Know Before You Go

Wear comfortable shoes – you will be walking a lot!

Wear business casual clothes – a jacket but no tie for men is appropriate; a dress, smart sweater or jacket with pants for women.

Bring your business cards.  You will hand out your business cards during your meetings on Capitol Hill.

The average high temperature in February is 45 degrees and the low is 30 degrees.  The weather for Februrary 6-7 will be:  https://weather.com/weather/today/l/USDC0001:1:US.

Our NLC Advocacy Training will take place at 3:00 – 5:00 pm at The Liaison Capitol Hill.  We will have a social hour after the training session.

Our meetings with lawmakers will begin at 9:00 am ET.  If you arrive on Wednesday, please go to the meeting room we have reserved for the day to pick up your materials.  The meeting room is 121 Cannon House Office Building.  The Cannon House Office Building is one of the buildings where House Members work.  You can locate the building on this map – https://www.visitthecapitol.gov/plan-visit/us-capitol-map.

The Liaison is located 5 miles from DCA, approximately 12 minutes via taxi cab or rideshare. Please allow additional time during rush hour.

Via Metro:

• Enter station using the National Airport Metro Station (Blue/Yellow Lines)
• Take the Yellow Line train in the direction of Mount Vernon, Fort Totten, or Greenbelt
• Exit at Gallery Place-Chinatown
• Take the Red Line train in the direction of Glenmont
• Exit at Union Station

Or

• Enter station using the National Airport Metro Station (Blue/Yellow Lines)
• Take the Blue Line train in the direction of Largo Town Center
• Exit at Metro Center
• Take the Red Line train in the direction of Glenmont
• Exit at Union Station

The Liaison is located 33 miles from BWI, approximately 55 minutes via taxi cab or rideshare. Please allow additional time during rush hour.

The Liaison is located 34 miles from Dulles, approximately 50 minutes via taxi cab or rideshare. Please allow additional time during rush hour.

The Silver Line Express Bus provides a convenient, economical connection between Dulles’ Terminal and the Wiehle-Reston East Metrorail Station on Metrotrail’s Silver Line. The trip takes about 15 minutes. Then take the Metro to Union Station (Red Line).

Before you leave the hotel, remember to bring:

• Business cards
• Your schedule
• “Leave Behind” folders
• Pocket card
• Map
• Your name tag

The easiest way to get around Capitol Hill is to walk.  The Liaison Hotel is two long blocks from the Senate side of the Capitol and six long blocks from the House side.  If the weather is marginal or you don’t care to walk that far, cabs, Uber, and Lyft are all readily available.

It can take 15 minutes to walk from the House side of the Capitol to the Senate so if you are running late to a meeting, grab a taxi for the short ride.

This map of Capitol Hill shows you where the office buildings are – https://www.visitthecapitol.gov/plan-visit/us-capitol-map.

If you are lost or unsure, ask a uninformed office where to go.  They are asked all the time for directions and are very friendly and professional.

The buildings we will visit are divided between the Senate and the House.  There are 3 buildings on the Senate side where the Senators work.  These are Russell, Dirksen, and Hart.  The office number in each building indicates the floor and location of the office.  For example, SH-503 means you are going to the Office 503 which is on the 5^th floor of the Hart Senate Office Building.

There are 3 buildings on the House side where the House members work.  These are Rayburn, Longworth and Cannon.  The office number is distinct for each building:

Rayburn – Every office is a 4 digit number, starting with the number “2” followed by the number of the floor, then ending with the office number.  For example, 2362 RHOB means you are going to the Rayburn House Office Building, to the 3^rd floor to room 2362.

Longworth – Every office is a 4 digit number, starting with the number “1” followed by the number of the floor, then ending with the office number.  For example, 1102 LHOB means you are going to the Longworth House Office Building, to the 1^st floor to room 1102.

Cannon – Every office s is a 3 digit number, where the first digit is the floor, then ending with the office number.  For example, 503 CHOB means you are going to the Cannon House Office Building, to the 5^th floor to room 503.  Note that any office on the 5^th floor in Cannon is only accessible by the elevators in the middle of the long hallways.  The other elevators do not go to the 5^th floor.

The secret of a “Washington insider” is to know how to avoid getting caught in long lines waiting to get into the Senate and House office buildings.  Since you will be in DC at a busy time, it’s very smart to know alternative ways to get in the buildings.  Every office building has 2-3 entrances.  Most people enter from the main doors facing Constitution Avenue or Independence Avenue.  If those entrances have long lines, look on the map for entrances on the sides of the building or in the back.  Those entrances tend to have fewer people using them.

If you’re running late to a meeting, please call ahead to the office to let them know.  Congressional offices are well aware of unintended hold ups but it shows respect if you let them know you’re even 5 minutes late.  Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-225-3121 and ask for any House or Senate office.  The operator will connect your call to the right office where you can tell the staff person who you are, who you are, when your meeting is, and that you’re running a little late.

If you have time between meetings, feel free to stop the room we have reserved for the day at 121 Cannon House Office Building.  Come in to have a sit, grab a drink, and compare notes about how the meetings are going.  We will be there to answer questions and help in any way we can.

https://thehouse.misofi.net/shopportal.asp?pageid=823&pageref=Dining&intOrderID=&intCustomerID=

Each office building has a variety of options to get a drink or eat a meal.  Each option varies in the number of seats available and types of food offered (snacks or full meals).  No reservations are needed.

On the Senate Side:

• Russell Carry-Out – Basement of the Russell Senate Office Building.
• Dirksen North Servery – Basement of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.  This offers a wide variety of sandwiches, meals, snacks, drinks, and coffee.  There is a lot of seating.
• Dirksen South Buffet – Lunch only – Basement of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. This offers a buffet style hot meal at a fixed price.  Seating is limited.
• Dirksen South Convenience – Basement of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. This offers drinks, snacks, and coffee.  The seating is limited.
• The Hart Senate Chef – Ground Floor Connecting Corridor between the Dirksen and Hart Senate Office Buildings. This is a good spot for a coffee or drink and a snack.

On the House side:

• Longworth Café – Basement of Longworth House Office Building. This is a very large cafeteria with a wide variety of food and drinks and lots of seating.
• Longworth Dunkin Donuts – Basement of Longworth House Office Building. This offers the typical coffee and pastry option with some seating.
• Cannon Twelve – 138A of Cannon House Office Building. This offers small meals and snacks and some seating.
• Rayburn Café – 2063 Rayburn House Office Building. This is a large cafeteria with a variety of food and drinks and lots of seating.

• Show up 5 minutes early to your appointment.
• Introduce yourself as a representative of the ABA, present your business card, indicated whom you are meeting with and at what time
• Be prepared to wait for 10-15 minutes in some busy offices
• Be brief – the visit will last about 15 minutes
• Ask questions and listen – that is just as important as presenting your information
• Whether you meet with a House member or a Senator or their staff – remember all are important
• Provide your materials at the end of the meeting
• Thank them for their interest and support
• Let them know you will be following up with them