Initial Publication Date: November 30, 2021

Addressing Local Interests

How best can we open an information exchange with local policymakers about research that addresses local interests?

Our second panel and associated breakout groups discussed the problem of how to work with staff of elected officials. We also discussed the differences between policy makers at the Local, State and Federal level.During the panel, we heard from Dahlia Sokolov (Staff Director for the Research & Technology Subcommittee of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology), Allison Hats(Senior Manager for Public Affairs at the Consortium for Ocean Leadership), and Michael Villafranca(Senior Specialist for Science Policy and Government Relations at the AGU). Their remarks emphasized the importance of forming working relationships with elected officials and their staffs, working through government relations staff on our campuses, and developing coalitions to carry our "asks". Also emphasized was the value in writing public opinion pieces, social media posts and news items that explicitly identify work done by elected officials, since these messages will be seen by those officials through news wire clipping services.

General Advice

  • The average Bill takes 7 Congresses (14 yrs) to make it through Congress to the President's desk. This is more than any one President's full term. Hence, minimizing opposition is important. Fortunately, Ocean Exploration is not wildly controversial.... Therefore, we do not have the headwinds that would come from having active opposition to our goals.
  • Early in the bill-writing process, we need Member champions to engage other members, and briefings to Congressional staff.
  • It is also important to show that there is broad community support. Hence, build partnerships with other organizations who could help advocate for our interests, such as:
    •          Industry
    •          Aquariums
    •          Philanthropic groups
    •          Ocean Conservation groups
    •          Consortium for Ocean Leadership etc......
  • Staff typically bring about 70% of the funding proposals to budget discussions, while members bring the remaining 30% of funding items; hence, getting to know staff is very useful to get your items considered in budget markup discussions.

 

How to work with Congressional Staff?

  • Committee staff are experts (in contrast to member's staffers) so assume they know the basic issues—Conversely, DO NOT assume they have ever heard of your program! They will appreciate high-level talking points.
  • Staff will want to know that you speak for a larger group; hence you should coordinate your visit and remarks with your Government Relations office, Society office, or other organizations relevant to your issue.  Government relations staff have tools to access staffer lists and portfolios for representatives; they can point you to the right people to talk with.
  • Staff are interested in issues you have with program management challenges and inter-agency issues. They are also interested in good news stories. They might know about the program you are interested in assuming it already is funded in some way.
  • At the same time, NSF has its own internal management structure and rules (set by NSF's Science Board), so Congressional Staff will try not to interfere with NSF priorities.
  • For meetings with Congressional Staff and Members, a key point is to ask yourself "Why should they care"! This is often not why you care! The answer may have to do with the specific bills they have supported before, industries/institutions in their districts, and topics they have championed.
  • Become a trusted source of information for Staff; offer to meet when they are in town or set up site visits.

 

How we can help ourselves

  • We need a clearinghouse of legislator contact information and background for each scientist's home area.
  • Prepare media tactics (to reach the local news especially) well in advance of sailing (with Co-chiefs, USSSP, EPM, shipboard scientists) so that the journalists can create a buzz around your participation which will reach the ears of the local representatives.
  • Mention key Member's support in your news events so that they will hear about it through their News Clipping Service.
  • If you have a good news story, talk to your Government Relations office to coordinate with your local Member's district office for good press. 

 

All Politics is Local—how to reach out to local offices. Key Points:

  • It is easier to engage Local officials than National officials.  Local officials have their ears close to the ground and are looking for ways to interact with their community and to be seen as supportive of local programs. 
  • Although we think of Ocean Drilling as an international program (and it is), we can also support parts of it with Local or State initiatives.  For example, much of what we do in public engagement, K-12 to University education, and even our science, could be supported through Local/State initiatives.  Think about afterschool programs, Aquarium/Museum exhibits & activities, Workforce training programs... City council members usually have a "community fund"—money they can give out to support things in their communities—maybe they can support your summer program for inner city youth?
  • Some things like growing the workforce, increasing STEM diversity, and increasing University-Industry partnerships may be easier to launch as State initiatives than as National ones.

 

For State & Local Outreach there are three elements: Learn, Meet and Act: