When in session, legislators usually convene in Raleigh on Monday evening with committee meetings and general sessions until Thursday afternoon.  The 2008 session of the General Assembly begins at noon on Tuesday, May 13th.

Some areas have several different legislative districts; therefore, your county may have a number of legislators.  If you do not have the names and addresses of the legislators who represent your county, you can get that information on the General Assembly's website.

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LOBBYING 101

...or everything you ever wanted to know about relationship-building with your legislators

As a citizen of North Carolina you are not only invited, but are encouraged, to visit with and cultivate a relationship with your elected officials to express your views and concerns and to attempt to influence the legislative process.

You have elected these individuals to represent you in your local, state and federal governments. If you do not have the names and contact information for all the legislators who represent your county in the state House and Senate, click here.

Contacting and cultivating relationships with your elected officials and communicating your personal views with them is an important right, as important as voting and monitoring public policies that affect you, your family, and your community. To do their jobs properly, legislators need to hear their constituents' opinions.  They pay attention to your input, and they appreciate it.

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TIPS FOR CONTACTING ELECTED OFFICIALS

• Just as in personal relationships, people are likely to trust you if they know you. So cultivate relationships with your elected officials before you need to talk with them about a public policy issue of importance to you.
   
• Avoid form letters. Legislators are impressed with a personal note or letter.
   
• Keep letters short and on point. A page or less is optimal. State your purpose for writing in the first paragraph and be sure to reference the short title or bill number.
   
• Provide factual information to support your point(s).
   
• If you are interested in the progress of a bill, you can keep track of it using the General Assembly's website.  The sponsor's legislative clerk can tell you when the committees will be taking testimony from the public, and this is your chance to speak.
   
• When testifying in person, bring a written copy of your statement, along with supporting materials (newspaper and/or editorial articles, studies, reports, etc.). Bring enough copies for each member of the committee and extras for legislative staff. To see who is on the committee(s) in which you are interested, click here for House or Senate.
   
• To meet with your Representative or Senator, call and make an appointment. It is usually best to visit with the member in your home area, because when he or she is in Raleigh or Washington, there are many demands on their time. However, elected officials are often very impressed when their constituents travel out-of-town to visit with them.
   
• For personal appointments, follow the same rules of brevity that you would in letters by staying on point. It is helpful if you bring written information outlining your point (known in lobbying circles as a "leave-behind").
   
• Get to know the legislator’s clerk. She or he is close to the legislator and usually maintains the office calendar for appointments. Therefore, being polite and helpful to the legislator’s staff will serve you well.
   
• Honesty is the best policy - in the event that you do not have the answer to a legislator’s question, it is best that you admit that. Be sure to let the legislator know that you will get the information, then be sure to follow-up in a timely matter with that information.
   
• Be sure to thank your legislator...verbally and in a follow up note when you return home.