1. Dealing with Capitol Hill
1. former congressional staffer, 10 years on the Hill in Member and Science Committee, now Director of Policy for ACM
2. first part of discussion primer on dealing with Congressional staff, second part about some observations what the environment looks like for IT policy

2. The Essence of Hill Life
1. Captures essence of hill life, in at least two directions -- Outside looking in, inside looking out
2. CS latch onto the buzz words and react, but so can the public
3. don’t be discouraged -- get involved, build relationships, open dialog to overcome this

3. Who are you talking to? MEMBER District Director Chief of Staff
Legislative Director
Press Secretary
1. Pretty standard structure, but difference from office to office and between House and Senate
2. differences between personal office and committee 3. Members are extremely busy, so likely meet w/aids
4. Aids meet, digest, and report
Legislative Aid (Social)
Legislative Aid (Economic)
Legislative Aid (Stuff)

4. Who are you talking to? Committee Structure CHAIRMAN Chief of Staff
Deputy CoS
Staff Director
Press Secretary
Professional Staff
Professional Staff
Professional Staff

5. Who is this LA? Young, bright, energetic
Dealing with many different issues
Trying to manage the chaos
Likely to be new, likely to leave soon
Small fish in a small sea
1. Senior staff tends to be more experienced, but might not know the issue as well -- managing tactics
2. LA is likely meeting on Taxes, Health Care, Defense, Social Security, Children’s school lunch program all in one day
3. DC oddly a small town, you never know when they become a big fish

6. Who is this Cmte. Staffer?
More experienced
But tenure isn’t everything anymore
Focused on understanding one field of policy
Still trying to manage the chaos
Works within the context of the Chairman’s goals
1. Most likely has worked on the issues for years
2. Turnover of Chairman, cost of housing = turnover of staff
3. They are experts on the policy, but always need education on the field
4. fighting off other committees, reacting to high-profile events
5. If it isn’t on the Chairman’s agenda, will not likely garner interest, Chairmen have to get elected by local citizens

7. Breaking Through Respect different expertise:
What is a Dear Colleague, and what is the best way to use it?
What is a Chairman’s mark? And when is it useful to you?
How does a modified open rule affect your issue?
What is a hotline?
Communication -- Clear, Concise, and Balanced
Leave the spin to the experts
Have some context for a staffer’s thinking
1. meetings are 15 minutes to an hour, but aid might have 5 minutes to make your point to the member
minutes after your meeting, they might have one on the other side of the issue -- good staffers can tell smokescreens from fact, you want to work with good staffers
3. R or D, helps hone in on points, tradeoffs happen at the macro-level

8. High Profile IT Issues Innovation Telecomm. Act Grokster Privacy
Cybersecurity