Lobby Visit

Purpose/

To meet with elected representatives to clearly express the value of public education to constituents in order to hold the member accountable to prioritizing public education in the state budget process.

Outcome/

To get a strong commitment from elected officials to fight for public education funding in the New York State budget and to identify ways the elected official and community members can work together to achieve this goal.

Process/

Get a group of community members together, using the resources and tools below, set up an initial meeting with your state Assembly or Senate representative.

01/

How to do a lobby visit

Learn about the what goes into arranging a meeting with an elected official with this step-by-step guide.

Click to view, or download the checklist as a pdf.

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Check the legislative calendar

New York has a part-time legislature, which means our elected officials are only in Albany part of the year, and on certain days. Before calling to schedule your meeting, check this calendar to find out what days legislators will be in Albany.

05/

Legislative leave-behind

After your meeting, leave your legislators with this cheat sheet so they know what their top priorities need to be for the budget.

Click here to download a pdf to print, or view online.

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Look up your New York Legislators

Find out who your elected representatives are in the New York State Legislature:

New York State Assembly

New York State Senate

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Talking points

Review these talking points on Foundation Aid and school funding prior to your meeting, or print them to take with you.

You can also see how our priorities line up with what was proposed by the Executive budget in this side-by-side comparison.

06/

Report how it went

Let us know how your lobby visit went by filling out this form.