'Constituents have more power than lobbyists'
On Feb. 7, 2013, HEAL Utah, the Utah Chapter of the Sierra Club and Utah Rivers Council presented “Green Lobby Night: A Citizen Advocate Training” at the State Capitol building in Room 130. About 50 people participated in the training. Zach Frankel of Utah Rivers Council talked about how to start the lobbying process.
“The most important thing to understand about lobbying at the Utah legislature is that you have power,” says Frankel.
Legislators want to keep their jobs, and they need to keep their constituents happy. In order to be a constituent, people must register to vote.
While people may email a legislator, Frankel emphasized face to face meetings or phone calls, and suggested that people leave a message for the legislator if they got an answering service.
“As constituents, you have more power than a lobbyist,” says Frankel.
When talking to legislators, people should keep it short and to the point. The message should be conveyed with name, “I am a constituent,” and “I am concerned about…” whatever the bill is. Be sure to mention the bill number and what the bill is about and then state an opinion.
For those bills that the person is most concerned about, he or she can sign up for alerts at the Utah government web site. It is important to show up at the committee hearing where the bill is being considered. It is the only place where a citizen can speak to a bill.
“If you communicate with your legislators… and you keep communicating with them,” says Frankel, “then you will build a relationship that will last years and years.”
This article originally appeared at examiner.com.
“The most important thing to understand about lobbying at the Utah legislature is that you have power,” says Frankel.
Legislators want to keep their jobs, and they need to keep their constituents happy. In order to be a constituent, people must register to vote.
While people may email a legislator, Frankel emphasized face to face meetings or phone calls, and suggested that people leave a message for the legislator if they got an answering service.
“As constituents, you have more power than a lobbyist,” says Frankel.
When talking to legislators, people should keep it short and to the point. The message should be conveyed with name, “I am a constituent,” and “I am concerned about…” whatever the bill is. Be sure to mention the bill number and what the bill is about and then state an opinion.
For those bills that the person is most concerned about, he or she can sign up for alerts at the Utah government web site. It is important to show up at the committee hearing where the bill is being considered. It is the only place where a citizen can speak to a bill.
“If you communicate with your legislators… and you keep communicating with them,” says Frankel, “then you will build a relationship that will last years and years.”
This article originally appeared at examiner.com.