Writing to Congress: Guidelines for Effective Advocacy with FASEB

Thank You Letter

Even with the growing sophistication of social media platforms, email remains an important form of communication for constituents and congressional office holders. FASEB recommends sending thank you letters by email promptly after congressional meetings. A sample letter is provided below. We encourage you to include specific facts about your district and personalize letters by including issues that are important to you.

Sample Letter

Date
[Name of Staffer, if applicable]
The Honorable [first name, last name]
U.S. House of Representatives [or U.S. Senate]
Address
City/State, Zip

 Subject line: Thank You: Meeting with [your name and institution or organization]

Dear Representative/Senator ______________:

Thank you for meeting with me on [date of meeting] to discuss the impact of the federal investment in biomedical and biological research in [city/state] and what will be possible if the budget for [agency name, e.g.: NIH, NSF, USDA] is increased. I enjoyed our conversation and appreciate you taking time out of your busy day to meet with me.

In addition, I am grateful that we were able to discuss [note other topics discussed in the meeting]. Per your request, here is the information you requested about [include any follow-up information you mentioned].

I would like to offer myself and the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) as a resource to provide information or other assistance with issues related to biological research. For example, factsheets summarizing federal science funding in [city/state] can be found on their website.

Please feel free to contact me at [your email and/or phone number] if you have any questions.

In closing, I hope that I can count on [Senator/Representative last name] to support steady and sustainable increases in funding for biomedical research.

Sincerely,

[Your name, title, organization and mailing address]