check if the Member has cosponsored a piece of legislation you support. Typically the sponsor of a bill will add new cosponsors once a week.

At the summary and status page, you can also determine if the bill has come to the floor for a vote, amendments that were offered to the bill, and how members voted on the amendments and final passage of the bill. Furthermore, if you are conducting a search of a bill introduced in the House, but want to know if a companion bill has been introduced in the Senate, the summary and status page links to similar legislation introduced in both the House and Senate. Hard copies of bills are available for free at the House and Senate document rooms if you go to pick them up in person, but it is often easier to print out all the information you need from "Thomas".

© 2002 InterAction