How to Connect with Idaho's Elected Officials

​December’s Call an Expert (a member only, monthly call with a business professional to help answer your questions), was filled with great information about contacting Idaho’s government officials. Brad Griff, Regional Director for U.S. Congressman Raul Labrador, shared great advice based on his experience working in Idaho congressional offices.

Before you Schedule a Meeting

• Establish a relationship with a staff member in the Senator’s or Representative’s office
  
  • This will help you schedule a meeting with the Senator or Representative and potentially help bring your issues to the to do list
    
    
• Research how the Senator or Representative voted in the past
  • How will you shape your discussion when you meet?
  • This can help you create realistic goals for the meeting’s outcomes
    ​
    
• Find out what committees the Senator or Representative currently sits on
  • Although they do not have a say on the potential bills until they are introduced, you can help bring issues to their attention

Scheduling a Meeting

• Fill out their designated online form
  
  
• Be as detailed as you can - Why do you want to meet?
  • This will give the staffer all the information when compiling a report and the meeting schedule
    
    
• Give them a few weeks notice for your preferred meeting date
  • The more dates/times you list will give you a better chance at scheduling a meeting
    ​
    
• Follow up with a phone call
  • Ask the staffer if they received your request and they will double check
  • Staff turns over a lot in the positions that review meeting requests
  • A reminder call can help put you at the top of the list

Preparing for a Meeting

• Limit your discussion topics to two of three
  • The Senator or Representative only has the alloted time for your meeting
  • This gives you time to discuss the MOST important issues
    
    
• Create and print out a list/description of topics that you will discuss
  • Leave the print out at the end of the meeting
  • This will help remind the Senator or Representative what you discussed when revisiting the issue
    ​
    
• Connect with a staffer (at the meeting) to confirm they know all about your discussion topics
  • This staffer will help remind the Senator or Representative when revisiting the topics
  • The Senator or Representative has many things on their to do list, and this helps organize them

Important Things to Remember

• You may not change the Senator’s or Representative’s mind but it is important to have a conversation
  
  
• Even though you may not see eye to eye, this helps build a relationship for when another topic needs to be discussed
  
  
• Be polite
  • Nothing ends a discussion faster than rudeness
    
    
• Meetings are more about having a positive experience and building a rapport for the future
  
  
• Only 16% of bills pass the committee process
  
  

Although it is important to advocate for your mission on a national level, it is equally important to do so at a local level. Consider connecting with your Idaho state legislature representatives, mayors, and city councils. You can follow the same steps listed above.

More information regarding advocacy can be found here.

--

Call an Expert will be back in February 2018. The topics and schedule will be announced early in the New Year.