[ftp://ftp.shell.portal.com/pub/chan/action/congress-delivery] [Note that this method takes about a week for delivery. Here is information from my anonymous source in Congress about a guy who hand delivers things to conrgessional offices. This may be a very low cost way of getting your letter to everyone in Congress ($53.50 including his duplication and delivery)! -- Jeff C.] __ I finally tracked the guy down who is the "House and Senate Delivery Service". His rates go from $.05 per office. The details, The "House and Senate Delivery Service" will make deliveries to any or all House and Senate offices for as little as $.05 per office. They guy rambled on and on and on, so I may not have some of the details right. Call his voice mail for a quote, and he will call you back. For $.05 per office, a single, unaddressed sheet of paper will be delivered within 5 working days of receipt. Deliveries will be made in 3 days for $.15, and next day for $.25. They will collate and deliver *addressed* letters (sans envelopes) for $.29 (the same as the Post Office). However, they will be delivered the day after they are received. I think additional sheets are $.025 per sheet, but I'm not sure. I forgot to ask if this rate would apply to a smaller delivery - to particular committee members, for instance. He can deliver larger parcels as well. An unaddressed 50-page packet would cost $.025 per sheet, or $1.25 per Member of Congress. This would cost well over $2.00 to mail via the Post Office first class, and would probably not be as fast. (Note: he does not deliver #10 envelopes for some reason. I think the smallest envelope he will take is 9 x 12) REPRODUCTION - If you would like, you can mail him an original, and they will photocopy or offset duplicates for $.05 per office. Delivery rates are the same as above. Mail originals or finished copies (any size envelope or box), with a check, to: Tech World Plaza P.O. Box 50515 Washington, DC 20091 You should always call beforehand and get an exact quote for the job you need, and let him know to expect your materials. He can also pick up copies from Kinko's at 611 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE (here on Capitol Hill) (202) 547-0421. He will pick up copies just about anywhere within a 20-block radius of the White House. To get a quote or let him know you are sending something, call the service's voice mail at (301) 899-0182. A guy named Ed Parker will call you back, usually within 2 hours. He has many other delivery options and prices, so you should definately call him to get a quote on any particular job. He has been doing this for 12 years. Be prepared to talk/listen a while, though. [...] This is a good opportunity for people to put their DTP skills to use. Since the delivered items probably won't be personally addressed, you might want to jazz them up a bit - make them newsletter-like. Some suggestions: * Colored paper * Nice print and layout * Drawings, graphics * Letter to the Editor or article * POLITICAL CARTOONS Here on the Hill, we have "Dear Colleagues" that are circulated daily by Members of Congress. They are usually just one-page letters, photocopied. The House Postmaster delivers these to all 435 offices, and are a good way for Members of Congress to get his/her colleagues to take a certain action (usually to cosign a bill or vote a certain way). The appearance of these does make a difference in the amount of attention they receive. __ [What my source refers to above as "Dear Colleagues" above are sort of like mass mailings that Members of Congress send to each other to try to convince them to vote for a piece of legislation or in favor of a position. His suggestion of emulating their fact-sheet-looking letters is great. Remember that the best generic form of address for this would be "Dear Member of Congress". -- Jeff C.]