Recently I was fortunate to participate in “Psychology Day” at our State Capitol in Frankfort, Kentucky. This annual event is organized so psychologists and psychology students can meet with our state legislators to help promote current bills related to mental health issues that are working their way through the state legislative process.
In preparation for our visits with the legislators, we are briefed on the key bills that we will be talking about which have been endorsed as legislative priorities by our state psychological association. Among the bills we focused on this year were several pieces of legislation related to the mental and physical health of schoolchildren, through bills that would: a) provide additional school counselors and mental health professionals in the K-12 public schools; b) require smoke-free school campuses; and c) prohibit the use of corporal punishment in the schools.
Additionally, we steadfastly promote legislation which could enhance programming or funding for the public mental health system, increase access to care for underserved populations, and reduce barriers to effective health care.
This year, I was able to visit with five different legislators. Two of them represent my home district; one in the Senate and one in the House of Representatives. I also sat in on three visits with psychology students who were meeting the legislators from their districts.
As I reflected on these visits, I walked away with a few ideas you may find useful if you are meeting with legislators to promote mental health-related legislation. Here are 10 tips, in no particular order:
- Say you are a constituent. If you live in your legislator’s district, say so. This carries weight, as they highly value the opinions of their constituents as they have been elected to represent you. Plus they are mindful of wanting your vote the next time they are up for re-election. When you meet, address them appropriately, as “Senator Jones,” “Representative Smith,” or whatever title is appropriate in your governmental setting.
- It’s about the relationship. Every time I meet with legislators, I’m always a bit surprised how a significant part of the conversation is just chatting about who you are, what you do, what they are working on, and so on. Take a little time to develop the relationship before launching into your issues. Having met with my legislators several times over the years, we now have a cordial relationship and they recognize me as a familiar face who is invested to keep coming back to promote mental health issues.
- Be prepared. Do your homework and know the key bills you want to promote. It’s very helpful if you are associated with a mental health advocacy group who can do the research and prepare summaries of the bills and their current status in the legislative process. It can also be useful to take a look at the legislator’s background and their prior voting record on mental health issues, to get a sense of whether they are generally in support of these concerns.
- Know where the bill is in the process. If a bill has already passed the House and is on its way to the Senate, thank the House members for passing the bill and encourage the Senators to be on the lookout for it. Or the order may be reversed if the bill originated in the Senate. Sometimes a bill has had no movement or it may be stalled in a committee. You won’t appear well informed if you aren’t aware of the current status of the bill. You can monitor the bill’s status through the legislative website or via a regularly updated printed legislative record.
- Be concise. You will often only have five or ten minutes to talk with a legislator, as they are very busy when the legislature is in session. Rank order the bills you want to promote so you can make sure to talk about at least the two or three most important ones in the limited time you have. Briefly state the bill number, what it’s about, where it is in the process and why you support it.
- Be even more concise. Sometimes you may only have a minute or two to speak with a legislator and this may be as they walk to a committee meeting or to the legislative chamber. If so, pick out the one bill that’s your biggest priority and make a quick pitch for it.
- Tell your story. As you promote specific bills, tell a brief personal story about why this bill is important to you from your perspective as either a mental health professional, or convey an account from a consumer of mental health services, or a friend or family member of someone who has been impacted by mental health challenges. This puts a “face” on the issue and can help the legislator connect more personally with the issue.
- Be pleasant but assertive. Don’t expect legislators to be on board with your stance on every bill. They will be supportive of some and openly opposed to others. If they aren’t fully on board, politely ask what might help them to consider supporting the issue. Provide any research or other information you have which backs your views on the bill.
- Leave behind information. As you finish your meeting, leave behind a brief one or two-page typed summary of all the bills you are supporting for the legislator’s future reference. Since you likely won’t have had time to discuss them all, mention there are additional bills you would like them to consider which are outlined on the summary sheet.
- Say thank you and offer to keep in touch. Thank the legislator as you conclude the meeting and send them a hand-written (yes, hand-written) thank you card in the next day or two. Offer to be available if they need further information on any of the bills or if they would like to discuss them further. Provide them your business card, email or phone number so they can easily reach you.
I hope these tips can be helpful if you have the chance to visit with legislators to promote pending legislation that’s important to you. While my focus is on mental health, these strategies should work well for just about any type of legislation you may want to advocate for.
I know it can be a bit intimidating to talk with legislators. But remember they are elected to represent you. Also, recognize they are flooded with information about hundreds of bills and you can do them a great service by highlighting important reasons for supporting the bills you discuss with them. As you establish a more long-standing relationship over time, they will come to see you as a credible and knowledgeable resource on mental health issues.
Please consider getting involved in this form of legislative advocacy to promote mental health issues. Your voice is important and your perspective is unique. Step up and speak out. You can have a significant impact in influencing key advances to improve the health and well-being of many citizens. Act now.
Here’s a question: What has been your experience in talking with legislators about mental health issues? Please leave a comment. Also, please subscribe to my blog and feel free to follow me on X (formerly Twitter) or Instagram, “like” my Facebook page, or connect on LinkedIn. Finally, if you enjoyed this post, please share it with a friend. Thanks!