Tips for Writing Letters to Elected Officials

Legislators receive less mail than you might think -- many say three letters on one topic is considered a "flood" of mail. Taking the time to write to your elected officials is an excellent way to show your concern and it prompts them to pay attention! Here are some tips for writing to your elected officials.

Talking Points

Not sure what to write about? Use one or more of these talking points in your letter.

Affordable housing provides the foundation for healthy communities:

• It allows a productive labor force filling vital positions like nursing aids, bank tellers, factory workers, childcare workers, teachers, and veterinary assistants, to live in our communities.
• Affordable housing benefits people on fixed incomes, like senior citizens
• And it benefits children by providing stable homes, an essential component to success in school.

Affordable housing is good for the economy:

• It helps people get jobs and keep them.
• It helps employers attract and retain workers.

Ohio's homeless population is growing:

• Wages have not kept pace with rising housing costs.
• Many homeless adults work full time, but cannot find an affordable place to live.

There's no "quick fix" to the affordable housing crisis -- addressing this problem will take a combination of regulatory relief, tax incentives, and investment.

Writing the Letter

• Personalize it: Personalized letters are much more effective than form letters. Relate your own experiences or those of your friends or neighbors. Elected officials want to understand what's going on in their own districts.
• Keep it short: A one-page letter is long enough to convey your concerns, but short enough to ensure that they'll read it.
• Send a hand-written letter: Legislators are more likely to take notice of a hand-written letter than a word processed one.
• Always include your home address: Providing this information lets your legislator see that you are a constituent. Letters from constituents are taken much more seriously than letters from outside the district.
• Always ask for a reply: This will let your officials know that you are watching them and waiting to see where they stand on the issue.
• Encourage your friends and neighbors to write letters: Offer to give them information or give them a copy of your own letter to help them out.

Information from the Minnesota Housing Partnership

Contact Information

Find out how to contact your legislators

For more information on COHHIO's advocacy efforts, contact Cathy Johnston at cathyjohnston@cohhio.org or at 614-280-1984.