Take action now.
Let your elected officials know that ending hunger is important to you by calling, writing, and meeting with them.
Find out who your representatives are at www.legislature.ca.gov
Click on "Find my District" in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen.
There you can search for your representatives by zip code or by your full address.
Tips for Calling
Calling is great when time is of the essence – either you’re busy or a vote will quickly take place and there’s no time for a letter or visit Don’t expect to talk directly to your representative on your first call. A staff member will likely attend your call and they will pass on your concerns to the representative.
Introduce yourself clearly. Be sure to provide the staff member with your name and address if you are interested in receiving follow-up information.
Try to cover only one subject per call.
Keep your comments brief. Write them down before you call; this will help you be more confident and will help the conversation go more smoothly.
Thank your representative for their response (when they respond).
Tips for Meetings
Always schedule a meeting in advance and be as flexible as possible. Calling ahead of time and being flexible with the meeting time will dramatically increase your chances of getting a meeting with your representative or one of their staff members.
Don’t feel slighted if you end up meeting with a staff member. Your representative will often have you meet with trusted staff members who attend meetings and conduct other duties on behalf of your representative. You should provide the same information to the staff member as you would to your representative.
Come prepared. Know your issue well and don’t be surprised if your representative isn’t familiar with the issue. Show why the issue matters to you. If you are asked a question that you don’t know the answer to, offer to find out and get back to them.
Bring materials that help make your point. If you have statistics or studies to back up your views, bring copies for your representative.
Don’t be demanding BUT do try to ask your representative for some sort of commitment, some way that they would like to help you. This could be as simple as them promising to review the information you provided and to follow up with you by phone or email. You want to make sure that they understand your case and what they can do to help you, but don’t expect them to agree to vote a certain way right then and there.
Follow up. Send a thank you note to your representative. Contact the office and provide any follow-up information you had promised or have since found.
Send a letter!
You can write letters to all your elected officials about current hunger issues.
Right now, the Child Nutrition Reauthorization is a pressing matter that needs you support. Send Nancy Pelosi the message that no one should go hungry, especially children.
Use the following as a template for your own letter to Nancy Pelosi to help Child Nutrition Reauthorization.
To: Speaker Nancy Pelosi
Office of the Speaker
H-232, U.S. Capitol
Washington, DC 20515
Speaker Pelosi:
Almost 1 in 6 children in California live in households struggling with hunger. This is unacceptable. We should provide every child with the opportunity to succeed in life and this means having enough healthy food to eat. Knowing of the fundamental role you will play in setting federal priorities, and as a resident of California, I'm asking you to provide a significant increase of at least $1 billion a year in the amount of funding available for the reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Programs. This is a necessary down payment towards achieving President Obama's goal of ending childhood hunger by 2015... because no one should be hungry, especially children. We're counting on you.
Sincerely,
Name:
Address:
City:
State:
Zip:
Phone:
Email:
And don’t forget to PARTICIPATE!
Attend town hall or other public meetings. Wear a conspicuous button, bring a fact sheet, carry a folder with a visible message, and ask questions.
Information courtesy of Advocacy 101 by the California Food Policy Advocates, “A Guide to Participation: How to Lobby the California State Legislature” prepared by the Speaker’s Office of Member Services and Nancy Amidei for the Civic Engagement Project.