Working With Your Elected Officials

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Working With Your Elected Officials

• Raise Your Voice !
• Advocacy Workshop
• Voices for Children
• Ohio United Way
• Columbus January 7, 2005
• Cincinnati January 24, 2005
• Presentation by Lisa Hamler-Podolski
• Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks
• 35 East Gay Street, Suite 502
• Columbus, Ohio 43215
• 614/221-4336
• Lisa_oashf_at_ameritech.net
• www.oashf.org

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Tips for Working with Legislators

• One-on-one contact is ideal All politics are
  local
• Its about relationships Who knows Who and How
• Schedule a meeting or visit to your agency,
  invite others who may know the legislator, board
  members, clergy, civic leaders
• The meeting can be brief, and it doesnt always
  have to be formal
• Schedule the meeting now, district visits are
  always best
• Get to know the staff often the legislative
  aide is an influential part of decision making
  process never offend an aide
• Get your message out front if you cant meet
  with the legislator or aide, telephone calls, a
  letter, sending an E-mail
• or fax are all good methods of communicating
• RULE One Dont wait until you need something to
• begin building the relationship its often to
  late!

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Tips for Working with Legislators

• Dont assume that legislators know who you are or
  what services your organization provides!
• Dont assume they know there is a problem!
• Dont assume they know how Government operates or
  who to ask. Freshman and term limits play a
  major role.
• The best way to communicate a message or need is
  by providing legislators aides an opportunity
  to experience your programs first hand. Bragging
  Rights
• By attending an event or participating in an
  activity, meal, or distribution at your church,
  pantry, soup kitchen or shelter they will
  remember and often share their experience with
  other legislators or during committee hearings.
• Attend Civic or Social functions legislators
  frequent.
• Attend their fundraisers (personal), invite
  them to coffee, lunch, dinner or drinks.
• Really get to know them their passions, interest
• and legislative history.

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Tips for Working with Legislators

• Always respect their positions convictions.
• Its ok to disagree Never make it personal.
• If you dont click - maybe there is a better
  messenger.
• Think before you speak, your tone, delivery,
  message.
• Remember - some burned bridges can never be
  rebuilt!
• No group discussions, disagreements when meeting
  with legislators.
• Dont Give Up if you dont succeed try again.
• Remember Keep it Simple Stupid you are just
  one of many individuals with a cause to promote
  you have to make sure your issue or cause stands
  out.
• Offer your services does the legislator or
  staff receive
• telephone calls from constituents who need help
  with
• food, material assistance, or public benefits?
• Make yourself and your organization the
  go-to-contact!

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Do Your Homework Be a Winner

• Communicate your visits and contacts to the lead
  agency.
• If you do nothing your legislative campaign
  will be severely weakened.
• Draft the language for the bill or amendment that
  you are asking them to support, include talking
  points.
• Be ready to relay your points at anytime and
  anywhere.
• Become a known entity a legislator is more
  likely to trust and listen to someone he/she
  knows.
• Does your issue cross over or relate to others.
• How do these issue interface or compare?
• Become a resource, ask yourself
• What can I do to help this legislator?
• Hone your message and materials one page fact
  sheets, back-up materials and simple sound
  bites.

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List Issues Prioritize Issues

• Develop a comprehensive list of legislative
  issues.
• Identify short-term and long-term goals
• Identify budget items and administrative/policy
  items
• Weigh political reality of issues
• Identify ONE short-term and ONE long-term issue
• Try not to work on more than one issue

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Dont Wait Begin Building the Relationships Now

• Politics is a long-term process.
• Look out for their best interest be honest.
• Say THANK YOU a simple thank you goes a long
  way.
• Send a thank you note after visits and always
  follow up on request.
• Go the extra mile contact all your legislators,
  State Representatives, State Senators and County
  Commissioners and candidates running for open
  seats build a network and work the network.
• Provide media opportunities, guest columns
• letters to the editor, photo ops.
• Communicate - Communicate Communicate.

