Wise WordsContact Government Officials
TIPS:
Be informed before you communicate.
Choose a specific single issue - or two related issues at most - to discuss.
Don't just write or e-mail our leaders - call them - make an appointment - ask for 15 minutes of their time! Set aside a day to visit the State House (Senate) and the Riffe Center (House of Representatives) and visit four to six leaders in one day!
Before engaging them, evaluate the committees each legislator serves on. How many of these committees might be sympathetic to your topic?
Stay on topic and get a commitment from each leader that they share your concern and will take a specific step to further your efforts.
Don't limit yourself to contacting only officials from your district. If they are involved with renewable energy policy, zoning, real estate, local government, the environment, ways and means, taxation, etc. then they will be happy to hear your thoughts, and should take them into consideration in their votes and initiatives.
Be friendly and respectful. Bear only reliable, verifiable facts. Be firm and passionate.
Leave a bullet point summary sheet with them that you have typed ahead of time. During the meeting you should have circled the bullet item(s) they identify most closely with, and have written down their commitment action item(s) on.
Ask for a photocopy of it when you leave.
Thank them for listening to you and leave without prolonging the conversation.
Here are links to documents that will be helpful in your lobbying efforts:
DOCUMENTS:
Why Wind Won't Work by Jon Boone
Wind Chill from UK Centre for Policy Studies
Dept. of Energy statement regarding limited benefits of Windergy
Exerpts from American Wind Energy Association 2008 Siting Handbook
Turbine Manufacturer recommended safety buffer zone
STUDY propertyvaluemethods mclean IL 070518 Wind_Farm_Impact_Critique.final
Pennsylvania Congressman Comments on Property values
BUSINESS WEEK Little Green Lies Calaway Babcock 071022
Roger Brown zoning amendment for Jefferson Township, Logan County, Ohio
The Charleston Gazette - News on Congressman fighting wind deployment
Texas County Drops Wind Power Proposal for Reasons
Kansas 1970s Law Article re Profit Taking for renewables includes current cost per megawatt figures.
CO2 Reduction Potential of Wind Energy
Schleede paper on unintended effects of wind power subsidy
Energy Industry Terminology 101
Photos showing size of turbines compared to surroundings
CONTACTS:
Ohio Governor Ted Strickland
Public Utilities Commission - Ohio Power Siting Board contact Klause Lambeek
Senate Public Utilities Committee Chair Robert Schuler
Senator Bill Seitz, Sponsor of wind siting amendment to 2008 Budget Bill
House Public Utilities Committee Chair John Hagan
Ohio Air Quality Development Authority Chairman Mark Shanahan
Ohio Department of Development Ohio Energy Office
Ohio Consumer Counsel Questions and Complaints Form
Ohio County Commissioners Association
Ohio Farm Bureau Dale Arnold, Wind Energy Advocate (contact info at bottom of document)
The Columbus Dispatch State Desk Reporter Holly Zachariah (contact info at end of article)
WOSU Radio News Reporter Sam Hendren
Sam Hendren brought more than two decades of experience to WOSU when he arrived in August of 2005. Born in Tennessee and raised in North Carolina, Hendren began his journalism career at the University of Alabama’s public radio station (also his alma mater). He’s reported extensively from across the Southern U.S., the inter-mountain West and the Great Plains states. His work has appeared on NPR, Marketplace, and the Voice of America. He served as executive producer of the environmental radio magazine High Plains News, based in Billings, MT, and was news director at public station KMUW, in Wichita, KS. Sam is the recipient of many national awards for journalistic excellence.
Good luck, and enjoy exercising your rights as an American and an Ohioan!