Government Relations
The following information was provided by our Director of Public Affairs, Tim Johnson, of Northwest Policy Group.
Tips for Lobbying Local Government:
Determine the appropriate regulatory authority for your issue (City or County).
Determine which specific department within city or county government has the authority to resolve your specific issue (Health, Planning, Permitting, Fire, etc…).
Work with as many people within that department as necessary to resolve the issue. Be patient and VERY polite, but be tenacious.
Government responds to pressure, become that pressure. If there is no one pressuring them to resolve your issue, it is unlikely to ever be resolved.
Keep detailed records and notes regarding the people that you’ve spoken with, and the date/time of each conversation. Always keep the contact information for these people so you can quickly reach them if/when another issue arrises.
Once you’ve found the best person to work with, try to communicate via email whenever possible to create an accurate and lasting record of your conversations and timeline. Never trust anything said to you in person or over the phone; a verbal commitment is worthless when working with government officials. Sorry to say it, but it’s true.
Don’t just present the problem, offer potential solutions to the problem. Don’t assume that local government staff or elected officials have the time or the expertise to determine the best solution for your problem. Offer suggestions, but don’t fall in love with your own idea. There are usually more than one way to fix a problem, so be open-minded. Try to offer solutions that won’t require additional funding, or better yet, offer solutions that may potentially save local government time and money.
If you are not making progress at the department level (which could take several weeks or even several months of regular back-and-forth communication, depending on the complexity or controversial nature of the issue), then take your issue to the city or county council. It’s best to schedule short one-on-one meetings with council members to discuss your issue. Ask for a short 15-minute meeting. During the meeting, get straight to the point, be well prepared and organized, and finish within the 15-minutes unless the official wants to speak with you longer. If you bully them into listening to you for a longer period of time, it will likely be your last meeting with them. Don’t burn bridges.
As a local small business owner, you should know who your local elected officials are (City Mayor, City Council Members, County Executive and County Council Members). You can post a sheet with their photos in your truck so you’ll recognize them if/when the visit. I also recommend doing the same regarding the two State Representatives and the State Senator from your legislative district. If you meet any of these officials be sure to get photos of them standing in front of your truck, or with them standing next to you, or with your food, etc…. Send those photos to the WSFTA and they will be quickly posted on the association’s social media accounts. Elected officials love this kind of attention!
If/when you meet your state legislator(s) be sure and share this experience with Lori Johnson (WSFTA - Executive Director). She will forward that information to me and I will be sure and make reference to your meeting when I meet with that legislator at the Capitol in Olympia, during the next legislative session. It really helps! It also reminds them that you have a lobbyist representing you, and keeping track of who is voting in favor of the mobile food industry, and who is not.
The best lobbying that you can do for your business, and for the mobile food industry, is to simply provide excellent service and high quality food to all of your customers, especially elected officials. The appearance of your truck, the safe food handling practices of your staff, and the overall impression that you give will make all the difference.
Don’t wait until you have a problem and need help; learn who these people are now and make an effort to meet them.
Attend City and County Council meetings and/or follow their work very closely via their website and/or local news media. Learn about proposed new ordinances in time to participate in the process. You may be the only voice representing the mobile food industry at a council meeting. They will make these laws with or without your input; so if you do not voice your concerns, they will assume you support the new ordinance. It is much easier to make a few changes in a newly proposed ordinance during its creation. It’s significantly more difficult to make changes to a newly passed ordinance. Something as simple as having them change the word “must” to the word “may” could make all the difference to your business. Participate!
Meet your state and local elected officials. Send an email to their office and invite them to visit your truck sometime, either for food or just to say hello. If the invitation seems friendly enough, they will very likely be interested in meeting you. When you meet with them don’t fuss or complain, just politely explain some of the regulatory challenges that you face. Talk about the number of people you employ and the local areas that you serve. Food trucks are very popular with the public (and elected officials should be well aware of that), so be sure and talk about your great customers and the support you get from the community.
Don’t worry about partisan politics. While I’m always very aware of the partisan leanings of each elected official, when I have a bill before the legislature I’m not concerned about Democrats or Republicans, I’m only concerned about who is supporting my bill and who is not. The party that loves a food truck bill one year could oppose a food truck bill the next year. Vote for whoever you like, but be willing to work with anyone who is willing to help the mobile food industry.
Never give up! Sometimes it seems as though the whole system is rigged to weed-out those who aren’t willing to put up a fight. The paperwork and the process often seem unnecessarily burdensome, but do not let this discourage you. Expect problems at every level, and just be prepared to work through them.
The WSFTA can advise its members regarding the best way to resolve local regulatory issues. If those issues persist at the local level, despite your significant effort to resolve them, I can work with the association to have those issues addressed at the state agency level. If we are unsuccessful at the state agency level, I can then take the matter to the state legislature in the form of a bill. The process of changing laws via state agencies (WAC), or via the state legislature (RCW), can take years, so the quicker and easier route to resolving issues is always via local government. Although, I would not describe the process as quick or easy. The key is to get involved, and never give up.
Many of the mobile food vending laws in our state are very outdated, some have been on the books since the early 1970’s. Why haven’t these laws been updated? Because very few vendors have pushed-back against these cumbersome and unreasonable laws. That has now changed! The WSFTA was created in 2016 and has already helped to change city and county laws all around the state, and has successfully changed state law via state agencies and the state legislature. However, there is still much work to be done. The WSFTA needs to continue to grow its membership, and needs more members to get actively involved in working with their local government. Please help us help you!
If you are interested, here is a link to some of our past, present, and future advocacy efforts: https://www.wafoodtrucks.org/advocacy
(PLEASE report any broken links, or edits that need to be made, here).