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Know Your Legislator

• Who represents you? www.ohio.gov
• www.protectohio.org
• Research their personal history
• Review voting record
• Catalog data on committees, assignments,
  endorsements and donations

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Target Decision Makers

• Determine which policymakers influence each issue
  (relevant committee, leadership, relevant
  administrative agency).
• Identify volunteer, staff and allies with
  potential relationships to target decision
  makers.
• Utilize your relationships with business and
  labor leaders.
• Build relationships with key legislative staff.

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Its all out there to be won or lost!

• Provide opportunities for legislators to meet
  with individuals and families who benefit from
  the programs that you are seeking support for.
• Put legislators on your mailing list invite
  them to attend special events or programs.
• Keep relationships ongoing you can not just go
  to a legislator when you need something the
  relationship has to be reciprocal.
• Build credibility always tell legislators the
  truth, give them a fair representation of your
  issues.
• Invite and encourage volunteers, funders, member
  agencies, staff and Board Members to
  participate.
• Have fun!

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How a bill becomes a law
The chart at left graphically illustrates the
many steps required for a bill to become law in
Ohio. A chart dealing with how a bill becomes
law in Congress would look essentially the
sameand be essentially as useless since it is
the factors underlying the process campaign
contributions, lobbying, grassroots activism,
media focus, and politics, that determine which
legislation moves through legislative sausage
factory to become law. http//www.legislative.stat
e.oh.us/process.cfm
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Legislative Realities 101(a)How a bill really
becomes law in Ohio

• Bill must be sponsored by a member of the
  majority party and, ideally, lobbied for by by
  firm allied with the majority
• Bill must not call for substantial new spending
  or be seen as government interference in the
  lives of everyday Ohioans

• Support of leadership is important, but term
  limits and anti-government philosophy now
  pervasive in the General Assembly have undermined
  party discipline
• Growing tendency to deal with problematic issues
  via the budget process

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Legislative Realities 101How a bill really
becomes law in Congress

• Most legislation, including appropriation bills,
  are introduced in the House.
• House and Senate leadership controls the process
  via Rules Committee and calendar
• Most legislation dies in committee or
  subcommittee
• Appropriation bills are now primary vehicles for
  policy making
• Sixty is the magic numberabsent 60 votes in the
  Senate, any piece of legislation is consigned to
  the dustbin of history

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Legislative Realities 101How a bill really
becomes law in Congress

• Special interest groups now have unprecedented
  influence over the system due to the cost of
  campaigns
• Since passage of Medicare, pork rather than
  policy has, to a great extent, become the measure
  of a legislators performance
• Statesmanship has given way to an ever more
  politicized and stagnated legislative process
  focused on budgetary matters
• Increasing willingness to defer decisions on
  difficult issues to the states

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Legislative Realities 101How a bill really
becomes law in Congress

• Appropriation bills, either 13 required, periodic
  (such as transportation), or emergency, are now
  primary policy making tools in Congress
• Lack of germaneness standard allows these bills
  to be targets of poison pills or exploited as
  Christmas Trees
• Chairs of various appropriation committees now
  wield incredible power
• Proposals attached to appropriation bills have
  greater probability of passage

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Media and Grassroots Support

• Build a ground swell of support!
• Endorsements 14,000 during the 2004/2005 SFY
  250 media hits.
• Work with Broad-based Coalitions.
• Organize your network agencies, partners,
  farmers, suppliers, clients, funders and
  supporters.
• Hold events in the district and at the State
  Capital.

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Organize and Activate Media and Grassroots
Support

• Send letters, e-mails, drop-offs, reinforcing
  your ask and desired outcome. (no form letters)
• Mobilize through the media, newspapers, radio and
  newsletters, include feature stories, letters to
  the editor, guest columns, radio interviews,
  editorials.
• Get to know the State and Local political
  reporters.
• Legislators respond to media and will react.
• Whoever generates the most media usually Wins

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Campaign to Protest Ohios Future - Sales Tax
Increase to Preserve Health Human Services
Funding 4,000 Rally at Statehouse
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The Power of an Editorial 9 Million
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Remember What Its Really All About!