Contacting Your Representative by Mail

One of the most popular and
effective choices for contacting your elected representative is by a personal
letter.
Here are some helpful ways of making sure your letter gets
noticed:
- Always address your envelope to The
Honorable "Full Name Here". Make SURE you have spelled the name
correctly.
- Make the purpose of your letter
apparent in the first paragraph (or add a "RE:" line just above the
salutation).
- If your correspondence specifically
addresses a particular piece of legislation, then be sure to identify it.
- It is best to address only one issue at
a time, but if there are several issues that are within the same context
as the main issue you are addressing, then feel free to comment on those too,
using a separate paragraph for each issue.
- It is very important to
be courteous and respectful. Remember that "You catch more flies with honey
than vinegar".
- Make your letter brief and to the
point. Attempt to limit the letter to one page if at all possible.
- Include pertinent information
- Use examples which support your
position whenever applicable
- When making the salutation, be certain
to address your Congressman as Representative/Senator "Full Name Here".
- Make sure the legislator knows the letter is from a constituent who lives
and/or does business in the legislator’s district.
- If your letter is going to the Speaker
of the House or to the Chair of a Committee, be sure to address them as:
"Mr./Madam Speaker" or "Mr. Chairman/Madam Chairwoman"
- Write the chairman or members of a committee holding hearings on
legislation in which you are interested if you want to. However, remember that
you have more influence with legislators from your own district than with any
others. Write the Governor after the bill is passed by both the House and the
Senate, if you want to influence his decision to sign the bill or not.
- Explain how the proposed legislation affects you and why you
support/oppose it.
- Don’t attempt to give "expert" opinions. Tell how the legislation would
affect you based on your experience and knowledge.
- Ask for the legislator’s support or opposition.
- Write your own letter without copying RFA / TEXAS provided background
information verbatim. Use RFA / TEXAS provided information and sample letters
as guidelines only.
- Identify yourself as a member of the Texas State Chapter of the
Recreational Fishing Alliance but Do NOT claim to represent the
views of RFA / Texas unless you have been officially authorized to do so.
- Request that your legislator take a specific action by telling him/her
what you desire. State the facts as you see them. Avoid emotional arguments.
If you use dollar figures, be realistic.
- Ask the legislator what his/her position is and how they plan to vote
- Keep all communication friendly and respectful. Be sure to thank your
legislator for considering your views.
- Write on your personal or business letterhead if possible, and sign your
name over your typed signature at the end of your message. Handwritten letters
are fine if they are legible.
- Letters may be mailed or faxed. Time constraints or potential delays due
to security procedures may dictate the use of fax. However, most legislators
agree that the fax shouldn't be used in place of more traditional methods,
such as a letter, because fax machines are used mostly for inter-office
correspondence and tend to become overloaded. Often faxes aren't given much
credence and are sometimes thrown away because their volume makes them
difficult to deal with. The increase in technological communication wears out
the staff. When the use of fax is necessary, it is wise to call
the representative's office and ask the staff to be alert to your fax
before sending it.
- Be sure your exact return address is on the letter, not just the envelope.
Envelopes sometimes get thrown away before the letter is answered.
- Be reasonable, don’t ask for the impossible. Don’t threaten. Don’t say,
"I’ll never vote for you unless you do such and such." That will not help your
cause; it may even harm it.
- Be constructive, if a bill deals with a problem you admit exists, but you
believe the bill is the wrong approach, tell what the right approach is.
- Follow through. If you do not get a reply, write again. Enclose a
photocopy of your last letter and ask why you have not received a response.
When you receive a reply, follow up with a response saying why you disagree or
agree with the response
- Send RFA / TEXAS a copy of your letter and a copy of the response you
receive from your legislator.
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