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Government policymakers are elected or appointed
to make new laws and decide how funds are appropriated, or budgeted.
Policymakers who know you and understand your concerns
will be more open to hearing your ideas when you ask for their help.
It is important to build good relationships with policymakers.
A relationship goes beyond writing a letter
or calling to show your support.
While these tactics are great ways to introduce yourself,
relationships require many contacts over time.
You'll learn more about specific tactics and how to use them in Module 4.
A good relationship includes
knowing the legislator's interests and background, finding things you have in common,
educating the legislator about your issue, acting as a resource on your issue, and
communicating regularly and often.
The more you know about someone,
the easier it is to ask them for help.
Try to learn about the legislator's
education, family information,
hobbies and interests, election history,
past political assignments, current committee assignments,
political priorities and interests, and voting record.
You can get much of this at the library or on the Internet.
Look at the information you've gathered about the legislator.
Do you share common interests?
Do you fight for and believe in the same things?
Do you share a passion, such as equal access
for people who are deaf, deaf-blind and hard of hearing?
Common interests are a relationship's building blocks.
Most policymakers don't understand the challenges you and your families face.
That doesn't mean they're not interested.
Rather, it usually means they haven't had the chance,
the staff or the time to learn more.
Policymakers depend on people around them to keep them informed.
A personal story will definitely impact them.
Establish yourself as a resource that policymakers can utilize for
accurate, unbiased information on a particular topic or issue including
get the facts,
collect articles, stories, cartoons, e-mails, etc., and
share information periodically with policymakers.
The more contact you have with a policymaker,
the stronger your relationship will become.
Communicating regularly can take many forms.
Always make sure your information is
truthful, factual, timely, pertinent, short and to the point.
Check out Tips and Tools for more great ideas.