By: Kyle Packham
Getting to know your elected representatives is one of the best ways to ensure your voice is heard in key policy discussions. The more familiar your district’s legislators are with your agency, the better the chance that they will understand and prioritize the needs of special districts when making decisions.
So, how do you get started?
1. First, you need to know who represents you. You can find your state representatives with an online tool here, and your Congressional representatives through a similar tool here. You can also take a look at the legislative maps available online.
2. From there, it’s not enough just to know their names. Find out what committees they sit on, visit their websites, read their biographies, subscribe to their newsletters, follow them on social media and attend their town hall meetings or open houses. The idea is to learn about the issues important to them and the communities they represent. This info can help you find areas of common interest, or areas where they might welcome your expertise.
3. Eventually (and sooner is better than later) you’ll want to have a meeting to get to know the legislator personally, put a face to the name of your special district and make your relationship more meaningful. It’s best if you can do this before you need to ask them for their support on an issue or a bill, but that may not always be feasible. Just know that a face-to-face meeting is the most effective way to cultivate a relationship, so you should endeavor to meet with your legislators at least once a year – in addition to seeing them at community events in the region.
Meetings can be scheduled at the legislators’ Capitol or District office, or virtually, or for maximum impact you can invite them to your office/facility for a site tour. When you’re ready, visit our Take Action Toolkit to find a sample meeting request letter, tips and tricks to get the most out of your meeting, and a template follow up/thank you letter for after the meeting.
Importantly, when requesting meetings: Your legislator may have a staff member present, or may ask you to meet with a staff member who specializes in your area of interest instead. Meetings with staffers can be just as productive and positive as meeting with the legislator. Be gracious and accept the meeting with staff as an opportunity to meet with the person who the legislator will turn to for a recommendation on the topic. Your willingness to be flexible may also be helpful in securing future meetings.
It’s going to be a busy legislative session again in 2025, with no shortage of issues and proposals important to special districts. Competition for the attention of legislators and policymakers is going to as tough as ever. At the same time, we want to be sure the media, your local government officials, and the communities you serve all understand the critically important roles special districts play in California’s economy, infrastructure and quality of life.
Our goal with Take Action Month is to equip you with the tools and information you can use to build these relationships and communicate effectively with all of these important audiences.
Check your inbox every Tuesday in February, as each week your CSDA eNews will bring you information and resources on how to:
· Request and hold productive meetings with your legislators
· Take positions for or against legislation
· Up your earned media game
· Mobilize grassroots supporters, stakeholders and allies to help support or oppose legislation
To get started, visit our Take Action Toolkit where you’ll find resources and a preview of what’s to come.
Want to learn more? Check out these webinars in our CSDA resource library for CSDA members:
• Members.csda.net/OnDemand
• Grassroots Advocacy and Public Outreach
• Legislative Relations 101
• Grassroots Advocacy 101
• Media Relations 101
• Take Action: Engaging with Your Legislators
• Building Relationships with Your Lawmaker’s District Office
Special districts are addressing California’s biggest challenges every day. They are the backbone of California’s economy and infrastructure, and provide highly specialized services to virtually every Californian. Our elected leaders, our media, and our communities need to hear our story.
Let’s Take Action together!