03/31/2000

On Writing Your Congressman

Last year my automobile insurance premium went up again, even though I haven't made a claim for years. I was fed up, so I decided to take action. In addition to making an appeal to our insurance agent for lower rates, I decided to write to my congressman and state legislators and ask them to address this issue. Safe drivers everywhere should be rewarded, not penalized.

The easiest way to get the names and addresses of your national, state and local government officials is on the Internet. Some links are at the end of this article.

I know that letters from constituents are important to public servants (after all, we pay their salaries), but I also know that they get tons of mail. So I followed advice from several websites I located by typing the words "write your congressman" into the window of my favorite search engine, www.metacrawler.com

LETTER WRITING TIPS

ALWAYS:

• Address your letter to a specific person

• Identify yourself. Anonymous letters only go into the trash.

• Mention relevant credentials.

• Avoid wordy introductory remarks. State your concern succinctly and provide examples and supporting evidence. If you're writing about a specific piece of legislation, identify it clearly by name and number.

• Specify a remedy. Let the official know exactly what you are asking him or her to do.

• Use respectful, courteous language.

• Keep it short.

• Thank the person for taking the time to read and respond to your letter.

• Use inflammatory language or insults.

• Demand a response.

• Gush or overdo flattery. Let your reason, logic and supportive evidence do the talking

• Delay. The longer you wait, the longer it will be before action is taken on your behalf.

Since the letter I received from the state legislator was more encouraging than the one from the Congressman, I plan to learn more about insurance company provisions related to safe drivers and follow up with a second letter to bring my findings to his attention. If I can make headway at the state level first, my point of view will carry more weight with my congressman in the future.

A thoughtful, well-written letter will get your government official's attention and may lead to corrective action, provided you stay involved.

Think of your letter as the beginning of a dialogue. If that doesn't lead to results, a next step could be to call for a person-to-person interview. All members of Congress operate at least one office in their districts and schedule time to meet with constituents when they are in town. You may want to include other interested parties in your meeting, just to make a stronger case for your position and requested action.

INTERVIEWING TIPS

• Be prepared with facts, specific requests and supporting documentation, if needed.

• Arrive a few minutes early to avoid being late.

• Follow up on any disagreements with research into the facts and an offer to clarify disputed points in the future.

• Don't assume the legislator knows more than you do. You may be providing new information to him or her that will benefit others as well as the legislator in doing a better job for constituents.

LINKS:

Biographical directory of the US Congress

Up-to-date congressional votes

Democracy Network - a project of The League of Women Voters Education Fund. Get news and take action in your district. Learn about the candidates and where they stand on the issues. Participate in the League's "Face-off for the Presidency," a video candidate forum where you pick the candidate and the issues.

Please send questions or comments to bbruno@snet.net.