How to Influence the Government via E-mail

We, Americans have the privilege of freedom of speech. We are entitled to express our opinions to our government representatives. They have the right to pay attention to what we say or to ignore our opinions. Sometimes, they actually listen to what we are saying. Especially, they will listen when large numbers of constituents write to them on the same subject. Following are some directions on how to contact our government and our representatives:

Go to USA.gov. You will see a list of contacts you might like to make on the left side of the page starting with the President and Vice President of the United States. Below, you will see listed U.S. Senators, U.S. Representatives, State Governors, State Representatives, and then agencies you might like to contact. Follow the links, and you will be able to contact the person to whom you might want to speak.Here are a few tips on what to say:

1) Write each e-mail concerning only one issue.
2) Put the main point in the subject line. Very likely that is all that your addressee will read. For instance, your subject line should read something like this—Vote Yes on S. 528, the STAND UP Act.
3) Whenever you can, always refer to legislative bills by number as well as name.
4) Familiarize yourself with Thomas.loc.gov, the web page for the U.S. Congress and Senate, you should read at least the summary of a bill you are petitioning about. Often, advocates for a bill may unfairly represent that bill on the web or in an e-mail. Always try to look at the bill, yourself—it only takes a minute to do that.
5) In examining state legislation, go to USA.gov and choose State Legislators; choose the state; then, choose bills. I have found that in most states, when looking for a concise and accurate summary of a bill, it is best to look at “fiscal impact” in the bill menu.
6) Limit your message to one or two short paragraphs. The longer your message, the less likely it will be read.
7) Be sure to mention how this issue will affect you.
8) Write to legislators whom you know disagree with your point of view—they need to hear from you, too; and they are the ones you really want to influence, anyway.
9) Be sure to include the President or the Governor in your addressee list. Do not write only to Senators or Representatives.
10) Write to the same representatives repeatedly on the same issue. This is especially important when writing to United States legislators or the President. Those representatives will seldom read your e-mail; but they have aides who read and tabulate issues for their bosses. The legislator will only see the tabulation of the issues.
11) Be courteous always.