In this week’s final edition of our Advocacy Summer School series, we will be discussing different ways you can advocate for the issues you care about. If you missed our first five emails in this series, take a moment to go back to read!
Connecting with Others
Chances are that other people care about the issues you care about. There might already be a group that is advocating for these issues at the State House. One of the first things you should do if you are interested in impacting policy is to connect with the groups working on the issues you care about and see how you can assist in their efforts.
Tracking Legislation
During the legislative session, Children’s Trust of SC sends weekly emails that contain information about the bills we track and where they are in the process of becoming law.
If you are interested in the status of other bills, you can find them by going to the State House website and entering the bill number into the Quick Search box. A new page will come up that shows where the bill is in the process of becoming a law. It will also show you the vote history on the bill, so you can see who voted for or against the bill.
Contacting Your Legislator
One way to make your voice heard at the State House is by talking directly with your Representative and/or Senator. You can find your Representative and Senator here.
On the State House website, you can email your legislator to let them know how you feel about particular issues. You can choose to write them a letter and mail it to the State House address.
Finally, you might decide to email your legislator and ask for a one-on-one meeting. When contacting your legislator, make sure you indicate that you are a constituent. Additionally, it is always best practice to be polite and thoughtful, even if you disagree with your legislator. Legislators in South Carolina serve on a part-time basis and many have full-time jobs outside of working at the State House, so do not be discouraged if it takes some time to hear back.
Testifying
Testifying on a bill is when you go to the State House and address a subcommittee about a bill they are considering. Testifying in front of a subcommittee on a bill is one of the best ways to advocate at the State House.
You can find when subcommittees on bills are scheduled by going to the House and Senate meeting calendars. The meeting calendar will show which subcommittees are meeting and usually includes an agenda showing which bills will be discussed.
Remember, public testimony is usually only taken during a subcommittee and not during a full committee meeting.
Ten Tips for Testifying
- Write out what you plan to say. Make it clear in the beginning if you support or oppose the bill before the subcommittee.
- Practice your testimony in front of other people. When you testify, you will speak in front of a few legislators and people in the audience.
- Try and keep your comments to less than three minutes.
- Tell a personal story if you can about why this bill matters to you.
- Be polite and thoughtful even if you disagree with the bill you are testifying on.
- Have research to support your testimony.
- Remember your testimony is about your thoughts and opinions; you do not need to take your time to tell other people they are wrong.
- Be prepared for follow-up questions from the legislators after you finish testifying, and always remember if you do not know the answer to a question, it is best to just say that.
- Make sure you know which room the hearing will be held in and confirm that before going in.
- Pat yourself on the back! Testifying can be intimidating for some, but it is a vital part of the legislative process.
Final Exam
Congratulations on making it to the end of our Advocacy Summer School series. Take our final exam and see how much you remember!
Answer Key to the Last Quiz
Question 1: South Carolina voters must register their party affiliation when registering to vote and can only vote in that party’s primary elections. False
Question 2: If you have donated to a political campaign there is a public record of that contribution. True
Question 3: You should bring your photo ID with you when you go to vote.
