dec04d.indd


W a s h i n g t o n  H o t l i n e  Bernadette Murphy 

Following a highly charged campaign season 
and election, Congress began a lame­duck 
session in mid­November. It is important to 
remember that even after the months of un­
precedented participation by the electorate in 
both parties’ campaigns, your responsibilities 
as a citizen and a library supporter do not 
end when the election is over: your respon­
sibilities extend to a year­round campaign 
to inform your senators and representatives 
about what’s best for your library. 

Libraries serve their communities and the 
people in them, so who better to carry the 
library message to Congress than the commu­
nity itself—librarians, library trustees, Board 
members, and friends of libraries? 

What you can do to make a difference 
Make an effort to understand what is happen­
ing at the federal and state levels in addition 
to what is happening in your community. You 
can stay on top of local issues by reading the 
town newspaper, attending Board meetings, 
developing and maintaining relationships 
with your local elected officials, and regularly 
communicating important information to 
library trustees and Board members. 

Resources are at hand 
There are many resources available to you 
to aid communication with elected offi cials 
at the federal level. The U.S. House of Rep­
resentatives (www.house.gov/) and the U.S. 
Senate (www.senate.gov/) Web sites provide 
information on contacting elected offi cials, 
including how to write to Members of Con­
gress, phone numbers, and e­mail addresses. 
The ALA Washington Office’s Legislative 
Action Center (congress.nw.dc.us/ala) offers 
direct e­mail links and phone numbers for 
elected officials both in Washington, D.C., 
and in district offices. The Legislative Action 
Center has presidential and congressional 
biographical information; information and 
background on pending and current legisla­

Bernadette Murphy is communications specialist at ALA’s 
Washington Offi ce, e-mail: bmurphy@alawash.org 

tion; and talking points and alerts on issues 
of particular interest to the library community. 
It also gives you the ability to send e­mail to 
your legislator, print and fax letters, or send 
a letter by mail. 

Strategies to develop relationships 
Success stories happen in libraries everyday. 
Your task is to tell others about those stories. 
It is valuable to describe a particular program 
when dealing with your local, state, and fed­
erally elected officials. Write to your legislator 
(or call the office) and tell him or her directly 
how federal funds benefit your library. It is 
also important to make known how cuts in 
funding result in diminished benefi ts and 
services to the legislator’s community. 

The very best strategy is to invite legisla­
tors to your library to see your programs 
in action. Many elected officials enjoy and 
remember being a guest at their local library, 
and it is a perfect photo opportunity (use the 
photograph, with appropriate approvals, to 
promote and market services at your library 
or send it to your local paper to publish 
and encourage media coverage of library 
programs). 

When we involve a local, state, or na­
tional official in our business, we give them 
something to be proud of, something to be 
part of, something they can own as part of 
our community. 

It’s all about you 
Elected officials run for office on their abil­
ity to get things accomplished—when they 
run for re­election, they run on their accom­
plishments. If you want elected offi cials to 
continue to take action on your issues, you 
need to communicate your areas of interest 
and concern to them directly. Build personal 
relationships with your elected offi cials, tell 
them your stories, and speak with them 
regularly. Build your foundation, identify 
grassroots advocates that will speak out in 
support of the library. You, as a constituent, 
are the most persuasive advocate. 

Good luck! 

714 / C&RL NewsDecember 2004 

mailto:bmurphy@alawash.org
http:www.senate.gov
http:www.house.gov