At the beginning of every legislative session, I encourage readers to become familiar with ilga.gov and reach out to elected officials in at least one medium.
Regular emailer AO wrote to turn the tables: “What type of info do you recommend elected representatives send their constituents? I’m thinking a link to list of upcoming votes by category, each with short description, [the official’s] position and reasoning, plus comment section. Most of what they send seems to be self-congratulatory, single topic, services provided, or invite to their town hall.”
Good start. Were I an elected official, my weekly email newsletter would include a summary of any legislation to which I signed on as a sponsor. This section would link back to a website archive of posts on older legislation and where those bills sit in the process.
A second category would direct constituents to submit witness slips in advance of any looming deadlines and ideally some general trend data as a means of conveying which topics are drawing the most interest and how sentiment appears to be coalescing.
I’d also include a photo or account of something job-related, even if not necessarily legislation. This could cross into self-congratulatory, but it’s an opportunity to highlight any in-district visits or places in Springfield constituents might not know about and would be interested to see while in town.
Regular features could include a listing to state job listings, relevant agency news releases, public meetings and feedback forms. It’s easy for these things to become too dense as to become unwieldy, so it would take a little effort to include and highlight only the most local and relevant information.
A slow week would provide an opportunity to share a bit about staff members so constituents can put a name and face to those who make the offices work, while also spotlighting pathways for those interested in internships or careers.
If you’re not subscribed to your officials’ newsletters, do so now! I’m interested in hearing who has the best strategy and how we can improve communication for all.
DEEP DIVE: In 2021, lawmakers tasked the University of Illinois Chicago’s Government Finance Research Center with studying the ways municipalities and utilities establish and calculate water bills. In 2023, it published a report focused on the Lake Michigan service area, and Tuesday morning it released another study focusing on the remaining territory, which involved hundreds of towns.
Visit tinyurl.com/GFRCwater to begin reading the result of this detailed work and to get an overview of potential public policy implications. Every elected official in the Statehouse should be familiar with these findings, and so should village board and city council members. But it’s just as accessible to the average consumer.
• Scott T. Holland writes about state government issues for Shaw Local News Network. Follow him on X @sth749. He can be reached at sholland@shawmedia.com.
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