Keeping in touch with the people of Maine is one of my most important duties as a United States Senator. Every week the Senate is in session we work on issues that impact the everyday lives of Mainers, and my work on these issues is deeply informed by you. Maintaining an active dialogue with folks at home is just as important to my job as learning from outside experts and working with my colleagues in Congress.

On average, we receive over 2,000 pieces of mail a week. How we sort and respond to those messages is an impressive process, and this week I would like to take you past the front desk and behind the scenes to our mailroom, the first stop for all correspondence coming from Maine.

Each day I receive hundreds of letters, phone calls, and emails from people in Maine and around the country. As it is a longstanding courtesy in the Senate that each Senator be allowed to respond to their own constituents, I pass along the messages from out-of-state-folks to their respective representatives. However, when a message from Maine arrives, it is immediately recorded and sorted according to issue or purpose. Comments and questions about legislative and political issues are sorted by topic area, and constituent services requests are sent along to staff in my three Maine offices.

Getting through this mountain of mail is a daunting task, and every Congressional office struggles to handle the daily load. To help establish best practices and keep me informed about incoming mail, I sit down every week with my correspondence staff to look over the incoming mail, learn what Mainers are writing in about and how we are addressing their concerns. By working as a team, the process has become much more efficient and streamlined. We are proud to say that, on average, it takes less than a week to answer a Mainer’s message.

In Washington, I have nine staffers who each specialize in different issue areas and assist me with this monumental correspondence effort.  They help me read through the immense volume of information I receive, as well as draft responses back to people like you.  However, before any letter leaves my office, it comes to my desk. I give every letter a final review to make sure it accurately conveys my voice, opinion, and most important, that it thoroughly answers the question you asked!

Like all Americans, Mainers are diverse in their thoughts and concerns, reaching out to me about a wide-array of issues, and each one is equally important. I value the insight and concern of every person, and appreciate how politically engaged the citizens of Maine are. In my first year in office, I had the privilege of hearing from and responding to 44,346 Mainers on 111,258 different occasions. I remember one instance in which my office was able to help reunite a Somali family following years of separation after one member was granted asylum in the U.S. while the rest of his family waited to have their Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition forms processed. One of my Constituent Services Representatives was able to clarify the confusion regarding their applications so that they could finally be approved.  It was great to see our efforts positively impact individual lives – and it all started with a letter.

The people of Maine take time out of their days to formulate thoughtful questions and comments and send me passionate, informative, and on occasion, sometimes angry letters. I pride myself on putting a similar amount of effort and thought into my responses. Rarely will my office send out a generic form letter - you deserve real answers and explanations. You may not always get the answer you want, but I promise it will be an honest one.

So keep writing to me. Let me know where you stand. You elected me to bring your voices to the Senate chamber, and your letters, emails, and phone calls are key to me being able to do that.