May 2006

News & Legislation Update:  5-25-2006

NAVIGATING CONGRESS

OR

“WORKING THE HILL”

Each & everyday of the week, every corner of every street surrounding the three Senate buildings and three House buildings on Capitol Hill are teeming with hundreds of people from dozens of companies and organizations all descending on congressional offices and all clamoring for the same things…

ACCESS

SUPPORT FOR THEIR ISSUES

MONEY

Each person is armed with their matching organizational tote bag with logo ablaze in a variety of shapes and sizes, all attempting to say “look at us.” Many look professional; others are simply there “for the ride.”

On average, many of the “20 something” (age) staff persons on the Hill meet with individuals or groups every 15 minutes throughout the entire day, their notepads either filled with interest in the subject matter being presented or blank from boredom or indifference. At the end of the day, it is our job to ensure that regardless of how many groups entered that office that day, the staff and the Representative or Senator remember federal wildland firefighters and their issues.

The FWFSA simply cannot compete in the traditional sense with these larger groups who have the financial resources to not only bring dozens of their representatives/employees to Washington DC, but can often secure the above-referenced “prizes” with those same resources through political contributions.

As a result, although our membership continues to grow, our relatively modest size has demanded that we develop strategies for securing Congress’ support on our issues that allow us to compete on the same level as much larger organizations.

The result of our strategy has been to secure legislation authored by the House Resources Committee Chairman on behalf of our Nation’s federal wildland firefighters. Those results also include a diverse bipartisan group of lawmakers representing the full spectrum of political ideology in Congress who have joined each other as cosponsors on our legislation, demonstrating their understanding of our issues and willingness to affect positive change for all of you.

How has the FWFSA been able to secure a foothold in Congress enabling us not only to gain access to key members of Congress but secure their support for our issues?

What we haven’t been able to spend in cold hard cash has been spent in developing, nurturing and maintaining long-term, personal relationships with many members of Congress and their staff over many, many years.

Further investment in time and energy has been spent earning our credibility on Capitol Hill by providing Congress with accurate, factual data on the issues that affect our firefighters and crafting unique, personal marketing strategies for each individual member of Congress or staff person.

While our issues are certainly bipartisan, we do employ a bit of partisan gamesmanship on occasion. If we secure a Democrat on board our bill as a cosponsor, we immediately email or fax that information to other Democratic offices to let them know that another one of their colleagues has cosponsored this important “Republican authored” bill.

Conversely, we will contact Republican offices to let them know that yet another Democrat has signed onto the bill in an attempt to get them to “one up” the other side of the aisle. Despite these “tactics,” those on both sides of the aisle know very well that we value or relationships with all of them. We can’t possibly agree with their political record and ideology on every issue, whether they are Democrat or Republican. However if they choose to stand strong and support our issues, than we need to ensure we cultivate that relationship.

It is absolutely crucial to know your audience. Success on Capitol Hill mandates that we know who we’re talking to whether it be what party they represent, what district and in what state they represent etc. Often times the differences in communicating with one office to another may be subtle and not discernable to most. However it is that long-term investment of time that allows us to know who we’re talking to and what needs to be said.

A visit with a long-term friend and supporter is often different than a visit in an office for the first time. While the bottom line remains the same, it is our focus on initial visits to ensure those members of Congress and their staff know we are there to establish a long-term relationship with them. While touching on an issues, it is incredibly important not to go into a congressional office for the first time and simply say “this is who we are, this is what we want, give us your support.”

As you can imagine it is incredibly difficult, especially in an election year, to access members of the House and Senate outside of one’s own district. As a result, accessing such offices has required additional strategic planning. In other words, while a member of Congress may not have any federal wildland firefighters in their district or any federal lands to protect, they all have one common denominator…TAXPAYERS.

As a result, we tie our issues into the impact current pay & personnel policies of the land-management agencies have on their constituent’s tax dollars. We identify the waste and the diversion of funds which impacts our firefighters and those our firefighters protect…the taxpaying constituents. This allows for more meaningful access.

There is often no rhyme or reason as to when a member of Congress supports an issue. While in Washington DC recently, cosponsors were secured while speaking with them in their office. Still others have signed onto HR 408 a year or more after we started working with their office on the issue. Some, because of our long-term relationships, have signed on with a simple phone call from the FWFSA. Still others who we would expect to be on board have yet to sign on for a number of reasons, the most common being the stunning frequency of staff turnover on Capitol Hill.

While HR 408 shows great bipartisan support, we are working tirelessly on strategies to secure a companion Senate bill. Let’s face it. The House and Senate are two very different groups of people. The Senate has always been a “tougher nut to crack” than the House. Despite this, we have provided a number of western senators with factual, irrefutable data that supports our need not only for HR 408 but an overhaul of the archaic pay & personnel policies, inclusive of classification, that burden our wildland firefighters.

Your continued support as members of the FWFSA gives us the morale boost we need when we’re on the Hill without a huge supporting cast, spending 10 hours a day hustling from office to office without a break.

Your continued support provides us with the true honor of representing the most deserving of firefighters in our country and the motivation to continue down this long road to success. The issues we are addressing are not new. They are long-standing issues which now need to be addressed and resolved once and for all. The catalyst for getting that done has been the FWFSA’s commitment to establishing long-term relationships in Congress and our diligence in delivering factual information to those that are in a position to effect positive change for all of you.

Our sincerest thanks for giving us the honor & opportunity to work with & for you on the issues facing you today.

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