slidemuzik
Member
I'd like to share some info I heard at a town meeting recently from the legislator that was holding the assembly.
Of the three main ways to contact your legislators in Washington, (snail mail,email,or phone) the most effective is a phone call and here's why.
The mechanics of how communication travels in Washington is like this...
Snail mail takes two weeks or so to make it in their hands once it reaches the government's mail system. It has to be scanned for harmful substances before it gets to it's addressee. Then it has whatever delay there is in that individual office.
Email gets to the addressee more quickly, but there is still an inter office process that it has to go through.
A phone call is immediately answered by someone on the staff. There are several people who's job it is to answer your call and route that info to the proper person. In the event that there is an issue that has more phone calls than the dedicated staff members can handle, they are backed up by other staff members who's job is usually more "hands on" with the issues.
They are the ones who are, in many cases, actually writing or analyzing the legislation for their boss. In many cases these are EXACTLY the people that can make a difference in how their boss (the elected official) handles a particular issue.
In addition to all that, he explained the the offices on the Hill are not that big. You hear phones ring through the walls. Sometimes inter office, some cases the office next door. When the phones begin to ring off the wall, everybody knows it and they ask, " what's going on? "
This is not to say that all methods don't have some impact. The only communication that doesn't matter is that which remains unsent. The myth is that the only communication taken seriously is in writing.
He explained that communication is always important, even in a district where that particular politician is a shoo in for re-election. They are as interested in their party winning the next election as they are themselves. Why? Because unless their party is in the majority, their individual effectiveness is neutered.
I hope others find this info to be as interesting as we did.
Of the three main ways to contact your legislators in Washington, (snail mail,email,or phone) the most effective is a phone call and here's why.
The mechanics of how communication travels in Washington is like this...
Snail mail takes two weeks or so to make it in their hands once it reaches the government's mail system. It has to be scanned for harmful substances before it gets to it's addressee. Then it has whatever delay there is in that individual office.
Email gets to the addressee more quickly, but there is still an inter office process that it has to go through.
A phone call is immediately answered by someone on the staff. There are several people who's job it is to answer your call and route that info to the proper person. In the event that there is an issue that has more phone calls than the dedicated staff members can handle, they are backed up by other staff members who's job is usually more "hands on" with the issues.
They are the ones who are, in many cases, actually writing or analyzing the legislation for their boss. In many cases these are EXACTLY the people that can make a difference in how their boss (the elected official) handles a particular issue.
In addition to all that, he explained the the offices on the Hill are not that big. You hear phones ring through the walls. Sometimes inter office, some cases the office next door. When the phones begin to ring off the wall, everybody knows it and they ask, " what's going on? "
This is not to say that all methods don't have some impact. The only communication that doesn't matter is that which remains unsent. The myth is that the only communication taken seriously is in writing.
He explained that communication is always important, even in a district where that particular politician is a shoo in for re-election. They are as interested in their party winning the next election as they are themselves. Why? Because unless their party is in the majority, their individual effectiveness is neutered.
I hope others find this info to be as interesting as we did.