Bad
bills, proposals, and ordinances are beaten in exactly one way:
There are not enough votes for them to pass.
'Not enough votes' happens in two ways:
A.
Some lawmakers are convinced by facts -- things like "This
idea has been tried in many other places and it does not work;
this will be expensive and a waste of money," and so on.
B.
This idea is controversial ... there are strong opinions on
both sides, election-time votes could be gotten or lost according
to how the legislator goes on this thing ... Because ARs are the
minority, if we fully mobilize against a bill we can convince
most legislators that there are more votes to be lost than there
are to be gained.
You
can never be sure in advance which approach will be most effective.
Generally larger towns and mid-size cities will respond
well to facts. Many of these lawmakers are serious about good
government; they just want to solve the problem and once they
see that an idea won't work, that's the end for them.
Big
cities and state legislatures most often pay more attention to
controversy. Once it starts to stink it must be last week's fish
and they're not interested anymore.
However all AR-law battles should be fought on both fronts --
facts and controversy.
The
facts approach can be done by just a handful of people and for
that reason you can start that part of the attack on day one.
Focus on decision makers (legislative committees, the city council)
and on those who control large numbers of potential supporters:
board of the state veterinary association, officers of hunting
and other clubs. Also hit the newspaper letters columns with facts
-- the better papers are always interested in "good government"
issues that are presented clearly.
You
should spend serious hours reading the text of the bill or proposal
trying to think through exactly how it would work if passed. Remember
that laws aren't enforced only by great people, they're enforced
by ordinary people, and some of them are jerks. Does this
bill put too much power in the hands of people who are very likely
to abuse it? Be sure to talk to experts -- if the bill affects
rescuers, talk to as many rescuers as possible, ditto hunters,
cat fanciers, and so on. Use your state list and try
Pet-Law itself for these discussions too.
Do
not be surprised to find jaw-dropping things in proposals, do
not even be surprised at serious drafting mistakes. Proposals
are often drafted by a legislative aide (maybe an inexperienced
one) working with a shelter director; bills may be written by
the best lawyer the state could hire for $28,500. The sharpest
people reading bills are probably your people.
We'll
never forget the Virginia state legislator who remarked casually,
"Oh, we pass unconstitutional laws all the time!"
As
you mobilize more and more players -- your state email list will
usually be the main place to do that, although if you have one
of the effective state federations, it will be able to do it more
quickly -- move to the 'controversy' angle. Try to get personal
visits with every blessed legislator or city council member. "Senator
Snort, my group really hates this idea." Letters,
emails, phone calls to all legislators (as well as to committees),
lots of letters to the editor.
Personal
visits and individual letters (not form letters) are most effective.
Phone calls are great, individual emails are good, petitions are
almost a waste of time because they're so easy for people to do
and difficult to verify. Let lawmakers know that people care enough
to work against this bill. Remember that controversy
matters because "Votes might go against me" is not a
happy thought for a politician. Use the methods that show that
a voter cares enough that she will remember at the next election.
Concentrate
especially on:
A) The bill's sponsor -- he owns it and can kill it in five minutes
when he decides it will be bad for his career.
B) Chairmen of committees -- they can make bad bills disappear
into the deepfreeze, slip out of sight under the stove, or vanish
as if they were written in disappearing ink, often just by raising
an eyebrow.
Be
courteous and respectful toward lawmakers. Most of them deserve
it and nearly all of them will be playing in the next fight too,
so you don't want to alienate them. Of course being respectful
doesn't mean you can't recommend an election-day retirement program
for those who are solidly AR.
