How to Talk Effectively with Legislators About Our Issues
Tips from WISDOM Training Sessions
By Sherry Reames
- Do some research in advance about the committee or individual legislator you’ll be talking to. If possible, get advice from other members of MOSES or WISDOM who have met with these committees or individuals in the past.
- Spend some time looking at the information that’s available on the web. The legislature’s official website, legis.wisconsin.gov, gives a capsule biography of each legislator that includes their education, professional experience, organizational memberships, committee assignments, etc., and there are even links to the bills they have authored or supported in the past. The legislators also have their own websites, which tend to emphasize their life experience and the issues they have chosen to campaign on.
- Give your testimony or make your visit as part of a group, if possible, and decide in advance which of you will present each issue or aspect of an issue.
- Don’t be disappointed if you end up talking with an aide instead of meeting the legislator in person. Often the aides have more experience and expertise on our issues than the legislators they work for.
- Your speaking time will be limited (just 2 minutes, if it’s a budget hearing!), so use the time well. Jot down the points you want to make, and consider practicing with a stopwatch.
- Try to say something they are likely to remember because they haven’t heard it before. If you have a powerful personal story, use it. If not, at least mention your own experience or expertise on the issue. If you have recent data or statistics from a reliable source, it’s good to include that, too. If it’s a budget hearing, be sure to give them an estimate of the numbers involved and the anticipated savings.
- Speak as clearly as possible. Avoid jargon and acronyms that your hearers may not recognize.
- Be prepared to answer questions about your issue and to counter likely objections. But don’t bluff; if necessary, it’s ok to say you don’t know and will get back to them with the answer. Then follow through, of course.
- Prepare a written version of your testimony that you can leave in the legislator’s office or email to them later. This written version can give more details, statistics, and sources than you have time to present orally and should also include your contact information.
- Take good notes (or ask someone else in the group to do so) about the response you receive from each legislator or staff member. How receptive did they seem to our positions on the issues? What questions or objections did they raise? Did they promise to support any of our asks? Did they make any helpful suggestions about ways to proceed?
- If you met with an individual legislator or aide, follow up a few days later with a note thanking them for their time and suggesting your willingness to continue the conversation.