NCIL Member Center

Tips for Hill Visits

Prep for meetings

  • Review the Advocacy and Legislative Agenda
  • Look over your schedule and identify what buildings you have to go to
  • There is security. Make sure you arrive with enough time to go through security.
  • Gather the contact information for those that will be meeting with you.
  • House Offices Rayburn, Cannon and Longworth are connected by a tunnel.
  • Senate Offices Russell, Hart, and Dirksen are connected by a tunnel.

Before the Meeting

  • Arrive to the area outside the office at least 15 minutes before your meeting time.
  • Know the name of the staff you are meeting.
  • Make sure you are all there, contact anyone you are missing.
  • Have your information ready.

During your Meeting

  • Meeting lead can start introductions.
  • Example: “Hello I’m [NAME] from [CITY, STATE]. We are here with a group of national leaders from Centers for Independent Living to talk about the work of the Centers and need for increased appropriations.”
  • Ask the rest of group to introduce themselves (Keep it brief. If you are from their district or state, highlight that!)
  • Stick to messaging about the three identified advocacy asks. It is important for us to be unified in our messaging. At the end raise any opinions or concerns about other pieces of legislation you may have.
  • Some suggestions:
    • Highlight the disability population in their district. Talk about what their local CIL is.
    • Highlight the impact of CILs in the community.
  • Close the meeting and see if they have any questions.

After the Meeting

More Information on Hill Visits can be found in the Conference Program.