Positions with House of Representatives Offices

While Members of Congress are given wide latitude in organizing their office staffs, there is a typical structure to Representatives and Senators' offices. Office staffs are divided between several offices in Washington and in the Member's home district or state. Members of Congress keep most of their staffs in their Washington, DC offices. Washington is where all the legislative work takes place, and where the Member performs many of their official duties. Depending on the size of the district or state each Members server, he or she also maintains one or more district offices. The district offices assist constituents with matters relating to the Federal government, such as locating lost Social Security checks or helping a small business understand the Federal procurement process.

House Offices

According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the average House Member's office employs 14 people -- on average eight in the Washington office and six in the district offices. Some Representatives will have more -- others will have less. However, a "typical"structure for a Member's office will look something like this:

Washington

Chief of Staff/administrative assistant: The top aide to a Member of Congress, the CoS/AA manages the daily operations of the office, attends to the Members needs, and is usually responsible for personnel decisions. The Chief of Staff is directly answerable to the Member and must maintain the trust of his or her boss. The Chief of Staff will sometimes work -- strictly on his or her personal time -- attending to the political needs of the Member, such as fundraising and campaign organization. (In some offices, this position is based in the district office to keep management closer to the people the Member represents. However, in most cases, the CoS/AA is based in Washington since the Member spends most of his or her working time there and the bulk of the staff is there).

Legislative director: With responsibility for all legislative matters, the legislative director must have mastery of the legislative process and be familiar with a variety of issues, particularly those issues most important to the Member. The legislative director will typically oversee a small staff of legislative assistants/correspondents. The legislative director is the point person on all legislative matters, including introducing amendments, tracking legislation in committee, and advising the Member on how to vote on specific bills/amendments. Another key responsibility of the Legislative Director is overseeing the Members correspondence with constituents.

Communications director/press secretary: Playing a distinct role in the Member's office, the communications director or press secretary is responsible for ensuring that the Member's constituents (i.e. the voters) are aware of the work that the Member is doing on their behalf. The communications director writes press releases, schedules media interviews for the Member, briefs the media on the activities of the Member, and designs periodic updates on the accomplishments of the Member that are mailed to constituents. The communications director must be skilled at understanding both complex legislative and political issues and communicating the Members accomplishments in a manner that creates a positive "identity" for the Member. In that sense, a communications director is often considered a political strategist (along with the Chief of Staff/AA) to the Member.

Legislative assistants: A Member's office will often hire several legislative assistants, or LAs as they are commonly called, (two to four LAs is the norm) to assist on legislative matters. Each legislative assistant will be assigned issues for which he or she is responsible. A legislative assistant's responsibilities include tracking legislation and issues relevant to his or her assigned areas; responding to constituent inquiries on those issues, drafting correspondence for the Member, and advising the Member on votes. Legislative assistants must be familiar with the legislative process, and will often meet with constituents and professional lobbyists to discuss the Members positions on issues before Congress.

Legislative correspondents: A House Member will often hire one to two Legislative correspondents (or LCs), who function as junior legislative assistants. LCs are often given issues to cover, but their primary responsibility is to draft correspondence to constituents on those issues. Occasionally, LCs will be given a few issues to manage as legislative assistants would.

Scheduler/office manager: Often this is a combined position, while at other times there are two individuals hired for these separate function. The scheduler manages the Member's busy schedule, and often has responsibility for accepting and declining invitations, setting aside time for meetings with constituents, lobbyists, and staff, and keeping track of the Members whereabouts at any given time. The office manager is responsible for ensuring that office bills are paid, that administrative matters are attended to, that the supply cabinet is filled, and that the office runs smoothly.

Systems administrator: Washington offices usually have one person responsible for the computer systems (including both hardware and software). This is a key position in that this person is responsible for the software that manages the Member's correspondence. The systems administrator is responsible for working with vendors to fulfill this software requirement and assisting the staff in implementing the software and generating reports on the efficiency of the Member's mail operation. Often this position has combined responsibilities, such as with a legislative assistant or legislative correspondent position.

Staff Assistant: The entry-level position in a Member's office, the staff assistant is typically responsible for front desk operations, taking requests from constituents for flags flown over the U.S. Capitol, arranging tours of the White House and the Capitol Building for constituents, and a range of administrative tasks. Often, staff assistants will be given the opportunity to learn about the legislative process and other office functions in preparation for a promotion within the office hierarchy.

District offices

District director: The district director typically oversees the operations of the district offices, including district casework, personnel decisions at the district level, and constituent relations. The District Director will often "stand in" for the Member at district events that he or she cannot attend. Many House Members have more than one district office, depending on the geographic size of their districts. Those representing large areas (entire states in some cases) will have several principal offices and additional satellite offices that are open by appointment only.

Caseworker: A Member will often have several caseworkers in the district (and occasionally one caseworker in the Washington office, as well). Anywhere from two to five caseworkers would be considered typical of a Congressional office. Caseworkers assist constituents in their dealings with the Federal government. Their responsibilities can include tracking down lost Social Security checks, assisting veterans collect their benefits, and expediting passport applications, among many others.

Staff assistant: District offices usually have one or two staff assistants who help staff the reception area and assist the other office staff.

This article is excerpted from the Vault Guide to Capitol Hill Careers.
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