“Senators and Representatives have staff to help them manage now, but not nearly enough to meaningfully engage, listen to, and understand so many people, let alone integrate what they hear into comprehensive and inclusive public policy proposals,” the report stated.
In 2010, the average House member represented 710,000 people and received about $1.5 million to manage their offices. Results from the 2020 census show the average district now has more than 760,000 people, yet the amount of funds to address their requests remains the same.
Brad Fitch, CEO of the Congressional Management Foundation, said the pandemic forced many congressional offices to embrace modern technology to better communicate with their constituents.
“In the last year, we’ve seen an explosion in demand for Congress to assist with everything from helping hospitals getting PPE to getting expatriates, at the beginning of the pandemic who were stuck overseas, back to the United States,” Fitch said.
At the same…