On Wednesday, April 14th, Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), and Charles Schumer (D-NY) began circulating a Senate McKinney Appropriations Sign-on Letter. We have until this THURSDAY, APRIL 22 to gain as many signatories on the letter as possible. We have attached a copy of the Sign-On Letter, Sample Talking Points and a Sample follow-up e-mail for after you have placed your call, for your ease.
PLEASE EMAIL OR CALL the Housing staff person in your Senators’ offices to ask if their boss will sign onto the McKinney Appropriations Senators Menendez and Lautenberg can sign onto the letter by contacting Andrew Odgren in Senator Reed’s office at Andrew_Odgren [Email address: Andrew_Odgren #AT# reed.senate.gov - replace #AT# with @ ] [1].
PLEASE NOTE: STAFF COULD SAY THAT THEIR OFFICE HAS A POLICY AGAINST SIGNING LETTERS because the Senator is on the Appropriations Committee (ESPECIALLY IF HE / SHE ON THE HUD SUBCOMMITTEE). If so, ask the Senator to include a programmatic request for this funding level in his / her submission of HUD appropriations priorities; those submissions are due Monday, April 26.
Below is a list of targets for this request.
Senator Lautenberg
Tel:(202) 224-3224
E-mail: julie_groeninger [Email address: julie_groeninger #AT# lautenberg.senate.gov - replace #AT# with @ ] [2]
Senator Menendez
Tel: (202) 224-4744
E-mail:
eric_kollig [Email address: eric_kollig #AT# menendez.senate.gov - replace #AT# with @ ] [3]
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SAMPLE MESSAGE – PLEASE FILL IN YOUR INFO.
Dear (HOUSING STAFF PERSON),
I am writing to urge the Senator to sign onto a “Dear Colleague” letter being circulated by Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), and Charles Schumer (D-NY)in support of funding HUD’s McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants at$2.4 billion in FY 2011. A copy of the letter is attached.
We greatly appreciate your commitment to ending homelessness and thank you for passing the HEARTH Act. The HEARTH Act, which reauthorized the Homeless Assistance Grants program last year, will provide New Jersey with new resources for homelessness prevention and re-housing assistance. However, without a funding level of $2.4 billion to implement the new program, we will get less funding for new projects in FY 2011 due to the changes in the way the funding will be allocated.
Please let me know when would be a good time to follow up with you – THE DEADLINE TO SIGN THE LETTER IS APRIL 22. I look forward to Senator’s support on this critical issue.
Sincerely,
(Your Organization or Name)
Please click here for a copy of the sign-on letter.
Click here for talking points to help you get your message across.
Click here for a sample follow up message.
