Welcome to the Eagles Voice Lobbying Exchange, a resource designed to help define or change the state and federal policies that affect our lives and livelihoods.

The key to reaching our objectives under a democratic government has always been participation, a technique that is both time-honored and very much cutting edge, in light of recent lobbying and campaign finance reforms. So let’s begin by working together to learn the skills needed and in finding the resources necessary to gain our representatives' attention.

Preview

The Eagles Voice Lobbying Exchange site consists of five major areas, each designed to provide a distinct piece to the grassroots advocacy puzzle. The Grassroots Program Development area offers several fundamental lessons for organizing an effective grassroots campaign. The Legislators and Policy-Makers area provides an extensive library of links that can instantly connect us to our representatives e-mail, government web-sites, and related resources. Reference Materials contains a glossary that may help us better understand the terminology and jargon that exists in policy-making circles. Idea Exchange is an area where we can share our experiences and opinions with Eagles Voice and the community as a whole.

Overview

The designers of America's governing structure described a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. These familiar phrases are appealing today, but do most Americans feel that the promise of the nation's founders is as alive today as they believe it was in the 1780s? Surveys of current public opinion indicate that too many American citizens believe "special interest groups" have excessive influence when the Congress determines the policies by which laws are passed and people are led. In the 21st century, one still hears the frequent call for a return to the time when the public interest exerted more power than private interests.

The truth is that at no time in America's history has the individual citizen's access to their government been greater. Every American, as an individual or by joining a group, is provided nearly unlimited access to government institutions and the people who run them. The methods for access are available. Unfortunately, too few citizens, groups, private companies, and industries know about those methods of access or how to use them productively in order to be heard by the officials elected or appointed to serve them.

Since the beginning of the 1980s, public attitudes toward participation in government are changing. Increasingly, individual citizens, working alone and in groups, in both the public and private sectors, have chosen to participate in what has been termed "grassroots constituency involvement." In ever-greater numbers, they are involved in the making of public policy, the conduct of government, and the process of politics. The numbers participating are still far too small, but the trend is improving.

Campaign finance and lobbying reforms promise to alter the balance of power and change the conduct of the decision-making process in Washington and the state capitals. Increased disclosure requirements for professional lobbyists and new rules governing contributions to campaigns are certain to open the policy-making process, especially to groups of individuals from the Congressional and state legislative districts where their representatives are elected.

For Libby, Troy, and Lincoln County

For the individual, these reforms mean there is greater opportunity for their voices to be heard on Capitol Hill and in state capitals. For advocacy groups, it's a chance to re-align their efforts on a newly invigorated front. For corporate America, it means a significant rethinking of the strategies and even the tools used to pursue their particular policy interests.

How well our organization is prepared to perform under the new rules of battle will — to a large degree — determine our success in advancing our political and public-policy agenda. It could be argued that the playing field is being leveled, that having money alone is no longer as important as having popular support. But the truth is that, as always, those who are most decisive in their approach, who understand how the procedures work, and who work in teams are the ones who will ultimately prevail in Washington and the state capitals.

The most basic principle of politics is that "all politics is local." That reality has never been truer than right now.

I’m determined that if Libby, Troy, and Lincoln County can properly engage a strong lobbying effort, we can in fact, achieve the goals we set for our community. I see this goal as a clean, healthy, and economically strong Lincoln County. 

This handbook is a guide for effecting change in our lives. Every person, group, and organization can use this to enter the new world of grassroots public policy-making.