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The 2011 National Environmental Policy Forum, May 8-11 in Washington, D.C., will provide NACWA members with an excellent opportunity to visit the offices of their congressional delegation.  NACWA hopes to build on the buzz that was created during the March Money Matters™ Fly-In and has dedicated Tuesday, May 11 from 2:00 - 4:30 pm for Capitol Hill visits.  The Policy Forum also provides NACWA members the opportunity to invite their Members of Congress to our Capitol Hill Reception, also on May 11 from 5:30-7:00 pm.

Make Appointments to Meet Your Members of Congress

Meeting regularly with your Members of Congress and their staff is critical to building a lasting and productive relationship.  For this reason, as well as the breadth of clean water issues before Congress, NACWA members are encouraged to schedule appointments to visit with their congressional delegations during the Policy Forum.

For your convenience, NACWA will prepare short briefing papers on the Association’s top advocacy issues that reflect the clean water community’s national priorities.  This information can be used as a reference during your meetings and as leave-behind documents for your congressional delegation and their staff.  Please plan on incorporating your priorities and challenges back home with the national message provided by NACWA’s briefing papers.

To secure a meeting with your Representative or Senators contact the scheduler for that member’s office and explain who you represent and the issues you plan to discuss.  It is best to do this by submitting an official request through e-mail.  If you are seeking a meeting with congressional staff, most offices do not require you to contact their scheduler.  In this case, you can contact the staff directly by phone or e-mail.  If you have never been in contact with staff in a particular office you can call the Member of Congress’s main telephone line in Washington, D.C. and ask who handles clean water issues.  Complete contact information can be found at both www.house.gov and www.senate.gov.

Invite Your Representatives to the NACWA Capitol Hill Reception

NACWA will host our Capitol Hill Reception at the rooftop terrace at 101 Constitution Avenue, N.W., on Tuesday, May 11 from 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm NACWA encourages you to invite your Members of Congress to this event.  A 2011 Capitol Hill Reception Invitation is available on NACWA’s website for you to download and e-mail or forward to your guests.  NACWA’s national office has extended invitations to Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma), Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, Congressman Bob Gibbs (R-Ohio) and Timothy Bishop (R-N.Y.), Chairman and Ranking Member respectively of the House Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee.

Please take advantage of this valuable opportunity to bring your message to your federal officials.  If you have any questions regarding arranging these meetings or require assistance please contact John Krohn, Manager of Legislative Affairs, at 202/833-4655.