Researching, drafting, and voting on legislation are some of the more well-known tasks of a member of Congress. A lesser known but sometimes more directly impactful task is work categorized as congressional casework. Casework can be defined as “the response or services that Members of Congress provide to constituents who request assistance.”1 Requests of this type are often one of the opportunities the general public has to interact with their representative’s office directly.
Casework
The response or services that Members of Congress provide to constituents who request assistance
A GUIDE TO
Casework
While not a requirement of a congressional member, casework duties are performed by almost every congressional office. This work usually begins when a constituent contacts their congress member by phone, email, or letter and outlines a personal issue with which they would like their representative to intervene on their behalf. From there, the office has a number of ways they can respond, governed by the U.S. House ethics guidelines. They may request information or updates such as status reports, arrange meetings or interviews, or even call for a federal agency to reconsider their response based on “statutes, regulations, or considerations of equity or public policy.”2 Congressional staffers often work with a specific congressional liaison within each federal agency to accomplish this.
In addition to other community outreach activities, Congressman Vic Snyder and his staff worked diligently to make casework a priority. Each congressional office is tasked with creating their own workflow and organization surrounding casework, and in Snyder’s congressional office, he assigned casework to his staffers by topic or agency. His staffers spent hours answering emails and letters as well as speaking with constituents both in person and by phone. During his tenure in the House, Snyder's office responded to thousands of constituent requests and produced over one hundred boxes of casework files. Through their attention to detail and thoroughness in handling this work, Snyder and his staff showed a clear respect for the needs of the constituency.
CASEWORK'S
Importance
Congressional casework is not just important to individual constituents or for community outreach; it also creates opportunities for members of Congress to assess which issues are important in their district and what types of legislation would benefit their constituents. More than one-third of the casework processed by Snyder’s office was related to veterans and active military. This gave Snyder an invaluable perspective on these issues that likely guided his response to topics brought before the House Committee on Veterans Affairs and the House Armed Services Committee on which he served.
Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security requests were other areas related to legislation of interest for Congressman Snyder. Much like veteran and military letters, this communication with constituents often included many personal and medical details about how the constituent was being affected by their interaction with federal agencies. The writers of these letters often mentioned Snyder’s status as both a veteran and a physician as factors that encouraged them to contact him.
A member’s casework can also reveal major events affecting their districts. The Great Recession resulted in a flood of letters to Snyder’s office with requests for assistance and updates related to home loans with Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), and student loans through Student Loan Marketing Association (Sallie Mae). Natural disasters such as tornadoes, which are common in Arkansas’s second district, were often followed by inquiries to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Important Issues
Casework creates opportunities for members of Congress to assess which issues are important in their district
Legislation
Casework helps to identify the types of legislation that would benefit the constituents of a district
Major Events
Casework reveals how major events such as natural disasters or economic downturns affect constituents
Overall, casework was important to Congressman Snyder and his staff as well as the district they served. The breadth and volume of casework from his office shows that his constituents felt the congressman was someone they could ask for assistance with often deeply personal matters. Casework is just one of the many beneficial roles congressional members fill for their constituents.
For More Information:
- Eckman, 1.
- Eckman, 2.
Eckman, Sarah J., and R. Eric Petersen. Casework in Congressional Offices: Frequently Asked Questions. R44696. Congressional Research Service, 2021.
Victor F. Snyder Congressional papers, UALR.MS.0180. UA Little Rock Center for Arkansas History and Culture, Little Rock, AR.
About the Author:
Jessica Erwin completed her Master of Arts degree in Public History from UA Little Rock in 2016. She has worked as a graduate assistant at the Center for Arkansas History and Culture, an archival assistant at the Arkansas State Archives, and is currently a processing archivist for the Victor F. Snyder Congressional Papers.