Whether your foundation wants to invite a member of Congress to an event or request a meeting with a lawmaker, the following steps will assist you.

1. Plan the Event: Determine whether you would like to have a meeting with the legislator’s district office or if you would rather host an event. The format of your event is completely up to you; however, we encourage you to think outside the box. If you already have a meeting or event scheduled during the August 8–September 5 recess, use this as your District Days event. Have little time for planning? Coordinate your event with area foundations or your regional association representative.


2. Decide Who to Contact: Because District Days takes place during the summer congressional recess, senators and representatives will be back in their home districts and states. To find the district office phone numbers for your members of Congress, visit the Council's Legislative Action Center.


3. Schedule the Meeting: To invite the lawmaker to an event or to schedule a meeting, call your senator or representative's state or district office and set up a meeting date and time in August. Senators, and some representatives, often have multiple district offices, so make sure that you contact the nearest location. Because each member has his or her own office staff and there is no uniformity to the process, we recommend you contact the member’s DC office first to learn about procedures and request a meeting.
   
   When making the call, ask to speak to the lawmaker's district scheduler. Inform the scheduler that you are a constituent and would like to set up a meeting with your senator or representative while he or she is back home in August. The purpose of the meeting is to talk about what your foundation is doing in the state or district and share your views on charitable issues being considered by Congress.
   
   You will likely be asked to e-mail or fax a meeting request letter stating (1) where you are from, (2) the date and time you would like to meet, (3) what you would like to discuss, and (4) your contact information (name and full address).
   
   BE PERSISTENT! Though congressional members are back at home, the August district work period is not a vacation. Members are busy, so several calls may be necessary to finalize a meeting date and time.


4. Register Your Event: Once you have made the initial outreach to schedule a meeting with a member of Congress or to invite a member to your hosted event, let us know by registering your event through our online system.  Even if you do not have confirmation from the member, registering you event gives us an idea of our strong and weak coverage areas. This will also allow us to assist you in confirming your meeting if needed.

All information provided is confidential and will only be published if approved by a participating party.

For help scheduling meetings, contact Chloe Pickle at the Council or Courtney Moore at the Forum.