Meeting with A Member of Congress

Requesting a meeting with your member of Congress:

• Find your Congressional District and contact information on the NASW Web site:
  
• Send a fax or e-mail to the scheduler requesting a meeting
  • Include the date and time of day you would like to meet with the member
  • Offer to meet with staff if the member of Congress is not available (i.e. Health Legislative Assistant)
  • Include the name of the legislation or issue you would like to discuss (i.e. re-authorization of the Ryan White CARE Act)
  • Provide a phone number and/or e-mail address where the scheduler can reach you
• Follow up with a phone call in one week if you have not heard back from the office

At the Meeting

• Be on time. Staff in most Capitol Hill and district offices are busy and work on tight schedules. Remember that their time is valuable.
• Establish a rapport. After introductions and handshakes, talk about things or relationships you might have in common. For instance, maybe you have a mutual friend, or perhaps you both went to the same elementary school. Thank your senator or representative for all that he or she does on Capitol Hill to represent your state or district.
• Select a spokesperson. If several people will attend the meeting, select a spokesperson. If everyone there will have a role, select one person to move the meeting along in a timely manner.
• State your purpose. For example, you might say, "Congressman Lee, we are here to talk with you about welfare reauthorization. Our professional association, the National Association of Social Workers, would like to have your support for its recommendations to improve the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act."
• Make the issue real. Personalize the results of the legislation. For example, relate your own story about the debt you are incurring in graduate school and the need for loan forgiveness for child welfare workers.
• Paint the little picture, as well as the big picture. After you discuss how the issue has affected you or someone you serve, provide statistics on how it affects people in the district, state, or country. Legislators are people; they are sympathetic to stories about real people.
• Make a clear request. Tell your member of Congress exactly what you would like him or her to do, and do not leave without learning the legislator’s position on your issue. For example, you might say that you would like your legislator to vote for legislation that would provide equal pay for equal work. Then, ask the member or their staff to outline the legislator’s current position.