Writing to Legislative Committees
Writing to Senate and Assembly legislative committees about pending bills is easy to do and a great way to make your voice heard.
Step 1: Create an account on the California Legislature Position Letter Portal
Go to the Position Letter Portal.
Complete the registration by answering a few questions and inputting your name and contact information.
After you register, you will receive an email with your password.
Step 2: Prepare your letter
Letters can be short and simple. Here is a basic template for your submission:
[Date]
[Name of committee chair], Chair
[Name of committee]
RE: Support for [bill number]
To the Honorable [name of committee chair] and members of the [name of committee],
I write in support of [bill number], which will [brief description of what the bill will do].
I am in support of [bill number] because [insert reasons, including how the bill will affect you, your community, your profession, etc.] [Insert links to articles, opinion pieces and other supporting materials that you would like for the committee to consider.]
I strongly support [bill number] and urge you to vote in favor of passing this bill out of [committee name].
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Step 3: Submit your letter on the Position Letter Portal
Login to your Position Letter Portal Account.
Begin by selecting the bill for which you want to submit a letter.
You will be asked to select a committee to which you want to submit your letter. To find out the committee in which the bill currently is located, go to the “Status” tab of the bill and look under “Bill Status” to determine whether the bill is in the Senate or the Assembly and which committee the bill is currently located.
You will be asked to select your stance on the bill.
You can either cut and paste your letter of support or upload it as a PDF.
Click submit, and you are done!
Writing to Bill Authors
Writing to bill authors is another easy way to have your voice heard. You can use the same letter submitted to the legislative committee with just a few tweaks.
Step 1: Create an account on the California Legislative Information Website
Go to the California Legislative Information login page and click on “Registration” in the upper righthand corner.
Enter your name and contact information.
After you register you will receive an email with your password.
Step 2: Prepare your submission
Submissions to bill authors can only be up to 2,000 characters. Here is a basic template for your submission:
I write in support of [bill number], which will [brief description of what the bill will do].
I am in support of [bill number] because [insert reasons, including how the bill will affect you, your community, your profession, etc.] [Insert links to articles, opinion pieces and other supporting materials that you would like for the bill author to consider.]
I strongly support [bill number], and thank you for introducing this important piece of legislation.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Step 3: Submit your letter on the California Legislative Information website
After logging in, click on "Bill Information" tab to enter the bill number you wish to support in the search bar.
Click on the "Comments to Author" tab to submit your letter of support.
You will be asked to select "Support," "Oppose" or "Comment Only."
Cut and paste your letter into the text box
Click submit, and you are done!