Know the Power Of The Phone Call or Email To Lawmakers

When I first started lobbying for AARP Wyoming, I asked AARP Wyoming Executive Council Member and former Executive Director of the Wyoming Hospital Association Dan Perdue for the secret to talking to lawmakers.

He told me, “if I tell a legislator something, they might remember what I told them. If someone from their local hospital tells them something, they always remember it.”

Truer words never spoken.

Perdue’s comments illustrate the impact legislators rightly put on direct input from constituents. Membership organizations are great (especially AARP) and have their place, but lawmakers like to listen to those who are most directly impacted. The good ones want to know what is happening in their communities and how the state government can help.

Last month, the AARP Wyoming Volunteer Summit asked State Senator Eric Barlow to discuss the 2024 session and preview the 2025 session. The Senator from Gillette made it clear the weight that hearing from constituents carries. He made it clear how little he regarded organizations that try to stuff his email inbox with automatic messages, but how quick he is to open a text, return a call, or click on an email from someone he knows, especially those in his district.

He told the group to start meeting with lawmakers now - develop a relationship and make sure they know you are their constituent and that you are interested in civil dialog. Talk to lawmakers about who you are and your issue now, get it on their radar and understand once the legislative session starts it might be too late to microwave that relationship. Contacting a lawmaker during session is fine, but given the workload lawmakers deal with during session, it pays to have a good relationship foundation.

I spend a lot of time in the halls of the Capitol during the interim and the session and Barlow’s theory seems to hold true for Republicans and Democrats of all stripes. If a legislator spots a friend from back home in the lobby, they make a beeline and sometimes even introduce that constituent on the floor of their chamber.

This is all to say, now is the time to discuss your hopes and concerns for the 2025 session with your lawmaker. They want to hear from you and they want to be able to fill their phone with numbers of folks they can call when they hear a bill on a subject you might offer advice on. If you are looking for the contact information for your lawmakers, or aren’t sure who represents you going into the 2025 session, go to wyoleg.gov and look at the bottom right of every page. You will find contacts as well as a “find my legislator,” tab where you can enter your address and find out your lawmaker’s names and numbers.

Last thing - if reaching out to a legislator is a first for you, call me or email me. I’d be glad to help you put together some thoughts and talking points to explain to your lawmaker what is important to you and why. Reach out to me at 307-214-2071.

You have the power, whether you realize it or not. Now, it is up to you as to how you will use it.