Manager, Federal Relations

The Manager of Federal Relations reports to the Deputy Director of Federal Relations and collaborates with members of the Advocacy, Policy, and Practice Advancement (APPA) team to advance the APA’s federal legislative agenda, advocacy priorities, and applicable grassroots and political programs. This role includes, but is not limited to, tracking, and monitoring legislation, developing issue expertise on critical mental health issues; supporting federal lobbying efforts; and assisting in the planning and implementation of various advocacy programs and meetings.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Assist lobbyist with outreach to Congressional offices and develop constructive professional relationships with Members of Congress and their staff.
• Support the Federal Relations team with administrative lobbying activities, including bill research and tracking, and filing lobbyist reports.
• Attend and report on Congressional hearings and markups related to mental health and other health-related issues.
• Serve as a junior lobbyist for the APA on a variety of healthcare and mental health-related issues, including representing the organization at Hill meetings, Congressional briefings, political events, coalitions, and other activities, as assigned.
• Assist in developing and drafting advocacy documents including fact sheets, talking points, grassroots alerts, and other advocacy communications.
• Maintain and expand relevant internal databases to reflect legislative champions, APA-supported legislation, and identify new opportunities for APA member engagement on the federal level, including the building of relationships with Members of Congress and their staffs, and attending legislative meetings and forums.
• In collaboration with the Manager of Grassroots/PAC, support the planning, drafting, and dissemination of the APA’s grassroots activities to facilitate and increase APA member physician involvement in advocacy activities.
• Participate in the planning and execution of the APA’s Federal Advocacy Conferences and fly-ins
• In collaboration with senior APPA staff, identify and prepare relevant content for posting on the advocacy-related portions of the APA website and assist in APA’s advocacy newsletter.
• Assist Federal Relations staff in planning and executing other advocacy-related programs and presentations, including Congressional briefings and APA staff or leadership presentations to DBs/SAs.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

COMPETENCIES

The Manager, Federal Relations’ performance on these duties and responsibilities will be measured using the following competencies:

SCOPE & IMPACT

• Performs complex and nuanced tasks individually, and in a team environment that impacts the APPA’s congressional strategic agenda
• Provides analysis and recommendations on legislative proposals and drafts talking points, advocacy documents and letters to Congress
• Demonstrates the ability to build relationships with members of Congress and staff and assists lobbyist in executing legislative agenda
• Drafts and coordinates advocacy newsletter for members in a timely manner
• Responsible for the submission of APA’s lobbying reports and coordinating the placement of Spurlock fellowships in congressional offices

COMPLEXITY, PROBLEM SOLVING & DECISION-MAKING

• Work is generally defined with the ability to exercise independent judgement on day-to-day operations and collaborates with APPA department and Federal team’s initiatives
• Demonstrates decision making capabilities and independent judgement on daily responsibilities and completes tasks in a timely manner
• Identifies issues outside of daily operations and designs and recommends solutions for approval
• Recognizes complex issues outside of daily operations and scope to escalate to Deputy Director, Federal Relations and / or Government Relations Officer of APPA department on solutions and recommendations

RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT & AUTHORITY

• Develops relationships and serves as a liaison to both internal and external stakeholders in collaboration with Deputy Director, Federal Relations and / or Government Relations Officer of APPA department
• Coordinates with other Departments within the APA on daily operations and may serve a liaison for APPA and / or Federal Team
• Serves as APA liaison with outside stakeholders including, but not limited to Congress and partner organizations, and in coordination with Deputy Director, Federal Relations and / or Government Relations Officer of APPA
• Identifies issues as an APA liaison that stem from internal and external stakeholders that require guidance from Deputy Director, Federal Relations and / or Government Relations Officer of APPA

ORGANIZATIONAL KNOWLEDGE

• Demonstrates an understanding of APA’s organizational procedures and APPA’s overall mission
• Demonstrates a general understanding and knowledge of APPA’s policies and procedures
• Demonstrates thorough understanding of the Federal Team’s strategic initiatives

SUPERVISION

• Coaches and mentors junior level staff