In June I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work in my Congressman’s local district office, located in my hometown. In July I began working in the office in Washington, D.C. Since then I have learned about the different types of work that the offices of a member of Congress perform on a daily basis.
The Member usually has two to three offices in their district dedicated to helping constituents. Employees are usually referred to as constituent liaisons or caseworkers since they work directly with constituents, recording their concerns or making congressional inquiries on their behalf for cases involving federal agencies. The district director oversees the district operations and is the most direct link to the DC office.
The DC office is headed by the Chief of Staff. The communications director, scheduler, staff assistant, legislative assistants, legislative director, and of course interns work there as well. While a significant portion of time is still spent addressing constituent concerns through phone and mail, the main focus of the D.C. office is legislative policy. Legislation is created, researched, and evaluated in the Capitol.
A Representative’s job is ultimately to represent and lead the country on behalf of their constituents. They support their constituents on a more personal level by aiding in casework. They help people get their stimulus check, tax returns, or Social Security when system errors and red tape have backlogged their case. This makes a real impact in people’s lives on an individual basis. Yet, the representative also supports their constituents on a community level by passing policies supporting their interests. They can have a widespread positive impact by working to pass bills and lasting policies.
I have enjoyed experiencing the different offices of the House of Representatives and have seen how politicians can help people on both small and large scales.
Hannah Neighbors
Office of Congressman Randy Weber
Washington, D.C. | summer 2020
